Life After Diets

To weigh or not to weigh? This question can interrupt many an intuitive eater's journey, so we dedicated a whole episode to the topic. We cover questions like: Do Stef & Sarah know their weights? Can weight just be data? What stories do we attach to numbers What about getting weighed at the doctors office? How to decline being weighed at the doctor Why do we need to know our weight? Hard evidence...

Sarah and Stef share the lessons they learned through their recovery from disordered eating. Join our growing support community. This community is for you if you want to improve your relationship with food and become more comfortable in your own skin. Community membership includes invites to live episode recordings (online), support meetings, a private Facebook group and monthly Q&As. For more inf...

This episode features a guest -- not an expert -- who is still working through her relationship with food and body image and doesn't have it all figured out. We hope you find it helpful to hear from someone who might be exactly where you are, and can relate to the parts of this process that don't feel like they have answers. We discuss: Where food and body issues started for Nicole Feeling stuck b...

Having a disordered relationship with food can erode our sense of self-trust. Not only do we learn to trust outside voices over our own hunger, but we also can't seem to keep the promises we make to ourselves about food. In this episode, we cover a range of topics including: What is self trust How promises to "not binge today" erodes our self-trust Shame, authenticity, and values What does our ego...

Stress is a common trigger for eating, overeating, and binge eating. If you're someone who experiences increased urges to eat when you're stressed or anxious, this episode explores the following topics: What does stress look like? The stress of transitions What if stress is not something we can reduce? Challenging beliefs about how stress and coping interact Stress, anxiety, and the window of tole...

Guilt can be a huge barrier to feeling peaceful with food. What do we do with the feelings of guilt that remain around what we eat, how we eat, and how much we eat? In this episode, we discuss: Guilt, defined Two layers of cognitive belief systems Can guilt be useful? Reframing guilt as disappointment Regulating guilt in the beginning of recovery Separating guilt from shame Deconstructing guilt re...

In this episode we are talking to Brianna Campos of Body Image with Bri about the Body Grief framework. We'll also talk about: How Bri came to focus on grief in her work around body image Dealing with: other people's judgment; discomfort; health concerns The difference between body acceptance vs body positivity Bri's framework for body image grief: insight + action + over time + in community What...

If we overeat or find it hard to stop eating because we don't want to waste food, how can we navigate this conflict? This episode talks about: Sarah's experimental task to throw away one bite of food What about throwing away food so you don't eat it? What about leftovers? Kids' lunchboxes Being a "good girl" or "good boy" by finishing what's on your plate Grieving the end of a meal Top 5 most wast...

There is a significant intersection of people with eating disorders and disordered eating with T/trauma. In this episode, we identify the meaning of trauma and explore how it shows up in our body beyond intellectual awareness. We also discuss: Trauma informed vs trauma aware A little of Stef's history Anger and eating disorder behaviors The issue of safety Quote by Gabor Mate The role of connectio...

Food logs and meal planning are hallmarks of weight loss efforts and diet culture. Is there any place for them in a non-diet approach? In this episode, we talk about: Do we like food diaries? Food structure reduces decision making Is intuitive eating about meal variety? But I don't like meal planning because I don't know what I'll want to eat Sarah's lunches this week What's the difference between...

The "anti-diet" and "diets don't work" messages can be very empowering for many people, but how do we reconcile these ideas when there seem to be people that do, in fact, diet and lose weight? In this episode, we discuss: Dieting as a physical trauma stored by the body Biology of weight set point and safety Psychology tendencies toward one-track thinking "Diets Don't Work" vs "Do Diets Work For Me...

In 1978, Susie Orbach wrote the groundbreaking book: Fat is a Feminist Issue (FIFI) to decontrust the role of dieting as oppressive to women. She has remained an author, psychoanalyst, advocate for women and women's bodies. In this episode, we discuss: Dieting is taking your agency back The beauty of hunger in all forms The mother's body anxiety & feeding her baby as an origin of dysfunction The b...

