Have you ever made a New Year’s resolution for yourself, only to abandon it within a few days into the new year?
Daydreaming about achieving your goals on New Year’s Eve is one of our generation’s biggest activities- but very rarely does it result in genuine transformation.
However, TikTok users are new spin to things this year by getting a head start on transforming their lives. How are they doing this? By their newly established ‘Winter Arc’ Challenge, of course.
What is the Winter Arc Challenge?
Beginning as a TikTok trend, Winter Arc Challenge is meant to be followed for 90 days in the last three months of the year.
““These are the months where a lot of people tend to slow down … this is the time where people tend to let their foot off the gas,” says one TikToker, Carly Upgraded, who coined the term of the challenge in a video with 4.6 million views.
She explained: “Starting on 1 October, you have three months or 90 days until the end of the year to get super laser focused on your goals, your personal development, your growth so that by the time the new year rolls around, you’re already coming out a whole other beast.”
In other words, by the time January 1st arrives, you will already have a head start.
The Winter Arc Challenge does not have a fixed plan. Instead, people usually come up with a list of 10 self-improvement activities they’d like to add to their daily routines. These could include drinking more water, journaling every day, walking 10,000 steps, or something else altogether.
How did the Internet React?
The ‘Winter Arc’ trend is immensely popular, beginning on TikTok and picking up stream across various other platforms.
Many users have created their own plan similar to New Year resolutions to announce their decisions. Some have posted videos on healthy habits they plan on implementing for the 90 days. Others have announced three goals that they will tick one off per month to avoid feeling overwhelmed.
However, the trend naturally faced a variety of reactions from social media users, ranging from excitement to humor to dismissal. Take a look at some of them below:
winter arc challenge for academic comeback pic.twitter.com/4xbMiCE4YF
— R. (@stillintoyou_7) November 23, 2024
Starting Winter Arc challenge and uninstalling instagram,Facebook etc is a mood.
Not posting shit until i completely transformed my body and mind and also going back to myself and loving myself as i should&deserve.
This comeback is personal and i owe it myself. pic.twitter.com/NA4Wv0PfzE— Sakura_Blossom_13 (@AN_Jell13) October 1, 2024
winter arc starter pack👌❄️
This and a mortal foe to train against pic.twitter.com/xMwb4pTLbn
— ⚡️🌞 Sol Brah 🌞🐬 (@SolBrah) November 26, 2024
I’m a Health Editor who regularly ignores viral fitness trends – but a month in, I’m totally sold on the Winter Arc challenge https://t.co/DjTaoi4LXq
— Marie Claire (@marieclaireuk) October 30, 2024
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Funny how I am doing the “winter” arc challenge when it is 30° outside 🌞😆 pic.twitter.com/ocwEhtW2mH
— Rudrank Riyam (@rudrankriyam) October 3, 2024
day 3 and i already lost winter arc challenge
— trupti (@iamtruptea) October 3, 2024
This winter arc challenge is all BS!
As you won’t keep it
Better:
1. Pick one thing to do daily.
2. Document your systems.
3. Focus on progress, not perfection.
4. Watch consistency transform your results.Rome wasn’t built in a single day!
Develop habits first
— Khizar Javed | DTC Marketing (@Khizarmarketing) November 27, 2024
Is the ‘Winter Arc’ Trend Genuinely Helpful?
For those who are not participating or have just found out about the trend, one question remains: is it genuinely healthy? As it turns out, the answer can go both ways.
On one hand, experts have highlighted the community-driven and structured challenge that makes use of the last few months in the year, where many are involved in psychological reassessments. It gives users time to work on themselves and can provide additional motivation for the future.
On the other hand, there is aways the risk of peer pressure and anxiety if users feel compelled to join a trend that is not tailored for their own needs. Some may also engage in extreme behaviors to keep up with the trend, such as self-isolation, which are extremely harmful to one’s physical and mental wellbeing.
