This week we are diving deep into the world of eating disorders and recovery, and much like all of the work I do here, Mallary Tenore Tarpley is here to help us embrace the gray area between being sick and fully recovered. She's here to normalize living in the in between place when you're trying to heal, and share some things that you may not have known about eating disorders. This topic is hard to talk about without dipping into some potentially triggering topics, so honor yourself and your own journey as you listen, especially if you are in early eating disorder recovery.
Mallary Tenore is an assistant professor of practice at The University of Texas at Austin's School of Journalism and Media and McCombs School of Business, where she teaches writing and reporting courses for undergraduate and graduate students. Mallary specializes in a variety of topics, including longform feature writing, creative nonfiction, solutions journalism and nonprofit journalism.A longtime journalist, Mallary's articles and essays have been published in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, The Dallas Morning News, The Tampa Bay Times, Harvard University’s Nieman Storyboard and more. She also maintains a weekly newsletter, Write at the Edge, where she shares writing tips and best practices. Mallary’s debut nonfiction book, “SLIP: Life in the Middle of Eating Disorder Recovery,” will be published by Simon & Schuster's Simon Element imprint and is now available for pre-order. The book blends immersive reporting, emerging science and social history around eating disorders alongside Mallary’s own harrowing journey from a childhood with anorexia to her present-day reality as a mother in recovery. While working on the book, Mallary received a grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation to support her reporting and writing.
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I can't seem to let go of the need to talk about the current social and political climate, the rise of fascism and authoritarianism, and how it relates to fitness, wellness, diet culture, and everything I do here. I wanted to approach this topic from a historical lens, so I knew that Jen Borruso was the person I needed to talk to. We've known each other for years professionally, but as a friend she has always be my go-to person when I want to learn more about the historical context behind something. I'm so excited for you to learn from her today!
Jen Borruso is a personal trainer and nutrition coach who helps people build a healthier, more compassionate relationship with their bodies. Before entering the fitness world, Jen studied history and literature at the University of Central Florida, earning a Bachelor’s degree in History (with a focus on post-Civil War U.S. history) and a minor in English, with an emphasis on American Literature. Originally planning to become a high school teacher and possibly pursue law school, Jen developed a strong foundation in critical thinking, analysis, and understanding how historical and cultural forces shape the present. Reading Fearing the Black Body by Dr. Sabrina Strings was a pivotal moment in Jen’s learning journey, deepening her understanding of how diet culture is rooted in systems of control and oppression, including racism and the policing of bodies.Today, Jen works at the intersection of fitness and social justice, exploring how we can resist harmful narratives about health, worth, and perfection; and build a more inclusive, body-positive world.
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Lunges. Probably one of the most hated exercises, second only to burpees. I have solutions for you!
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This episode is a bit of a crossover episode--a sneak peek at something I shared with my clients on my private podcast (yes I have one of those for my clients!) the other day. Today I'm letting you in on the habits and qualities of my most successful clients.
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Today's podcast is brought to you by listeners like you! Or at least the conversations I've had with you in response to last weeks episode with Vinny Welsby. Apparently weight loss drugs are a popular topic and you all have a lot of your own thoughts and opinions about them. After dedicating a whole episode to talking about the research behind medications like Ozempic and Wegovy, I'm back to talk about feelings. Like the complicated ones you have around whether or not to try these drugs. Or the fact that you want to lose weight in general.
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Vinny Welsby is here today, and I could not think of anyone better to talk to about weight loss drugs with. They have done a really deep dive into research and know these GLP-1 meds inside and out. We all deserve to go into big medical decisions armed with all the information and we're so glad to be able to share what we know with you today!
Vinny Welsby (they/them) is a fat activist and diversity, equity and inclusion leader. They are a world-leading expert on dismantling anti-fat bias and diet culture, a TEDx speaker, podcast host and best-selling author. Vinny is trans-non-binary and is dedicated to shifting how society views fat and queer bodies through education and compassion.
When Vinny isn’t talking about DEI stuff they love snuggling with their dog, cross-stitching swear words and singing in a pop choir.
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Erin Lingle is here this week to teach us how to manage our stress better. I don't know about you, but I always laugh at the suggestion of lowering my stress levels. Ummm hello! I am the mom of a 4 year old. I live in America! What I appreciate most about Erin is her incredible sense of humor and her very realistic approach to handling the inevitable stress that's gonna come our way.
Erin Lingle, founder of Find Your Strength, is a personal trainer on a mission to equip women with the tools they need to not just survive, but thrive, no matter how messy life gets. Through her integrated approach of strength and conditioning and stress resilience training, she empowers women to build inner and outer strength. Her compassion extends to her three rescued pups, "team R," highlighting her belief in resilience and love.
