Fat Joy with Sophia Apostol

Sophia shares why she's pausing the podcast, her biggest a-ha moments from 100 episodes, and how to stay connected to Fat Joy.This episode's poem is Mary Oliver's "Wild Geese."Mentioned in this episode:Fat Joy Newsletter- subscribe for free to receive the newsletter to your inbox.Fat Joy Writing Workshop- it's currently full, but if you're interested, let Firefly know and we'll offer it again soon. Keep connected with Fat Joy:Fat Joy InstagramFat Joy website

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

Aubrey Gordon (she/her) is back! We're talking about the amazing success of the film Your Fat Friend, how it changed her family relationships, and what it's like being filmed over six years. Aubrey and Sophia share their experiences having conversations with non-fat folks about how to be good allies. Spoiler: not all of these conversations go well. Aubrey Gordon stars in the documentary film Your Fat Friend, is the author of You Just Need to Lose Weight and What We Don't Talk About When We Talk About Fat, and co-host of the Maintenance Phase podcast. Aubrey started writing as Your Fat Friend in 2016. She published exclusively under the pseudonym for four years, writing anonymously about the social and cultural realities of moving through the world as a very fat person.Please connect with Aubrey on her website and Instagram.This episode's poem is called “my mother says kissing a man without a mustache is like eating eggs without salt” by Joy Sullivan.Connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube. Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review. Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful.

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

Sophia has created a workshop called Fat Joy- specifically for listeners of this podcast who are interested in exploring the fat experience through writing. Please go to Firefly Creative Writing to learn more about the Fat Joy workshop. For $50 off the workshop, use code: FATJOYKate Manne (she/her), philosopher and author of Unshrinking: How to Face Fatphobia, shares her thoughts on why we struggle to see through diet culture, how the ‘thought-terminating cliche' ends liberatory conversations, and if it's possible to be anti-diet and also pursue intentional weight loss.Kate Manne is an associate professor of philosophy at Cornell University, where she's been teaching since 2013. Before that, she was a junior fellow at the Harvard Society of Fellows. Manne did her graduate work in philosophy at MIT and works in moral, social, and feminist philosophy. She is the author of three books, Down Girl: The Logic of Misogyny, Entitled: How Male Privilege Hurts Women, and Unshrinking: How to Face Fatphobia, which came out in 2024. She writes a newsletter, More to Hate, canvassing misogyny, fatphobia, their intersection, and more.Please connect with Kate through Instagram, X, her website, and her newsletter.This episode's poem is called “to approach” by Raquel Salas Rivera.Connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube.Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review.Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful.

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

Tiana Dodson (she/her) explores how liberation consciousness requires hope and imagination, even when they feel impossible. Part of that exploration is rooted in exploring the ‘science of less' and how being subtractive rather than additive can unlock new levels of awareness and help dismantle oppression. With a decade as a body liberation facilitator and a lifetime of lived experience as a fat, biracial, queer, neurodivergent person, Tiana Dodson is well-versed in what it is to exist in a multiply-marginalized body. As an active co-creator of the syllabus for liberation, her work addresses how personal, community, and global liberation depend upon each other. Through her consulting services, group offerings, and public speaking, Tiana highlights the ways these systems of oppression are bound together and how we can push back against them.Please connect with through her website, Instagram, Facebook, and tiktok.This episode's poem is called “The Broken” by Alberto Rios.Connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube. Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review. Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful.

