Compared to Who? Body Image for Christian Women

Today's show gets a little spicy as Heather calls into question the dieting trends over the past 50 years and where they came from. You'll be shocked to hear who really came up with the low-carb trend. You may even be a little frustrated to learn how some who advocated for eating a certain way have changed their minds as they "reconsider" the science. The question Heather brings us back to today i...

Maybe you've heard that as Christians we have to be careful to go to God, not to food. Maybe you've heard that emotional eating is wrong, sinful, or not "taking care of your temple" the way God instructs. But, what if there's more to it than that? What if God created our bodies to eat and what if relating to food and eating should be as simple and benign as the way we relate to breathing, sleeping...

Heather Creekmore is joined by author Janet McHenry to discuss the many facets of prayer, personal struggles with prayer, and the various "praying personalities" that influence how individuals approach prayer. Janet shares her inspiring journey of navigating health issues and how it led her to a deeper life of prayer, ultimately leading her to write a book about prayer walking. Throughout the epis...

Today Heather asks a poignant question: As you think about your body and body image, are you trying to be cruise ship ready or battle ship ready? There's quite a difference, right? When we prepare for a cruise, we want to look good in a swimsuit and we're looking ahead to a time of fun in the sun. But, if we think about preparing to go on a battle ship, our motivations and goals are different, are...

Gwen Shamblin put the "cult" in Diet Culture as you'll hear today in clips (used under Fair Use law for educational and critique purposes) from the 2023 Lifetime Movie, "Starving for Salvation: The Gwen Shamblin Story." Gwen was starving for salvation, trying to fill a void and an emptiness through weight loss, and eventually through power, money, and control. In today's episode (part 2 of 2) we l...

Today Heather digs into the mysterious and disturbing world of diet culture and, more specifically, how diet culture turned into an actual cult in the case of Gwen Shamblin, the Weigh Down Workshops and book, and the Remanent Church. This is part one of a two-part series where we'll walk through the new Starving for Salvation Lifetime movie that is based on Gwen Shamblin's life story. Though it is...

Heather continues with part two of her first LIVE coaching call with her newest and perhaps bravest client, Presli. Today Heather and Presli talk about how her Ideal Image has kept her chasing an unattainable body size, shape, and look and how it keeps her chasing. We talk about what parts of her life are affected when she tries to become more like her Ideal Image. Presli also shares more of her p...

Today Heather airs her first LIVE coaching call with her newest and perhaps bravest client, Presli. Presli shares her story, how her body image issues began, including her first feelings and recognition of feeling like there was something wrong with her body or that her body was not the right size. Heather and Presli explore the voices and influences that contributed to her earliest thoughts and f...

    Today host Heather Creekmore is joined by author Ed Welch for a thought-provoking conversation about biblical counseling, body image issues, and the challenges of Christian teachings in the face of human emotions. The discussion touches on the impact of Welch's book "When People Are Big and God Is Small" on Creekmore's own work in biblical counseling, the importance of finding words to express...

Today Heather engages in a captivating conversation with author, speaker, and podcaster, Kelly Needham. Together, they delve into Kelly's thought-provoking book, "Purposefooled: Why Chasing Your Dreams, Finding Your Calling, and Reaching for Greatness Will Never Be Enough."  Kelly shares her insights on redefining purpose and the misconceptions surrounding chasing one's dreams and finding a distin...

"I want to be thinner." Have you said it? Have you thought it? It's a reality that many of us face because culture tells us that thinness is what we should desire and our culture values the way we look only if we are thin. Today, Heather unpacks what we can do, biblically, to explore that desire we have to be thinner or a longing we have for any sort of body change. Heather has three main points f...

Host Heather Creekmore continues her conversation with Jonna, a biblical counselor, women's ministry leader, and pastor's wife who struggled with body image issues. Jonna shares the specific insights and breakthroughs she experienced in her journey of overcoming body image struggles through coaching with Heather. This is part two of the conversation. Today's conversation delves into how Jonna lear...