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Ashantis Jones is back this week and we're talking all about the relationship between healthism and the rise of fascism. I know, fun right? But as we often discover, it's all different flavors of the same shit sandwich. And if we really wanna be healthy, we need to talk about the hard stuff too! Turns out it's not all just organic hemp seeds and kale chips.
Ashantis Jones (she/they) is a weight-inclusive Licensed Therapist, Mental Health Coach, NASM Certified Personal Trainer, Group Fitness Instructor, and Educator. She supports individuals seeking mental health + fitness support and businesses seeking to create more efficient and equitable practices. Specialties include Body Image/Eating Disorder Recovery, Executive Functioning, and Navigating Systems of Oppression.The Wellness Financial Fund provides full or partial financial assistance for individuals seeking personal training and/or wellness consultations (coffee chats) from Ashantis. The fund prioritizes financial support for Black women, but anyone is eligible to request sponsorship.
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I finally decided to stop rolling my eyes and record an episode about what it takes to get toned arms. Because while I had hoped we were all past this, the amount of questions I've gotten about this over the years, plus the amount of garbage information still being fed to you on the internet made me cave.
If you don't need to hear this, I am certain that there is someone in your life who does. Please share this episode with your mom, your best friend, or your client.
This episode shares info that might be considered "triggering" to some in the anti-diet community. I'm sharing it anyway, because it feels like the same thing as why offering sex education to teenagers is better than preaching abstinence. Knowledge is power!
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This episode with Toni Rudd blew my mind and filled in all sorts gaps in my understanding of intuitive eating, and I can't wait to share it with you! Turns out that lack of willpower and food restriction might not be the only reasons you can't seem to stop overeating, and Toni is here to shine a light on it today.
Toni Rudd is a UK-registered dietitian and binge eating specialist. She works with people who feel stuck in the cycle of dieting and bingeing, helping them heal their relationship with food and body. Through a compassionate, non-diet approach, Toni supports her clients to let go of food guilt, eat with more ease, and stop obsessing over food. Her work focuses on building consistent, satisfying eating habits and shifting the focus away from control towards self-trust and care.
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This week I have not one but TWO of my clients on the podcast! Miranda and Steph are here to talk about all things fitness trackers. Specifically how we've been using our Apple watches to enhance our experience of our workouts, daily movement, working towards performance goals, recovery, and more. We've been working on these things together in our 1:1 sessions and now we're ready to share our insights with you.
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I am back from my podcasting hiatus because things in Chicago and across the country are getting pretty bad pretty fast and I wanna run my mouth while I'm still allowed.
We are here because when I found myself feeling hopeless a few weeks ago, I got involved with my local Indivisible chapter and it gave me a sense of purpose and community in a world that often feels irreparably fucked. I met Ishaan there and immediately knew we needed to come together to spread the word about No Kings and building a peaceful resistance.
Ishaan Srivastava is a GenZ progressive activist, and has been very active in Illinois politics. He has also been the host of The Ishaan S. Show, his political news podcast, since 2021. Ishaan is an advocate for GenZ involvement in politics, and informing people about ways to get involved!
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**Please know that this conversation represents the views of myself and Ishaan and may or may not reflect the diverse views of Indivisible as an organization or its members.
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No Kings Chicago Suburban Rally 10/18
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Another shorty episode coming at you today. I'm sharing a topic that comes up a lot for my clients and a concept that I came up with called the "fitness hierarchy of needs". Many of us obsess over small details that don't really matter when it comes to our fitness. On this episode we talk about what you wanna have in place first to build a strong fitness foundation, so that you can keep things moving even when life kicks you in the ass.
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Forget training for your bikini body. Ali Kreider is here today to talk about training for our old lady bodies and I couldn't be more excited to share this episode!
Ali Kreider is a certified personal trainer & group fitness coach, empowering women to develop a self-compassionate approach to movement. She helps clients build strength & resilience that allows them to handle life outside of the gym with more confidence & ease.
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Julie Duffy Dillon is here today for an episode that feels very full circle to me. I originally heard her on several other anti-diet podcasts when I was very new to this work, and I am so excited to be able to share her on mine. Her new book, "Find Your Food Voice" just came out, and it's filling such an important void in the intuitive eating space. If you've ever felt like intuitive eating didn't work for you, or that you have a hard time connecting with what your body is asking for, this episode is for you!
