BRIGHT LINE EATING® FOR A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE

I feel so privileged today to share with you a little bit of my story. If anyone knows me, even a tad bit, they know that one of the things I value greatly in life is maintaining mine and my family's health. Your health is one of those things in life that if you take for granted there will be long term effects for years to come, if not for a lifetime. Therefore I take health seriously!

I lost my mother at a young age and I am convinced that had there been better health choices made in her lifetime I would still have her around to meet my children and help me raise these grand babies. I don’t know about you, but I want to be around for my children and grandchildren! I recently heard a quote once that will stick with me for years to come, "If you refuse to make time to take care of your health today, you will be FORCED to make time to take care of your health tomorrow.” (- Author Unknown)

SERIOUS MIC DROP! Well, this is where MY personal story comes in. You see friend, after my 3rd born came along, I naturally assumed I would not only 'easily' drop the baby weight, but that I would fairly quickly begin to look like Barbie and bounce back to feeling top notch. After all, this had been the case for my 1st two pregnancies and I had not gained NEAR as much pregnancy weight with this 3rd child as I had with the previous two pregnancies. Unfortunately, after baby arrived, I received a RUDE awakening and my body decided it was now time to hang on to the pregnancy weight. Furthermore, my body decided to add more pounds on top of what I gained while pregnant. It has been so tragic, all together I have gained 41lbs SINCE baby number three came and that was 3 ½ yrs. ago. I knew stress had played a part in my weight gain. Nonetheless, While I would say I am a generally healthy eater, I can say that my eating patterns had become ‘inconsistent’ over the last 3 yrs. By this I mean that I had begun to: snack when the children snacked, work on phone calls and to-do lists through meals instead of sitting down to eat, stay up until 2-3am working and have a small bite of something to keep me going through my sleepless nights.

It all added up to 41lbs that are now sabotaging my health. The extra weight is causing me aches, pains and self-image issues and leaving me with elevated cholesterol, regardless of the fact that I don't go near fried food, red meats, pork, etc. In search for direction to correct this life dilemma, I one day came across a friend's FB photo. She had changed. Who was she?! What in the world had happened to her?! If I had to guess she had lost like 100-125lbs. She was ROCKIN' IT! I NEEDED TO KNOW MORE! When I reached out to her she introduced me to BRIGHT LINE EATING. My friend sent me over to the website and suggested that I take the Food Addiction Susceptibility Quiz . While I would not say that I was addicted to food I WAS curious as to what my score would be. I mean who wouldn't be, right? I was SHOCKED to find out that I was a 7 on the Susceptibility scale! ME! Mrs. Healthy eater who maybe a

te sugar or flour 2-3 times a YEAR if even that. Self-evaluation really set in here. Maybe I had been using food as a coping mechanism for all the stress in my life after all?!

Maybe I needed something to help me get back on track with a more structured pattern of eating through the stressful season we had recently gone through with Covid job cuts, living transitions and death of loved ones. I figured If my friend could do it, so could I. Cue Bright Line Eating! What is it anyway?

Bright Line Eating (BLE) is “a scientifically grounded program that teaches you a simple process for getting your brain on board so you can finally live Happy and Free™.”

While I personally didn’t believe that food would determine my life’s happiness, I did believe that there had to be a medical science to this weight gain I had packed on.

I quickly decided to purchase the book and I flew through that baby within two days. I am usually a snail speed reader, so this was a victory for me. It was here that I discovered that the Bright Line Eating plan covers 4 bright lines you must adhere to.

1-) No sugar. Sugar is eliminated from the diet completely in an effort to retrain and restore the brain's dopamine receptors. 2-) No flour. This follows the same reasoning as sugar. 3-) Portions. All food is weighed, measured and logged to assist in building healthy boundaries in regards to portion size. 4-) Eat ONLY at Meals. No snacking in between. You get 3 healthy meals, it is all the body needs. *Provisional plans are made for those that must eat more frequent smaller meals. These seemed simple enough, and I had living evidence through my friend that IT WORKS. I knew I needed more!

I was ready to jump in head long. So, I began looking at doing the 14-Day Challenge. The 14-Day Challenge walks you through planning and preparation as it immerses you into the rapid weight release lifestyle. It offers direction and accountability and was somewhat of a ' hold your hand’ method as you begin to walk through the course. The best part is that the 14-day Challenge is ONLY $14!

I felt like I couldn't lose if the plan just didn't work for me! I am worthy of investing $14 into myself and so are you. After contemplating the 14-Day challenge and researching my options I decided that the BRIGHT LINE BOOT CAMP was the better option for me. I wanted to go all in!

