Stacy London's Low-Snark Approach to Feeling Fine About Your Body

(A former "gym rat" who worked out five or six days a week for two hours at time, London, who is now at what she calls a stable weight, says she "couldn't keep it up." Luckily, she's recently discovered yoga. "It's much more energizing than running on a treadmill," she tells me. "I'm feeling much better and stronger in my body. It's been very enlightening for me, making facing 40 a bit easier.")

Her lifelong issues with her weight, she says, make her "uniquely qualified" to deal with the women on her show who don't feel good enough about their bodies to bother dressing in style.

So, while she unleashes her assertive, sometimes mocking style in commenting on people's clothing, hairdos, makeup and accessories, London empathizes with the women whose distaste for their bodies leads them to dress frumpily, attempting to hide beneath tarplike tops and baggy bottoms.

"The sweat-shirt phenomenon is a slippery slope," she says, "and a symptom of something deeper. Style is the instrument you can pick back up when you want to regain some of the confidence you've lost. Style offers concrete rules you can follow. You can use it as a resource rather than a barrier to feeling good about yourself."

"You have to look in the mirror and see that what you're wearing looks good on the body you have now," she says. "Wearing a larger size is just . . . wearing a larger size." That's especially important for those of us who cling to old clothes that are too small in hopes that we'll someday fit in them again.

"That's psychological torture," London says. "I learned this from Oprah. She says you're only allowed to keep smaller-size jeans if you are actively engaged in being that size again. They can be used as a goal, but only if you're exercising and changing your diet habits. Otherwise, you have to buy clothing for the body you have. No amount of fantasizing in the world will make you a different size."

Check out today's Checkup blog post, in which Jennifer discusses the pros and cons of keeping too-small jeans in the closet. Subscribe to the Lean & Fit newsletter by going to http://www.washingtonpost.comand searching for" newsletters." Go to Wednesday's Food section to find Nourish, a weekly feature with a recipe for healthful eating. And e-mail your thoughts to Jennifer at checkup@washpost.com.