fat positivity

What would it mean to you if you could be part of a community that not only recognizes your talents but also celebrates your uniqueness? Imagine an environment where plus-size individuals are valued and their contributions to their industry are rewarded. This is exactly the world, Tawana Blassingame, Executive Producer of The Full Figured Industry Awards and CEO, Editor in Chief of Queen Size Magazine. We are privileged to sit down with her in this episode as she shares her journey and aspirations, her love for podcasting, and the intricacies behind the Full Figure Industry Awards.

Tawana pulls back the curtain on the nomination and voting processes that make up the Full Figure Industry Awards, emphasizing the importance of impartiality and alliances within the industry. She reveals the satisfaction she gains from seeing the impact that plus-size representation in mainstream awards can offer. We also discover Tawana's insights into the gaps in men’s fashion within the plus-size industry and discuss her creative hobby - soap making! 

We wind down with an honest conversation about our personal lives. Tawana conquers her nerves for on-camera interviews, and we both share our own experiences in our careers and our journey with mental health. We reflect on the importance of the communities we serve and express our gratitude to our listeners. We hope that by joining us, you too will appreciate the magic of awards, fashion, and community building in the plus-size industry. Tune in for an enlightening chat and be inspired.

BigSexyChat.com appreciates you and our community. We do this for you, so if you ever have any ideas about a subject we can discuss for you, email us at Sexy@BigSexyChat.com.

You can find us on Facebook and Instagram as BigSexyChat.
Twitter (who knows how long we will stay there) is BigSexyChatPod

Check out our merch at www.BigSexyTees.com (credit to Toni Tails for setting this up for us!)

Chrystal also sells sex toys via her website BlissConnection.com and you can use the code BSC20 for 20% off.

Big thanks to our Sponsor Liberator Bedroom Adventures. We ADORE the products from Liberator. And, to be clear, we all loved their products even before they became a sponsor!

I wish this was a welcome back but I've done the next best thing!  I had a wonderful podcast chat with Kate of the Peach Please! podcast and she was kind enough to allow me to share it with you on my feed.  Enjoy this bonus episode and make sure to show Kate some love on Tik Tok or Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/katieiswinnen/).  

If you want to be a part of Season 2 of the Fat Girl Book Club podcast reach out:

https://www.instagram.com/fatgirlbookclubpod/

fatgirlbookclubpod@gmail.com

Keep Reading Everyone!

Dr. Natalie Boero, sociologist, fat activist, and author of the book Killer Fat: Media, Medicine, and Morals in the American "Obesity Epidemic," joins Kathy in celebrating the 10 year anniversary of the book and discussing what, if anything, has changed since she wrote Killer Fat. They also discuss how body positivity has been co-opted on social media and what the future holds for fat liberation.

Tune in and find out how HAES (Health At Every Size) has been impacting the medical industry, why a diabetes medication is the new weight loss drug, and how Kathy has been affected by a family member getting bariatric surgery. 

You can find Dr. Natalie Boero on Instagram @ncboero and Killer Fat: Media, Medicine, and Morals in the American "Obesity Epidemic"  wherever you buy books.

We love our listeners and want to hear from you! Follow us on social media @womenwhosarcast.

Subscribe to Women Who Podcast magazine at womenwhopodcastmag.com and @womenwhopodcastmagazine.

All content © 2023 Women Who Sarcast

Happy Satiated Saturday! 

I have said this before and I'll say it again. Your food behaviors are happening for a reason. Binging, restricting, chronic dieting, and body image concerns all come up to support you and satisfy a need that is not being met. 

They are there to help you feel safe and in control. 

And so, healing disordered eating or an eating disorder will mean addressing the root cause that is fueling your food and body behaviors. It's not really about the food. It will be about addressing what your body is holding onto from past trauma and beliefs that need to be looked at and potentially updated. 

In this week’s episode, I talk with Asher Seruya, psychotherapist, illustrator, and writer, about diet culture, fatphobia, the effects of religion on our eating behaviors, and how our past traumas and generational trauma color our experience of the present. 

