Reclaiming Body Trust: A Path to Healing & Liberation

by Hilary Kinavey MS LPC, Dana Sturtevant

A holistic and powerful framework for accepting and liberating our bodies, and ourselves.Have you ever felt uncomfortable or not “at home” in your body? In this book, the founders of Body Trust, licensed therapist Hilary Kinavey and registered dietician Dana Sturtevant, invite readers to break free from the status quo and reject a diet culture that has taken advantage and profited from trauma, stigma, and disembodiment, and fully reclaim and embrace their bodies. Informed by the personal body stories of the hundreds of people they have worked with, Reclaiming Body Trust delineates an intersectional, social justice−orientated path to healing in three The Rupture, The Reckoning, and The Reclamation. Throughout, readers will be anchored by the authors’ innovative and revolutionary Body Trust framework to discover a pathway out of a rigid, mechanistic way of thinking about the body and into a more authentic, sustainable way to occupy and nurture our bodies.  

Genres: Nonfiction, Self Help, Psychology, Health, Mental Health, Bodies, Personal Growth

320 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 30, 2022

Reviews

[Keaton · Rating 5 out of 5]

God I hope everyone I know is ready for me to NEVER shut up about this book forever for the rest of my life. 10/10. 100/100. Exactly what me and my therapist talk about all the time. If I could go back in time and give my middle school/high school self one thing, it would be this book. AHHHH.

[Sasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this for work and definitely took away some good nuggets. Overall a lot of the material was not new to me, I’ve been exposed to the ideas in other resources (e.g. Maintenance Phase, The Body is Not an Apology, etc) and I’m curious how this would land for someone who was interacting with this stuff for the first time. The capital B, capital T Body Trust™️ paradigm is definitely helpful but the brandedness of it rubbed me the wrong way at times. In the end, I’ll be keeping this on my shelf and I imagine I’ll be returning to the pages I flagged at work often!

[Judy Croome · Rating 2 out of 5]

The politicisation of body trust issues was distracting & detrimental to the valid nuggets of wisdom scattered throughout the book.

The authors were so busy including every previously oppressed group who may have weight issues that they ended making me feel excluded. Blaming patriarchy & misogyny for the prejudice against larger body shapes is disempowering & encourages a victim mentality. Weight and body trust issues are universal problems - not problems only women, people of colour & gender identification experience. My late husband (white male), a late lifelong friend of his (white male) & I (white female) all had eating disorders from early teens that left us badly obese & this profoundly impacted on our lives, careers & self-esteem.

This book’s politicisation of weight as a racial, feminist & gender issue may be well-intentioned (& probably good for sales too!) but no good comes from correcting an old injustice with a new prejudice. Large bodies & bodies of all different shapes & sizes are part of the general human condition. Some people are tall; others are short. Some people are thin; others are fat. Turning body shapes into the object of political activism detracted from some valid & interesting points the authors made.

I can’t help but feel that this book rests on the edge of changing society’s views around body shapes. The authors talk passionately about breaking society’s conditioning around body shapes but, ultimately, couldn’t quite transcend the narrow lens of political correctness. Unfortunately, RECLAIMING BODY TRUST ended up not quite fulfilling its potential.

[Lisa Marie Walters · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars
This book has almost everything my little recovering heart needed to read. But with any book on this topic, I wish there was a deeper dive into how disability and chronic illness impact recovery and body trust. They do not shy away from acknowledging that disability and illness and other forms of marginalization of course play a role in all of this and can’t be ignored but I just wish they went a little further to then explain more from the POV of those of us in disabled bodies.

[Helen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best book about EDs, food, body, and eating I’ve read. So many beautiful nuggets of wisdom applicable for me professionally, academically, and personally. If every clinician/doctor/dietician was required to read this book I think the field would be significantly better off!

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gave such helpful language and actions for my journey toward fat affirmation/liberation and a more caring, stable, centered relationship with my body. Highly recommend.

[Mik · Rating 4 out of 5]

As someone who has constantly struggled with body image and disordered eating this book came at the right time for me. This book opens your eyes to a world without diets and reconnecting your relationship with your body. Instead of constantly working against, work WITH your body, tune in to understand what it needs. The body trust process is a long journey and not linear. There will be days you fall into diet cultures traps or have a low confidence day, but it’s all part of the journey to dismantle fatphobia and reclaiming body trust.

This book was quite repetitive but I think it needed to be. I listened to it on Audible so everyday was a nice reminder or advice on how to reconnect with my body. I would suggest listening to the book rather than the physical.

I hope everyone has the chance to read a book similar to this one to open their eyes to a way outside of dieting and being comfortable with one’s self.

