Lady Macbeth's Fitbit, and Other New Year's Resolutions

For many of us, the New Year means new resolutions about getting in shape. But often the goal isn't just to improve our health: there's a lot of magical thinking at work telling us that shedding five pounds will turn us into happier, more successful people. Shakespeare and his contemporaries didn't track their BMI, but, like us, they attached profound significance (and sometimes judginess) to people's eating and drinking habits. In this episode, we look at some general advice about diet and exercise back in the day, and talk about how Shakespeare's plays give us the real skinny on early modern "fat shaming." We'll also attempt to answer some burning questions, like:  "What exercise fad would Lady Macbeth sign up for?" and "What if Romeo and Juliet had matching Apple Watches?"  

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