Societal notions of “beauty” and our relationship with our bodies and food have been deeply influenced by diet culture. Author and registered dietitian Christy Harrison defines diet culture as: “a system of beliefs that equates thinness, muscularity, and particular body shapes with health and moral virtue; promotes weight loss and body reshaping as a means of attaining higher status; demonizes certain foods and food groups while elevating others; and oppresses people who don’t match its supposed picture of ‘health’…It masquerades as health, wellness, and fitness.” (Anti-Diet, Christy Harrison, p. 7).

In today’s episode, I talk with registered dietitian, sports nutritionist, and nutrition therapist Leslie Schilling about the widespread impacts of diet culture, including in our schools, medical offices, and places of worship. Leslie recently released her second book, Feed Yourself: Step Away from the Lies of Diet Culture and into Your Divine Design. She has also served as a performance nutrition consultant for Cirque du Soleil®, an expert contributor to U.S. News & World Report, and has been featured in media outlets like Health, Women's Health, Self, Pregnancy Magazine, Yoga Journal, The Huffington Post, and on HGTV.

In my time with Leslie, she helps us unravel some of diet culture’s lies, including how its beliefs and practices have infiltrated the church. She also helps us see that thinness isn’t synonymous with health, our worth is not tied to our body size or what is on our plate, and that body diversity is divine. In so many ways, Leslie helps us name the lies of diet culture so we can fight back, live in freedom, and trust our body’s divine design.

Learn more about Leslie's book, here.

Buy Melissa L. Johnson's book, Soul-Deep Beauty: Fighting for Our True Worth in a World Demanding Flawless, here. Learn more about Impossible Beauty and join the community here.