Julie Duffy Dillon is a seasoned dietitian trained as a mental health counselor and podcast host of Find Your Food Voice®, a Top 100 Nutrition Podcast on Apple Podcasts. Featured on TLC's My Big Fat Fabulous Life, Julie helps people with a complicated relationship with food better access non diet tools like Intuitive Eating and strategize how to remove the shame and blame dumped on them from diet culture. She teaches dietitians, counselors, doctors, and other health professionals to do the same through clinical supervision, writing, media, and speaking engagements. Julie holds a MS degree in Community Counseling, is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist, and a Certified Eating Disorder Specialist and Supervisor.
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Emily Decker is here to talk about something that I know has been on a LOT of our minds lately:
How do we stay informed and get involved in activism in a way that makes a difference without burning ourselves out?
Today we are talking about that and so much more!
Emily Decker is a somatic-based, trauma-informed, body-neutral personal trainer with a master’s degree in social work from the University of Southern California. She works with people in person in Los Angeles and virtually across the country to shift how they conceptualize exercise and find empowerment and fulfillment in movement.
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Chelsea Clarke is here today! Our conversation was inspired by something she posted in her Instagram stories a few weeks ago that hit a little too close to home for me. The very real struggle that happens when Western medicine isn't helping you but wholistic wellness feels like a scam. Chelsea is here to help us navigate the gray area in between.
Chelsea Clarke is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist, Personal Trainer, and owner of Balance Chaos Nutrition + Fitness. She's based in San Diego, California, and works with clients virtually across many states in the U.S. Chelsea holds a Master’s degree in Food Policy and Applied Nutrition from Tufts University and completed her dietetics training at Simmons University. Her fitness career started over 14 years ago at Equinox luxury gyms, where she gained extensive experience as a personal trainer. She's been a registered dietitian for over six years, and loves combining her knowledge of nutrition and fitness to help clients thrive. Now, as a dietitian specializing in sports performance, she helps athletes of all ages navigate nutrition in a way that supports their health, prevents RED-S, and fosters recovery from eating disorders or disordered eating. When she's not working as a nutrition & fitness coach, you can find her strolling the beach with her dog, Waldo, training Olympic lifts in the gym, practicing aerial ropes, and expressing herself through her nail art!
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If you haven't already heard of today's guest, it's about time you did! I've been singing Damali Fraiser's praises as one of the wisest and most thorough kettlebell coaches I've had the privilege of learning from. Today she's sharing all that goodness with us!
Meet Coach Damali, pronouns she/her. Damali is a compassionate Kettlebell Expert, author, speaker, fitness / nutrition coach and founder of Lift off Strength & Wellness. Damali is known for her unapologetic opposition to diet culture in the kettlebell community and as a passionate educator who will help you learn to train with kettlebells safely. Through her Inclusive Kettlebell Coach course and certification programs, you learn to teach kettlebells from an intersectional lens that's size-inclusive, trauma-informed, judgement-free and for every BODY (emphasis on the body because humanity has always had body diversity)You can connect with Damali on her website liftoffstrength.ca, on Instagram @Damali.Fraiser, TikTok and on YouTube @liftoffstrength or through her retreats for Black Women and women of colour (WOC) in Kettlebells @kettlebellsinblack.
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Today I am thrilled to be talking to Dr. Jen Hosler--a genius of a physical therapist and strength coach whose work I am constantly referring my clients to. What she has to share about pain science is absolutely mind blowing.
Dr. Jen is a physical therapist and strength coach dedicated to bridging the gap between fitness and rehab. With degrees in exercise science and physical therapy, combined with her own experience of chronic pain and injuries, Jen’s mission is to help people move better, build resilience, and achieve their goals without pain or limitations. She works with everyday gym-goers to overcome nagging injuries and movement restrictions while mentoring fitness & movement professionals to confidently do the same for their clients.
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Today's conversation is with one of the most interesting humans I've ever met: my longtime friend Maria Tate! Our personal history goes way back to when we met working with the same Chicago dance company in 2009. I'll let their professional bio speak for itself!
Maria recently returned to the US after spending two years with the internationally recognized Phare Ponleu Selpak Association, home of Phare The Cambodian Circus. During their time in Cambodia Maria directed, produced and choreographed a world premiere circus for Phare, toured Cambodia with Circo Inzir, led a tour and performed with Spark! Circus in Thailand, and served on the board of Caravan Circus Network based in Brussels, Belgium. Maria is a member of the Professional Training Program at Aloft Circus Arts, where they also coach kids classes. Once an elementary music teacher, Maria has been teaching music, dance, circus and theatre to kids since they were 13 and assisted with their little sister's ballet class, dressed up as a baby elephant. Maria's other skills include clowning, choreography, opera, ballet, contemporary dance and reading too way many books at the same time. Maria also REALLY loves tacos.
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