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emmalthompson85's review against another edition
4.0
Lessons from the Fat-o-sphere is a book by two of the main voices in the fat acceptance blog movement. It touches on health at any size and talks about how to live, love and accept yourself as a fat person.
This book is a short read. It focuses more on anecdotes and is heavily biased towards female fat acceptance, which is both fair and not fair as women arguably bear the brunt of society's obsession with weight loss and the stigma attached to fat bodies but being a fat man is far from stigma free. There were nods made at a more balanced approach but not a lot of follow through.
This book is obviously revolutionary if you haven't come across fat acceptance before. It's based on the idea that basically diets don't work and yoyo dieting may well do you more harm than good. That instead you should focus on living you life and enjoying yourself at the size you are. They also talk about health at any size which is a movement that focuses on healthy self image, exercising for joy and intuitive eating with the aim of improved health, not reduced weight.
The book takes a very informal tone, similar to a blog. This might make it more accessable for the first time reader but I would have prefered something more formal. They also repeat points a lot. The entire book can be summed up at 'be nice to yourslef and stop worrying'.
This book is a short read. It focuses more on anecdotes and is heavily biased towards female fat acceptance, which is both fair and not fair as women arguably bear the brunt of society's obsession with weight loss and the stigma attached to fat bodies but being a fat man is far from stigma free. There were nods made at a more balanced approach but not a lot of follow through.
This book is obviously revolutionary if you haven't come across fat acceptance before. It's based on the idea that basically diets don't work and yoyo dieting may well do you more harm than good. That instead you should focus on living you life and enjoying yourself at the size you are. They also talk about health at any size which is a movement that focuses on healthy self image, exercising for joy and intuitive eating with the aim of improved health, not reduced weight.
The book takes a very informal tone, similar to a blog. This might make it more accessable for the first time reader but I would have prefered something more formal. They also repeat points a lot. The entire book can be summed up at 'be nice to yourslef and stop worrying'.
kit_fox's review against another edition
4.0
I'll confess that I was expecting something more from this book, when I first heard about it, than a "trash the diet and self-loathing and get on with your life" manual. However, that's the sub-subtitle it came with, and it lived up to it fairly well. I have a lot of respect for both authors as bloggers, and for the message they're trying to promulgate, and I hope this book helps that message reach a new audience.
I wish it had been a bit more forthcoming with references, though. For all that the authors make the point that they want people to do the research and come to their own conclusions, a few more details of the studies mentioned and a few more mentions of the research upon with they've based their own conclusions would have gone a long way, both in helping people find the information that's out there and in adding credibility to their position.
I wish it had been a bit more forthcoming with references, though. For all that the authors make the point that they want people to do the research and come to their own conclusions, a few more details of the studies mentioned and a few more mentions of the research upon with they've based their own conclusions would have gone a long way, both in helping people find the information that's out there and in adding credibility to their position.
marpesea's review against another edition
4.0
This is very similar to Fat!So?, but more polished. It is better organized and has a slightly more scholarly tone. There's also a fantastic essay on intersectional body positivity (weight + feminism + race).
Overall an excellent resource.
Overall an excellent resource.
lizanotlisa's review against another edition
5.0
My review will be printed in the Aug/Sept issue of BUST magazine. Go check it out.
manadabomb's review against another edition
4.0
I only knew my weight from the times I went to the doctor. Mostly, I just knew if my clothes were fitting or not. If they weren't, and I was to cheap to go buy new ones, I would hop on the treadmill just a little bit more than usual. Then I discovered online food tracking and "helpful diet hints". While I got down to a skinny weight, I ended up gaining it back (plus more when I had thyroid surgery and my meds got out of whack). Even though I've never been obese, or even heavy, I beat myself up on a regular basis. 5 more pounds, 10 more pounds....
After starting the Biggest Loser at work and having to weigh myself every week, I got even more down about myself. Two and a half months of diet and exercise and I lost 1 pound. Seeing my doc, we discovered my thyroid meds were again messed up so my metabolism was messed up. Bloody hell. At this point, I decided I wasn't dieting anymore. I missed cooking my big feasts and baking and well....eating. I love food, dammit. I didn't want to throw exercise out the window because I actually like my treadmill and feeling good afterwards. I liked the extra energy because obviously my thyroid meds weren't going to help me there.
Lo and behold, I found a review for this book, which is all about accepting your body for what it is. Bless you authors. The 2 ladies go over all the reasons to give up dieting and wishing for a body that you just don't have. Major studies have shown that your body will do what it needs to do, meaning it will stay in the weight range it's meant to be in, regardless of how much you yo-yo and push it to change. Diets don't work. Anything that alters how you eat, portion control, calorie restrictions, etc, just don't work. At least not long term. So why put your body through that?
This book encourages learning how to be healthy at any size, doing exercise that you enjoy doing and eating when you're hungry and stopping when you're full. Revolutionary! They also emphasize that food is neutral, it's not bad or good. It's whatever you want. There are too many messages from our culture out there telling women (and men) how they should look if they want to win at life and frankly, they're just wrong. Not everyone is meant to be a size zero and people shouldn't be humiliated to be the size they just are.
The authors don't want you to give up on yourself. They're just asking you to be kind to yourself and go out and quit worry about that last 10 or 15 pounds. You are perfect the way you are.
After starting the Biggest Loser at work and having to weigh myself every week, I got even more down about myself. Two and a half months of diet and exercise and I lost 1 pound. Seeing my doc, we discovered my thyroid meds were again messed up so my metabolism was messed up. Bloody hell. At this point, I decided I wasn't dieting anymore. I missed cooking my big feasts and baking and well....eating. I love food, dammit. I didn't want to throw exercise out the window because I actually like my treadmill and feeling good afterwards. I liked the extra energy because obviously my thyroid meds weren't going to help me there.
Lo and behold, I found a review for this book, which is all about accepting your body for what it is. Bless you authors. The 2 ladies go over all the reasons to give up dieting and wishing for a body that you just don't have. Major studies have shown that your body will do what it needs to do, meaning it will stay in the weight range it's meant to be in, regardless of how much you yo-yo and push it to change. Diets don't work. Anything that alters how you eat, portion control, calorie restrictions, etc, just don't work. At least not long term. So why put your body through that?
This book encourages learning how to be healthy at any size, doing exercise that you enjoy doing and eating when you're hungry and stopping when you're full. Revolutionary! They also emphasize that food is neutral, it's not bad or good. It's whatever you want. There are too many messages from our culture out there telling women (and men) how they should look if they want to win at life and frankly, they're just wrong. Not everyone is meant to be a size zero and people shouldn't be humiliated to be the size they just are.
The authors don't want you to give up on yourself. They're just asking you to be kind to yourself and go out and quit worry about that last 10 or 15 pounds. You are perfect the way you are.
rakishabpl's review against another edition
4.0
This book is an addictive read that will inspire you to stop dieting and look this great big "fat=bad" myth in the eye. It analyzes the media and the health industry's role in keeping this myth alive. It is a resourceful book that will bring out the fat activist in you!
newfgirl's review against another edition
4.0
The parts that were relevant to my were very informative and well written. I like the section on intuitive eating especially
kamahi's review against another edition
4.0
I think this book is a really great beginner's resource for anyone interested in fat acceptance. For me it was a lot of "yes I know this," but that's due to the work I've already done, not a failing of the book. The writing is really approachable and I enjoyed the small essays added in by other authors. The topics the book covers are fairly wide ranging.