From booksmaxxing to looksmaxxing: Why mental health experts say too much self-optimisation can be harmful

Adding more books to your reading list this year? You’re booksmaxxing. Incorporating more fibre-rich foods in your diet? That’s fibremaxxing. Changing your appearance in hopes of being more attractive? Looksmaxxing.

Doing the bare minimum is a thing of the past — unless you’re relaxmaxxing, of course. Across social media platforms, you can find just about anything with the suffix “maxxing” attached to describe the phenomenon of optimising your approaches to health, intelligence or other elements of self-improvement.

The concept of maxxing coincides with a wellness industry boom. The global market could hit almost $US10 trillion ($14.3t) by 2030, according to estimates from the non-profit Global Wellness Institute which monitors wellness economy trends.

Brands are paying attention to what people are trying to optimise. Food and beverage companies now offer more high-fibre products, from popcorn to soft drinks.

For sleepmaxxers, supplements and skincare products that claim to enhance sleep quality and quantity are appearing more frequently on shelves in stores.

The maxxing trend suggests that instead of simply doing an activity, you must accelerate the degree to which it may make you smarter, healthier or otherwise better. That framework raises concerns for some mental health experts — perhaps ironically, for the wellnessmaxxers among us.

Doing anything to an extreme degree is often “a detriment to other areas of your life”, says psychotherapist Billie Dunlevy, who works with clients across the UK. That ”obviously isn’t healthy, and that isn’t something that any licensed mental health professional would advocate for”.

With maxxing, “the idea is about optimisation, but the risk is about overdoing it”, adds New York City-based clinical psychologist Jennifer Hartstein.

Too much ‘maxxing’ can be harmful, experts say

Wanting to improve your health outcomes is inherently good, both Ms Dunlevy and Dr Hartstein say.

How you pursue those goals requires discernment, they note. “It’s OK to be passionate about something,” Ms Dunlevy says, but the maxxing trend has a “perfectionistic ideal about it, which isn’t based in reality”.

Looksmaxxing, which often involves trying to chisel one’s jawline and alter other facial features to appear more conventionally attractive, is particularly concerning, says Ms Dunlevy.

Aggressively searching for ways to change your appearance can lead to body dysmorphia or other body image issues in otherwise low-risk individuals, she says.

Tactics like using steroids and chewing rock-hard gum can cause physical harm to the mostly teenage boys who follow that particular trend.

Even with healthier pursuits, you may not want to turn your hobby into a chore by hyper-fixating on your progress.

Don’t beat yourself up if you set a goal to watch seven movies at the weekend and only watch four, says Dr Hartstein. Rigidly clinging to specific goals can “trigger a whole sense of shame and put you in a spiral”, she says. “The biggest risk to me of maxxing is the fact that it can actually feed people’s anxiety and depression ... if it doesn’t work the way they want, or if they fail.”

Too much tunnel vision on achieving your goals can cause you to neglect other areas of your life, including your relationships, Dr Hartstein says.

Some people who lean into maxxing-like trends can struggle to feel happy even when they hit their targets, because they fall into the pattern of always seeking the next achievement instead of celebrating what they’ve already done, Ms Dunlevy adds.

“Even when they achieve something that might have been really tough, (that) they might have had to really challenge themselves to do, they don’t feel particularly satisfied,” says Ms Dunlevy. “They move on to something else, and then they move on to something else, and so again.”

Check in with yourself, Ms Dunlevy suggests, and ask your loved ones if your approaches to self-development are healthy.

And if you notice yourself slipping into unhealthy, obsessive behaviours, seek support from a mental health professional.

Get clear on your ‘why’ and give yourself grace

It’s no surprise that people are leaning into maxxing, especially as society continues to feel a sense of uncertainty and fear around the economic, political and environmental state of the world, both mental health experts say.

“Everything just feels overwhelming and chaotic. Locking in on one thing almost provides a sense of stability,” says Dr Hartstein.

Still, you can approach improving aspects of your life without putting too much pressure on yourself. First, ask yourself why you want to achieve specific goals to begin with. Dr Hartstein suggests considering questions such as:

• “What goal do I want to set for myself?”
• “What’s a reasonable goal for me specifically?”

What works for other people may not work for you. If your schedule keeps you from hitting the gym four times per week, aim for a more realistic number to set yourself up for success.

“Ask yourself: If no one was looking or no one was able to see the quantifiable results, would I still be pushing this hard?” Ms Dunlevy says. “A lot of this is about optics.”

Self-optimisation can also be extra stressful when when you’re navigating difficult life situations like job insecurity, grief or relationship struggles, Ms Dunlevy says.

The healthiest hobbies and pursuits are ones that you can step away from whenever you need to and pick back up when you have the bandwidth, she and Dr Hartstein both say.