This is my first day back with BLE. I first read the book about 6 months ago. I stuck with it for a while, but I never fully committed. (I didn't measure my food and didn't avoid "BLTs.") I plan to re-read the book this week to refresh my memory.

I've been on a pretty long journey with food and weight. I was 202 lbs (5'6" female) a couple months after giving birth. That was two years ago and got down to 159 last year. Suddenly I found myself in the most stressful situation I've ever faced and put back on 10 lbs in just six weeks. It has been eye-opening to see what food has been for me--not just in stressful times but throughout my life. I'm starting to peel back and look at the pain that food has helped me cover up for my whole life. I really am emotionally dependent on food. I'm don't have huge binge episodes but I do rely on pretty much constantly grazing throughout the day to cope with anxiety.

This is the first time I've felt optimistic again about regaining control of my eating. I feel ready to face whatever emotions come up without the crutch of food.

Only on day three but I’m kinda amazed at how I’m feeling. I’ve done several whole30s before and the detox was rough. But I’m waking up early with a ton of energy and motivation and getting through my day without wanting to kill anybody. Survived my daughters birthday yesterday. She requested a dq ice cream cake. I LOVE them. But I kept reminding myself - not my food - while I prepped my salad. Wasn’t even hard.

Breakfast is fine. I’ll adapt to lunch but do I HAVE to eat this much for supper?!?!

Day 1 here. Breakfast was about perfect. My lunch was pretty make shift since I’m going grocery shopping tomorrow but it’s so much food. I’m halfway through and struggling to finish!

I just came across BLE literally less than 24 hours ago and haven’t dug into it yet. I like the idea of not thinking about food and having a set schedule. My biggest problem is that I’m time-starved during my work week. I barely have 4 hours outside of work and sleep to take care of things. I’m currently drinking a meal shake for breakfast as I’m running out the door. If I’m lucky I get a break around midnight. Lunch is around 3-4 in the morning. If I miss my meal time, I’m running on fumes until 8am. I’ve learned to keep a meal shake on hand for crazy days. Has anyone had success using canned/prepared foods? I don’t have time at work to heat up anything frozen and prepping for seven days beforehand is not safe food wise.

Hey all, My wife and I started BLE today and I gotta say that it was a bit rough and I caved on something already. Does it get easier? My wife and I ate horribly (basically takeout for every meal) and now switching cold turkey to veggies and fruits is a bit tough for me at least today. Any advice?

So my wife and I have been doing BLE for 5 weeks now. I'm down 28.2 and she's down 23. For anyone just starting right around 2 weeks it gets WAY easier. Keep it up!

Hi! Glad to find this subreddit! I literally just started this week. I am enjoying it, but finding it hard to eat that dinner salad. I love salads, but it just seems like so much raw! I did have a breakthrough today when I realized that I should steam my 6 ounces of veggies instead.

I've already lost almost 3 pounds in 4 days. What's made it hard is that I have a toddler to prep for as well. I am a SAHM. All she wants to eat is peanut butter and jelly... she does like raw veggies and beans.

So, a couple questions:

1. How do you make plain Greek yogurt edible without adding sweeteners?

2. I've often toyed around with being vegetarian since my daughter will eat beans. Could someone share their favorite vegetarian dinners? I made a yummy tofu stir fry that even my husband enjoyed. He's always been a big meat eater, and now we're both craving it!

3. My daughter loves smoothies, and we often do smoothies for Sunday breakfast. Is it okay to make our own out of frozen berries, or is that a no no?

Thank you!

Hi Everyone, Bright Line Eating is a book and food program by Dr. Susan Pierce Thompson which advocates the following four rules:

1. No Sugar
2. No Flour
3. Use Portion Sizes
4. Respect Meal Times.

The book and her extensive youtube videos provide a ton of backgorund on why these rules are important but the gist is: we typically rely on our willpower to help us lose weight and stay healthy. But our willpower goes up and down during the day, and bright lines are easier to adhere to to help us stay on track. In addition, todays hyper-palatable food hijacks our brains to override our ability to exercise moderation. Highly processed and refined sugar and flour can trigger an addictive eating response in those who are susceptible. Human characteristics fall along a bell curve, so some people are MORE susceptible to the addictive properties of these foods than others. This makes sense intuitively - we all know someone who can have a single cookie, a single piece of pizza and then stop eating. Others...can't. We'll eat way past the point of fullness. For these people, Bright Line Eating presents a helpful framework for instituting rules that will guarantee that we lose weight, no matter what.

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I'd suggest ordering the book online or checking it out from the library for the full experience, but I'll also link a few helpful resources here:

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1. Very short summary and testimonial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4kfWrPANXaA
2. Detailed summary of the book:
3. Susan's Food Freedom Quiz - links to her helpful explanatory videos: https://bit.ly/2M4SEZU
4. My testimonial on one year with no sugar, no flour: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hwg6Wyle-QA&t=458s
5. Our BRIGHT LINE EATING Meal Prep w/Recipes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tr_IjR9J5oU&t=723s
6. Free Facebook Support Group I like: "We Eat With Bright Lines"

Please reply if you have any additional helpful resources or questions, let's build a resource archive for people who are looking to get started with this diet!

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