Not what I’d hoped

I really wanted to like this book, especially with all the hype. But the strictness of what to eat (and not eat), when to eat daily and 3 meals a day is way too regimented for me. This is the classsic description of a diet and the long term sustainability doesn’t seem likely. Having said that, I don’t want to take anything away from people who have had success on it and I hope their weight loss lasts in the long term. The jury is still out from a sustainment standpoint. With the restrictions of this program, I don’t think people are ‘free’. To me free is not dwelling on food, but with the low cal, fast weight loss this program promotes while requiring weighing of food and no flour or sugar ever, how can this not create obsessing over food. It seems the opposite of freedom to me. I went a year without eating sugar and yes, I felt great but I had a similar situation to the author and her cake episode, but mine was a Butterfinger and it was the yummiest thing I’ve ever put in my mouth but that shot me down the sugar rabbit hole. As Geneen Roth says, when there is a diet, there is an equal and opposite binge. Over the last couple of years I’ve become extremely tuned into my body and I am very carb sensitive so really have to watch processed foods. I appreciated the science of the book because I’m a firm believer in the physiological impacts of food and how simple processed carbs can trigger cravings. I read quite a while back something that made a ton of sense to me. If you have a chart and have blood sugar on the vertical axis and time on the horizontal axis, when a carb sensitive person eats processed food, their blood sugar goes up higher and faster than the average person, then drops lower than the average person, so when it gets low, that is when your cravings kick in. Our bodies are super smart and know that to get the blood sugar back up, it causes us to crave junk food. The more you eat, the worst the cravings are which a lot of times overrides willpower of any kind. I do like her susceptibility scale and the higher someone is on this scale, the stronger the cravings will be. So the simplest solution is to not eat them, but I strongly believe that when we tell our psyches we can’t have something, eventually they will win out. For me, if I feel a huge desire for something, then I will eat it in the evening (and mindfully so I can thoroughly enjoy it without guilt), otherwise I know if I eat it in the morning or mid day, I will get triggered and it will be an internal battle the rest of the day. Whenever I read about a weight loss program, I always try to pick up some nuggets and with this one I appreciated the science aspect but the strict guidelines aren’t going to create any sort of freedom, if anything they will exasperate food obsessions. Eating pre planned meals the same time every day goes very much against your body’s true hunger signals. Isn’t eating when you’re truly hungry, stopping when you’re content, and not thinking about food in between, really what freedom Is? Once sugar is out of your system and you stick to whole food, the cravings will go away and this is what can happen. But something else she doesn’t discuss that is very real is a person’s set point. Our bodies are brilliant and don’t like going below it which is one of the reasons fast is not better. There is a lot of research showing the faster you take it off, the higher the probability you will gain it back because our bodies will fight to get back to that point so slow and steady is more sustainable. Having said all of this, I know every ones bodies are different and that’s why everyone needs to find what works for them. A couple good nuggets but overall, not what I expected.

84 people found this helpful

Wow. Just wow. This book is a game-changer.

What made the experience of listening to Bright Line Eating the most enjoyable?

This book. THIS BOOK! Wow. It's a game-changer. It changes everything. Not only is Susan Peirce Thompson's approach to getting control of your food and your weight powerful and compelling and based on brain science, she also presents it in a clear, convincing, wonderfully readable way.

Hearing her narrate her book is especially powerful -- I strongly recommend the book overall, but I particularly recommend the audio version.

Thompson overturns so much -- so much! -- of what is standard, unquestioned, deeply ingrained thinking about weight loss (the old canards like "you can eat anything, just in moderation," "exercise promotes weight loss," "sugar, eaten in moderation, can be part of a healthy diet.") No, no, and no. At least, not for the majority of us.

In her compelling argument, people struggling with their weight aren't lazy or lacking in willpower. They don't need to just get off their lazy butts and get to the gym. They don't need to just stop eating so much. No. Their brains have been high-jacked. And the substances doing the high-jacking are NOT fat, salt, or simply an excessive consumption of calories. The substances are sugar and flour. Period. Fat people aren't sloths -- their brains are addicted to these substances and practicing moderation can be as much a no-win solution as practicing moderation in drug use would be to a brain addicted to heroin.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Bright Line Eating?

There are two things I especially love about Thompson's approach. One, that it's based on science. She's not guessing here. She's not making things up based on what seems logical and reasonable. She's looking at the science. And what the science suggests is pretty persuasive: Sugar is addictive to your brain. And flour might very well be too. We live in a toxic food environment where sugar and flour are everywhere and in everything. As with other addictions (in varying ways depending on your own brain susceptibility), the way forward is to remove these substances from your diet.

The bright lines are simple, clear, and unambiguous: no sugar, no flour, three meals a day, and weighing all your food.

The second thing I love is that her style is so wonderfully loving, supportive, and inspiring. Thompson writes in a way that is never condescending or dryly scientific. She tells stories, she shares her own experiences, she makes academic scientific studies easily comprehensible. But hearing her read her own book is incredible. Her warmth and love and understanding shine through her voice as well as her writing. Writing this way is not easy to do -- and speaking this way is even harder. I am wildly impressed at her ability to do this.

