Rest Is Resistance: Rejecting the Hustle of New Year, New You

In a sea of “New Year, New You” posts, videos, and articles, it can feel impossible to lean into the idea that rest is resistance. And this is a problem. Why? Because it spotlights the idea that we must always be fixing; we must always be productive. 

The damage of this is real. According to a recent survey from the American Institute of Stress, 88 percent of young adults feel either frequent or constant anxiety from striving to be productive all the time. This pressure is intensified by social media’s glamorization of hustle culture. 

Plus, research shows that exposure to hashtags such as #RiseAndGrind can cause folks to conflate motivation with a relentless need to always do more. That hustle culture mindset is not only a recipe for burnout, but it can also diminish your self-worth and impact your mental health.

The “New Year, New You” mantra can be particularly toxic for those with eating disorders. Another new 2026 poll found that 48 percent of Americans want to exercise more often, 45 percent want to eat healthier, and 31 percent want to lose weight. 

These appearance-centric resolutions can encourage harmful behaviors in folks who already battle obsessions with food, fitness, or body image. So what’s the antidote to this annual pressure? 

As basic as it sounds, rest, we must come back to rest. This might feel counterintuitive, but here’s the truth: Rest is both essential to health and an act of resistance against the cycles that keep so many of us worn out and unwell. 

Let’s explore what it means to reject hustle and embrace rest in 2026.

The Problem with “New Year, New You” in Eating Disorder Recovery

Hustle culture thrives on the belief that performance metrics equal human worth. That rigid mentality requires deprivation and sacrifice in the pursuit of a narrow definition of success. In other words, rest is earned when your goals are achieved. 

Now consider that over 60 percent of Americans make New Year’s resolutions not because they want to, but because they feel pressure to. As a result, bending to those outside expectations can undermine the internal work of listening to your own needs or cultivating trust with yourself.

After all, the “New Year, New You” narrative is based on an assumption that who you are at this moment isn’t inherently enough; you have to change.

Eating disorders are often rooted in shame, self-criticism, perfectionism, or a desire for control, according to research. So when a cultural message influences you to strive for loftier ambitions, harsher efforts, and more sweeping transformations, it can reinforce eating disorder behaviors. 

Yet, the reality is that healing is incremental and nonlinear, which means you can’t force it through sheer hustle. Sustainable healing needs gentle compassion, care, and rest.  

Rest Is Resistance: A Countercultural Framework from The Nap Ministry

This concept of rest as resistance comes from Tricia Hershey, founder of The Nap Ministry and author of Rest Is Resistance: A Manifesto. Centered on the history of Black feminist activism, The Nap Ministry frames rest as both personal and political—a rejection of mainstream society’s commodification of Black labor and an invitation to choose healing “soul care” instead. 

Known as the “Nap Bishop,” Hershey contends that hustling is not a moral virtue, and human bodies are so much more than just instruments for productivity.

American capitalism is built on systems that have exploited labor for centuries (especially in marginalized communities), creating a myth that rest is the compensation you receive after allowing, or even forcing, yourself to suffer. 

However, this “rest is resistance” framework redefines rest as a form of radical liberation and joyful defiance in a world that equates value with output. You don’t have to work for rest; it’s your inherent right as a human.

In response to the “New Year, New You” messaging we encounter this season, Hershey has a different message. Recently, she posted on Instagram, “You don’t need to finish this year ‘strong.’ That’s another capitalistic lie. You need to finish alive and whole.” 

That simple but countercultural reminder invites us to stop basing our identity on how much we do, or what goals we check off, so we can rest in the acceptance of who we are.  

Scientific data also backs this up. A recent study in the Behavioral Sciences Journal found that prioritizing intentional rest over constant depletion can enhance the quality of our professional, relational, and personal well-being.

When we choose rest, we’re more drawn to healthy coping mechanisms, emotional regulation, and work-life balance. We’re also more open to restorative practices that bolster mental health and resilience.   

How to Meaningfully Embrace the Idea of Rest as Resistance in 2026

Let’s replace the internalized narrative of “New Year, New You.”

Whether you’re in eating disorder recovery, healing from disordered eating, or just want to break out of hustle culture’s relentless grind, here are some ways to create gentle, compassionate, and flexible rhythms that encourage this mindset of rest as resistance.    

• Intentional pauses: Give yourself permission at certain intervals in the day to step back from producing and just be. Tune into your senses. Notice the moment you’re in. Affirm your worth as a person, outside of your achievements.  

• Nervous system resets: Each day, take a few mindful breaths, perform a quick body scan, or do a meditation practice. As you do, focus on areas of tension, stress, or energy blocks inside of you. Picture yourself releasing those blocks, then redirecting self-love to each part of the body. This can help soothe and relax the nervous system.     

• Unstructured time: Create space in your routine for self-reflecting, dreaming, creating, and inner processing. Lean into practices that cultivate joy. For some, this might be writing in a journal or drawing in a sketchpad. For others, it could be strolling in nature or dancing in the kitchen. There’s no right or wrong, just what feels good and joyful to you.

• Healthy sleep routines: Honor your natural sleep rhythms and create bedtime self-care rituals that will nurture restorative sleep. For example, moderate your screen time in the evening, silence your email and social media notifications after a certain time of day, and consistently aim for about 7–9 hours of sleep each night to ensure you wake up refreshed each morning.   

• Collective care: Surround yourself with a supportive community that normalizes rest as an intrinsic human right, not a rare luxury. Collective care is a core value of The Nap Ministry. We all need relationships that encourage us to nourish our bodies, minds, and spirits without feeling like we have to earn that nourishment.

Make Rest Your Act of Resistance, and Healing, this New Year

As the chorus of “New Year, New You” intensifies this season, consider an alternative possibility. Healing is not about how much you can strive, improve, or achieve. Rather, it’s about making consistent and compassionate strides to become a more whole version of yourself. This is why rest is resistance, and a powerful tool for healing, nurturing, and supporting yourself through another year.

Need help freeing yourself from the internalized belief that your worth and value are based on your hustle? Project HEAL can match you with a licensed therapist who will meet you in this process. Learn more about our treatment access programs today.