When the Desire to Lose Weight Overwhelms You: What If All You Want for Christmas is to Be Thinner [Podcast Transcript]

Title: When the Desire to Lose Weight Overwhelms You: What If All You Want for Christmas is to Be Thinner [Podcast Transcript]

Podcast Date: December 12, 2025

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Description

Are you feeling crushed by the pressure to lose weight? You’re not alone. In this honest and compassionate episode, Heather Creekmore tackles the overwhelming desire so many women carry to lose weight—even when we know the struggle all too well.

Heather Creekmore dives deep into the real reasons why our culture is fixated on shrinking our bodies, the rise of GLP-1 medications like Ozempic, and what it means now that nearly 1 in 5 adults in the US have tried these weight-loss shots. Whether you use them, are considering them, or tried them and now feel even more burned by diet culture, this episode is for you.

What you’ll hear in this episode:

• Why so many of us feel pressured to be thinner, especially during the holiday season

• How body image struggles are magnified by social media, holiday events, and cultural expectations

• What the Gospel teaches us on humility, worth, and where our true value is rooted (hint: it’s not in the scale or in being the “thinnest one in the photo”)

• Real talk about the cost—mentally, physically, and spiritually—of making weight loss your primary goal

• Encouraging reminders that your struggle is not a “you problem,” but a symptom of a wider issue in our society

• Practical steps for what to do when the desire to lose weight feels overwhelming

If you’re tired of wrestling with disappointment from the latest weight loss trends, or you need encouragement to find freedom from the idol of body image, tune in for wise, compassionate truth that will point you to lasting hope.

Special Invitation:
Ready for a new way—one that invites more freedom, less comparison, and true worth? Don’t miss the announcement about the next 40-Day Body Image Journey (starts January 20th)! Head to improvebodyimage.com to learn more.

Share this episode with a friend or leave a review if it encourages you—your support helps others find hope and healing too.

Stop comparing. Start living. Listen now to “When the Want to Lose Weight Is Overwhelming” on Compared to Who?

Transcript

Disclaimer: This transcript is AI-generated and has not been edited for accuracy or clarity.

Heather Creekmore [00:00:02]:
Life Audio hey friend, Heather Creekmore here. Merry Christmas. Thanks for listening to the Compare to podcast. Whoa. What a moment we are in. I sort of feel like I need to do this episode to document this moment for posterity because part of me is surprised that we're here and then part of me isn't. Up to 18% of adults in the US have tried using GLP1s for weight loss. I'm not counting those who are prescribed them as type 2 diabetes management.

Heather Creekmore [00:00:32]:
But friend, that's like one in every five people almost. That means you absolutely indefinitely know someone or several someones who are using GLP1s. Maybe you are the one using them. And there's no shame or blame here. That's not why we're talking about this today. I'm not trying to talk you out of it. If you're getting the shots, I understand why. I'm also not going to try to talk you out of losing weight in this episode.

Heather Creekmore [00:00:54]:
Like friend, you would have to live under a rock to not want to lose weight. I'd like to lose weight too. I'm going to talk about that a little bit today. Some of you have been waiting or wanting me to say that, so I said it. So there you go. I would be thrilled to wake up tomorrow morning and be missing a bunch of pounds. But the pressure right now seems so amplified. And maybe it's because I've been in my own little cave trying to finish the second book on aging.

Heather Creekmore [00:01:22]:
Or maybe it's because I haven't been on social media much. Or maybe it's just because this happens every December. For me at least. Maybe it happens that way for you, too. It's getting all the family photo Christmas cards. It's thinking about being in family photos at holiday events. It's figuring out what to wear to office parties or dressy functions. It's fighting not to go back to the disordered ways I always related to food in December, which maybe you understand was eat all the things.

