Of course, it’s a good idea to think about your health and to take steps to try to improve it. Your health affects your longevity, your quality of life, and more. While most doctors and health professionals recommend working on your fitness, nutrition, and healthy lifestyle habits, it’s also possible at times to feel overwhelmed or consumed by it to your detriment. A new report shows that the relentless pursuit of well-being actually has the opposite effect and makes people feel less well.
The rising rates of chronic disease
Today, people are becoming increasingly health conscious as the rate of chronic diseases continues to climb. Research unveils that almost half, or approximately 45% of Americans suffer from at least one chronic disease, such as high blood pressure, arthritis, heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. It makes sense that we want to make positive changes to feel better and live healthier lives, but can that consistent discussion, effort, and pressure to stay fit and healthy cause well-being burnout?
The report
According to Lululemon’s 2024 Global Wellbeing Report, nearly two-thirds of people feel ‘well-being burnout’. The expansive survey looked at 16,000 participants in 15 countries and revealed that:
- 61% of people feel overwhelming societal expectations to appear well
- One in two people experience well-being burnout
- 53% of people said they felt burnout due to the conflicting information on how to improve wellness
- 89% claimed that the burnout was largely due to loneliness.
Even though more people are working on improving their well-being compared to last year’s report, more people are experiencing burnout.
What to do about it
In the report, Lululemon listed a few helpful pointers for combating this stress:
Take social media breaks
Those who took social media breaks reported 9% higher well-being.
Socialize while you exercise
Survey participants who trained with others reported 23% higher well-being.
Move your body throughout the day
Your body was made to move, and survey participants who performed some form of light exercise like a short walk or a quick 10-minute yoga practice throughout the day reported 16% higher well-being.
Social media and the internet are cluttered with people sharing their fitness and weight loss success stories, their rigorous workout plans, and their latest diet. You can feel lost and stressed amidst the clutter, leaving you feeling less ‘well’ overall. Perhaps the motto here is that we all need to switch off from time to time because there’s a fine line between being health-conscious and becoming overwhelmed. It also seems that training with others helps you develop a sense of community to dissipate some of that pressure.