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

Sophia has created a workshop specifically for listeners of this podcast who are interested in exploring the fat experience through writing. Please go to Firefly Creative Writing to learn more. For $50 off any Firefly workshop, use code: FATJOYElle Baez (she/her) is the brilliant singer-songwriter of the runaway hit “I Love My Body.” Elle shares her own journey to body positivity, including being bullied, being sent to fat camps, and struggling with eating disorders. Music became a way to heal from fatphobia, and Elle reflects on how making the music videos with fat actors was a deliberate way to showcase body diversity and representation. And, she sings for us, too!!Trailblazing Latina singer-songwriter Elle Baez is taking over with her innovative pop-soul music and message. Real, authentic, and relatable, Elle is a representation for womxn who have been craving seeing themselves in the spotlight. She empowers and inspires others through her captivating hooks, body positive music videos, versatile writing style, and motto of self-love. Her newest hit song “I Love My Body” has gone viral on social media with with over 2.5 Million Hits. The song along with her summer 2023 hit “Fuego” were both featured in Rolling Stone's “Songs You Need To Know," and she was named 2023 Entertainer of The Year at the Full Figured Industry Awards. As a songwriter, Elle has been featured by the Grammy's. She has opened for charting artists Bea Miller and Leah Kate, been featured in Pop Sugar Magazine, NPR and went on a VS Pink Sponsored Tour. Please connect with Elle on her website, Instagram, TikTok, and the Curvy Artists Collective. This episode's poem is called “For Keeps” by Joy Harjo.Connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube. Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review. Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful.

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

Please go to Firefly Creative Writing to see if any of our cozy writing workshops are for you. For $50 off, use code: FATJOYCharis Stiles (she/her) wants us all to feel like we belong, are accepted, and are worthy of love. Often, the barriers to feeling this way stem from wounding that was out of our control, however there's a lot we can do to repair, heal, and rebuild a sense of self. Charis describes how we can examine self-limiting beliefs, separate out what are real external barriers and what are internalized barriers, and let go of shame and perfectionism.Charis is a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) living in the San Francisco Bay Area. She's a therapist, educator, and activist. In addition to proving therapy, she trains organizations on proving fat positive care. She's taught social work at San Jose State and been a clinical supervisor for new therapists. She identifies as fat, queer, white cisgender (elder) millennial, managing daily life with an autoimmune disorder. When she's not working, she's reading romance novels, watching lots of cat TikTok, and trying her hand at ceramics. Please connect with Charis through her website.This episode's poem is called “Starfish” by Eleanor Lerman.Connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube. Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review. Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful.

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

Please go to Firefly Creative Writing to see if any of our cozy writing workshops are for you. The Fall schedule will be on the website for July 11th. For $50 off, use code: FATJOYCrystal Maldonado (she/her) is a young adult author with a lot of feelings that she's channeled into romcoms for fat, brown girls. She shares what it was like to write the stories she wished she'd had when she was growing up, the gatekeeping she had to overcome to get published, and her ‘glimmers' writing practice that connects her to joy each day. Crystal has written several books, including The Fall of Whit Rivera, which People Magazine called a “pumpkin-spice-latte-flavored treat”; Fat Chance, Charlie Vega, which was a New England Book Award winner, a Cosmopolitan Best New Book, and a Kirkus Best YA Fiction of 2021; and No Filter and Other Lies, which was named a POPSUGAR and Seventeen Best New YA. Her middle grade debut, Camp Sylvania: Moon Madness—a paranormal summer camp story featuring two fat besties, co-written with #1 New York Times bestselling author Julie Murphy—releases in spring 2024.Please connect with through her website, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and tiktok. This episode's poem is called “My friends got married today…” by Yesika Salgado.Connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube. Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review. Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful.

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

In this riotous episode, Parker McMullen Bushman (they/she) takes us on their journey to become an activist and educator in the environmental education and outdoor spaces when no one looked like them. Fat, Black, queer, and non-binary, Parker shares how disparities in access to nature are outcomes from the Jim Crow laws, how race is different from ethnicity, and that disrupting white supremacy is about questioning default assumptions. Parker, aka KWEEN WERK, is bringing people together in the fight for Environmental Justice and Social Equity. Using Social Media as a tool, this Social Justice Activist is part Fashion Diva, Artist and Educator. KWEEN stands for Keep Widening Environmental Engagement Narratives. Parker has a passion for equity and inclusion in outdoor spaces. Their interest in justice, accessibility, and equity issues developed from their personal experiences facing the unequal representation of people of color in environmental organizations and green spaces. Parker tackles these complex issues by addressing them through head-on activism and education. As the Chief Operating Officer of Inclusive Journeys, and CEO/Founder of Ecoinclusive Strategies, Parker is a dynamic speaker and facilitator who engages organizations in new thinking around what it means to be a diversity change-agent and create dynamic organizational change. Parker's background in the non-profit leadership, activism, conservation, environmental education and outdoor recreation fields spans over 24+ years.Please connect with Parker through their TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and website. Links to Ecoinclusive and the Inclusive Guide.This episode's poem is called “Teach Me” by Malgosia Halliop.Connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube. Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review. Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful.

