We are now more than a year into the global pandemic. While many of us feel excited and hopeful about reconnecting with friends and family, we also carry anxiety about how our bodies have changed during that time.
In this episode, living legend Evelyn Tribole shares practical, compassionate guidance to help you navigate social reunions, body image worries, and rebuilding trust with your body in a post‑pandemic world.
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Key Takeaways
If you feel anxious about how your body changed during the pandemic, consider these steps:
- Set gentle, realistic boundaries that match your current bandwidth and protect conversations from diet‑culture topics.
- Use this moment to shift the social narrative and create new norms that focus on connection rather than appearance.
- Normalize low productivity and fatigue—surviving the pandemic is an important accomplishment.
You Are More Than a Body
Evelyn Tribole, co‑creator of the Intuitive Eating Framework, brings decades of experience in helping people reconnect with their bodies and break free from diet culture. Her message centers on compassion, boundary setting, and rebuilding trust with your body.
Surviving Is Something To Be Grateful For
Evelyn reminds us that our bodies have endured an extraordinary year. Reunions offer a chance to move away from objectifying conversations and toward human connection. Before reconnecting, ask yourself why you want to see someone—is it to compare appearances or to truly connect? Bringing this intention into interactions helps keep you present.
If past relationships were built around dieting or body talk, you can proactively shift the script. Let friends or family know you want to focus on life updates and deeper connection, and set clear, kind reminders for when conversations veer into old territory.
Being Kind To Your Body Going Forward
Restricting food can feel like a way to regain control in chaotic times, but repeatedly dishonoring hunger disrupts biological trust. Predictable, kind acts of nourishment rebuild that trust and reduce the intensity of rebound eating. Rather than outsourcing nutrition to diet rules, Evelyn encourages tuning into how your body responds—experimenting with consistent, respectful care.
You can begin to dismantle diet culture in small, meaningful ways at home: change how you talk about food, model balanced attitudes for family, and protect children from nonconsensual dieting messages.
How do you feel about reconnecting with people as restrictions ease? Which of Evelyn’s tips will you try to reduce anxiety and nurture your body? Share your thoughts in the comments.
In This Episode
- Addressing anxiety about seeing people after body changes (7:20)
- How to move out of the binge reaction after restriction (17:29)
- Why diet culture’s co‑opting of “intuitive eating” is harmful (24:50)
- Exploring body lineage and family messages about weight (30:55)
- What to expect from Evelyn’s new book and where to start reading (34:41)
Quotes
“There might need to be some grieving for how the relationship used to be. Grieve the time spent pursuing things that no longer serve you. Give yourself space for that.” (14:04)
“Our biology has a mind of its own, and it disrupts trust every time you mess with hunger.” (20:05)
“You can say all the right words about self‑love, but if you’re still cutting calories, your cells at a biological level will react.” (27:52)
“Intuitive eating is not pass or fail; it’s an ongoing journey of learning and discovery.” (38:15)
“You need to go through the wobble to discover connection with your body. I can guide you, but it requires your checking in.” (45:16)
Featured on the Show
Intuitive Eating for Every Day by Evelyn Tribole
Intuitive Eating 4th Edition by Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch
The Intuitive Eating Workbook by Evelyn Tribole, Elyse Resch, and Tracy Tylka
Join the Intuitive Eating Online Community
Follow Evelyn on Instagram
Fearing the Black Body: The Racial Origins of Fat Phobia by Sabrina Strings
Follow Steph on social media and leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts if you enjoyed the episode.
Related Episodes
Ep 275: The Anti‑Diet Approach To Eating with Evelyn Tribole
Your Body’s Changed During the Pandemic…Now What? w/ Evelyn Tribole FULL TRANSCRIPT
Steph Gaudreau
We’re now more than a year into the pandemic, and many people are worried about how their bodies changed and what others will think. Today I speak with Evelyn Tribole—co‑creator of the Intuitive Eating Framework—about how to handle these worries, spot when “intuitive eating” is being co‑opted by diet culture, rebuild trust with your body, and approach health without harm.
Steph Gaudreau
Hello, Evelyn—welcome back.
Evelyn Tribole
I’m thrilled to be here.
Steph Gaudreau
Many people are excited to reconnect but anxious about body changes. What do you recommend?
Evelyn Tribole
Start by honoring that your body survived. Decide whether you want to reconnect to check out appearances or to connect on a human level. If anxiety takes you out of the present, set compassionate boundaries, remind yourself of your intention, and, when needed, be proactive in steering conversations toward meaningful topics.
Steph Gaudreau
How can people shift relationships that were built around dieting?
Evelyn Tribole
Have a kind conversation: explain you’re focusing less on body talk and more on connection. Ask for support and suggest a simple cue—like holding up a hand—if the topic returns. If you don’t have the emotional bandwidth, postpone the conversation until you can be consistent in reinforcing it.
Steph Gaudreau
What about the cycle of restriction followed by overeating?
Evelyn Tribole
That response is biological: when the body is deprived, it compensates. Instead of blaming yourself, rebuild predictability with consistent nourishment and rest. Over time, that predictability restores trust between you and your biology.
Steph Gaudreau
How do you respond to diet culture co‑opting “intuitive eating”?
Evelyn Tribole
Be discerning and conserve your energy. Ask whether a person or program is reachable and teachable before engaging. Call out co‑option when necessary by showing how restriction contradicts core principles—intuitive eating rejects the diet mentality. Protect consumers from gaslighting and highlight real harms that restrictive trends can cause.
Steph Gaudreau
Can intuitive eating work with medical conditions?
Evelyn Tribole
Yes—intuitive eating can be integrated with medical needs, but often with specialized guidance so you honor both health requirements and body awareness.
Steph Gaudreau
Tell us about your new book.
Evelyn Tribole
Intuitive Eating for Every Day offers 365 short, approachable reflections and practices—little reminders you can use daily. It’s meant to be practical and compassionate, an accessible companion to the more in‑depth earlier books.
Steph Gaudreau
Which book should someone start with?
Evelyn Tribole
If you want the science and rationale, read the 4th edition first. For hands‑on exercises, choose the workbook. If you need gentle, daily support or prefer audio, Intuitive Eating for Every Day may be the best place to start. Choose what matches your needs and bandwidth.
Steph Gaudreau
One final question: what has surprised you most in 25 years of this work?
Evelyn Tribole
I’m amazed and grateful for the movement’s growth—research, global practitioners, and wider public interest—but there’s still much work to dismantle structural harms like weight stigma and racist roots of fat‑phobia. The hopeful part is we can begin change at home, making everyday choices that break the cycle for future generations.
Intuitive Eating For Every Day: 365 Daily Practices and Inspirations to Rediscover the Pleasures of Eating is available widely; Evelyn’s work and resources are also accessible through her site and social channels.
Thank you for listening. If this episode helped you, please share it and subscribe so more people can find a kinder approach to health and food.