Why is eating in moderation so hard? In this episode, Sarah & Stef discuss: What does moderation mean?  Is the 2000 calorie RDA based on moderation? Satisfaction and extreme hunger Why are some people able to eat in moderation more easily? Is moderation a challenge for impulsive people? How other parts of our lives can influence the reward aspect of food and impact the ability to eat in moderation...

Intuitive Eating advocates may have us believe that we will naturally start to crave nutritious food after allowing ourselves to eat what we want, but is this true? What does it look like if you're someone who feels more selective around food or doesn't really like vegetables? In this episode, we talk about... The foods that Sarah and Stef don't like Do you say cilantro or coriander? What do you d...

The summertime can be a difficult time of year when we're dealing with body image – the heat, the clothes, the vacations. In this conversation, we break down some reasons why summertime can be difficult, share our own experiences with summer and body image, and offer mindset shifts that can help. Summer bodies syndrome Summer clothing – is fashion harder? Do you feel like you're "allowed" to wear...

If intuitive eating is the gold standard of a healthy relationship with food, how do we actually become more intuitive? In this episode, Sarah & Stef talk about: The definition of Intuition (UK vs US) What role does conscious reasoning play in intuition? The role of intuition in Sarah & Stef's lunches this week How long does it take to become more intuitive? Things that get in the way of our intui...

This week we talk to Molly Forbes, author of the book Body Happy Kids and founder of The Body Happy Org. Molly talks to us about her experience raising children in diet culture and the work she does to educate and empower both children and adults to create body image resilience. We discuss: Molly's experience on Naked Beach TV  How Molly navigates her children's exposure to media What if you are a...

Dieting can promote disconnection from self. Sometimes we use food to further disconnect from our experience or our shame. As we heal our relationship with food, body, and self, how do we address the tendency to disconnect? What is the difference between disconnection and self-abandonment? Sarah's airport story of accepting the moment How to stay connected to the Self during a body image flood Ste...

A follow up to last week's episode is out by popular demand. In this episode we continue talking about the nuances of restriction and the ways this might be showing up in your disordered eating and/or recovery process. We cover: What is emotional restriction? What does it look like to have emotional regulation instead of emotional restriction? Restriction of authenticity, desires, and self Why doe...

These days, restriction is a buzzword in the anti-dieting space, and it's often talked about in disordered eating recovery. But what does it really mean, and how do you know if it applies to you? In this episode, we cover:  The difference between physical and mental restriction The relationship of self talk with mental restriction Is it always restricting to choose not to eat if you're hungry? Por...

We talk a lot about binge eating in this podcast, but this episode is dedicated to our experiences with bulimia – how it looked, how it felt, and how it was different from binge eating disorder. We'll discuss: What is bulimia? Purging as an aggressive emotional expression Purging as a perceived boundary against binge eating Bulimic behavior feeling like defiance for Stef versus collapse for Sarah...

In this episode, Sarah and Stef discuss the role of the inner critic, and how each host dealt with the evolution of the critic during recovery from binge eating. We'll cover: Sarah's embarrassment of her self critic versus Stef's comfort with her own Binges as a criticism of being "out of control" Identifying as a Critic or not Does your critic speak in first person or in third? Our various "best...

Back with another guest! In this episode, we talk to Becca Robinson, a BEAT advisor in recovery from bulimia, about her experience with breast implants and her decision to ultimately have them removed. "As long as your belly is never wider than your bust, you're fine." Puberty, developing breasts, and having "real woman" proportions Does cosmetic surgery fix body image? The distinction between hat...

What does humility have to do with binge eating recovery? In this episode, we discuss: Is it wrong to be self-focused? Stef's "fall from grace" during college and how humility diminishes the ego The power of letting go of how things "should be" The relationship between our humility and our insecurities Leaning into our insecurities to see that they don't destroy us Sarah's memory of a Clubhouse ev...

There is a relationship between fatigue, tiredness, and food. In this episode, we discuss: The evolution of Sarah & Stef's fatigue over the years "Fatigue" versus "being tired" Sarah naps! Rest: Splitting attention versus single-focus restoration Connection and purpose to mitigate fatigue Routines, intentions, and structure as coping tools We are now on Patreon! Join the private FB group. Connect...