Heather Creekmore [00:01:50]:
Now in January, I can starve myself again. So. So today, can we sort this out together? If you're struggling that you're not where you want to be with your weight, I hope you listen to this encouragement and friend, if it does encourage you like I know it would encourage someone else in your life. So would you consider sharing this episode with another woman you know, or love, maybe discussing it with her? Or if you're like, nope, this private struggle, I don't share this with anyone. Well then, hey, would you consider leaving a review of the show that's like the nicest Christmas present you could give us is leaving a five star review wherever you listen. If you don't know how to do it, reach out and we can help. So thanks for being here today again. Merry Christmas.

Heather Creekmore [00:02:30]:
Now, let's get to this tough, tough topic. What to do when the want to lose weight is overwhelming. Let's go.

Heather Creekmore [00:02:47]:
Okay, well, today's show is not going to say sponsored in part by, but let's say inspired in part by the reality that I had a few clients this week, new clients, who literally or almost apologized because they wanted to lose weight, as if they were saying something bad when they confessed that to me. And they were clients who listened to the podcast, and I think that they had taken from listening to certain episodes of the podcast that it was bad for them to want to lose weight. And I was happy to let them off the hook with this truth. Like, you would have to be abnormal if you didn't want to lose weight. Like, short of the small percentage of the population that is underweight, maybe trying to gain weight, it's safe to say that most people in the US Want to lose weight. It's okay. Now, here's where it gets tricky, though. Some of those who want to lose weight wear a size 2, and some want to lose weight so they can fit back into that standard size 20.

Heather Creekmore [00:03:51]:
And that's where it gets so deep and so complicated. Because each of us is convinced that our struggle with our body and our desire to shrink is about something inside of us. It's something with us is flawed. This is my problem. It's my body that's the enemy. It's me that's the issue. It's my willpower. It's the way I eat, it's the way I exercise or don't exercise.

Heather Creekmore [00:04:16]:
This is about me, me, me, me, me. But, friend, if we can just, whoo, let's zoom out, we can pause and step back and say, wait a second here. If everyone, almost everyone, wants to lose weight, no matter what her size.

Heather Creekmore [00:04:35]:
It'S got to be about something deeper, right? If we can zoom out, we have a chance of seeing that this problem isn't actually just about our bodies. It's about something much deeper. And I mentioned in the intro that we needed to note this moment, this cultural moment for all of posterity. And here's what I mean by that. As recently as two or three years ago, we had celebrities with large bodies promoting body positivity and shouting big is beautiful. And then ozantic big. They've Shrunk. What's the message? Big ain't so beautiful anymore.

Heather Creekmore [00:05:15]:
If you have a chance at skinny, you should take it, no matter what it costs. And the biggest disappointment to me in all of this really isn't the celebrities like I get. They will have an easier time finding roles if they fit a certain body type. What confuses me is tennis star Serena Williams, whose angle was she had been doing everything quote, unquote, right, and her body wouldn't shrink until she started on the semaglutide. And that scares me, friends, because she's a professional athlete. Professional athletes know how to feed their bodies appropriately for the amount of exercise they do every day. And when she says she was doing everything right, that's a different kind of right than when you and I give ourselves credit for choosing vegetables and taking a walk and say we did things right. No, she knows about how to feed her body appropriately, and yet she said she was doing that and she didn't shrink.

Heather Creekmore [00:06:13]:
And so the assumption was that because she didn't shrink, she wasn't healthy. Enter GLP1s. They help her shrink. They make a difference. Now she's healthier. I'm confused.

Heather Creekmore [00:06:28]:
Because we know what the GLP1s do. If you're not familiar with them, they're essentially appetite suppressants. Now, it's more complicated than that, for sure. They're stirring hormones, help you feel satiated. And some definitely need that for sure. That's part of our body system that may be broken, and the semaglutides can help set it right. I don't have any problem with the rationale for why someone would need to use a GLP1.

Heather Creekmore [00:07:00]:
But then there's others, like many of the already thin Hollywood celebrities, like the cast of Wicked, for example, who have just emaciated themselves. Their hunger and fullness cues probably weren't messed up. The GLP1s suppress appetite so you can give yourself what is essentially a medically induced eating disorder. You eat less, and you probably will shrink. A starving body shrinks. And the cultural moment is this. I've never been a big body posi fan. Like, body positivity movement is not one that I signed on to, but the redeeming quality of that movement was that there was some level of cultural appreciation that people can come in different sizes.