You can also read the transcript to this week’s episode here: https://www.stephaniemara.com/blog/whats-fueling-your-eating-disorder

Begin to experience every eating experience as a doorway into yourself. What, when, why, and how you're eating can all inform you of how you're processing your life.

With Compassion and Empathy,
Stephanie Mara Fox

Keep in touch with Asher here:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/badashtherapy/

Website: https://ashermseruya.com/

Tik Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@badashtherapy

Contact: Asher@ashermseruya.com

References: 

Diets Are A Lot Like Religion

Keep in touch with Stephanie Mara here:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_stephaniemara/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/stephaniemarafox

Website: https://www.stephaniemara.com/
https://www.somaticeating.com/

Linkedin: htt

Keep in touch with Stephanie Mara:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_stephaniemara/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/stephaniemarafox
Website: https://www.stephaniemara.com/
https://www.somaticeating.com/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephmara/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@stephaniemarafox
Contact: support@stephaniemara.com

Support the show:
Become a supporter: https://www.buzzsprout.com/809987/support
My favorite water filter: https://www.pureeffectfilters.com/#a_aid=somaticeating
Receive 15% off my fave protein powder with code STEPHANIEMARA at checkout here: https://www.equipfoods.com/discount/STEPHANIEMARA?rfsn=7433250.c99684
Use my Amazon Affiliate link when shopping on Amazon: https://amzn.to/448IyPl

Special thanks to Bendsound for the music in this episode. www.bensound.co...

In this episode, Kiki shares her memories of her upbringing and how she was always being what everyone needed her to be to make them happy and to keep the peace. Kiki talks about how many of her greatest blessings came later in life and how she is now on a mission to create positive change to empower girls and women.

Kiki Rozema is an entrepreneur, an author and a former teacher. Kiki has been a Grande Prairie resident for over 20 years, and her purpose, passion and mission is to make a difference for girls and women. She is a wife to Neil and a mother of 2 boys, Kristopher and Noah.

Follow Smoothies Tank Tops on Facebook

Follow Smoothies Tank Tops on Instagram

Follow Candace on Instagram

Candace Dunaway is the Host of the All Things Relatable podcast. Candace practices daily gratitude and believes that this practice is the key to living a joyful life. Candace sees the world through an optimistic lens and looks for the silver linings, even in the most difficult of times. She believes that life is a collection of simple moments of joy that compound to create a happy life.

Follow Candace on Instagram

Use coupon code candace10 to receive 10% off your set of Now by Solu Meditation Speakers

Get your meditation speakers here

In this episode, Courtney shares her struggles with her body image and how for a huge part or her life she felt shame, guilt and self blame. She talks about how she didn't fit society's standard of the ideal body type and that even after she lost weight and felt better aesthetically, much of her time was consumed with thoughts about how to keep the weight off. Courtney also talks about how when she started to work on her mindset around diet culture and body positivity things changed.

Courtney McCarthy is the CEO & Founder of Loyobo FIT, a virtual community dedicated to helping women to ditch diet culture, find joy in movement, and to finally figure out how to love their body. 

Courtney's own journey with health and struggles around body image & weight loss inspired her to become an ACE Certified Fitness Professional. She learned the hard way how broken our views are towards women's bodies and how the formula the fitness industry presents as "the answer" keeps us stuck in a cycle of shame, guilt and self-blame. 

Her mission is to prove that there is another way, to help women step out of the struggle and into self-love! She teaches women how to ditch diet culture, how to heal their relationship with food and movement, and how to take the stress out of self-care. She wants you to see that you are MORE than a body and have the power to define health for yourself.

Find Courtney's website here

Follow Courtney on Instagram

Follow Candace on Instagram

Candace Dunaway is the Host of the All Things Relatable podcast. Candace practices daily gratitude and believes that this practice is the key to living a joyful life. Candace sees the world through an optimistic lens and looks for the silver linings, even in the most difficult of times. She believes that life is a collection of simple moments of joy that compound to create a happy life.

Follow Candace on Instagram

Use coupon code candace10 to receive 10% off your set of Now by Solu Meditation Speakers

Get your meditation speakers here

Hola amigos! Welcome back!

