ELATPBS - still going strong! (mostly...)

I found this video on YouTube during one of my study breaks...  ;-)  Thought I'd share it on here, because it is very "I *heart* Buffy" which is one of the main themes of my little blog.

Also, I feel like I owe you guys, in case there is actually anyone who is out there reading my blog.  It's been over a month since my last entry!

Lots has been happening in my life, and I've been very busy with school.  I have been loving my classes this semester, and have also been loving my workouts.

For anyone new to the blog, ELATPBS stands for Eat Like A Thin Person Buffy Style, which is how I'm trying to eat to lose some of the fat that has me in size 14 jeans.  It's basically just intuitive eating, which means eating only for hunger, and trying to make mostly healthy choices, but really just listening to my cravings... so if I want Redvines and pretzels, I will eat Redvines and pretzels instead of first worrying about how "fat" I am for wanting such a crazy snack. 

It all actually evens out usually.  I am not tracking my food every day, but when I do track it (on My Fitness Pal) my calories are anywhere from 1200 to 2000, usually somewhere in the middle.

Eating healthy?  Hasn't always been happening.  Eating like a thin person?  Usually, I'm doing okay with it.  I've been working pretty hard on listening to my hunger signals, and I'm getting pretty good at it.  I have been trying to focus on eating mostly healthy options (whole grains, beans, veggies, fruits, healthy fats, etc.) with a bit of "fun" foods here and there, all the while listening to my hunger signals and only eating when I'm truly hungry.

There are some days of the month when that just doesn't seem possible (PMS is a bitch) but I'm usually doing pretty well with it.

I have not been weighing myself, so I have no clue what I weigh.  It's very liberating, actually.

I did try on a pair of really tight jeans (muffin top, definately not appropriate for wearing in public yet) around January 13th and will be trying on the same pair of jeans on February 13th, and hopefully they will fit better. 

My exercise routine has been pretty great.  I've yet to begin kickboxing, but that is mostly because I have no extra money right now!  I have started to take spin classes at the University, where students get to take classes for free, and I try to go at least twice a week.  The other days I stick with my stationary bike and aerobics DVDs at home. 

So...  that's about it.  That's where I'm at!  I hope that you all are doing well. 

What have you done today that is just for you?

"Let me answer that question with a head-butt." ~Buffy, season 4

ELATPBS - Day 28

Once again:  So far, so good.

I also have not stepped on a scale for awhile.  I don't remember the exact date that I weighed myself last.

It feels great to be done with regular weigh-ins!  I will let how my clothes fit and how I look in the mirror/in pictures be the judge on how my body is doing.



You were weighing yourself HOW often?  WHY??

I wasn't an obsessive daily weigher.  Nope, just once a week, a habit taught to me from Weight Watchers years ago. 

I'm ready to be done with the scale once and for all! 

My pants feel great right now (US size 14) and I look pretty awesome in both the mirror and in pictures, by my standards (and mine are the only ones that I am currently considering).

Do I still want to be a size 8 or 10?  Definately.  But I'm not going to worry about it.  If my body wants to get smaller, then it will.  If it wants to stay a size 14, that will be fine, too. 

And because of vanity sizing, my size 14 ass could become a size 10 ass without actually getting any smaller.  LOL

I have noticed that I'm not so good at the "stop when satisfied" bit of eating like a thin person.  I overate quite a bit over the weekend...

Eat when hungry.  Don't eat when not hungry.  Easy-peasy, right?

I'm trying to make healthier choices today, which I think is what  naturally thin person would do after three days of junk food. 

My body wants greens, beans, healthy fats, and lots of water.  And I'm giving it what it wants.

PMS is a bitch, and I do partially blame it for the overeating (and the food choices) of the last few days. 

Anyway, nothing much else to add.   Just an update on ELATPBS.

"How do you get to be renowned? I mean, like, do you have to be nowned first?" ~Buffy, season 4

ELATPBS - Day 20

It's been several days of not tracking my food, and so far so good!

I already feel more like Buffy Summers.  My focus about food has shifted from "how many calories do I have left" to "I'm hungry, time to eat something that I love". 

Calories?  Who cares?

I'll share a bit of what I've been eating and how I've been exercising.  Not in a tracking sense, but just to share.

Today, I had my usual bowl of oatmeal mixed with peanut butter for breakfast.  I'm still eating this right now, actually.  I also brought along a banana and an applesauce, but I may not need those snacks this morning.  I didn't measure my oats or peanut butter, just mixed in what looked like a good amount.

I'm not sure what else I will be eating today, there is no plan!  But I bought some hummus yesterday, so that will probably be on the menu.  ;-)

Over the weekend, I walked and I biked.  Both felt amazing, and I tried to not think about the calories burned.  I'm probably not going to exercise today, because I won't have time which means that if I do it, it would definately be just for the calories.

And that's how ELATPBS is going.  I'll be ready to kick some butt soon.