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

(Content Note: mention of sexual assault)Melanie Tufts (she/her) and Emma Deakin (she/her) collaboratively create boudoir photography experiences grounded in fat-positivity, equity, and consent. Sophia, host of the Fat Joy podcast, did a boudoir photo shoot with them and shares her experience being photographed nude, and how everything they did throughout the experience felt like a reclamation of her body. Melanie Tufts is a fat-positive boudoir photographer. Her focus on the boudoir genre, specifically for women, allows her to focus on her values and ideologies. She views her work as personal activism against societal pressures dictating how women, especially those in marginalized bodies, should appear and behave. Reclaiming sensuality as a personal journey, Melanie strives to provide a safe space for women. Alongside her husband, three kids, and one very spoiled cat, she lives in Ingersoll, Ontario, Canada, where she also serves as a creative consultant contributing to a local mental health community's website and photography needs.Connect with Melanie on her website, Instagram, Facebook page, and Women's Only VIP Facebook Group. Emma Deakin is a licensed Hairstylist and Makeup Artist and the Owner of Bare Bones Beauty located in Brantford, Ontario. Emma's focus in life is self-love and self-acceptance, which she brings into her salon practices. Emma became a member of the Fanshawe Hair Program Faculty in 2021 as well as an Education Leader for the hair line, Colorproof. Connect with Emma on Instagram and Facebook.This episode's poem is called “a brief meditation on breath” by Yesenia Montilla.Connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube. Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review. Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful.

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

Jessie Diaz-Hererra (she/her) is here to help us “Free the Jiggle,” which is one of the signature dance offerings from her company, Power Plus Wellness located in New York City. Jessie shares the moment she learned to feel shame about her body, and how that moment actually led to the co-founding of her movement business that now offers classes like aerial yoga, ballet, and aqua stretch & sound baths- all specifically for plus-size bodies. Jessie Diaz-Herrera is a dancer, certified group fitness instructor, and body positivity advocate who has dedicated her career to exploring and celebrating all bodies in dance. She believes that everyone should feel empowered to move and express themselves through dance, regardless of their shape or size. Through her workshops, Jessie uses body-positive affirmations, uplifting songs, and easy follow-along dance moves to create an inclusive and body-confident environment. Jessie is also the co-founder of Power Plus Wellness, a Latina-owned business curating private movement classes and events for plus-size bodies to jiggle freely, unlearn diet culture, and joyfully co-regulate in a safe community. Please connect with Jessie through her website, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok.This episode's poem is called “Lion” by Tina Chang.Connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube. Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review. Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful.

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

Dr. Theresa Melito-Conners (she/her) brings her Ph.D-level expertise to a conversation about the ten domains of self care. No, not bubble baths and spa days (although we can love those too), but rather deeper levels of how we show up fully and authentically as humans and what might get in our way.Theresa Melito-Conners, Ph.D. (Dr. MC) is the founder of Dr. MC's Self-Care Cabaret, a suite of theatre-inspired, self-care and professional development services for helping professionals. The Self-Care Cabaret encompasses workshops, a podcast, and educational curricula all focused on accessible and realistic strategies that equip and empower. Please connect with Theresa through her website, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.This episode's poem is called “The Coming of Light” by Mark Strand.Connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube. Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review. Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful.