My only singular concern, which she does address, is that for all that this approach is simple, it's not easy. It's no easier than quitting cigarettes would be for a cigarette addict. Or quitting alcohol for an alcoholic. This is hard to do. And she does say so, when she notes that (I'm paraphrasing here), if a food plan is all it took to lose weight, everyone who wanted to get thin would be thin.

Still, I worry that readers might fall in love with her wonderfully supportive, upbeat tone in the audiobook and think that simply deciding to follow the bright lines is all it takes. Make no mistake, this is hard to do, and it requires a TON of support and self-love-and structure and help (the bright-line eating approach provides that, but you have to be diligent about seeking it out and getting it).

Have you listened to any of the narrators’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

This is Thompson's first audio book performance, but having listened to her videos online, I found her ability to read text as strong as her ability to speak without a text in front of her. In this audiobook, it sounds like she's just talking to you in a personal conversation. Nothing sing-songy or monotone. She's great.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I listened to this book while on a drive that lasted 5 hours. And I wanted it to be longer so that I could keep going. The information in it is that good, and Susan's narration is that wonderful.

It's not often that a book comes along that has the potential to cause a seismic shift in our thinking, but this book does that. Bright Line Eating should have as profound an impact on our thinking about weight loss and the obesity epidemic as Rachel Carson's Silent Spring had on our thinking about pesticides and the environmental movement.

Any additional comments?

I really hope that everyone struggling with weight and food issues, whether they have a modest problem or a serious food challenge, gives themselves the tremendous gift of reading this book.

I worry that I'm going to sound like some nut-case, over-the-top Susan Peirce Thompson fanatic. But it's really true. Bright Line Eating has changed my life.

Like so many other reviewers, all I can say is thank you thank you thank you Susan Peirce Thompson. My deepest wish isn't that this book will help me (although I hope it does); my wish is that this book changes the world.

94 people found this helpful

Interesting approach

I was mostly curious to find ways to deal with emotional and boredom eating. This is not the ticket for that. This book is read well by the author and the science and foundational information is excellent and enjoyable. Avoiding sugar and flour while controlling portion sizes is excellent advice. I agree that the diet plan will certainly get people to lose weight, and the maintenance plan will maintain the weight loss.
However, If I ever feel I must resort to this program, I will also consider it an enormous personal failure. The idea of weighing every morsel of food to the tenth of an ounce and bringing my own food to weddings and celebrations, (or worse, my food scale) - not because of religious or allergic restrictions, but because I cannot be trusted to take a bite without losing control of my eating is, frankly, a bridge I will not cross.
I am glad this program helps some people and the book is worth checking out in case the reader is one of them.
The interminable 'case studies' are hugely boring after the first couple and annoying to try to skip when listening in the car. They are mostly the same - 'tried everything, nothing worked, Bright Line eating worked and now my life is wonderful.' These are not case reports but personal testimonials and detract from the science the author otherwise presents.
I felt the science alone was worth the listen even if the implementation of the plan is not for me.

63 people found this helpful

A must read for weight loss

If you could sum up Bright Line Eating in three words, what would they be?

It really works.

Any additional comments?

I can't speak to highly about this book. I have read the book three times now up to the chapter on maintenance. I will read it again. I get something new out of it every time. First, Susan Peirce Thompson tells why we have so much trouble losing weight - she gives the underlying reasons of what is going on in the brain. I now understand why, in the pastt, I have eaten a large serving of ice cream before I even knew what was goin on and still craved more. She also explains why I can manage to eat very well until 2 pm and then I lose it in the will power department. And, she explains even more. Just understanding these things helped. After that, she writes about the bright lines and why we cannot cross them. One is no sugar; in fact, no sweeteners whether they have calories or not. Somehow, I have known for a long time that I would have to comply with this one, but I was never able to do it. I have been on several diets with no success. Weight Watchers three times! I paid a lot of money and went to the meetings where I could buy those sweet treats with low points, the ones you could have occasionally. But, I would go home and eat them all and then feel awful because I had no self control. If this sounds familiar, you must read this book. She also gives complete advice on how to start and how to handle difficult situations. With every other diet, I was always waiting for the day I could have some ice cream. I don't do that now. I know I can never eat ice cream and I am really ok with that. There is no magic bullet, no special food you can eat and no special vitamin you can take to make the journey easier. But, you will have the really useful tools to help you shed the weight and keep it off. Over the past two years, I have read over twenty books on diet. I can honestly say this is the place to begin. I have low vision and it has been a struggle to write this. It was just too important. I had to do it.

44 people found this helpful

The Keys To The Castle......really, yeah really

What did you love best about Bright Line Eating?

I bow to Susan Peirce Thompson's focus, story and mind. Her tenacity to unravel the obesity mystery and support others through it is is of profound importance.

Who was your favorite character and why?