Heather Creekmore [00:07:45]:
And now the GLP1 message is vastly different than that. It's that we're all deep down thin people just waiting to starve our way out. And we've forgotten as a culture that eating disorders are very dangerous. When you starve, you waste away all your muscle, which will do long term metabolic damage. And when your body runs out of muscle to use for fuel, it starts to use your organs. Anorexics often die of heart issues even at very young ages because of electrolyte imbalances and also because the heart muscle is one of the muscles that can waste away in a starving body. It's so dangerous, and yet it's popular again. It's glamorous.

Heather Creekmore [00:08:30]:
We're dying to be thin again. Didn't we already do this in the 1990s? Like, I thought we had learned better. And again, please hear me for some, there's definitely a place for these medications. A good doctor shouldn't give it to someone with an eating disorder background. If you have a significant amount of weight you've been battling to lose, this might make sense for you. If you're a professional athlete who just had a baby or a Hollywood star who already Wore A size 2. I'm just gonna say it. I think this is very dangerous.

Heather Creekmore [00:09:01]:
Of course, reality check here. Some of you have tried them and they didn't work for you like you hoped they would. You were super sick from the side effects or they just didn't do much to silence your food noise. You could override whatever fullness cues you were getting, and it just didn't make a difference. Honestly, friend, I can only imagine that that is very frustrating. It was supposed to be the answer, and once again, it wasn't. That's maddening. It's just another opportunity for diet culture to tell you there's something wrong with you.

Heather Creekmore [00:09:34]:
You're not good enough. If you were better, you'd know how to lose weight. You'd do better. I'm so sorry, friend. Do not listen to that, because those are lies. But I'm sorry. This added layer of the medications are making this whole relationship with food and body thing even worse for you. Now, that's hard.

Heather Creekmore [00:09:56]:
But let's zoom out again. Let's take a 30,000 foot view and let's get personal.

Heather Creekmore [00:10:03]:
I know what you mean when you say you just want to be smaller. I know why you want to shrink. And I know why you believe in your heart of hearts that thinner is always better. Because part of me really wants that, too. And I'll say more about that right after this quick commercial break.

Heather Creekmore [00:10:25]:
You see, the GLP ones are so tempting because it seems like we can snap our fingers and shrink. And some of us have been waiting for that opportunity our entire lives. Like I've personally wrestled with the thoughts of, well, maybe I could do the microdose or what if there is something wrong in my body that only the GLP1s could fix? Like, shouldn't I try it? And yes, friend, hear me. I have so much freedom from my body image issues. I really do. I don't spend a lot of time fretting over my body or how it looks anymore. I feel very alive in my purpose and I don't spend a lot of time worrying about how you think I look. I really do feel free in the body image arena.

Heather Creekmore [00:11:09]:
And yet, and this is a big and I'd like to lose some weight. When I first started talking about body image issues, it was a little more than a decade ago. I was 40 years old and I wore a size 4. That statement is appalling to some of you. And then others of you are like, oh, I get that I struggle a lot even though I have a small body. But now, almost 12 years later, perimenopause, super stressful life situations, aging. Oh friend, my daughter's the one wearing those size fours now. And as my weight crept up, as my size crept up, like I got to size 10 and that really wasn't a big deal because I had worn that size before at certain times in my life.

Heather Creekmore [00:11:56]:
But then I kept going to places I had never gone before and then I leveled out and I've stayed in the same size for a few years now. And friend, I don't love ordering that size of clothing. I don't love holding my jeans up to my husband's jeans when I take them out of the laundry and feeling like mine are wider. I preferred being smaller. But here's what else I know aside from wrestling the right combination of hormones. In this season of my life, my body's mostly healthy. My Hashimoto's is in full remission. Not because I've been restricting food but but because I finally gave myself freedom to eat and cultivate a healthy relationship with food.

