331: Intuitive Eating, Body Image And Dealing With The Comments Of Other People with Sam Previte

·1 hr 24 min·5 clips

Sam Previte, a dietitian who escaped diet culture, reveals how her own disordered eating led to a career helping others find food freedom.

Host Chris Sandell introduces the episode and guest Sam Previte, a registered dietitian, certified intuitive eating counselor, and founder of Find Food Freedom. Sam outlines her background, including her credentials and the growth of her virtual practice, which now includes 14 dietitians and accepts insurance in 22 states. She recounts her personal history with diet culture during her teens and twenties, driven by societal beauty standards. Sam reveals a pivotal moment when the death of a high school friend led her to use food as a coping mechanism, triggering binge eating. She describes her professional journey, studying nutrition with a weight-centric focus but feeling unprepared. After working as a retail dietitian, she observed patterns of guilt and shame in clients. A colleague introduced her to intuitive eating via Christy Harrison's podcast, leading to a lightbulb moment. However, Sam explains it took about three years and a mental breakdown before she fully committed to a weight-inclusive practice, struggling with the fear of financial failure. The conversation shifts to practical advice, with Sam offering strategies for responding to diet talk at social events, emphasizing redirection or setting boundaries. She and Chris explore the parallels between making peace with food and movement, noting the importance of unconditional permission to eat and rest. Sam uses an analogy from Evelyn Tribole comparing food normalization to hearing 'I love you' over time. They discuss the role of nutrition within intuitive eating, stressing the need to address calorie intake before micronutrients. On body image, Sam advocates for exploring one's body image story and challenging deep-seated beliefs, aiming for body neutrality rather than constant love. She shares a personal anecdote about being asked if she was pregnant postpartum, detailing her emotional reaction and self-counseling process. Throughout, the tone is conversational and educational, with both host and guest sharing professional insights and personal experiences.

As heard by us

A practical recovery-focused conversation about uncertainty, expectations, and handling diet-culture talk in everyday social spaces.

Real Health Radio uses recovery as a way into the social pressure that can trail diet-culture talk through work, events, and everyday conversation.

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Why you'd press play

You will hear how to protect your recovery when diet talk walks into the room.

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