The Burnt Toast Podcast

Virginia Sole-Smith & Corinne Fay

Burnt Toast is your body liberation community. We're working to dismantle diet culture and anti-fat bias, and we have a lot of strong opinions about comfy pants. Co-hosted by Virginia Sole-Smith (NYT-bestselling author of FAT TALK) and Corinne Fay (author of the popular plus size fashion newsletter Big Undies).

  1. 1d ago

    On Cornell: How Can We Raise Boys Who Care About Consent?

    You're listening to the Burnt Toast Podcast! I'm Virginia Sole-Smith and today my conversation is with health teacher and author Christopher Pepper.Christopher is joining me to talk about the Cornell 7 case and why too many boys are not learning about bodies, consent and control.This is a hard conversation. Content warning if any of that sounds not helpful to you today, but it is an important one, and Christopher has lots of strategies and scripts to help. On Indulgence Gospel:Corinne and I will be talking about what men aren't doing—specifically why they aren't posting more about the Cornell 7 case online.Indulgence Gospel segments are for paid subscribers, who also get transcripts and commenting privileges. Don't miss out — join us here! FREE LISTENERS can find this episode on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or the podcast player of your choice.PAID SUBSCRIBERS can listen right here on Patreon, or add your member-only feed to the podcast player of your choice. Indulgence Gospel starts at the timestamp tk. You can find an AI-generated transcript of this segment if you’re following us on Apple or Spotify!Meet today's guest!Christopher Pepper is an award-winning health teacher whose lesson plans are used in schools around the globe. He’s been an educator for more than two decades, and currently teaches 9th grade health education in Los Altos, California.  He is the co-author of the bestselling book Talk to Your Boys: 16 Conversations to Help Tweens and Teens Grow into Confident, Caring Young Men, and also writes the popular newsletter Teen Health Today. I first met Christopher while reporting Fat Talk. He's quoted frequently in my chapter on diet culture in schools. We are going to talk about diet culture today, and specifically how diet culture trends like looksmaxxing and bodybuilding are impacting boys. BUTTER & LINKSVirginia's Butter: Joining your school's PTA and serving on their equity, diversity, and inclusion committee. Christopher's Butter: Joining a men's group, like Ever Forward Club or Next Gen Men. Talk to Your Boys: 16 Conversations to Help Tweens and Teens Grow into Confident, Caring Young Men by Christopher Pepper, Joanna Schroeder Christopher Pepper: Channel Your Rage Into Action Against Rape (Substack) NYT: "Racists Are Recruiting: Watch Your White Sons" by Joanna Schroeder Kate Manne: They Didn’t Want Consent (Substack) https://www.patreon.com/virginiasolesmith/posts/how-do-we-raise-173458592 EPISODE CREDITS Co-hosts: Virginia Sole-Smith and Corinne Fay. Producer: Kim Baldwin. Logo design: Deanna Lowe. Theme Song: Farideh. Video Editor: Elizabeth Ayiku Audio Engineer: Tommy Harron Follow us on social! Virginia is on Instagram and Threads as @v_solesmith and on Bluesky at @virginiasolesmith. Corinne is on Instagram at @selfiefay, on Bluesky at @corinnefay and on Patreon at Big Undies. Support the Me Little Me Foundation, a virtual food pantry supporting multiply marginalized folks recovering from eating disorders. Thanks for listening and supporting anti-diet, body liberation journalism!

    On Cornell: How Can We Raise Boys Who Care About Consent?
  2. Oct 22

    Has Kids Eat In Color Always Been Pro-Diet?