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

Artist Lindsey Guile (she/her) draws charcoal images of nude, fat people…on canvases that are eight-feet tall. Her fat bodies literally take up space and tower over viewers. Lindsey shares what motivated her to embrace fat liberation (spoiler: gallbladder disease and an eating disorder) and use her artistic talents to challenge the hierarchy of art.Lindsey Guile is a body and fat-liberation artist exploring concepts of self-image through the lens of contemporary feminist theory. Lindsey's practice embraces an intermedia approach that utilizes drawing, printmaking, and ceramics in her explorations into how body image affects self- worth. Her work has been exhibited at The Arnot Museum, The Dorsky Museum, The Birke Art Gallery, The Mary Cosgrove Dolphin Gallery, Untitled Space Gallery, Women's Work Gallery, The Williamsburg art & Historical Center, and more. She was an Artist in Residence at the Blue Mountain Center in the summer of 2021.Lindsey is an Assistant Professor of Visual Art at Dutchess Community College. She is also the Director of the Mildred I. Washington Art Gallery on campus. She has an MFA from SUNY New Paltz and a BFA and MA degrees from SUNY Oswego. Lindsey currently lives in Poughkeepsie, New York. Please connect with Lindsey through her website and Instagram.This episode's poem is called “Keeping Still” by Pablo Neruda.Connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube. Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review. Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

Andrea Westbrook (she/her) is a Size-Inclusion Specialist who works with organizations to become less stigmatizing for plus-size and fat folks. She shares why this is essential for all workplaces, what it's costing businesses who don't do it, and 5 steps that both individuals and organizations can take to do better by their employees.Andrea Westbrook's mission is to bring body size into the Diversity and Inclusion conversation. Andrea works with individuals and guides them to stop letting their beliefs about their size hold them back so that they can connect with themselves and fully embody the life they truly want to live. Andrea also works with organizations to create awareness about the impacts of weight-stigma and anti-fat bias for their employees so that they can improve employee engagement, wellness, and retention, as well as create a truly inclusive company culture where every BODY can reach their full potential regardless of their size. Andrea is also the host of the Curvy Culture Podcast.Andrea mentioned her coach training school, Beautiful You Coaching Academy.Please connect with Andrea through her website, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Get her size-inclusion checklist for HR & DEI practitioners, too. This episode's poem is called “From Blossoms” by Li-Young Lee. Connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube. Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review. Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

Lama Rod Owens' (he/him) earliest memories of suffering were related to his body. He shares how through compassion and joy, we can find the space and sacredness to come into balance with our bodies and the natural world. Lama Rod's experience with queer male spaces, and his need to separate from them, led to seeking community and, ultimately, his own freedom.Lama Rod Owens is a Black Buddhist Southern Queen. A leading voice in a new generation of Buddhist teachers with over 11 years of experience, Lama Rod activates the intersections of his identity to create a platform that's very natural, engaging, and inclusive. Applauded for his mastery in balancing weighty topics with a sense of lightness, his mission is showing you how to heal and free yourself. Please connect with Lama Rod through his website, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and YouTubeAlso, you can check out his new book The New Saints on Bookshop and Amazon.This episode's poem is called “Sanctuary” by Ada Limon.Connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube. Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review. Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

Diet culture and anti-fatness are very present in our schools, from being designed into the curriculum to showing up in the teacher's lunchroom. Cait O-Connor (she/her) began her own fat liberation journey in her early 20s and quickly brought anti-diet principles into her classrooms. Cait shares how students have responded to her anti-fat lessons and how parents and teachers can support kids further. Cait O'Connor is a national award-winning middle school English teacher from New York, and the creator of #DitchingDietCultureAtSchool. She is passionate about mental health advocacy, peer work, and eating disorder recovery, and she has written for publications such as Edutopia, English Journal, Language Arts, and is featured in chapter 10 of Virginia Sole-Smith's book, Fat Talk: Parenting in the Age of Diet Culture. Mentioned in this episode: Ditching Diet Culture at School digital resource library, Fat Talk: Parenting in the Age of Diet Culture, Harvard Implicit Association test (choose Weight IAT), What's Eating Us, The Fat Joke poem by Rachel Wiley. Please connect with Cait through Instagram and Twitter.This episode's poem is called “How to Triumph Like a Girl” by Ada Limon.Connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube. Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review. Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