"Giles, there are two things that I don't believe in: coincidence and leprechauns."
Buffy Summers, Season 3

No more tracking!

I'm going to start a no-tracking challenge.  This is the complete opposite of what I've done for years, so it feels kind of uncomfortable right now.  I'm going to go for a week first, and see how it goes.  Hopefully it will go so well that I'll want to continue.

When I say "no tracking" I'm talking about food and exercise.  No more recording everything I eat and every movement I do. 

No more calorie counting. 

If I'm going to ELATPBS, I have to do this. 

Buffy doesn't diet.

I'm not even 100% sure if I want to lose weight anymore, either.

My new goals are:

1. Learn to love the body that I have.
2. Not diet.  (no tracking my food or avoiding any foods because they are "bad")
3. Eat when hungry, don't eat when not hungry.
4. Exercise when I want to, and do fun exercises for the sake of feeling good, not for the sake of burning calories.
5. Get stronger, faster, and healthier.

 Doesn't that sound better than a list like this:

1. Lose weight.
2. Eat less, eat fewer calories.
3. Move more, burn more calories.

Come on, you know it does.

So this is day one of no tracking.  It feels weird.  I want to tell you what I've eaten, but that would be tracking.  See how tough it is for me?  I've been tracking my food on and off for over 10 years.  And those times when I wasn't tracking, I was binge-eating and depressed. 

Now I'm happy, not binge-eating, and while I'd still love to be a smaller pants size, I'm not worried about it so long as I'm healthy and happy. 

I'll leave you with one more Buffy picture and quote!

"Sure. We saved the world, I say we party. I mean, I got all pretty." -Buffy, Season 1

Sharing my food diary, Day 1!

oatmeal made with almond milk and peanut butter

strawberry applesauce

kidney beans with steamed veggies and evoo

melba toast

banana

Newtons fruit thins (3)

pretzels (8)

cherry tomatoes

baby carrots

Morningstar Farms chick'n grillers (2)

cheerios with almond milk

redvines

Total calories today according to My Fitness Pal- 1823

The only foods that I ate today that I wasn't really hungry for was the Redvines, which I ate mostly to keep myself awake for late-night paper writing! 

I'm going to share my food diary with you guys for a bit and see how it goes.  I'm definately still leaning towards giving up on calorie counting, but for now I think that I still need it for portion control.

I shared an awesome ehow article on Twitter and Facebook today, which explains how to lose weight without counting calories.  Here's the link- How to Lose Weight Without Counting Calories.

ELATPBS - Day 13 (and Thanksgiving recap)

There is no getting around this:  Buffy is not a vegan.  And I am.  And I'm not going to let that little fact ruin my attempt to eat like her.  It's pretty easy to get around it, usually.

The main point of my eating and exercising like Buffy in order to some day get a body simular to hers is the whole intuitive eating thing.  The Eat Like A Thin Person Buffy Style (ELATPBS) concept.  And that is going pretty well!

I am slowly but surely becoming a thin person.  My actual start weight was in the 200s.  Yeah, I was definately obese.  It's been awhile since I've been obese now though, and I'm beginning to accept this thinner body as mine.  I know for a FACT that I won't ever be obese again.  Seriously, I have learned too much over the last couple of years to ever go back to the lifestyle that lead to said obesity.

I'm ready, however, to finally take the next step.  And that step is getting to my actual goal size.  Which is smaller than I currently am, however comfortable I may be at this size (which is size US 14).  I'm ready to lose a few more hip and thigh inches, and get comfortably into some actual skinny jeans.  I currently have my goal weight set to 135, but I think that may be too low for me.  I really have more of a goal size or look than I do a goal weight.  I'll know that I'm at the right weight when I get there, ya know?

ELATPBS is going pretty well for me.  I definately ate intuitively over Thanksgiving weekend.  On Thursday, Friday, and Saturday to be specific.  No tracking.  Listening to my hunger signals.  Enjoying my food, but not in excess.  It felt pretty good!  I may start doing this at least one day a week. 

On Thanksgiving, I made a vegan loaf and some vegan pumpkin pie.  Okay, "made" is an exaggeration.  I bought a frozen loaf and pie, and baked according to package instructions.  All turned out well and was delicious!  I was happy that I did this, because the dinner that I attended had ZERO vegan options, so I had to eat my own food only. 

Anyway, just a quick update for you on how ELATPBS is going for me.  :-)  It's going really well, and I'm excited about this part of my journey. 

I'm still tracking over on My Fitness Pal.  I'm thinking about sharing my journal for the next few days on here, to help show how I'm eating "like" Buffy.

ELATPBS - Day 6

In case anyone needed help figuring out what the heck ELATPBS stands for, it is

Eat Like A Thin Person: Buffy Style

This is my goal right now, and I'm on day 6 of this new journey. 