    You're listening to the Burnt Toast podcast! I'm Virginia Sole-Smith and today my conversation is with Laura Thomas, PhD.Laura is going to help me dissect the new book Feed Them Well by Jennifer Anderson, MSPH, RDN—the dietitian and influencer behind Kids Eat in Color.SO many of you have asked for this episode, and there is SO much to get into — so no Indulgence Gospel this week! Free listeners will get the first half of our conversation, and paid subscribers will get the whole shebang, including our analysis of what Kids Eat In Color really thinks about GLP-1s and intentional weight loss for kids. Don't miss out — join us here! FREE LISTENERS can find this episode on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or the podcast player of your choice.PAID SUBSCRIBERS can listen right here on Patreon, or add your member-only feed to the podcast player of your choice. You can find an AI-generated transcript of the entire episode if you’re following us on Apple or Spotify!Meet today's guest!Laura Thomas, PhD is a registered nutritionist based in London. She writes the fantastic newsletter, Can I Have Another Snack?, where she aims to complicate overly simplistic narratives about food, nutrition and bodies. She's also the author of two books about intuitive eating, Just Eat It and How to Just Eat It: A Step-by-Step Guide to Escaping Diets and Finding Food Freedom. Laura joined us for the second episode in my series on The Picky Eating Backlash. We kicked this off with Episode 265, where Amy Palanjian joined us to explain why certain conversations around picky eating (especially the ones that blame moms and processed foods) tend to go viral so easily. One of those viral conversations that has been taking over my Instagram in the past month is about Jennifer Anderson, MSPH, RDN, the creator behind Kids Eat In Color. Anderson has been making some wild claims that she was canceled for her views on picky eating, that everything you thought you knew about restriction and food is wrong, and even accusing her fellow dietitians of being on the payroll of "Big Sugar."BUTTER & LINKSVirginia's Butter: enjoying the end of dahlia season before the first frost hits Laura's Butter: rain and getting matching tattoos with your bestie What Instagram Gets Wrong About Feeding Your Kids The Ballerina Farm of Kid Food Instagram Laura on Ultra-Processed Foods Part 1 Laura on UPF Part 2 https://www.patreon.com/virginiasolesmith/posts/has-kids-eat-in-172829763 EPISODE CREDITS Co-hosts: Virginia Sole-Smith and Corinne Fay. Producer: Kim Baldwin. Logo design: Deanna Lowe. Theme Song: Farideh. Video Editor: Elizabeth Ayiku Audio Engineer: Tommy Harron Follow us on social! Virginia is on Instagram and Threads as @v_solesmith and on Bluesky at @virginiasolesmith. Corinne is on Instagram at @selfiefay, on Bluesky at @corinnefay and on Patreon at Big Undies. Support the Me Little Me Foundation, a virtual food pantry supporting multiply marginalized folks recovering from eating disorders. Thanks for listening and supporting anti-diet, body liberation journalism!

    Has Kids Eat In Color Always Been Pro-Diet?
  3. Oct 15

    Why Is Weight Watchers Making a GLP-1 Podcast

    You're listening to the Burnt Toast podcast! We are Virginia Sole-Smith and Corinne Fay, and today we are talking about The Weigh In, a new podcast about GLP-1s ... from Weight Watchers.And on Indulgence Gospel!Corinne and I will be discussing a very controversial topic: Cold calling your friends.Indulgence Gospel segments are for paid subscribers, who also get transcripts and commenting privileges. Don't miss out — join us here! So, there's a new podcast from Weight Watchers. It's called The Weigh In and it's hosted by Samhita Mukhopadhyay. The first two episodes are out and Corinne and I listened and have many, many thoughts.BUTTER & LINKSSHOP: Virginia's Butter: Going through your credit card statements and cancelling unnecessary subscriptions. Hello, efax?! Corinne's Butter: TruFru READ: Big Undies: The Search for a Perfectly Oversized Plus Size Button Up Shirt Continues... Burnt Toast: The Only 6 Jeans Worth Buying (According to Science) The Weigh In Podcast The Myth of Making It: A Workplace Reckoning by Samhita Mukhopadhyay Big Undies: Samhita Mukhopadhyay style questionnaire The Cut: “Mounjaro and Me” by Samhita Mukhopadhyay NYT: “In the Ozempic Era, Who Needs Weight Watchers? A new podcast, with a feminist host, aims to keep the decades-old diet brand in the GLP-1 conversation.” The Cut: "What It Feels Like at Cornell Right Now" by Kate Manne The Cut: "The Strong, Empowered, Secretly Broke Divorcée" by Melinda Wenner Moyer The Cut: “I Should Be Allowed to Cold-Call My Friends” https://www.patreon.com/virginiasolesmith/posts/why-is-weight-1-172152397 EPISODE CREDITS Co-hosts: Virginia Sole-Smith and Corinne Fay. Producer: Kim Baldwin. Logo design: Deanna Lowe. Theme Song: Farideh. Video Editor: Elizabeth Ayiku Audio Engineer: Tommy Harron Follow us on social! Virginia is on Instagram and Threads as @v_solesmith and on Bluesky at @virginiasolesmith. Corinne is on Instagram at @selfiefay, on Bluesky at @corinnefay and on Patreon at Big Undies. Support the Me Little Me Foundation, a virtual food pantry supporting multiply marginalized folks recovering from eating disorders. Thanks for listening and supporting anti-diet, body liberation journalism!