If you'd like to learn more about mental health care by and for fat folks, please check out Tend and Cultivate Counseling. (Content Note: mention of sexual violence.)Plus-size pageant Queens Choniece Stevenson (she/her), Ellen Miller (she/her), and Rebecca Breedlove-Berry (she/her) share what got them into pageant world, how being part of this experience changed how they feel about their bodies, and how they use their platforms to create positive change and social justice. Plus, their biggest moments of awe and oh-no! during the competition.Choniece Stevenson is a mental health and confidence coach. Her goal is to be a listening ear for those that feel unheard and educate on the importance of mental health. She is the first African American title holder for Ms. Voluptuous International. Connect with Choniece on Instagram.Ellen Miller is an emergency nurse practitioner hailing from Northern Ireland but currently living in London, UK. She's the previous Miss Voluptuous Ireland and an Ambassador for an incredible organization called Say It Loud that supports survivors of sexual violence. Connect with Ellen on Instagram. Rebecca Breedlove-Berry is the current Ms. Supreme International and former Ms. Voluptuous Virginia 22/23. She is the mother of two and works as a volunteer coordinator. Connect with Rebecca on Instagram. This episode's poem is called “Revery” by Fenton Johnson.Connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube. Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review. Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

If you'd like to learn more about mental health care by and for fat folks, please check out Tend and Cultivate Counselling.(Content Note: this episode mentions childhood assault, sexual assault, and incest.)Mary Lambert (she/her) shares how she uses music and poetry to “make art for the wound” of being made to feel wrong. As someone who is fat, queer, and bipolar, her journey towards joy has been worth all the challenges as she's now in her “body euphoria” era.Mary Lambert is a multi-platinum artist, author of the poetry collection Shame is an Ocean I Swim Across, and has performed on the Colbert Show, Ellen, The Today Show, Good Morning America, The Tonight Show, and the American Music Awards. Lambert also received the Human Rights Campaign's Visibility Award, The SAMHSA Special Recognition Award from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for her work on destigmatizing mental illness, and was invited to speak at the UN.Lambert is currently working on a new book and album about body image; co-starring in the Netflix animated musical and series, I ♥️ Arlo and Arlo the Alligator Boy; co-hosting The Manic Episodes, a queer and mental health podcast; and facilitates a virtual workshop on body image called Everybody is a Babe.Please connect with Mary on Instagram and her website.Mary reads her own poem to us. It's called “Jesus Loves My Crop Top” from her book Shame is an Ocean I Swim Across.Connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube.Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review.Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful.

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

If you'd like to learn more about mental health care by and for fat folks, please check out Tend and Cultivate Counselling.Michelle Osbourne (she/her) reinvented her life after divorce. She wanted to normalize being a fat, Black, queer woman and built her social media platform by sharing authentically and vulnerably about her life. Michelle also shares her beautiful engagement story!Michelle Osbourne is a body image activist and socialpreneur who specializes in helping marginalized communities build socially conscious brands. She works from an anti-racist, anti-oppression, intersectional feminist framework and can often be heard speaking on topics such as body image activism, self-confidence, marginalized woman issues and LGBTQ2+ rights.She was named one of Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's Black Changemakers in 2021 and has worked with organizations such as Dove, SiriusXM and Bell just to name a few. She's also been frequently interviewed on radio, podcasts, T.V., magazines and owns her own communications studio Michelle Osbourne & Co. Michelle is the self-proclaimed SheEO of Giving Zero Fux body liberation content creator helping women gain the confidence to unapologetically live their best lives.Please connect with Michelle on her website, TikTok, and Instagram.This episode's poem is “Lover”by Ada Limon.Connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube.Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review.Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful.