The Bright Line Eating Boot Camp is like the 14-Day Challenge on steroids. It is an 8-week intensive with the highest grade of accountability. The Boot Camp allows you to be added into an online group of like-minded individuals that are walking through the 8 weeks with you. You also receive Weekly Modules to educate yourself throughout the week along with weekly coaching calls, and monthly coaching calls with an eating disorder specialist. I reached out to Bright Line Eating as a blogger and was able to secure a partnership with them which allowed me the privilege to walk through the 8-week boot camp. What a blessing! It was here that I learned the ins and outs of the weight loss plan for women. Breakfast: 1 fruit, 1 breakfast grain, 1 protein Lunch: 1 fruit, 1 fat, 1 protein, 6oz vegetables Dinner: 1 protein, 1 fat, 6oz vegetables, 8oz salad.

So here's the big Elephant in the room. Did it work for me? Well, yes and no. Upon starting Bright Line Eating I lost 8 lbs. within the first 2 weeks. Then I hit a plateau at about the end of week 3. I am certain that the fact that I came down with a horrible virus caused my body to shut weight loss down and hang on to weight for provision since I couldn't eat anything for a few days there.

While I have struggled to get my body back into weight loss mode after 4 weeks of sickness, I know without a shadow of a doubt that Bright Line Eating works. I have seen way too many friends that I now personally know succeed on the plan.

I continue to maintain my food plan and my weight loss is currently slow, but I am still able to lose about 1-2 lbs. a week.

I have seen benefits BEYOND weight loss that have been immeasurable. Some of those involve: 1-) Sleep! I have struggled with deep, restful sleep being nonexistent in my life for the last 3 years. Bright Line Eating has enabled me to experience deeper sleep when I am not awake with a child. It is amazing that in days where I foolishly break my lines, I experience disrupted non-restorative sleep. Sometimes even nightmares. Whereas on days that I DO keep my lines bright I experience deep and restful sleep.

2-) Mental Clarity! I have struggled with Mom Brain and brain fog for the longest time. When I am following my bright lines I am able to focus and process better.

3-) Better Moods! I have generally over the last year struggled with feeling irritable and down. Sure enough, when I break my bright lines I find myself getting irritable pretty shortly thereafter.

4-) Less Anxiety! Over the last year I have begun to deal with anxiety. It has been a brutal beast in my life. It is something that I only developed within the past year. Bright Line Eating has offered a large percent of relief with my anxiety. Bright Line Eating goes beyond an eating plan. The plan has practices in place to encourage routines to better your mental and spiritual health.

5-) Community! I have been able to build some solid friendships as a result of BLE. These are friendships that will last for years to come and hopefully a lifetime. Bright Line Eating does community at its finest.

In conclusion, BLE is an amazing program that has offered extraordinary support for me. I will personally continue to walk through the Bright Line Eating program even after the Boot Camp ends.

One of Dr. Susan Peirce Thompson’s mottos is “One day at a time, one meal at a time, one hour at a time. Anything is possible.” – Susan Peirce Thompson

Bright Line Eating is a method that can work for anyone. Some members come in without any weight to lose but are looking to develop healthier eating and lifestyle habits. For that member there is support and a modified meal plan.

On the other hand, other members like myself come into BLE looking to lose a variety of pounds from 10-200 lbs (4.5kgs – 90.71kgs) and more. For this member there is support and a food plan that offers weight loss progress.

Whatever your goal is, Bright Line Eating is available with an eager and joyful community waiting to welcome you and champion you on. I am forever grateful for the community that I have built and for the confidence that I have that If I continue with BLE plan my weight loss goal of 40 lbs. is attainable within a reasonable time frame. So, I press on joyfully with steady and consistent work.

As for you friend, If you ever have any questions for me in regards to Bright Line Eating or health in general, I am always available to help offer support in any way possible and encourage you along this road we call life.

Wishing you a Bright Line Day!

Raquel

Resources for getting started:

Susceptibility Quiz:

https://ble.life/yk8s

14-Day Challenge:

https://ble.life/2zy6

Bright Line Eating Boot Camp: https://ble.life/j8j4

Bright Line Emporium: (Here you can find the food journal, eating plan fridge magnets, pocket guides and so much more!) https://ble.life/nnq6

*Note: This blog post is done in conjunction with a gifted partnership with Bright Line Eating in exchange for admission to the Bright Line Boot Camp and does contain affiliate links to Bright Line Eating.