    Why Is Weight Watchers Making a GLP-1 Podcast
  4. Oct 8

    Why Dolly Parton's Body Was Never The Point

    You're listening to the Burnt Toast podcast! I'm Virginia Sole-Smith and today my conversation is with Mary Mahoney of @Landline - Pop Culture & History with Mary Mahoney | Podcast + Newsletter.And we're talking about... Dolly!!!  Meanwhile on Indulgence Gospel:Corinne and I are asking: Is breaking up with your phone a diet?Indulgence Gospel segments are for paid subscribers, who also get transcripts and commenting privileges. Don't miss out — join us here! FREE LISTENERS can find this episode on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or the podcast player of your choice.PAID SUBSCRIBERS can listen right here on Patreon, or add your member-only feed to the podcast player of your choice. Indulgence Gospel starts at the timestamp 34:23. You can find an AI-generated transcript of this segment if you’re following us on Apple or Spotify!Meet today's guest!Mary Mahoney, who also goes by Mimi, is a historian and writer who wrote Dolls of Our Lives: Why We Can't Quit American Girl. She also makes an incredible podcast and newsletter called Landline that gives pop culture some context. It's like a group text for people who love footnotes or the answer to the question: why can't history feel more like Us Weekly? Mary joined me to talk about Dolly Parton's relationship with her body and beauty standards, how we locate her as a feminist, and her incredible legacy. We go down so many fascinating rabbit holes —this is one of my favorite episodes ever!BUTTER & LINKS Mary's Dolly tribute essay Dolly's 1978 Playboy interview Gloria Steinem's event with Miss Piggy at the Brooklyn Museum in 2015 Reese Witherspoon's Dolly Parton interview 1984 Interview Magazine interview @Culture Study's Dolly Parton Syllabus Billionaires who want to live forever Mary's Butter: Ms. Rachel (featuring I Love A Rainbow) & Dolly singing Johnny Cash's I Still Miss Someone. Virginia's Butter: Dolly singing The Harper Valley PTA. EPISODE CREDITS Co-hosts: Virginia Sole-Smith and Corinne Fay. Producer: Kim Baldwin. Logo design: Deanna Lowe. Theme Song: Farideh. Video Editor: Elizabeth Ayiku Audio Engineer: Tommy Harron Follow us on social! Virginia is on Instagram and Threads as @v_solesmith and on Bluesky at @virginiasolesmith. Corinne is on Instagram at @selfiefay, on Bluesky at @corinnefay and on Patreon at Big Undies. Support the Me Little Me Foundation, a virtual food pantry supporting multiply marginalized folks recovering from eating disorders. Thanks for listening and supporting anti-diet, body liberation journalism!

    Why Dolly Parton's Body Was Never The Point
  5. Oct 1

    Amy Palanjian Explains the Picky Eating Backlash

    You're listening to the Burnt Toast podcast! We are Virginia Sole-Smith and Corinne Fay, and today our conversation is with Amy Palanjian.And on Indulgence Gospel!Corinne and I will be discussing table manners, and Amy is staying on to get into that with us.Indulgence Gospel segments are for paid subscribers, who also get transcripts and commenting privileges. Don't miss out — join us here! Meet today's guest!Amy Palanjian is the creator of Yummy Toddler Food and the author of the New York Times bestselling cookbook, Dinnertime SOS. Amy has built YTF as a resource to provide reassurance and easy recipes to families with little kids. Because she knows that feeding kids is hard and our recipes (and the advice we follow) should be easy. She is an advocate for taking shortcuts in the kitchen, helping moms remember to feed themselves, and empowering kids to have agency at the table. She lives in Central PA with her three kids (and many plants). Amy joined us to talk about picky eating, how trends and conversations are shaped by social media, plus the rise of parent-shaming content on social media. And more! It's a good one, you guys.BUTTER & LINKSSHOP: Virginia's Butter: Giant coloring sheets and good markers Corinne's Butter: Whirley Pop popcorn maker Amy's Butter: Leaving your house via joining a gym READ/WATCH: Please Stop Asking Michael Pollan How to Feed Kids. Michael Pollan on 60 Minutes reel Michael Pollan, “We make time for the things we value” reel The Economist picky eaters reel https://www.patreon.com/virginiasolesmith/posts/amy-palanjian-170815324 EPISODE CREDITS Co-hosts: Virginia Sole-Smith and Corinne Fay. Producer: Kim Baldwin. Logo design: Deanna Lowe. Theme Song: Farideh. Video Editor: Elizabeth Ayiku Audio Engineer: Tommy Harron Follow us on social! Virginia is on Instagram and Threads as @v_solesmith and on Bluesky at @virginiasolesmith. Corinne is on Instagram at @selfiefay, on Bluesky at @corinnefay and on Patreon at Big Undies. Support the Me Little Me Foundation, a virtual food pantry supporting multiply marginalized folks recovering from eating disorders. Thanks for listening and supporting anti-diet, body liberation journalism!

