For so many people, a single body comment has stayed with them for years. Someone remarks on what's on your plate, or how you look compared to last time they saw you, and you stand there without knowing what to say. Commenting on bodies got normalized somewhere along the way, and most of us were never given the language to push back on it.

But what if you already have the right to end that conversation, and the only missing piece is knowing what to say?

In this episode, we talk about what happens when people comment on your body, your food, or your weight, and what you can actually say back. Between the three of us we have lived this from opposite sides. Comments about being too thin, comments about gaining weight, comments in a larger body, comments filtered through cultural norms where remarking on appearance is the first thing out of someone's mouth. What we bring to this conversation is a range of responses that fit different relationships, different rooms, and different levels of energy on any given day.

In this episode, you will discover:

• The reason a comment about your body says almost nothing about your body
• What most people never realize they are doing when diet culture teaches them that commenting is helpful
• The one question to ask yourself before you decide whether to respond at all
• Why unsolicited advice about your health so often arrives dressed as concern
• What setting boundaries actually sounds like with the family member you cannot avoid
• What to say when someone celebrates their own weight loss
• Why food comments at a party are rarely about the food
• What body shaming looks like when it comes wrapped in a compliment
• The part of body autonomy that requires no explanation from you to anyone
• Why food freedom includes eating without explaining your choices

Protecting your body image does not require a confrontation, and this episode shows exactly what it does require.

Let’s rebrand wellness together!
Elizabeth, Tara & Maria

Experience Wellness Rebranded in real life! Join Elizabeth, Maria, and Tara on October 3rd for Inhale, a one-day fall retreat with movement, nature walks, nourishing food, and conversations that go deeper. Reserve your spot here.

Connect with us!
The Ultimate Self Care Planner: https://elizabethharrisnutrition.ck.page/9e817ab37e

Elizabeth Harris, MS, RDN, LDN
Facebook/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ElizabethHarrisNutrition
Take the free quiz, What Type of Eater Are You?:https://elizabethharrisnutrition.com/quiz

Join The Nourished Table, Elizabeth's monthly recipe club, for $20 a month: https://elizabethharrisnutrition.com/recipe-club

Tara De Leon, Master Personal Trainer
Email: FitnessTrainer19@hotmail.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tara_de_leon_fitness
Join Tara’s Newsletter:www.taradeleonfitness.com/connect

Maria Winters, LCPC, NCC
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coaching_therapist/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/MWcoachingtherapy
Website:www.thecoachingtherapist.com

Episodes Mentioned

Want to go deeper on this conversation? These two episodes pair perfectly with today's discussion.

• Episode 173: Evelyn Tribole on Ozempic and GLP-1s: Why Informed Consent is Missing, The Dangers of Weight Cycling, and The Neuroscience of Intuitive Eating: Where the reachable and teachable framework came from. If you want to hear it directly from the source, start here.
• Episode 16: Rethinking weight loss complements: How to focus on pursuing health through self care, nourishment and kindness to our bodies: How to focus on pursuing health through self care, nourishment, and kindness to our bodies.

Local to Annapolis? Tara teaches water aerobics every Monday night, and everyone is welcome regardless of fitness level. Message her for details and come stand next to her in the pool.

If you want to start a podcast or grow your existing one, visit julianabarbati.com and let them know we sent you!