Shane Watson is an author, journalist and columnist for The Telegraph OPINION Where one goes, another steps in...
These are things I’m worrying about as I get older Diets are dead in 2024 – or so we’re told. Gen Z have turned their backs on the Boomer generation’s Ryvita and cottage cheese and Gen Xrs’ no-carb regimes. Healthy eating, body positivity and Ozempic have combined to put the dieting industry on notice and we can all breathe a sigh of relief.
But let’s not be too hasty to congratulate ourselves because – to paraphrase the late James Goldsmith – when you get over one competitive anxiety you create a vacancy, and dieting is essentially competitive. You wouldn’t bother if you were marooned alone on a desert island after all. Comparing yourself to others who are slimmer is at the root of all dieting – mental health issues aside – and comparing ourselves to others seems to be in women’s DNA .
So, if we’re let off the hook size-wise, we’ll simply find something new that we think we’re failing at in comparison to our peers. I grew out of dieting years ago but I’ve developed eight brand-new competitive anxieties – all of them pretty standard for a female late Boomer. You may recognise some of them.
.. Feeling under pressure to be fit, if not thin There’s almost a moral element to this as you get older.
Not running or lifting weights or doing something serious in the exercise department – walking the dog does not count – is considered .
