Episode #53: Latoya Shauntay Snell, ‘The Running Fat Chef’, on body-shamers and breaking barriers

It’s impossible to cover every part of Latoya Shauntay Snell’s life in an hour-long discussion but damn if we didn’t try. 

She’s a chef, podcaster, writer, and a self-proclaimed “accidental activist”, pushing back against body shamers and anonymous keyboard warriors. 

Latoya has done just about everything in life and experienced the joys and sorrows which accompany each new barrier she breaks. 

Latoya followed her early love of cooking to culinary school. After graduating, Latoya worked as a freelance food stylist and photographer and explored the world of corporate dining while working for several different restaurants. 

While her career was reaching new heights, so was her weight, and in October 2012 Latoya found herself in the hospital with disc degeneration, moderate level sciatica, a herniated disc, and a crashing immune system. 

“I was well over 265 pounds thanks to depression and other factors thrown into the picture,” explained Latoya. “My doctor didn't think I'd make it to see 30 years old.” 

So began her weight loss journey, at one point dropping close to 170 pounds, though this isn’t the typical story of “fat person gets skinny” and the world falls in love with the story. 

In this interview, Latoya discusses her early life with her dad and his love of cooking, the backlash she received for dropping so much weight, rising above the online hate that comes her way on a daily basis, the insane story of meeting one of her online bullies in real life, and her ability to remain positive - and funny as hell -  in the face of constant adversity. 

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