Brittany Williams - Instant Loss

This book presents the research and ideas of its author. It is not intended to be a substitute for consultation with a healthcare practicioner. Consult with your healthcare practicioner before starting any diet or supplement regimen. The publisher and the author disclaim responsibility for any adverse effects resulting directly or indirectly from information contained in this book.

Copyright 2019 by Brittany Williams

Photography 2019 by Ghazalle Badiozamani

Cross hatching pattern Shutterstock/Babich Alexander

Author family photos and personal before-and-after photos 2019 by Brittany Williams

Fan photos 2019 by Rebecca and Dan, Denise Caillouet, Hanna Nibbe, Melissa Bartholomew, Shawna Beam, Evelin Dittman, Kyra Stovall

Food styling by Monica Pierini

Prop styling by Jenna Tedesco

All rights reserved

For information about permission to reproduce selections from this book, write to or to Permissions, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company, 3 Park Avenue, 19th Floor, New York, New York 10016.

hmhbooks.com

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available.

ISBN 978-0-358-12185-5 (pbk)

ISBN 978-0-358-12186-2 (ebk)

Book design by Suet Chong

v2.1119

For Avey, Ben, and Noah

My little ragtag bunch.

You are my reason.

B rady, youre the real MVP. Thank you for supporting my dreams, encouraging me to create, and for doing countless loads of dishes. I love you crazy big.

Avey, Ben, and Noah, faithful taste testers, comedic relief, and lights of my life. Being your mother is my greatest accomplishment. Thank you for sharing me so that I can help others. I love you.

Mom and Dad, thank you for always being my #1 fans, for all the free babysitting, and for sharing your stories in this book. You are an inspiration!

Family, there are SO many of you, thank you all!! To my sister, Bethany, for all the encouragement, my Aunt Kim for all the free phone therapy, my grandparents (all of you) who have helped me in ways unspeakable, my brothers, Colin, Kyle, Connor, Caleb, and Tristan, for buying more books than any sane person/people shouldI love you guys. There are too many of you to name, but you know who you are. Im so grateful to have a mess of people who love me.

Friends Heather, Shaylee, Janna, AlinaJoy, Katie, Roxanne, Carol, Tracy, Teri, Samantha, Candy, Chrissy, and TanaIm forgetting people, but you know who you are. My dearest sisters, I am thankful that no matter how far life takes us apart, it brings us right back together without missing a step. Thank you for investing in me, even if its just a text that I forget to respond to. Love you all.

My editor, Justin Schwartz, plus Sari Kamin, Brianna Yamashita, Jacqueline Quirk, Marina Padakis Lowry, Tai Blanche, designer Suet Chong, and the entire HMH team. This has been such a great experience. Thank you for listening to my vision and trusting me to take it where I wanted. You made me a better writer and developer by pushing my boundaries, just a bit, and the culmination of growth is shown here on these pages. I couldnt have asked for a better team of people. Justin, I just adore you, I hope you know.

My photography teamGhazalle Badiozamani, Monica Pierini, Jenna Tedesco, Bridget Kenny, Leila Clifford, and Toby Klinger. I still cant get over how you looked at photos of my living room and created an entire photoshoot around them! Every single photo in this book is magnificent, and it was an honor to watch you ladies work. Thank you for sharing your talents. You elevated this project to another level.

Ashley Wright Photography, thank you for answering my panicked call and editing my family photos so they have that extra touch of brilliance. You are a brilliant photographer but an even better friend. If youre in DFW, look her up!

Lisa Rovick, for testing every. single. recipe. Thank you for the countless hours on the phone and all of your advice and expertise. These recipes are beyond because of you. I loved every second of working side by side in the kitchen with you, even if it was across the country.

My agent, Andrea Barzvi, at Empire Literary, you keep me sane. Thank you for sharing your wisdom, counsel, and for believing in me before most.

The Instant Loss Community, I wouldnt be here if it wasnt for you. You saw something in me before I ever saw it in myself. Not every girl has 150,000 friends that she gets to talk to every day! Im so proud of the community weve built, designed to encourage and elevate others. Im so grateful for how yall really uplifted me. Thank you for contributing to the conversation. We are helping so many together, and I pray that we get to do so for a very long time.

Jesus, my story is full of broken pieces that You continuously help me put back together in the most meaningful ways. Thank you for being the grace that saved my life.

I asked my husband for a stovetop pressure cooker and he surprised me with this newfangled fancy machine with a million buttons instead. I was frustrated. I didnt want some technowiz gizmo gadget with a manual as long as my arm. I had two toddlers and another baby on the way. I didnt need another thing to figure out. I just wanted a regular old pressure cooker. The Instant Pot was no regular pressure cooker.

It sat in a box in our living room for weeks. I was intimidated and a bit scared I was going to blow up the house, so I let it sit there. Eventually it became part of the furniture. Couch, coffee table, arm chair, Instant Pot. One day, my husband asked me if he should return it. He got my guilty conscience all stirred up, and I finally took it out of the box.

I spent an entire morning reading the manual cover to cover. I figured Id try my hand at making rice. Rice is cheapif I mess it up, what have I lost?

In about half an hour, we had perfectly cooked rice. I didnt have to babysit it on the stove, I just threw all the ingredients in the pot, folded a couple loads of laundry, changed a diaper, and presto! Rice!

My kids asked for seconds. I was sold.

Ive had my pot for three years. Since then, Ive had three more pregnancies. My weight has yo-yoed along with my willpower.

In January 2017, I was sick and tired of feeling sick and tired. I kicked processed food and I stopped eating fast food. I was confident that, with the help of my pressure cooker, my family could successfully stop eating out and start eating most of our meals at home.

Well, were doing it! I havent asked my husband to bring home dinner at all this year! With the exception of a couple date nights, we havent eaten anywhere but home for the last three months. As an awesome side effect, Ive lost 41 pounds!

So, to my Instant Pot, thank you. I really love you and I think everyone should have you.

Brittany Williams, Facebook post, April 3, 2017