The New Year is often a time of bold health declarations and lofty resolutions. But let’s be honest, health isn’t a sprint; it’s a marathon. And if you’re reading this, I know you already get it. True health isn’t about January trends; it’s a 365-day commitment to yourself.

That’s why this year, I want you to skip the noise and avoid the traps. Let’s talk about one of the biggest pitfalls: fad diets, detoxes, and trends that promise instant results but compromise long-term health.

1. Going on a detox or fad diet

The holidays are indulgent by design, a season of feasts, laughter, and the communal breaking of bread.

January, though, whispers guilt: Undo it. Cleanse yourself. But here’s the truth: your body is not a toxin riddled vessel. Your liver and kidneys are already orchestrating a seamless symphony of detoxification every moment. No expensive juice cleanse or fad diet can replicate the brilliance of that design.

Fad diets often deprive your body of vital nutrients, disrupt your metabolic flow, and foster a binge/restrict cycle that leaves you weary and defeated. Instead, focus on replenishing your body with nutrient dense foods such as pastured eggs, organ meats, and collagen rich broths. 

2. Cutting out carbs

Carbs often get demonised, especially in the animal based community, but they are crucial for metabolic health and hormone regulation. Cutting carbs too drastically can lead to sluggish thyroid function, poor energy levels, and disrupted sleep cycles.

Reach for the sacred carbohydrates of our ancestors: the honey that sweetens, the fruits ripened in sunlight, and the roots pulled from nutrient-dense soil. These sources are as natural as the rhythms they support.

Remember, it’s not the carbs that are the problem, it’s the overly processed, nutrient-void ones

3. Obsessing over the perfect routine

Fitness is riddled with myths, and chief among them is the illusion of the perfect routine

In the quest for fitness perfection, it’s easy to spiral into over analysis, chasing an “ideal” workout routine that’s often unsustainable beyond the first week. The result? Paralysis or burnout.

Here’s the antidote: simplicity. Health thrives on rhythms, not rigidity.

Think of primal movements: walking at dawn, sprinting with the abandon of a child, or lifting something heavy because it makes you feel capable. Movement doesn’t have to be confined to four walls or a mat. The best routine is one you’ll stick with because it aligns with your interests and lifestyle.

And here’s the twist: sometimes the exercises you resist the most, like squats or mobility work, are the ones your body craves.  Stick with them, and you might just fall in love with how they transform you, both physically and mentally.

4. Counting calories

Calories are a crude metric, a reductive way to approach nourishment. Food is not maths, it’s medicine.

Calorie counting treats food as mere numbers rather than the rich, complex fuel your body needs. For instance, 200 calories from bone marrow are not remotely comparable to 200 calories from crackers.

Instead of focusing on calorie limits, focus on the quality of your food.

Nutrient dense staples like grass fed beef, wildcaught fish, raw dairy, and organs provide bioavailable vitamins, healthy fats, and essential amino acids provide bioavailable vitamins and essential amino acids that fuel your body far better than a restrictive calorie limit.

Eat to satiety, trust your hunger cues, and honor your body’s natural rhythms. When you focus on nourishment over numbers, everything else falls into place.

5. Ignoring recovery

The exhilaration of a new fitness routine often blinds us to its counterbalance: recovery. Without rest, muscles tear but don’t repair, cortisol spikes remain unchecked, and the body drifts into chronic fatigue.

Recovery isn’t passive, it’s an active practice of restoration. Cold plunges and sauna sessions cleanse and reset. Deep, uninterrupted sleep knits torn muscle fibres back together. Collagen rich foods like bone broth repair joints and tissues, making rest as nourishing as exertion. Remember, progress doesn’t happen during the push, it happens in the stillness that follows.

Health is holistic and timeless. It’s about building habits you can sustain every day of the year, not just until February. So skip the gimmicks and double down on what works.