Are you fighting your body? Tune in to learn how to stop the war on your body and reclaim it for yourself! Through allowing ourselves to be nourished, we can stop the war and start thriving.

Highlights of this episode:

• What is nourishment? 
• The Be Nourished approach and why it’s needed
• Embodiment and disembodiment
• Body Trust® framework 
• How to reclaim your body

Episode Summary:

What is nourishment? Nourishment is about food and ways in which we act upon food. When we are at war with our bodies, we are not providing it nourishment.The Be Nourished approach was formed by Hilary and Dana out of the failures of the traditional weight loss as self-care treatment plan. Diet culture has inserted itself to help you war against your body. Because we are all born with a natural embodiment and intuitiveness, we don’t need diet culture’s messages and methods. Diet culture creates disembodiment. The framework to step away from that and heal is the Body Trust® framework. Step by step, you can learn how to reclaim your body and be nourished!

Resources:  

Be Nourished website: https://benourished.org  

Body Trust book: Reclaiming Body Trust 

One Small Bite: Anti-Diet Stories that Empower You To Build a Positive and Secure Relationship with Food

Get Unstuck Class 

Starts July 12, 2022. There’s an early bird special. Classes are on Zoom, so no travel necessary. Read about it here: https://orozconutrition.com/courses/ 

Where do I go from here?

• If you like this episode, then download the show wherever you listen to your podcasts at Apple, Spotify, Stitcher, Google, iHeartRadio, Castbox, etc!
• Hit that subscribe button so you won’t miss another episode.
•  Big Ask: Leave a Review! Please, take a few minutes and leave me a review on your podcast app. Each review helps other listeners find the podcast, which provides me with the ability to continue bring you unique content. So spread the love. Loss for words? Just write what you like about the show.
• Share the show with friends.
• If you want to work with us, schedule an appointment or a free 15 minute discovery call. Explore our website and click Schedule an Appointment. Or, reach us by email info@orozconutrition.com or phone 678-568-4717.

Once again, I greatly appreciate you for listening and supporting my show. Remember, it really only takes One Small Bite to start transforming your life.

Chop the diet mentality; Fuel Your Body; and Nourish Your Soul!

Happy Satiated Saturday! 

This episode of the Satiated Podcast we're going deep! I talk with Lauren Merklin, who is a fat Anti Diet Coach for women. She helps women unlearn diet culture and fatphobia, to live beyond the scale and view their body as an ally instead of an enemy. 

Lauren's passionate about creating a safe space for women, especially plus size, to heal away from diet culture and weight bias so they can finally have a peaceful relationship with food and their body. She uses a non-diet HAES and fat positivity approach to wellness.

In this week’s episode, we explore body positivity and how far away we have moved from the original intention of this movement, what is anti fat bias, how it could be affecting you, the history of fat bias, and explorations to engage in for yourself to explore your own body beliefs. This is an incredibly powerful episode. If you have struggled with your body image, this is a must listen.

You can also read the transcript to this week’s episode here: https://www.stephaniemara.com/blog/what-is-fat-bias-and-how-could-it-be-affecting-you

If you have any questions, email me at support@stephaniemara.com anytime!

With Compassion and Empathy, 
Stephanie Mara Fox

Keep in touch with Lauren: 

Build Better Boundaries Course (Starting next week!): https://www.antidietfatty.com/courses/boundaries

Website: https://www.antidietfatty.com/

Download her free 9 responses to diet talk so you can protect your own healing while respecting loved ones here: www.antidietfatty.com/f/9responses

Instagram: @antidietfatty

Email: lauren@antidietfatty.com

Resources discussed in this episode: 

108 Factors That Affect Weight: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/296290/obesity-map-full-hi-res.pdf

Keep in touch with Stephanie Mara:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_stephaniemara/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/stephaniemarafox
Website: https://www.stephaniemara.com/
https://www.somaticeating.com/
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephmara/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@stephaniemarafox
Contact: support@stephaniemara.com

Support the show:
Become a supporter: https://www.buzzsprout.com/809987/support
My favorite water filter: https://www.pureeffectfilters.com/#a_aid=somaticeating
Receive 15% off my fave protein powder with code STEPHANIEMARA at checkout here: https://www.equipfoods.com/discount/STEPHANIEMARA?rfsn=7433250.c99684
Use my Amazon Affiliate link when shopping on Amazon: https://amzn.to/448IyPl

Special thanks to Bendsound for the music in this episode. www.bensound.co...