Today Heather Creekmore interviews her coaching client, pastor's wife, biblical counselor and women's ministry leader, Jonna, to share her story of body image struggles and what she experienced as she went through Heather's group coaching program: the Body Image Freedom Framework. Jonna vulnerably recounts the impact of hurtful comments on her body image and identity (including a drive-by "lose we...

Are you a black-and-white, all-or-nothing type of person who has a difficult time living in the gray (or grace) when it comes to your body, your food, or your health? If so, then today's episode is for you! Heather interviews podcast host, RN, and Intuitive Eating and body image coach, Victoria Yates about how we can learn to live in the "messy middle." Heather and Victoria talk about what it look...

Today is part two of the LIVE podcast featuring a 25-year eating disorder specialist, dietitian, and lover of Jesus, Amy Carlson M.S., L.D., R.D. Amy begins the episode by explaining something she said at the end of the last episode about taking the Lord's name in vain when we use God's name to rubber-stamp or sell our diet or fitness program. In addition to this truth bomb, Amy tackles questions...

In this first-ever episode of Compared to Who? to be recorded with a LIVE audience, Heather and her guest, Amy Carlson, RD and eating disorder expert dive into the pressure to conform to all the diet-related pressures of January. Heather and Amy candidly discuss the intertwining of diet culture and the church, shedding light on how confusing it can be when the messages of culture around us start c...

Today Heather continues her conversation with coaching client, Rachel, who completed the Body Image Freedom Framework course and coaching program in the Fall. Rachel shared in the last episode her story of being raised in a Christian home and learning to love Jesus, yet, how she was always complimented on her appearance and how this, subtly, led her to become fixated on it. In today's powerful epi...

Today Heather interviews one of her graduates from the Body Image Freedom Framework online course and coaching program named Rachel. Rachel shares her story of feeling like her appearance is what made her accepted. She shares how she slowly and subtly slipped into becoming more and more obsessed and focused on her appearance and her weight as she aged. Rachel relates her story to Gollum from the L...

“My body became my business card,” Belinda explains in today's interview. You'll hear all about Belinda’s journey from experiencing weight loss success and even coaching others in a popular weight loss business to being overwhelmed with body image issues and desperate for help. Belinda just completed the Body Image Freedom Framework online course and group coaching program. Belinda reached out on...

Today Heather welcomes Amy Reinecke host of the "Love Your Body Well" podcast. Heather and Amy discuss what Amy means when she talks about loving your body well and how it's not about body pride or a feeling you have about your body, but rather about an action you take towards your body -- how you treat it and think about it. Amy shares her story of weight loss and weight gain, struggling with bac...

It's January so everyone's talking about fasting! Churches are doing corporate fasts, Organizations are running sugar fasts. People have cleared out their pantries of all foods that aren't legal on the Daniel Fast and stocked their fridges with vegetables they'll only ever eat in January. Today, Heather digs into fasting. Is fasting good? Should we be fasting? What is the purpose of fasting? Heath...

It's a New Year! In this episode, host Heather Creekmore offers three challenges to encourage and inspire you to become healthier and more beautiful in the ways that matter the most to eternity. Heather explores Oprah Winfrey’s weight loss journey, the WW president’s apology that ushered in their new programs to sell weight loss drugs in addition to their program, and more. Heather encourages list...

Did you know that your body image issues and cleaning your house like a crazy person may be connected? If you've ever turned into a cleaning Gestapo before company came over or if you've ever stressed way too much over how your house looked, you may be surprised to find out that there's a body image connection. Getting free to be yourself in your body may help you become a little more chill when i...

Today Heather digs into the concept of addiction--but not in a way you might expect. Heather isn't talking about drugs or alcohol or other things that you expect people to be addicted to. Instead, she talks about being addicted to body change--of chasing idols of body image and beauty through controlling and manipulating her body size and shape. Heather breaks down some amazing teaching from Dr. T...

Host Heather Creekmore teaches through 1 Timothy 4:1-10 and looks at the ways scripture instructs us to think about our food, pleasure, contentment, and even exercise. This passage includes instruction about how we think about and relate to food and our bodies and even exercise. As she examines these scriptures you’ll see the two concepts that Paul wanted to communicate to the young pastor Timothy...