Heather Creekmore [00:12:42]:
My thyroid numbers are great, though. I'll never stop taking my natural desiccated thyroid medication. I feel good and energetic most days. I've worn a continuous glucose monitor. Like just for fun. Out of curiosity, I have a long family history of diabetes. My blood sugar's good. I exercise several days a week.

Heather Creekmore [00:13:01]:
I eat nutritious foods about 8 80% of the time, according to my blood work symptoms and related tests. I'm actually healthy. I just weigh too much. And every time I try to put any amount of intentionality into being, quote, unquote, healthier with the secret hope that maybe I'll lose some weight too. I find myself resorting to my eating disorder defaults. I tell myself, okay, maybe I'll just like not eat bread today, and then I end up eating twice as much bread tomorrow. Like I know beyond a shadow of a doubt, from research, from personal experience, from talking to hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of you, diets don't work. I also know that restricting food for me will either land me back into a place of a full blown eating disorder, and that's if I get, quote, unquote, good at restricting again, and I was very good at it, or it will make me binge.

Heather Creekmore [00:14:03]:
I'll restrict and binge, restrict and binge, and that'll destroy the hard work I've put into healing my relationship with food. I know I can't do that. Now, some of you may be saying, heather, I hear you, but I'm not healthy. Like I need to lose weight and that will solve my health problems. I see you, I hear you, friend. And I just pray that you have a wonderful, understanding doctor who doesn't get his or her information on health from social media. Because I was just reading the other day about how keto carb free diets are now being associated with greater levels of Alzheimer's and dementia. It's a dangerous roller coaster we've been on for the last few decades of cutting out entire food groups so that we could lose weight.

Heather Creekmore [00:14:45]:
And I know for many of you, you follow that plan because a doctor told you to. Some of you went fat free in the 1990s when a doctor told you that was the best way to lose weight. And then 20 years later, the doctors said you had to be carb free. Maybe there was some vegan period in there. It's all very confusing and it's hard to know who to trust and what is true. Because the science, quote, unquote, science just keeps changing. And I've hesitated to share my journey in this. I certainly don't want to trigger you.

Heather Creekmore [00:15:19]:
Honestly. Part of my fear is that some of you are going to say, oh, Heather can't relate to me anymore because she's not as small as I am. And then others of you are going to say, oh, Heather can't relate to me anymore because she's not as big as I am. And I'm setting those fears aside today for one reason. You need to know that you're not the only one who holds a desire to lose weight. It's not a you problem. Again, it would be abnormal in Our culture, if we didn't want to shrink, it's like wanting to be poor or wanting to be unemployed or wanting to be homeless. A thin body is a status symbol.

Heather Creekmore [00:16:00]:
It's a signal of wealth, privilege, intelligence, value. We assign so, so much to it. We idolize it. Of course we desire that. Of course we would. So what do we do? It's frustrating to hold this desire that we can't just make happen. Like we live in an Amazon prime society where we're used to getting what we want delivered within 24 hours. And it seems like maybe GLP1s could do that.

Heather Creekmore [00:16:30]:
And for some, maybe they have, again noting there's risks there. But for some of us, the struggle continues and maybe even feels harder as it seems like others have found a cure for their struggle. For anyone who tries the GLPs and goes off them for any reason, like that struggle that went away for a little while is just going to come right back. And so what do I do when I have an inordinate want? What do I do while I wait for something that may or not, may or may not ever happen? I may never get back to a small size or size I like. I don't seem to have that kind of control over my body anymore. I could spend my entire life trying to self optimize and troubleshoot every little thing with the hope that maybe I could change my body size and none of it, none of it might work.

Heather Creekmore [00:17:28]:
And that means I have to count the cost. What would it cost me to make weight loss a main goal in my life? Frankly friend, it would cost me too much. It would cost my ability to be present with my family because I know what I'm like when I am trying to follow a plan. It would cost me not being able to eat meals with them. It would cost me a lot of mental stress and frustration as I'd have to turn my focus back to thinking about food and exercise and my body and what the skill says all of the time. It would cost me in my relationship with the Lord because that body image idol is so, so, so tempting for me. I want to listen to it. I want to believe that as soon as my body is quote unquote good again, then I'll be able to have this amazing Christian life.