Welcome to Satisfaction Factor! In this brief intro episode, Sadie & Naomi talk about their coincidental meeting, why they decided to start a podcast, and what to expect from future episodes.

You can stay up to date on all things Satisfaction Factor by following us on IG @satisfactionfactorpod!

Here's where to find us:
Sadie Simpson: www.sadiesimpson.com or IG @thesadiesimpson
Naomi Katz: www.happyshapes.co or IG @happyshapesnaomi

Want to connect with us to deepen the conversation? Join us in our online community, The Satisfaction Space!

Want to show the world that you love the pod? Get t-shirts, sweatshirts, mugs, stickers, totebags & more at Teepublic!

You can stay up to date on all things Satisfaction Factor by following us on IG @satisfactionfactorpod!

Here's where to find us:
Sadie Simpson: www.sadiesimpson.com or IG @sadiemsimpson
Naomi Katz: www.happyshapes.co or IG @happyshapesnaomi

Welcome back Kayleigh Hyland!  I am so excited about having Kayleigh back to talk about another wonderful book.  The tone of this book is very different but the information is spectacular. 

Topics covered include:

• The difference between Body Positive Power and Fat! So?
• How this book came into Kayleigh's life
• Talking to people about body positivity
• The comparison trap
• The controversy around before and after photos
• The biggest lie of diet culture
• Dieting as a religion
• Why are we scared of our appetite?
• Why you can wear a bikini if you want to...or not!
• The line between eating disorders and disordered eating
• Boundaries

Honestly you can be fat and happy!  

Links

My Website

Body Positive Power

Kayleigh's last episode

Dietitian's Unplugged cult episode

Eating Disorder Help:

National Eating Disorder Information Center

National Eating Disorders Association

Kayleigh's Instagram

Kayleigh and her Friends Instagram

Self Love and Sertraline Blog
 

This is the second part of my interview with Vania Phitidis about Beauty Sick. This book was so good and so eye-opening that I could not cut any of it. In this episode we continue our discussion and cover:

• The importance of having support on a body acceptance journey
• What Beauty Sick means
• The cause and perpetrators of beauty sickness
• The negative power of symbolic annihilation
• How social media perpetuates the cycle of body monitoring
• The inversion effect and how this impacts the way we see women
• What we can do to combat beauty sickness
• How media literacy is not actually helpful
• How being a feminist is not protection against beauty sickness
• The reason why body connection is so important

Vania's website https://peacefuleating.co.uk

Vania's Instagram https://www.instagram.com/peacefuleatinguk/

Vania's Facebook https://www.facebook.com/PeacefulEating/

Renee Engeln's Ted Talk https://youtu.be/63XsokRPV_Y

Jenn's Website www.iwishiwereme.com

My discussion with Vania Phitidis about this amazing book went long. I didn't want to cut it so in another first for this podcast, I am releasing this conversation in two parts. In this part of the conversation we:

• Discuss Vania's body acceptance journey
• Talk about the turning point and the pivot that helped her to break up with diet culture
• Dive deep into health as a value
• Hear about how Vania's beauty routine has changed over the years
• Get into the importance of having support

I love this conversation and I know you will too. Make sure to subscribe to this podcast to get the second part the minute it is released.

Links:

Vania's website
https://peacefuleating.co.uk

Vania's Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/peacefuleatinguk/

Vania's Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/PeacefulEating/

Renee Engeln's Ted Talk
https://youtu.be/63XsokRPV_Y

Jenn's Website
www.iwishiwereme.com

Nicola Haggett and I jumped into this Roxane Gay memoir and all its messiness. I loved this discussion because it really emphasizes how we can all become more empathetic to everyone who has a body, whether they are on a journey of body liberation or not.