My ultimate goals for ELATPBS (in no particular order):

1. Lose about 25 pounds of fat
2. Gain a bit back in muscle (total pounds lost net will be 15-20)
3. Invest in all materials needed to begin an at-home boxing/kickboxing program (heavy bag, gloves, beginner boxing DVDs/books)
4. Also invest in enough for at-home yoga (for once a week I think)
5. Learn to love my body from the inside out!
6. Stop obsessing over calories.
7. Focus on other aspects of my life besides my weight and my food.

These are all great goals, and all things that I desperately want to achieve.  Well, #1 and #2 aren't so desperate, but the rest are very important to me.  I'm going to take my time with the weight loss/gain, and assume that if I work hard to ELATPBS, the weight loss will follow, even if slowly.

I still haven't invested in more exercise gear, but those are goals of mine, hopefully to be fulfilled by early 2012.  For now, I will exercise with what I have:  an awesome stationary bike, a kick-ass treadmill, and lots of hand weights.

#6 is going well, too.  Over the weekend I bought some "naughty" foods (oreo fudge cremes, anyone?), to be enjoyed in moderation.  Because that's what Buffy does, she eats what she enjoys.  I still bought mostly healthy foods, such as whole grains, beans, vegetables, and fruits.  I'm still tracking my food and exercise over on My Fitness Pal, but I'm not so worried about the calories anymore.  Okay, I'm still a little concerned about them, but I'm trying to not obsess!

#7 is winning.  I have loved focusing on other aspects of my life than diet and exercise.  I have other things to think about, just like Buffy!  I have work, school, a boyfriend, and now blogging!  :-)  Lots of things to fill my day, and the way I eat and how much exercise I get are just another part of that day, they are NOT what makes or breaks my day, just another part of my busy life.  Seriously, if you are curious about trying to ELATPBS but don't want to try it all at once, my suggestion is to start with #7.  It rules.

Well, I guess that's it for now.  I will be back soon to report how my ELATPBS is going. 

I will sprinkle a few Buffy pictures in this entry, so it's not quite so dull.  And, I will leave you with a Buffy quote!

"Whenever Giles sends me on a mission he always says 'please' and afterwards I get a cookie." ~Buffy Summers

Eat Like a Thin Person- Buffy-style

So, in my quest to get a Buffy body, I have decided to try to learn how to eat like a thin person. 

Yes, I know that I am NOT a thin person yet, and am defiantely not NATURALLY thin.  Therefore, it may be impossible for me to actually get thin by eating like a thin person.  But... I think it could be interesting to try.

I also assume that the actress Sarah Michelle Gellar was on a special low calorie diet during her Buffy days, based on this quote:

"How can women be as thin as we are? We have personal trainers to work us out. We have specially prepared meals."

Indeed.

But I'm not trying to eat like SMG, I'm trying to eat like a fictional character.  Obviously, that is less insane, right?  LOL

Anyway, my point is that I'm going to try to do the "eat like a thin person" thing for a bit.  It's something that I've never really tried before.

Of course, there are several opinions on what "eat like a thin person" means.  I'm going to Google it and post the first few decent looking articles/sites on the subject:

WikiHow article: How to Eat Like a Thin Person- There are three steps in this article-

     1) Exercise regularly

     2) Eat small healthy meals throughout the day

     3) Eat slowly to avoid overeating; savor your food; relax before eating

Oprah.com article Think Like a Thin Person

     It basically is about the book "The Beck Diet Solution" which I own, and have never made it   

     through...  perhaps I should pick it up again?  Hmmm...  I didn't realize that it was about getting the    

     reader to be able to eat like a thin person.  Interesting!

WebMD article: How to Think Like a Thin Person

     This one may be my favorite!  It's pretty basic.  The steps mentioned in this one-

     1) Pretend you're thin

     2) Change your thinking

     3) Focus on health and fitness

     4) Develop your skills

     5) Remember the rest of you (this one hit close to home for me!!!)

These are my top three so far.  I'm looking forward to this new journey! 

There are some themes to the ELATP movement

• don't calorie count
• listen to your hunger signals
• eat what you want, but stop eating it when you aren't hungry anymore
• eat mostly healthy foods
• exercise regularly
• focus on OTHER parts of your life, not just your weight loss. 

For now, I will continue to track calories on My Fitness Pal (awesome website, seriously!) but will begin to taper off from that eventually, since I'm trying to emulate Buffy Summers, who does NOT calorie count. 

I will continue on with my exercise routine, which is to work out 6 days a week, for 30-60 minutes each time.

I will continue choosing mostly healthy foods.

The biggest change that I'm going to make immediately is to listen to my hunger signals, and to only eat when actually hungry.  Also, I will be trying harder to live a life that isn't so food-focused, and pay more attention to the other parts of ME, like work, school, family, friends, and art.

I'll leave you with one more Buffy picture and quote!

"I don't want any trouble. I just want to be alone and quiet in a room with a chair and a fireplace and a tea cozy. I don't even know what a tea cozy is, but I want one." - Buffy Summers