I Started the New Year With a Donut: Why Long-Term Recovery Has Nothing to Do With Resets, Detoxes, or Food Rules

I started the New Year with a donut.

Not as a rebellion against diet culture.

Not as a “cheat.”

Not as a dramatic statement.

Just… a donut. I just thought I’d share because to me a donut on New Year’s Day is freedom.

Every January, the noise ramps up. Suddenly everyone is “cleansing,” “dieting”, “over exercising” or trying to undo the holidays as fast as possible. If you’ve ever struggled with food, your body, or an eating disorder, that noise can feel extra loud and really familiar.

Because diet culture loves to convince us that a new year means a new body. That eating “normally” is something you have to earn. And that if you start January wrong, you’ve already failed.

Here’s the thing though, that mindset is exactly what keeps people stuck.

Recovery Isn’t About Being Perfect With Food

There was a time in my life when starting the year with a donut would’ve sent me into a downward spiral. I would’ve thought I needed to “make up for it,” restrict later, or start over on Monday.

Now? I ate the donut.

And then I moved on with my day.

That’s recovery.

Not because donuts are magical or because nutrition doesn’t matter, but because food doesn’t get to run the show anymore.

You Can Go to the Gym and Eat Like a Normal Person

One of the biggest lies diet culture sells is that it has to be all or nothing.

You’re either being “good” or “bad”

But real life doesn’t work like that.

You can enjoy movement because it feels good and eat foods you actually like.

You can care about your health without punishing your body.

You can eat a donut and still be someone who values wellness.

Those things are not opposites, unless diet culture tells you they are.

What Actually Helps This Time of Year

If January feels hard, especially if you’re in recovery or thinking about it, a few gentle reminders:

• You don’t need to “undo” the holidays

• Your body does not need a reset

• Food is not a moral issue

• Consistency matters more than control

And maybe the biggest one: healing doesn’t look dramatic.

Sometimes it looks like eating a donut and not thinking twice about it.

A Different Kind of New Year Intention

Instead of resolutions about food or your body, maybe this year is about:

• Listening a little more

• Restricting a little less

• Letting food be food again

If starting the year with a donut feels uncomfortable, that might actually be important information, not something to push away.

You’re not doing it wrong.

You’re learning something new.

And that counts. Happy New Year.