The topic of this week’s vlog is an abbreviation we use all the time in our community: JFTFP. It stands for Just Follow The F___ Plan (f***ing, fabulous, friggin’—fill in your F-word of choice)! This abbreviation has become a fixture in the BLE movement, like our logo and the word “UnstoppaBLE.” People even get it tattooed or made into jewelry!

JFTFP is an identity, and it has to do with not just owning the identity but also developing the identity. Because when you decide to Just Follow The Fabulous Plan, you can do it on a day-by-day basis or a meal-by-meal basis. You can use it to ease into Bright Line Eating with baby steps. 

But then, as you watch yourself JFTFP, it works—and it starts to build your identity as someone who does JFTFP and who prefers to JFTFP. It’s true that you can’t build an identity overnight. But with JFTFP, you can decide you have that identity, and as you follow it you build it little by little.

My friend Tosca suggested this topic. She was sharing a story of hiking a mountain with friends, and they noticed the long, broad, gently sloped paths called switchbacks snaking up the mountain. They thought, “That’s dumb. What a waste of effort. Let’s just go straight up the mountainside instead.” So they did, and it wrecked them. It was hard, there were no clear paths, it was treacherous. And the old folks they left walking the switchbacks ended up beating them up the mountain. 

It’s like Bright Line Eating. This program is a well-worn path that you can follow—comfortably and easily—that will get you up the mountain to your destination. All you have to do is follow it.