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

If you'd like to learn more about mental health care by and for fat folks, please check out Tend and Cultivate Counselling.Heather Mader (she/her) and Ali Kight (she/her) teamed up to improve how people who menstruate insert tampons. Designed in 1931 and having gone through almost no improvements since, traditional tampons weren't designed to accommodate different body types, disabilities, injuries. Ali founded TINA Healthcare to change this, and when Heather tried the first prototype, she knew she wanted to get involved in the design of the product. This partnership is a great example of how companies can co-design with fat folks who have lived experience and wisdom to share- and build a better product for all.Heather Mader is a personal chef of 20+ years and a working professional artist and teacher of abstract art. She lives in Portland Oregon and when not cooking or painting, enjoys meditating and cultivating her spiritual practice. Please connect with Heather here.Ali Kight is a Ph.D. candidate from Stanford University in smart materials and biomimetic design for medical devices. She founded TINA Healthcare to translate cutting-edge scientific innovations to solve real problems in womxn's health. Please connect with Ali on the TINA Healthcare website and on Instagram.This episode's poem is called “Never Alone” by Kaveri Patel.Connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube.Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review.Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful.

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

Andrea Kelly (she/her) collaborates with outdoor apparel brands to extend their plus-sizing, because no one should be excluded from outdoor activities for a lack of clothing options. With 20 years of experience in the apparel industry, Andrea shares why it's so hard for brands to warm up to the idea of more diverse sizing, why they're leaving money on the table by not making plus-size clothing (hint: plus-size is the majority of our population), and the two key moments that sparked her desire to make change from the inside out.Featured as one of Outside Business Journal's Top 20 Most Influential People in the Outdoor Industry (2022), Andrea Kelly is a Size Inclusion advocate with over 20 years' experience in the Apparel business. She believes strongly that the Outdoors are for every body and strives to make changes in the industry. She is the Founder, CEO & Advisor of the newly founded Make Plus Equal, an advisory firm that guides outdoor apparel brands who are interested in, yet Intimidated to serve diverse bodies outside their comfort zone and the outdated sizing norm. By sharing her experiences, case studies, consumer insights, customer relations, and market knowledge, Andrea helps brands feel confident in driving their businesses forward, building more inclusive collections and media representation, growing their market-share, and earning the trust of loyal customers who have long-been marginalized by the fashion industry. Mentioned in this episode are Chub Hub PDX, Fat Joy's Martinus Evans episode, and Fat Joy's Pam Luk episode.Please connect with Andrea through her website and Instagram. This episode's poem is called “Jump” by Alison Luterman.Connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube. Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review. Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful.

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

Leslie Jordan Garcia (she/her) experienced a racially motivated betrayal that started her eating disorder. Recovery led her to specialize in coaching racialized people through their own eating disorders. She shares how we can individually liberate ourselves, engage in intersectional healing, and stop demonizing our cultural foods. Leslie is a multi-certified ED recovery and fitness professional who is on a mission to dismantle barriers to ED treatment and fitness. She holds dual master's degrees in business administration and public health, with a career across healthcare, education, and non-profit sectors. She feels fortunate to combine her expertise with the additional lived experience at the intersections of binge eating disorder recovery and joy-filled life in a larger body and loves being the Hype ED Recovery Coach!Please connect with Leslie on Instagram and Ko-fi. And check out her podcast too. This episode's poem is called “Gather” by Rose McLarney.Connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube. Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review. Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful.

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

Manny Martins-Karman (she/her) was stuck in Covid lockdown thinking she would have lots of time for her abstract art. But that didn't happen. Instead, she felt disconnected. So, she posted a fashion video like what she'd seen her fave influencers do. A few videos later, Manny went viral. She shares how playing with clothes has led to her being told that she's changing people's lives. Manny Martins-Karman is an artist, graphic designer, fashionista, wife, mother, coffee drinker, and people watcher. During the Covid lock-downs, inspired by her favourite creators, she posted videos and quickly became part of an inspiring community that uses fashion as a form of creativity. She uses her closet and outfits to bring joy to those who follow her. #wearwhatmakesyouhappyPlease connect with Manny on Instagram and tiktok. Link to Deepa Iyer's Social Change Map. This episode's poem is “Triple Sonnet for my Aggressive Forehead” by Dorothy ChanConnect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube. Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review. Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful.

