TikTok: The Big Sister I Never Had

Minus the hours I spend scrolling, TikTok for me is like the big sister I never had, I love TikTok. Becoming a TikTok influencer or to be honest even just posting more silly daily vlogs of my life lives rent free in my mind. My humour and endless references are 9 times out of 10 likely to be from TikTok, and I am so okay with that. 

One thing I will never understand is the hatred that so many people have towards TikTok, apart from the obvious number of hours that one can spend scrolling, I think TikTok is the perfect place to find such a wide range of differing communities (running, travel, skincare…) and it’s such an amazing way to bring people together. 

Take for example, Anna Archer, the TikTok influencer, turned Gymshark athlete and podcast host, among many other things, she is arguably one of the most inspiring women on TikTok. She recently organised her “Anna on the Run: UK and Ireland Tour 2024”, in collaboration with her recent collection with Gymshark, where in London alone 2,000 people turned up to her 5k run club. This event, even as an outsider (I’m so jealous I couldn’t attend), filled my heart with so much joy… so many women running with bows in their hair around Battersea Park all in support and love for Anna Archer. 

The running community on TikTok is something that has inspired me to start running and even sign up for a half marathon in September, because I thought if they can do it so can I. Running accounts which I personally love include the above Anna Archer, Holly Brooks, Astrid Calduch and Demelza May. They provide advice, motivation, tips, and tricks on how to go from me, a non-runner, into a runner that can run a half marathon, and most importantly running correctly without getting injured. 

Then you have another side of TikTok for which I absolutely love, and that’s TravelTok. I think about 2/3rds of my saved videos on TikTok are places around the world to visit. Whether that be beaches to visit, hidden gems, restaurants, things to do or hostels to go to… I think I could plan my whole gap year from TikTok alone! Whenever I book a weekend break, I will always look up on TikTok recommendations, and let me tell you it has never once failed me. 

I spend most of my time looking up places to go and following travel influencers around the world just dreaming of being on the exact beach they are on, like the Gold Coast in Australia. Via my TikTok research, I have even found a surf camp in Costa Rica that I am looking to book… So let’s say I have been successfully influenced. 

Then you have the skincare and beauty side of TikTok and that’s the other 1/3^rd of my saved videos. I have learnt so much through TikTok to the point I think my skincare routine now was built just from TikTok recommendations. It truly is the big sister I never had. My skin has never glowed so much, the clean girl aesthetic is coming through and it makes me so happy. I have learnt what vitamins to take to help with skin for example, found out rosemary oil helps to stimulate hair growth, and randomly that glycolic acid can apparently help reduce underarm sweat. I have learnt so much about how to look after myself and most importantly have been inspired to do so from the number of influencers that post. 

This leads into the next side of TikTok I love, which is all things food. Whether that be recipe ideas or nutrition advice, I have learnt so much about what we need to be feeding our bodies and how to use food to fuel ourselves. From the advice I have collected I now have a green’s powder every morning and honestly credits to Grace Beverley for her Shreddy Greens because my energy levels are now so much better, and my hair has never been so long. This is all from learning what foods we need in our diets from just a small 1-minute Tik Tok video. For example, Emily England’s account has provided me with so much nutrition advice about what foods to include in our diets, supplements to take and recipe ideas. Take viral feta pasta recipes for example or the vodka pasta trend, we can all credit TikTok to influencing certain interests of ours. 

TikTok has overall helped me to improve my life for the better, normalising things that I thought were unique and weird to me. It’s a gem that’s full of advice that I will forever be grateful for. Every day on TikTok is a learning day and I come out with a new piece of knowledge; and it is truly not just running, travel and the skincare and beauty communities, there are hundreds of other communities that provide me with the best big sister advice. 

As I am writing this article it is International Women’s Day, and TikTok is truly the emblem for women’s positivity and everything that stands for women supporting women…. I think I like this little life….

Minus the hours I spend scrolling, TikTok for me is like the big sister I never had, I love TikTok. Becoming a TikTok influencer or to be honest even just posting more silly daily vlogs of my life lives rent free in my mind. My humour and endless references are 9 times out of 10 likely to be from TikTok, and I am so okay with that. 

One thing I will never understand is the hatred that so many people have towards TikTok, apart from the obvious number of hours that one can spend scrolling, I think TikTok is the perfect place to find such a wide range of differing communities (running, travel, skincare…) and it’s such an amazing way to bring people together. 

Take for example, Anna Archer, the TikTok influencer, turned Gymshark athlete and podcast host, among many other things, she is arguably one of the most inspiring women on TikTok. She recently organised her “Anna on the Run: UK and Ireland Tour 2024”, in collaboration with her recent collection with Gymshark, where in London alone 2,000 people turned up to her 5k run club. This event, even as an outsider (I’m so jealous I couldn’t attend), filled my heart with so much joy… so many women running with bows in their hair around Battersea Park all in support and love for Anna Archer. 

The running community on TikTok is something that has inspired me to start running and even sign up for a half marathon in September, because I thought if they can do it so can I. Running accounts which I personally love include the above Anna Archer, Holly Brooks, Astrid Calduch and Demelza May. They provide advice, motivation, tips, and tricks on how to go from me, a non-runner, into a runner that can run a half marathon, and most importantly running correctly without getting injured. 

Then you have another side of TikTok for which I absolutely love, and that’s TravelTok. I think about 2/3rds of my saved videos on TikTok are places around the world to visit. Whether that be beaches to visit, hidden gems, restaurants, things to do or hostels to go to… I think I could plan my whole gap year from TikTok alone! Whenever I book a weekend break, I will always look up on TikTok recommendations, and let me tell you it has never once failed me. 

I spend most of my time looking up places to go and following travel influencers around the world just dreaming of being on the exact beach they are on, like the Gold Coast in Australia. Via my TikTok research, I have even found a surf camp in Costa Rica that I am looking to book… So let’s say I have been successfully influenced. 

Then you have the skincare and beauty side of TikTok and that’s the other 1/3^rd of my saved videos. I have learnt so much through TikTok to the point I think my skincare routine now was built just from TikTok recommendations. It truly is the big sister I never had. My skin has never glowed so much, the clean girl aesthetic is coming through and it makes me so happy. I have learnt what vitamins to take to help with skin for example, found out rosemary oil helps to stimulate hair growth, and randomly that glycolic acid can apparently help reduce underarm sweat. I have learnt so much about how to look after myself and most importantly have been inspired to do so from the number of influencers that post. 

This leads into the next side of TikTok I love, which is all things food. Whether that be recipe ideas or nutrition advice, I have learnt so much about what we need to be feeding our bodies and how to use food to fuel ourselves. From the advice I have collected I now have a green’s powder every morning and honestly credits to Grace Beverley for her Shreddy Greens because my energy levels are now so much better, and my hair has never been so long. This is all from learning what foods we need in our diets from just a small 1-minute Tik Tok video. For example, Emily England’s account has provided me with so much nutrition advice about what foods to include in our diets, supplements to take and recipe ideas. Take viral feta pasta recipes for example or the vodka pasta trend, we can all credit TikTok to influencing certain interests of ours. 

TikTok has overall helped me to improve my life for the better, normalising things that I thought were unique and weird to me. It’s a gem that’s full of advice that I will forever be grateful for. Every day on TikTok is a learning day and I come out with a new piece of knowledge; and it is truly not just running, travel and the skincare and beauty communities, there are hundreds of other communities that provide me with the best big sister advice. 

As I am writing this article it is International Women’s Day, and TikTok is truly the emblem for women’s positivity and everything that stands for women supporting women…. I think I like this little life….

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