[Tenille · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a really heavy book. I felt that it was more of a social justice book than anything, which isn’t a bad thing, just really wasn’t what I was hoping for. I feel like I walked away thinking more about what I needed to do for marginalized groups and how society has taught them to see their bodies, rather than walking away with good information on what I can do for myself and how society has taught me to view my own body. There’s room for all humans in the journey and I feel like this book was trying too hard to be politically correct?
There was good nuggets of info, and a couple things that I book marked but overall I felt that it wasn’t new, groundbreaking information on the road to body acceptance/neutrality. Maybe it’s better for someone who’s just starting on this journey, and not meant for people who have been on it for a while.
There were parts that were triggering for me, and maybe it just shines light that those are areas I just need more work on my journey. But towards the end, I started skipping parts that just felt really repetitive and unhelpful to me.
It was good, and I don’t not recommend it. Just felt that there wasn’t a ton of information that was really helpful for me at where I am at.

[Ariel · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is so much to unpack and sit with in this treasure trove of still-radical ideas about our bodies in a world that fixates on particular (white, cis, abled) versions of beauty and heath. Kinavey and Sturtevant offer not only insightful narrative but also provocative questions that encourage the reader toward gentle but firm reflection around the stories impressed upon us, the conditions that shaped us, and the reverberations of those stories and conditions into our feelings about our bodies and our actions that result from our (damaged) relationships with our bodies.

A simple read-through, even with fervent note-taking, is only the start. We must “investigate the story of how you became so suspicious of yourself” and come to a place of trust in our bodies as we relearn that we “came here whole and your presence here is welcome simply because you breathe.”

The work continues, and it’s never been more vital as we push back against our oppressive systems and push for more community, more freedom, more wholeness, and more humanity.

[Janie Nicholas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Because of my own experiences with dieting, disordered eating, and body image, I’ve intentionally avoided most self-help books that focus on weight or weight loss. But this book resonated deeply. It helped me reconnect with and care for a part of myself I had long tucked away. If you’ve ever struggled with body trust in any form, this book is absolutely worth reading and/or listening to!

[Mags C. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book took me five months to read because I kept having to pause and digest-there’s a lot in here! Part self help, part unifying theory of the anti-diet culture and fat liberation movements, I was impressed by the breadth of source material this book pulled from. There’s wisdom here from everyone from Adrienne Maree Brown to Shoog McDaniels to Brené Brown. There’s even a section included directly speaking to the non-binary contingent and how this identity effects reckoning with and recovery from disordered eating. It was by no means extensive, but still more than most offering in this genre usually include! By no means perfect, this is still a thought provoking read that I would recommend to anyone starting to or in the process of divesting from diet culture and seeking to reconnect with their body.

[Nazeil lively · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! It was such a great way to really start thinking about intuitive eating and letting go of diet culture. I read it with one other person who made a good point: it didn’t bring much attention to the fact that many people have food sensitivity’s and chronic illnesses, etc that put them on limiting diets. No everyone has the privilege of simply just eating whatever they want whenever they one. That aside though, I really got to take a look at the beliefs I still exist with in, and would definitely recommend this book to anyone trying to dismantle the fat phobic and harmful diet culture we live in.

[Michelle Fraley · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really really wanted to like this book more…as a woman, a mother and a therapist I am fully behind self-love and self-compassion when it comes to body image and acceptance…however, I felt the authors were quite unbalanced in their approach as they almost refused to acknowledge science and data regarding how such conditions as heart disease, diabetes, sleep apnea and joint pain relate to weight. I agree that trying to conform to “body ideals” is ridiculous as we know those are mostly smoke and mirrors anyways, but not acknowledging the health benefits associated with weight loss just seems so glaringly biased. Can’t two things be true…can’t we love our bodies and want them to be as healthy as possible?

[Aly Haebig · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a bedtime book, thus why it took so long to finish 😅. But I am SO thankful this book exists. An easy 5-stars and one I will be rereading and highlighting for my personal and professional use.

[Stacey Gregory Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not a ton of terribly new information to me but it’s a topic I’m passionate about so it feels less isolating to hear my beliefs and values on paper. I appreciate the tips that I can use to help others heal their relationships with food and their bodies and how they included many diverse voices as well.

[Madeline Van Husen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best books related to body image and disordered eating I’ve ever read! No matter your body journey I think everyone can find morsels of wisdom in this book. I really enjoyed how it weaves in conversations on grief, diet culture, relationships and pleasure!

[Rebekah (bekahsbookshelf_24) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this had some good points and questions to think about in terms of making peace with your body and learning to trust it again. However, it was a little too much social justice talk for me personally.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a good read. Asking the good questions like, “How do you re-attune to your body and who taught you that you couldn’t trust it to begin with?”. It’s philosophy, it’s skill building, it’s inspiring. Loved this book.

[Morgan B · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read! This book examined the intersections of systems of oppression, queerness, capitalism and bodies while providing tangible tools to build a more peaceful embodied relationship.

[Linsey H · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly recommend to anyone with a body. As a practicing HAES RD for several years I already knew most of what was discussed in this book, but particularly enjoyed how it neatly brought together all of the information i’ve learned over the years, the proposed questions to further contemplate, and the client stories.