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

Aaron Flores (he/him) talks to men about their body stories. As a fat man, he spent years weight cycling and then advising others on weight loss as a dietitian. He shares his own experiences with diet culture and masculinity and how he found his way to intuitive eating, which completely changed his professional dietitian practice. Aaron and Sophia discuss how diet culture shows up differently for men, and Aaron describes how dieting can be explained by Star Wars. Aaron Flores is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and Certified Body Trust® provider with a private practice in Calabasas, CA. Aaron uses Intuitive Eating, Health at Every Size®, and Body Trust® as the framework to help individuals develop a more compassionate, non-judgmental approach to food and their body. In addition to his individual work with clients, he is also a podcaster. His two shows are Men Unscripted and, Dietitians Unplugged. Please connect with Aaron through his website and Instagram.This episode's poem is “Teller of Tales” by Gabriela Mistral.Connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube. Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review. Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful.

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

Annie Nardolilli (she/her) and Louisa Hall (she/her) are the singers/songwriters behind the musical comedy group, Griefcat. In this hilarious conversation, they share how they became ‘musical soulmates,' what sparked their maximalist on-stage aesthetic, and why being fat is their superpower. Also, they sing to us.Griefcat is an all-women musical comedy duo hailed as “local favorites” by Washington City Paper in their hometown of DC. Often referred to as “Tenacious Double D's” due to their musicality and hilarious lyrics, their sequin studded shows have brightened stages across the country. They've dazzled social media too —just one of their tunes, Revolution (Poop at Work) has over 15 Million views across tiktok and Instagram. Relatability for all is at the core of their lyrics; as Questlove commented on a recent clip, “I feel seen.”Please connect with Griefcat on their website, Instagram, YouTube, and Spotify. This episode's poem is “I love you to the moon &” by chen chen.Connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube. Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review. Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful.

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.

Mermaid Chè Monique (she/her), one of the stars of the Netflix documentary “MerPeople,” shares how each time she puts her tail on, she's defying stereotypes of what it is to be fat and Black. She's the founder of the Society of Fat Mermaids and developing an online school for folks interested in learning about mermaiding. She practices living from a place of joy and gives tips for how we can also. Mermaid Chè Monique is a DC area based mermaid performer, model and MERtivational speaker. She is the founder of Society of Fat Mermaids, a size inclusive clothing line and celebratory community. Chè is a leader in the mer world who encourages education and inclusivity through work such as her online panel discussions, serving as an advisor for the Mermaid at Any Age community and online movements such at #MerfolkForBlackLives. Education and water safety are very important to Chè who is building out an online learning platform called, School for Fish. Chè Monique is also a NAUI Mermaid Instructor and partners with the Rising Tide Effect to spread messages on water safety. Please connect with Chè Monique through her website and Instagram as well as the Society of Fat Mermaids Instagram. This episode's poem is called “Country of Water ” written by Mahogany L. Browne.Connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, subscribe to the Fat Joy newsletter, and watch full video episodes on YouTube. Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review. Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful.

Kristy Elesko (she/her) is back to talk about three common injuries: plantar fasciitis, knee pain, and tension headaches. In this very practical conversation, she shares exercises that can help heal these injuries, obstacles that may be encountered because of body size, and some practical ways to self-advocate.Kristy Elesko is a massage therapist and massage therapy educator in Victoria BC (lands of the Songhees, Esquimalt and W̱SÁNEĆ peoples). She has a diverse practice where she treats health care workers, new parents, infants and patients of every size.Mentioned in this episode: fat friendly/weight neutral providers, Meg Boggs, Tamara Walcott episode, runningfatchef.Please connect with Kristy on her website and Instagram.This episode's poem is by maggie anderson and is called “The Thing You Must Remember.”You can connect with Fat Joy on the website, Instagram, Fat Joy newsletter, and YouTube (full video episodes here!). Want to share some fattie love? Please rate this podcast and give it a joyful review.Our thanks to Chris Jones and AR Media for keeping this podcast looking and sounding joyful.

A bonus minisode where each guest answers 10 surprising questions with unexpected results. Hilarity ensues.