HOW IT ALL BEGAN:

OCTOBER 8, 2020:

This is new for me. Bright Line Eating is simple. Follow the four bright lines:

1. No Sugar

2. No Flour

3. 3 Meals a Day

4. Weigh Your Food

This and lots of common sense about food addiction and a simple list of foods to eat have transformed the way I eat and live. It didn't always be this way.

It started when I was young, fat, and ashamed. I became bulimic at age 12. I was anorexic until I got pregnant at 19. Then I got fat. I tried every diet in the book. I ate because I was happy, sad, depressed, angry. I ate.

12 years ago I had gastric bypass and lost 125 pounds. It was easy, just like being anorexic. But the weight came back. Again with trying to eat healthy, gluten-free, cane sugar, all-natural.

I didn't have a plan. I didn't know what to eat and what not to eat. I snacked most of the day, with the justification of my stomach is small so I need to eat several times a day. I ate foods that I knew made me sick because then I wouldn't feel guilty about eating them.

I hated cooking, I hated shopping for food. I hated being in the kitchen. I would sit on the couch for hours after work, just trying to pretend dinner didn't need to be made. Only to get off the couch and make some packaged meals. We spent so much money on garbage food.

I have been on the Bright Line Eating plan for the past 7 weeks. I know what to eat, when to eat, and how much to eat. I have confidence when I cook and shop. I bring good food into my home and prepare it with ease. I love shopping with Jared. It's a fun adventure every Saturday. I love cooking. It's so easy.

And the benefits? I've lost weight. I no longer have food comas after eating. I sleep well. I don't have hot flashes anymore. I have more time to do the things I love, like writing.

If your life is out of control with regard to food, look into Bright Line Eating. Buy the book, read it. If you need help, I've got lots of resources available.

Reading the book is paramount. You have to understand why. Then you just take steps to make your house Bright Line Eating compliant, aka getting rid of the bad foods. For kids, I'd recommend making it as "lunch line" as possible. Just like a lunch line in school, they know what they are allowed to take.

With my son, I have everything marked. Fruits, 6 oz, so he knows he has to measure or if he takes a fruit cup which is 3 oz, he takes two. Proteins, he knows what they are, I have the list on the cabinet. He gets what he wants, cheese, hard-boiled eggs, can of soup, etc. and he weighs if he needs to.

There is very little I actually have to do except set them up for success. I had to do some work in the beginning, but now it's pretty automated with everyone.

NOVEMBER 7, 2020:

In the beginning, we ate the exact same thing practically every day:

Breakfast:

Me: Oatmeal and cottage cheese with pineapples.

Hubby: Yogurt, granola, berries

Son 1: eggs, Ezekiel toast, kiwi

Son 2: Oatmeal, boil eggs, applesauce

Lunch:

Me, Hubby, Son 1: some kind of meat salad, tuna or chicken. Salad/spinach, cucumber and tomatoes. And some sort of big fruit like watermelon, cantaloupe, etc. Olives.

Son 2: Can of veggie/meat soup, applesauce

Dinner:

Everyone: I would make a meat and usually a squash. Throw in some cucumbers and tomatoes if needed. Olives. And salsa or marinara sauce if it went with the meal.

This lasted about a month. It was great for the first month, though as I knew exactly what everyone would be eating and kept that on hand. Then I needed more. So I started experimenting with recipes. At this point, everyone know what to get and how much to get, so I just added different things.

Now, every other day I make some sort of bake for breakfast. Loving me some raspberry peach bake!!! Thanks Natalie Aul!! GET HER COOKBOOKS HERE

Son 1 came up with his own recipe called “Eggy Hash” which is eggs and veggies with mayo, which he makes almost every day.

Son 2 uses ice cream as his fat for dinner. I know it isn’t allowed, but he’s 11. He measures out 2 oz, yup, that’s it. And he’s so excited that it’s just for him. Though he wasn’t overweight, he has lost 11 pounds, and is growing taller every day!

My thoughts, keep it simple in the beginning. Make it so everyone knows what to do and how to do it. Keep your fridge stocked with minimal things that you can eat. Then, when you’ve got the plan down, start experimenting.

I love this way of life and so do my hubby and sons!

Last night’s dish, leek frittata, it was AMAZING, super simple to make. I’m not a cook. I was a one, or two trick pony. I had maybe two recipes I knew how to make. Now, I’ve got a whole cookbook full of things I can make.

Sidenote: In 2018, I had a mini-stroke. They found a brain tumor. I basically shut down for the past 2 years. Now, I am clear-headed, able to write again AND learning to cook! I LOVE THIS WAY OF LIFE!!!