    Amy Palanjian Explains the Picky Eating Backlash
  6. Sep 24

    Why Hollywood Has a Fatness Problem

    You're listening to the Burnt Toast podcast! We are Virginia Sole-Smith and Corinne Fay, and today our conversation is with actress Jen Ponton about what it's really like to be fat and working in Hollywood.And on Indulgence Gospel!We're tackling one of your questions: Does your family have siblings with different body types? How does everyone feel about that? Because this listener is struggling.Indulgence Gospel segments are for paid subscribers, who also get transcripts and commenting privileges. Don't miss out — join us here! FREE LISTENERS can find this episode on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or the podcast player of your choice.PAID SUBSCRIBERS can listen right here on Patreon, or add your member-only feed to the podcast player of your choice. Indulgence Gospel starts at the timestamp 34:44. You can find an AI-generated transcript of this segment if you’re following us on Apple or Spotify!Meet today's guest!Jen Ponton is an actor and writer whose work explores the intersection of fatness, representation, and storytelling. Over the past 15 years, she's built a career with credits including Dietland, Not Suitable for Work, 30 Rock, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, and the recent off-Broadway run of her solo show, Sugarcoated. She currently stars in the independent feature Resentment, where she plays a confident, sensual, whipsmart leading woman whose body is neither the punchline nor the plot. Jen joined us to talk about where the fatphobia shows up in Hollywood, how GLP-1s are changing the game, and the major TV hit that would only cast her if she agreed to a weight loss contract. And more! It's a good one, you guys.BUTTER & LINKSSHOP: Virginia's Butter: Birkenstock Boston Big Buckle clogs Corinne's Butter: Blundstone clogs Jen's Butter: Don't Buy What I'm Selling: On Breaking Up with Advertising and Finally Learning to Love My Whole, Fat Self by Lu Chekowsky READ: “Not Your Sad Fat Lady” via Jen's Substack Jen's one-woman show Sugarcoated https://www.patreon.com/virginiasolesmith/posts/episode-264-jen-170161722 EPISODE CREDITS Co-hosts: Virginia Sole-Smith and Corinne Fay. Producer: Kim Baldwin. Logo design: Deanna Lowe. Theme Song: Farideh. Video Editor: Elizabeth Ayiku Audio Engineer: Tommy Harron Follow us on social! Virginia is on Instagram and Threads as @v_solesmith and on Bluesky at @virginiasolesmith. Corinne is on Instagram at @selfiefay, on Bluesky at @corinnefay and on Patreon at Big Undies. Support the Me Little Me Foundation, a virtual food pantry supporting multiply marginalized folks recovering from eating disorders. Thanks for listening and supporting anti-diet, body liberation journalism!

    Why Hollywood Has a Fatness Problem
  7. Sep 17

    Weight-Inclusive Care Is Not Just Being Nice To Fat People

    You're listening to the Burnt Toast podcast! I'm Virginia Sole-Smith and today my conversation is with Angel Austin, the executive director of ASDAH, the Association for Size, Diversity and Health.And on Indulgence Gospel!Corinne is out this week, so producer Kim Baldwin is joining me, and we're going to talk about fall books!Indulgence Gospel segments are for paid subscribers, who also get transcripts and commenting privileges. Don't miss out — join us here! FREE LISTENERS can find this episode on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or the podcast player of your choice.PAID SUBSCRIBERS can listen right here on Patreon, or add your member-only feed to the podcast player of your choice. Indulgence Gospel starts at the timestamp 36:34. You can find an AI-generated transcript of this segment if you’re following us on Apple or Spotify!Meet today's guest!As a Black, infinifat, and disabled woman, Angel's lived experiences inform her work, advocacy, and commitment to building community. In addition to leading ASDAH, Angel is the founder of Sacred Space for Fat Bodies and serves on the board of the Me Little Me Foundation. Angel previously joined us on the podcast in 2024 to talk about how ASDAH has been working to evolve the principles of Health At Every Size, or HAES, which are foundational to the fat liberation movement. HAES is the framework that helps so many of us start to realize we can untangle weight and health, to know we can pursue health in the body we have right now — and that we deserve a healthcare system that meets us where we are, and treats us with dignity and respect. ASDAH is on the front lines of working with healthcare providers to understand that. And right now, ASDAH really needs our help.In order to stay operational, ASDAH needs to raise $15,000 by the end of September. There are over 50,000 of you reading this email, and we're already 75 percent of the way there — so let's crush that goal and help ASDAH continue to do the vital work they do on behalf of fat and disabled folks everywhere — so click the link in your episode description to support ASDAH today. I'm matching the first $5,000 we raised. Join us here!  BUTTER & LINKSVirginia's Butter: This episode of Code Switch: "Freedom" from fatness: Why GLP-1s go after Black bodies Angel's Butters: TikTok recipes (specifically tuna and rice with furikake) and rest Fearing the Black Body by Sabrina Strings Ragen Chastain's newsletter ASDAH event on September 25 called Beyond BMI Belly of the Beast by Da'Shaun L. Harrison https://www.patreon.com/virginiasolesmith/posts/episode-263-tk-169518176 EPISODE CREDITS Co-hosts: Virginia Sole-Smith and Corinne Fay. Producer: Kim Baldwin. Logo design: Deanna Lowe. Theme Song: Farideh. Video Editor: Elizabeth Ayiku Audio Engineer: Tommy Harron Follow us on social! Virginia is on Instagram and Threads as @v_solesmith and on Bluesky at @virginiasolesmith. Corinne is on Instagram at @selfiefay, on Bluesky at @corinnefay and on Patreon at Big Undies. Support the Me Little Me Foundation, a virtual food pantry supporting multiply marginalized folks recovering from eating disorders. Thanks for listening and supporting anti-diet, body liberation journalism!