Heather Creekmore [00:18:16]:
But I know that's not the truth. Once that idol gets me to follow it, I keep following. And I can't serve Jesus and that idol for the sake of eternity. It's better for me to stay this size and put that idol aside so I can Keep my eyes on Jesus and not be distracted by body change goals that are dictated by a body image idol.

Heather Creekmore [00:18:45]:
But here's the other truth. I don't want to be the biggest one in the friend group. I don't want to be the biggest one in the picture. I don't want to see pictures of me on the Internet and wonder how in the world I got some so large friend. I did a speaking engagement not that long ago and they took a picture like from below, aiming up and to the right as I was sitting on a stool. Not a great angle. I want to be the thin one. I want status.

Heather Creekmore [00:19:15]:
I want you to see the photo and think, wow, she looks good. I want glory. Yuck. Did I say that out loud? I write about this in my 40 day body image workbook close to the very end. But my struggle for glory is pretty similar to someone else's struggle for glory. Yeah. Yeah, that's Lucifer, the most beautiful of all the angels. He wanted to be better than God.

Heather Creekmore [00:19:36]:
And we all know how that's turned out. And you may say, Heather, I don't want to be better than God. I just kind of want to be better than all my friends, or at least as good as them. I just want to look better in pictures, like, just for me. I hear you. And yet.

Heather Creekmore [00:19:53]:
And yet, what's it going to cost us? So what do we do? What do we do when our want overwhelms us? How do I keep just going through day by day, holding this want, this desire, this goal for some of you, and yet knowing I don't have the power to snap my fingers and make it happen? What do we do with this want? Well, here's what I think we do. I think we have to hold a posture of humility from a position of secure worth. Okay, that's not the answer you're looking for. But track with me here, I'm gonna say it one more time. Hold a posture of humility from a position of secure worth. Philippians 2. Jesus modeled for us a posture of humility. We read how Jesus emptied himself of all of his glory, and that was glory that was rightly his.

Heather Creekmore [00:20:46]:
Because he was God, but came to earth to be like us. He took the human form of a servant. Isaiah tells us that the body he chose for himself was nothing to look at. I mean, wouldn't his mission have been easier if he had chosen to be the best looking guy on the planet? I mean, then everyone would have paid attention and respected him. Right? Seems like that would have been an important part of strategic ministry. And yet he didn't. He modeled for us a posture of humility. He modeled for us what it's like to not live with selfish ambition or conceit.

Heather Creekmore [00:21:18]:
He did not rely on his looks. He didn't fret over whether or not he was good looking enough. He spent his life on earth serving the interests of others. And that's what we're commanded to do too. In this passage. Anyone who tries to make it seem like being a good steward of your body is the most important thing you can do for the kingdom really needs to read Philippians. Jesus wasn't all about himself, he was all about others. But here's what we often miss when we think of humility.

Heather Creekmore [00:21:47]:
We're quick to say, oh, I've got that. I've got humility because I already think everyone else is better than me. But that's not true humility. Remember, our answer is holding a posture of humility from a position of secure worth. Humility isn't deferring to everyone because you feel like you're scum and they're awesome. Humility is knowing your value, being secure in your worth and still deciding to elevate others above yourself, thinking of others first, putting others interests and needs above your own. It's not deferring because you feel like you're the least. It's choosing to be the least here on earth because you know God has already chosen you and you already have crowns and rewards waiting in heaven.

Heather Creekmore [00:22:30]:
You know this isn't the life that really counts. Not that you blow this life off. No. God gave you people to love, gifts to use, stuff to do here. But you know that you are not of this world. You know that this culture's way of thinking and doing things is different from God's. And at the end of the day, you're going to choose to obey him rather than believe how the social media influencer promised a better life here. It's Christmas time.

