TikTok creators are living healthy lifestyles ironically — and it’s working

If there is one thing we all know about doing something ironically, it’s that you eventually end up doing it sincerely. Anyone who has ever used internet slang as a joke knows this.

Daniela Piras, a 24-year-old TikTok creator from Austin, Texas, is harnessing the power of irony for self-improvement — and she’s encouraging others to do the same.

On Oct. 19, she posted a TikTok to her account @lamebaby47 with the caption “I am about to fuck around and start doing like really healthy habits ironically because I think that’s the only way I am going to do them.” The video went viral, garnering over 1.5 million views and nearly 500,000 likes. It didn’t take long for other users on the app to follow suit, implementing healthy habits into their daily routines… ironically.

“When I am doing these healthy habits I am removed from it because I am doing it in a way where I know I am not taking it seriously,” explained Piras.

I am about to fuck around and start doing like really healthy habits ironically because I think that’s the only way I am going to do them.

Piras shows off her ironic walk attire to her followers.
Credit: Tiktok / lamebaby27

Everyday wellness is a huge topic of conversation on TikTok, where there are countless videos of young creators demonstrating their morning routines. They wake up early and make their bed; they do some light stretching to stimulate blood flow; and they consume a healthy breakfast. It’s not unlike the “that girl” trend from earlier this summer, in which TikTok creators encouraged viewers to become “that girl” — aka someone who has their life together — by following their tried and true routines.

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But watching these kinds of videos can be overwhelming. How are we supposed to have a multi-step skincare routine, meditate, exercise, journal, and cook three meals a day like Emily Mariko?

“I see those videos as an unattainable life just because I know who I am. I needed something that will work for me,” said Piras.

So she created a different way to get your shit together: by treating healthy habits as a joke. The message resonated with people on the app, who started practicing their own healthy habits for the sake of irony and camp.

Recently, Piras posted an update to her original TikTok. “It’s been two weeks and I’ve been on a walk every single day. I get up at 7:30 a.m. every single day and I am someone who sucks at having a routine,” she said. “This is working for me. I think I fixed myself,” she continued.

Piras on her daily walk. The fanny pack is key to her keeping her walks ironic.
Credit: Daniella piras

People have been tricking themselves into having more confidence for ages with the phrase “fake it till you make it,” but now it’s “do it ironically until it’s sincere.”

“I think the way I phrased it just clicked with people. It’s fake it till you make it, but repackaged for Gen Z,” said Piras.

One example of someone benefiting from the trend is @lauren_gwyn, who posted, “saw a tiktok today explaining that calling everything camp and doing things ironically helps u have a schedule so today I woke up at 8am just for the irony of it, went to all my classes because it’s giving camp, and worked out but in a satire, camp, ironic way.” Her video has nearly 30,000 likes.

Piras started a trend on TikTok.
Credit: Tiktok / lauren_gwyn

A TikTok from @that.tall.redhead reads, “No but ever since I saw that video about doing healthy habits ironically I’m actually matching my socks because wouldn’t it be so funny if I made my life convenient.”

With a fresh mindset in tow, this is what Piras’s routine looks like now: She gets up at 7:30 a.m., cleans her room, makes her bed, and takes a daily stroll around her neighborhood. What’s next? She wants to start weight training — ironically, of course.