Some of the things we talk about included:

• Nicola's body liberation journey
• Why the Body Trust philosophy appealed to Nicola
• Why Nicola loved this book
• Being ok with wanting your body to change even with the knowledge of weight science
• All the different meanings of hunger
• How we relate to fullness
• What it means to write your body story
• How Nicola found safety in her body
• Why this book is not a betrayal of the fat acceptance community

Links:

Nicola's website
https://nicolahaggett.com

Nicola's Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/nicolahaggett/

Hunger by Roxane Gay
https://www.amazon.ca/Hunger-Memoir-My-Body/dp/B071J95QC4/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Hunger+by+Roxane+Gay&qid=1588195904&sr=8-1

Be Nourished
https://benourished.org

I Wish I Were Me Website
http://iwishiwereme.com

This is a really different world we are living in! The stress and anxiety of the new normal got to me in the last few weeks and I didn't prepare an interview. Instead, I gathered up a few clips from past guests and put them together. I think you're going to love this compilation.

Some of the topics we cover:

-the risks of dieting

-how the fears when we drop out of diet culture are real

-why mental health is important to add to the discussion of dropping out of diet culture

-how we need to start looking at bodies differently

-how to connect to your body individually

-the power of diversifying your social media

-the importance of boundaries

-celebrate how wonderful you are

Contact links for my guests:

Deb Lesko
https://www.facebook.com/DietsDontWorkditchdietculture/

Amanda Murphy
https://www.instagram.com/theamandamurphy/

Amanda Martinez Beck
https://www.instagram.com/your_body_is_good/

Carissa Grace
https://www.instagram.com/beyourjoy/

Kathryn Hack
https://www.klhack.net

Kaitlin Anderle
https://www.instagram.com/reframeyourstory/

Linda Tucker
http://www.lindatuckercoaching.com

Jenna Donovan
https://www.instagram.com/theselfcompassionproject/

Spoon Theory:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jn5IBsm49Rk

My website:
http://iwishiwereme.com

I live in Canada but talking to people in United States is not considered International. Not truly. Technically I know that is not true but in reality I can get to the US within a few hours, so it is different than talking to someone across an ocean. With that logic, this is the very first interview that I consider an International episode. How exciting is that!?! I talked to Kayleigh Hyland about Fat! So? by Marilynn Wann and boy did we have fun. Here is a run down of what we chatted about:

-Kayleigh’s fat positive journey

-how we don’t have a fat culture but we do have a fat community

-the joke about the pound of fat

-how hard its is to think of witty comebacks when people reference weight

-the way they changed the BMI categories arbitrarily

-our connection to our bellies, betts, upper arms and chins

-discomfort with being naked and how to work on it

-what people are looking at when they look at you

-how to start accepting your body

-the word fat

-a discussion of healthy habits

-pieces of clothing on our fat positive journeys

-our additions to the heroes and villains of fat positivity

-a new segment on Fat Girl Book Club: The Lightening Round

The links mentioned in this episode include:

Fat! So? by Marilynn Wann
https://www.amazon.ca/Fat-So-Because-Dont-Apologize/dp/0898159954/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Fat%21+So%3F&qid=1585693429&s=books&sr=8-1

Kayleigh on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/kayleighann88/
https://www.instagram.com/kayleighandherfriends/
https://www.instagram.com/discoveryourconfidence/

Kayleigh's blog
https://selfloveandsertraline.wordpress.com

Amanda Martinez Beck on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/your_body_is_good/

Body Positive Power by Megan Jayne Crabbe
https://www.amazon.ca/Body-Positive-Power-Because-Happening/dp/B07H9CYLH5/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Body+Positive+Power&qid=1585693664&sr=8-1

Body Respect by Lindo Bacon and Lucy Aphramor
https://www.amazon.ca/Body-Respect-Conventional-Health-Understand/dp/1940363195/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1585693705&sr=1-1

I had such a great chat with Linda Tucker, a Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor and Body Liberation Coach. We came at this book from such different perspectives that I think our conversation covered a lot of ground. Some of the things we talked about were:

• Linda's Intuitive Eating Journey
• The nuance of Christy's definition of diet culture
• Christy's use of The Life Thief as a descriptor for diet culture and why it is so appropriate
• The history of diet culture
• Our individual stories and experience with The Life Thief taking our time, happiness, money and well-being
• Why weight stigma is traumatizing
• How we can start to talk to people about fat phobia and weight stigma
• The importance of boundaries
• How this book fits with the other books on intuitive eating

Links from this episode:

Anti-Diet by Christy Harrison
https://www.amazon.ca/Anti-Diet-Reclaim-Well-Being-Happiness-Intuitive/dp/0316420352/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Anti-Diet&qid=1582162086&s=books&sr=8-1

Isabel Foxen Duke
https://isabelfoxenduke.com

Justine DeMello's blog post on The Self-Love Diet
https://justinemegan.com/selflovediet/

Virgie Tovar's Fat Babe Camp
https://www.virgietovar.com/babecamp.html

Linda's Website
http://www.lindatuckercoaching.com

Linda Tucker Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/lindatuckercoaching/

Linda Tucker's Email
lindatuckercoaching@gmail.com

Don't forget to use the hashtag #womeneatingfood!!!

Kathryn Hack and I discussed Jes Baker’s Landwhale in today’s episode. Kathryn is a body liberation artist and activist so I found her perspective on some of the topics from this book really refreshing. Some of the things we discussed include:

-Kathryn’s fat liberation journey

-Why Kathryn doesn’t live in doom and gloom about diet culture but rather in hope

-Why dualistic thinking within the fat community is too simplistic

-How much can we alter ourselves before we are no longer liberated

-How we individually connect to our bodies and why processing trauma is so important

-How the systemic oppression of fat people tries to keep people confined and how this is a system of cultural programming

-How we can use icky feelings to connect to ourselves and release trauma

-Body positivity versus body liberation

Check Kathryn out using the links here:

Kathryn’s Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/kathrynhack/

Kathryn’s Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/KathrynHackArt/

Other things mentioned in this episode:

This American Life Podcast
https://www.thisamericanlife.org/589/tell-me-im-fat

Shrill by Lindy West
https://www.amazon.ca/Shrill-Notes-Woman-Lindy-West/dp/0316348406/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Shrill&qid=1579472205&s=books&sr=8-1

Torrid
https://www.torrid.com

Landwhale by Jes Baker
https://www.amazon.ca/Landwhale-Turning-Insults-Nicknames-Image/dp/1580056814/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Landwhale&qid=1579472223&sr=8-1

Check out my website to read more about my work as a body image coach and to get a copy of Your Better Body Image Checklist:

My Website
http://iwishiwereme.com

This is an important book. It taught me a lot about how to love myself - not in a superficial way, but in a deep meaningful way. This conversation with J. Nicole Morgan really digs into some of the major concepts of the book and will hopefully help you to see why it is so important that we move beyond body positivity and into radical self-love. Some of the things we talk about include:

-Nicole's fat acceptance journey
-Nicole's first experiences with body shame and how she reframes them now
-How our thoughts are not who we are
-Intersectionality
-Radical self-love
-How we are all the victim and victimizer of diet culture
-The 3 Peaces
-In our modern culture what body terrorism means
-The tools that resonated with Nicole and I
-Whether or not we can pull apart buying things because they make us feel good about ourselves with buying things because we are trying to hide our bodies
-Body liberation

J. Nicole Morgan's Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/jnicolemorgan/

J. Nicole Morgan's Twitter
https://twitter.com/jnicolemorgan

J. Nicole Morgan's Book
https://www.amazon.ca/Fat-Faithful-J-Nicole-Morgan/dp/1506425224/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Fat+%26+Faithful&qid=1578455841&s=books&sr=1-1

Fat & Faithful podcast
https://fatandfaithful.libsyn.com

All Bodies are Good Bodies Facebook group
https://www.facebook.com/groups/allbodiesaregoodbodies/

By the Book podcast
https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/stitcher/by-the-book/e/60940013

My website
http://iwishiwereme.com