Heather Creekmore [00:23:01]:
And the Christmas song I love oh Holy Night. I love it because of that one line. Then he appeared and the soul felt its worth. Our souls will never feel their worth apart from Jesus and friend. Isn't that really what we're longing for? Like, okay, yeah, we can say like, I want to be healthier, I want to be able to move better. You know, I want this or I want that. I just don't want people to overlook me anymore. Like, I want to fit in.

Heather Creekmore [00:23:28]:
I don't want to be the fattest person in the picture. Like all of that is true and yet at the heart of it, I just have to wonder if I just want to feel my worth. I just want to feel valuable. I just want to feel like I'm lovable and worthy and I'm okay, okay, and I fit in and no one's thinking bad thoughts about me and I won't be rejected. I just. I want that kind of security. I want to know my worth. And this is that reminder.

Heather Creekmore [00:24:01]:
I can't know that worth apart from Jesus. No amount of weight loss, no amount of surgery, no amount of fixing, trimming, reshaping, no amount of trying to get old, everything right in my diet and exercise and health things, no amount of self optimization is going to make me feel my worth. It just doesn't work that way. We were not designed to feel worthy based on how our bodies look or really any of our achievements, right? I think about Paul saying, like, all of his resume is dung. In light of the Gospel, in light of Jesus. And that has to be our posture too. We can only have a posture of humility from a position of secure worth. Once I know my worth is found in Christ alone, period, it's settled.

Heather Creekmore [00:25:01]:
I'm not still trying to earn it. I'm not still striving for it. I'm not still trying to prove it. My worth isn't 10 pounds away, 20 pounds away, 120 pounds away. No, my worth isn't settled. And because of that, I can lay down that desire I have for glory. I can rest in humility and say, it's okay if I'm not winning. It's okay if I'm not the prettiest girl in the picture.

Heather Creekmore [00:25:26]:
It's okay if you all got to see that picture of me online that was taken from below my thigh. It's okay.

Heather Creekmore [00:25:38]:
Because that's not really what it's about. I'm still worthy. God loves me. He sees me. He knows me. He has a plan for me. And so.

Heather Creekmore [00:25:52]:
If your want to lose weight is just overwhelming you, here is my charge.

Heather Creekmore [00:25:58]:
Be overwhelmed by something better this Christmas season. Be overwhelmed by the fact that God, God, the God of the universe, made himself a person. Not a hot person, a person, so that he could come and be rejected and die the death that you and I deserve to die because we're the ones that committed the sins. He didn't. And so he died and then was raised from the dead and restored to glory. He overcame sin and death so that we could be reconciled to God and someday spend eternity with him. That's the Gospel, friend. And if that doesn't overwhelm you.

Heather Creekmore [00:26:47]:
If that doesn't amaze you, if that doesn't stir your heart, then that's the place to start. Ask yourself why? Why aren't I impressed by that? Why do I feel like, yeah, yeah, Heather, I know that. And yet I would still be happier if I was skinnier.

Heather Creekmore [00:27:03]:
Friend, your soul will feel its worth only when your worth is found in Jesus. Thanks for listening today. I hope this has encouraged you and if it has, say leave us a review or share it with a friend. Starting December 30th, I've got a series of interviews with real women who have gone through our programs, but real women who started off with big body image struggles that we have been able to help and walk with over the last few years. You're going to really love hearing their stories, so make sure to tune in starting the end of the month into the new year. And hey, our next 40 day journey will start on January 20th. If you need more of this kind of encouragement, if you've tried all the health and diet things, you've tried all the exercise things, you've done the same thing over and over again. You're expecting different results.

Heather Creekmore [00:27:56]:
Friend. Try a new way this year. Join us on the 40 day journey begins January 20th. You can find out everything you need to [email protected] thanks for listening today. I hope something has helped you stop comparing and start living. Bye bye. The Compare To Podcast is proud to be part of the Life Audio Network. For more great Christian content, I hope you go to lifeaudio.com.