As someone who's been doing BLE since 10/16 I can honestly say I have never felt so free. This book gives me the perfect gift to give everyone who has been asking me how I am doing so well.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I have immense love, joy and gratitude for this work! If you have struggled for years with weight issues, this information is life changing.

13 people found this helpful

FINALLY the program that actually WORKS!

What made the experience of listening to Bright Line Eating the most enjoyable?

I went through the Bright Line Eating Boot Camp almost two years ago and finally got off all medications and down 86 lbs to goal weight. So I knew Susan's voice from the coaching calls and videos in the online program.

The hardcover book is FABULOUS and my new nightstand read. But I wanted to hear Susan read it to me... Because we have so many food cues in our culture, and so many around me eat differently than I do now... I like to be reminded daily about the program that's keeping me feeling so FREE from all my former food cravings.

So what I like best is hearing Susan. She is the real deal. She's walked this path, and she tells it like it is. The personal. The gritty. The science behind our brain chemistry.

I can't say enough about how fabulous this book is... the audio, the hardcover... and the program you can join online. I was so afraid to EVEN TRY to go without sugar and flour. Now I'm on Day 658 and don't miss it at ALL!

What did you like best about this story?

I like the combination of real science combined with personal stories. I like the love that went into every chapter. Mostly, I like that the food plan is one that healed my brain and now allows me to live in a right-sized body. I'm feeling my ribs and hip bones for the first time in my adult life.

Which scene was your favorite?

While the personal stories and case studies are deeply moving... I needed the science to understand why THIS plan would be the one that would work for me.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes. And I'll also enjoy repeat listening.

Any additional comments?

I can't express the degree of emotional, physical and spiritual suffering I had because I was morbidly obese. I felt hopeless and full of shame that I could not stop eating sometimes even when I didn't want to be eating. I never in a million years thought I'd be down 86 lbs and feeling better at 60 than I ever felt at 30. But it's true. And if I can do it, believe me, ANYONE can!

33 people found this helpful

Thank you!

I was introduced to Susan Pierce Thompson and Bright Line Eating a year ago when my wife started one of the Bright Line Eating Bootcamps. I was seeing her great success with the plan and thought I would hop on board too. I had some weight to lose but wanted to get my cholesterol under control. The doctor wanted me to go on medication and I was trying various things but nothing would change the number much. Now, a few months later I am at the lowest weight of my adult life (I am 56). I actually weight about the same as I did in high school. I work out a few times a week and have some muscle weight so that accounts for a few extra pounds. The doctor is very pleased with my cholesterol numbers and I can avoid going on any medication. When I was given the chance to get an advanced copy of the book I was anxious to read it. I wanted to learning more about Susan's journey and her knowledge and research about the role that the brain plays in how and what we eat and how we can outsmart it. I can now say that I feel I can easily maintain my weight loss by following this plan. Best of all it is completely based on natural whole foods so I feel I am eating healthier than any time in my life.

16 people found this helpful

Meh

This book doesn't have any new ideas, however, it is packaged a little differently and I can see that resonating with people. The reason for my low rating for story was that about 25 percent of this book was the author trying to sell additional services, etc. and it had an infomercial feel to it. She also contradicts herself, such as saying how you stick to your bright lines to make decision making automatic, but then saying she doesn't know how long she will do this diet for, she could stop tomorrow. I feel there is also an over emphasis on being happy by doing this diet. There are a lot of overweight people with food addictions who are happy. Happy and thin or free from food addiction are not necessarily mutually exclusive. She does do a good job presenting the book.

47 people found this helpful

PRICELESS - WORTH LISTENING JUST FOR THE INFO

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I truly believe Susan might have found the answer to obesity. Having said that, this book is highly recommended not only as the way to lose weigh (and keep it off) BUT for the invaluable knowledge Susan shares. For example, the information of how the brain works, concepts of the susceptibility scale, the concept of brighlines in general, the automaticity concept, the willpower gap and the link between phycological issues and processed foods is priceless!! Highly recommended to anyone whether they have a food addiction, want to lose weight or want to follow the brightline movement. This is an excellent book!

30 people found this helpful

A Game Changer

Would you consider the audio edition of Bright Line Eating to be better than the print version?

Bright Line Eating is the program I've been looking for, for many years. Listening to Susan, I find better then just reading. Her magnetic personality comes shining through, and it inspires me. I've lost 40lbs on the program. I know listening to Susan's vlogs and I know I'm going to enjoy hearing this book over and over, because I still have some weight to loose but most importantly I know this is the way I'm going to maintain, once I've reached goal weight.
Listen and/or read the book and I'm sure you'll find it as motivating, inspiring and doable as I do.

What other book might you compare Bright Line Eating to and why?

Susan talks about the science behind why our brains make us compulsively overeat. She explains how/why sugar and flour are so addictive, and then provides a viable solution for overcoming this addiction. It's as good as Dr. Robert Lustig book "Fat Chance: The Hidden Truth About Sugar, Obesity and Disease", but it's the program that is behind it that is the answer to my prayers.

13 people found this helpful