    Weight-Inclusive Care Is Not Just Being Nice To Fat People
  8. Sep 10

    Bryan Johnson Is The Ultimate Diet

    You're listening to Burnt Toast! We are Virginia Sole-Smith and Corinne Fay and today we are discussing longevity final boss, Bryan Johnson.Bryan Johnson is a person I did not know existed, but Corinne says is the most famous toxic man trying to live forever through diet culture and technology. Wish I knew less! But he's a major driving force in diet culture right now, so we're getting into: ⭐️ What is a "Blood Boy" and who needs one? ⭐️ Why Bryan tweets his son's nightly erection data. ⭐️ A girlfriend who has the "top 1% of all vaginas" (and how us non-elite vaginas should feel about that). 🧈🧈🧈🧈🧈🧈🧈🧈🧈🧈🧈🧈🧈🧈 And on Indulgence Gospel!Corinne and I are discussing credit cards: Do we love them? Fear them? And are credit card points a diet? (If so, Virginia is ON IT.)Indulgence Gospel segments are for paid subscribers, who also get transcripts and commenting privileges. Don't miss out — join us here! If you're listening, Indulgence Gospel starts at the timestamp 39:20! You can find an AI-generated transcript of this segment if you’re following us on Apple or Spotify! BUTTER & LINKSVirginia's Butter: foam roller Corinne's Butter: Kin by Tayari Jones The Wall Street Journal Instagram post Bryan Johnson's "Don't Die Protocol" Famished by Anna Rollins and Tia Leving's memoir New York Times (gift link): He Said He Was the World’s Healthiest Man. Then Came a Stunning Diagnosis. The Cut: Bryan Johnson Is Dating His Co-founder Info on his girlfriend's vaginal microbiome that he tweeted. The Wall Street Journal: Bryan Johnson’s Girlfriend Wants to Share Her Body With the World 🧈🧈🧈🧈🧈🧈🧈🧈🧈🧈🧈🧈🧈🧈 Housekeeping note: We've changed things up a bit to solve some behind-the-scenes tech issues, so here's how to get your Burnt Toast fix: FREE LISTENERS can find this episode on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or the podcast player of your choice.PAID SUBSCRIBERS can listen right here on Patreon, or add your member-only feed to the podcast player of your choice.https://www.patreon.com/virginiasolesmith/posts/bryan-johnson-is-168956631 EPISODE CREDITS Co-hosts: Virginia Sole-Smith and Corinne Fay. Producer: Kim Baldwin. Logo design: Deanna Lowe. Theme Song: Farideh. Video Editor: Elizabeth Ayiku Audio Engineer: Tommy Harron Follow us on social! Virginia is on Instagram and Threads as @v_solesmith and on Bluesky at @virginiasolesmith. Corinne is on Instagram at @selfiefay, on Bluesky at @corinnefay and on Patreon at Big Undies. Support the Me Little Me Foundation, a virtual food pantry supporting multiply marginalized folks recovering from eating disorders. Thanks for listening and supporting anti-diet, body liberation journalism!

    Bryan Johnson Is The Ultimate Diet
4.7
out of 5
453 Ratings

About

Burnt Toast is your body liberation community. We're working to dismantle diet culture and anti-fat bias, and we have a lot of strong opinions about comfy pants. Co-hosted by Virginia Sole-Smith (NYT-bestselling author of FAT TALK) and Corinne Fay (author of the popular plus size fashion newsletter Big Undies).

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