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Is 'bed-rotting' the antidote to hustle culture?

One surprising social media trend glorifies laziness - and it may be the antidote to hustle culture.
Sarah McKenna Barry
Sarah McKenna Barry

16.11 27 Jan 2025


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Is 'bed-rotting' the antidote...

Is 'bed-rotting' the antidote to hustle culture?

Sarah McKenna Barry
Sarah McKenna Barry

16.11 27 Jan 2025


Share this article


Social media may be awash with clean living hacks and motivational content, but one surprising trend glorifies laziness - and it may be the antidote to hustle culture.

The term bed-rotting refers to the practice of spending long hours in bed, neglecting the outside world, scrolling through social media or binge-watching a TV series.

While it may not sound like the healthiest practice, TV personality James Kavanagh told Moncrieff he believes in the rejuvenating powers of bed-rotting.

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"I kind of feel like bed-rotting is a catch-all term for someone who takes pride and can be lazy guilt-free and doesn’t have to fill their free-time with a schedule of things," Mr Kavanagh said.

"I kind of feel like [we live] in a society where we’re bombarded with ‘You should be doing stuff, you should be up a mountain on a Sunday, you should be hiking, doing this.'

"Let's just slow down a bit."

A man sleeping in bed at home, Alamy

Mr Kavanagh said many people feel guilty about doing nothing and insisted in the benefits of bed-rotting.

"There’s a guilt around doing nothing, but actually doing nothing is kind of doing something," he said.

"People call it bed-rotting - I call it bed-rejuvenation because you are charging yourself back up again.

"Doing nothing is doing something and if you can take the time to chill and go into the slow lane [you should not] feel guilty about doing nothing."

Hustle culture

It is perhaps no surprise that bed-rotting has found its devotees at a time when hustle culture is so widespread.

"I've seen on TikTok, there are 15, 16 and 17-year-olds talking about the 'hustle life' and getting into freezing cold ice-baths in the morning and just pushing the 'constantly doing stuff' way of life," Mr Kavanagh said.

"I've always just been kind of allergic to that stuff - I'm just a big believer in the slow lane."

You can listen back below:

Feature image shows a woman looking at her phone in bed, Alamy


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