What Do You Eat? Answering the Questions I Get Asked Most
Most questions I get about food and weight loss come from inside the diet-and-exercise model. But my answers come from somewhere completely different. Here’s what that means — and why context changes everything about the answers you’re getting.
The Real Reason Diet Drama Never Goes Away
When I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter® launched a campaign about ending food drama, they got one thing right — the drama is real. But their solution missed the point entirely. Here’s why no product can solve a problem that starts with the model itself.
What Queer Eye Gets Right — And What It Misses
I have a love/hate relationship with Queer Eye. The unconditional love and support the Fab Five offer their clients is genuinely beautiful. But pop psychology sound bites don’t create lasting transformation. Here’s what the show gets right — and what happens when the cameras stop rolling.
The Hardest Part Wasn’t the Eating Disorder
In 1986 a friend wrote a poem about me. I was anorexic and disappearing. People who read it now feel relieved I survived that time. But here’s what they don’t know — being anorexic was actually the easy part. The hardest part came after.
Why ‘The Science of Weight Loss’ Won’t Actually Help You
A magazine headline promised “The Science of Weight Loss.” I didn’t buy it. Not the magazine — and not the premise. Here’s why science alone can never tell you what your own body already knows.
Can Shapewear Really Be Body Positive?
A shapewear ad called itself “body positive” while selling products designed to reshape women’s bodies. I’m not against shapewear. But I am against sleight of hand marketing that mistakes a product for a solution — and keeps women stuck in the underlying pain.
Happy Calories Don’t Count® vs Intuitive Eating — What’s the Difference?
I get asked this question constantly in Seattle’s alternative health community: how is Happy Calories Don’t Count® different from intuitive eating? The differences come down to two things — the underlying model and the methodology. Here’s what that actually means.
Why Oprah’s Food and Diet Ventures Miss the Point
Oprah is one of the most powerful women in the world. And yet her ventures — from Weight Watchers to cauliflower pizza — all operate from within the same broken model. Here’s why even the most well-intentioned diet culture contributions keep women stuck.
My Story: From Anorexia and 200 Pounds to Happy Calories Don’t Count®
At seventeen I was hospitalized for anorexia at 80 pounds. At thirty I was 200 pounds and suicidal. What happened between those two moments — and after — became the foundation of everything I teach. This is my story.
Is Body Positivity Actually Making Things Worse?
“Love your body” sounds beautiful. But you can’t compel yourself to love anything — least of all your body. Here’s why the Body Positivity movement, despite its good intentions, often leaves women with more pain than peace.