[Rhea Singh · Rating 5 out of 5]

such a beautiful and insightful book. i loved the social justice perspective it gave, it was everything my little recovering self needed to read!

[Maycee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Made some serious points it’s just a tad boring at times 😳😳

[Meghan McGann · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for everyone, at every stage of healing.

[Anna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can’t say enough good things about this book. If you are curious about coming home to your body, if you’ve tried and been frustrated, if you don’t know if you want to but are willing to dip your toe in, or if you’ve already been on this journey for years, this book has so much to offer. Hilary and Dana bring depth, perspective, nuance, kindness, and no bullshit to this important conversation. Highly recommend!

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

An important, challenging, and thought provoking read. I am grateful this book exists and I believe it will help many people.

[Savana Ayala · Rating 1 out of 5]

Skip this book

85% of this book was redundant rants about the white, cisgender, able body focused conspiracy behind fitness and weight-loss. A paragraph or half of a chapter to flesh out the history of weight-loss and the impact on communities of color and all definitions of women would have been fine, but every chapter in this book has to mention this perspective multiple times. As an obese woman of color, i found it a little overwritten.
13% of the book was just direct quoting from other self help books.
2% of the book was actual useful advice about how to be mindful about your health and wellness journey.
The actual advice in the whole 310 pages can be summed up as be compassionate to yourself, pay attention to body queues when you are hungry or full, it is okay to indulge and reward your body as long as you remain mindful to what your body needs, enjoy your body for what it does for you every day. There you go, I have given you the whole book.

[Amy Estes · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is far & away the best book I’ve read about unhooking from diet culture & the harm it causes. It is thoughtful, radical, & intersectional. I cannot recommend it more strongly if you’re looking to get clear on why diet culture sucks & how to trust your own body & its wisdom.

[Karen Richter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Countercultural, justice-oriented. Like taking a deep breath.

[Jenny Webb · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good book for people who are looking for a deliberately intersectional, body positive approach to being comfortable in and accepting their body. Another reviewer disliked the overt politicization of the body this approach inherently requires, which is fine, but readers shouldn’t be surprised by it as the authors are upfront about the conscious work they have done to see and center marginalized bodies.

The framework and structure work; the individual letters included were really interesting and at times even beautiful; overall this is a great read.

My one quibble is that this approach sidesteps the ways in which being comfortable in a body is inherently a societal choice, and not just a personal choice. A culture and society determine if they prioritize care for all bodies, or just bodies whose needs fall within a specific section of the bell curve (that section corresponds to where the needs for those bodies can be met and maximized via capitalist market forces).

In other words, if a profit cannot be made and maximized, the product will not (traditionally) be offered in 21st century America. Clothing, furniture, travel, medical technology and care—all areas my current society applies capitalism instead of body care (and to be clear, this approach cuts off bodies at both ends of the bell curve).

Reading this book reminded me of reading Mary Oliver’s famous poem “Wild Geese.”

“You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
for a hundred miles through the desert repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting -
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.”

That line—“you only have to let the soft animal of your body love what it loves”—encapsulates Body Trust.

If that speaks to you, then I think you will enjoy reading this book.

[Roots.Branches.Wellness · Rating 4 out of 5]

The other day I was thinking about the number on the scale and feeling bummed about how much that number has gone up in the last 20 years. My body has gained weight in that time time but I’ve also gained 2 degrees, a marriage, kids, a business, so many amazing friends, etc. “Reclaiming Body Trust” gives us permission to ditch the diet mentality, and the authors posit, “Efforts to lose weight disconnect you from your body's wisdom. The $71 billion diet and weight loss industry thrives because nobody blames its plans when you can no longer sustain them. You blame yourself.”

“It's no wonder that by the time we are teenagers, so many of us have a ruptured relationship with our body and end up adopting "the body project”-or as we refer to it in this book, The Hustle. As we age, we spend more time thinking about the body (objectifying it) than being in the body (subjectively experiencing it "below the neck"). We are made to believe the body must be tightly controlled, that thin equals healthy, that one meal or day of eating has the power to heal or kill us, and that all we have to do is get this "calories in/calories out" equation right. It is an inauthentic and unsustainable way to occupy a body and violates the body trust we believe is a birthright.”

“Puberty is an especially ripe time for the beginning of a disrupted relationship with food and the body (if people are lucky enough to make that far.) The natural weight gain at the onset of puberty is when many people and or their parents get concerned. We are not taught to trust our body, that this weight gain is actually necessary for the hormonal changes our bodies are going through. We are not told to stay calm and let the body do what it needs to do, that we can trust the body to sort it all out. (This is also true for the natural weight gain that occurs later in life as we move toward our senior years and need weight to protect our bones and give our body the reserves needed if/when we get sick.) Research has shown that for people who menstruate, the entry into and exit from reproductive life are the highest risk times for the development of an eating disorder.”