Jewish Musings, Friday/Shabbat April 12

[louise]

What’s on your mind — how to make kugel? This week’s Torah reading? Life goals? Prayer? We are all engaged in weight loss/weight maintenance journeys and we are all Jewish or at least interested in Judaism. We like to eat, we like to discuss. It is our goal here to provide each other support on our journeys, to share experiences, to call on our rich cultural heritage and texts, and to help each other grow spiritually.

Some of us take weekly turns starting the thread:
Frieda (hopefully)?
Holly
Lee
Louise
Peachy

And for those of you that stop by to read this thread without posting — you are welcome to, but you are also welcome to chime in. Don’t be shy!

[louise]

I’m so in the dumps over my weight and my apparent paralysis over it. Not sure what to do next. I really don’t want to go on a drug (Lee, I know it’s working for you but I just don’t see it for myself). I want to leave myself alone for a couple of days and then get back into something. Sorry to be whining but that’s so where I am right now!

I need to stay focused on Passover – both the community seder and kashering for myself and I need to do my taxes. That’s enough for me at the moment.

What's got your attwntion?
Anyone have a good book to recommend?

[peachymom1]

Sending you some hand pats, Louise. I definitely get it about being in the dumps about my weight. This past week, I did pretty well with my eating until Thursday, when I fell off the wagon spectacularly (cookies, ice cream, ugh!). My weigh-in day is Friday, so I'm starting a new week. But what's different about this time of messing up is that this week, I finally got myself back to the gym for cardio and weight training, getting up at 4:20 to get to the gym at 5 a.m. I didn't do this because it was easy; I did it because it was hard, I knew it would be hard, but I decided I could do something hard. So I was somehow in a mental frame to still feel good about accomplishing that, rather than getting mad at myself for screwing up my eating. I know that sounds convoluted, but I feel great about getting back to the gym. I really do prefer to go when they open; there's no problem with traffic or parking, I never have to wait for the machines I want, and then all day long, I know I've worked out and done good things for myself.

You have an awful lot on your plate at the moment. Can you do something small, like take a ten-minute walk after lunch every day, that's something good for your body and mind, but isn't too horribly daunting?

Thanks for a great week, Louise! Shabbat shalom to all!

[hollygail]

From yesterday:
I'd been racking my brain trying to figure out how to bring the current situation into one of the two seddarim I'm leading. It's the one at my DS's house; she invited one of the women she plays bridge with (I have no idea why she chose this particular individual). The invitee, DS warned me, is a Fundamentalist Christian. I had already decided to add a little more Hebrew than I usually use for my own family, but I have no idea where this woman stands politically. I finally decided to remove an 11th drop of wine from my cup and be very clear why (the 130+ still-unaccounted for hostages) and there it was on yesterday's thread. I was glad to see that I hadn't been the only one in the world who'd thought of it.

And I do not believe for one second that Hamas doesn't know where the 130+ hostages are. Dead bodies must be returned to their families and any hostages still alive must be returned too. EVERY SINGLE ONE. Cease fire? Ridiculous. Months ago there was an agreement for a lull in fighting; Israel kept its word and Hamas didn't. Screw agreements to cease fire. RETURN THE HOSTAGES, whether alive or dead, and THEN we can talk.

I'm not willing to back any other plan. IT'S BEEN MORE THAN SIX MONTHS. I say, NO negotiations until the remining 130+ are returned.

Today: Louise, I walk with a group of women every Wednesday morning for an hour at the local lake. It's basically the only exercise I do all week. Yes, I live in a two-story house and I walk up and down the stairs multiple times a day, but I don't consider it "exercise" since it's part of my everyday life. Getting into the car and driving to the lake, walking from the parking lot to the gate where we meet, and then walking (at a fairly brisk pace), on the other hand, is something tangible that I can single out. It's great. When I worked at one particular place (we're going back to the late 70s here) I used to walk (more often by myself than with someone else) every day at lunchtime. That was terrific too. Now, I'm much less motivated to walk by myself (even at the lake) than when I know there are other people there to walk with. I've been making friends with Helene; she's a bit younger than I, relatively recently widowed, and she moved to San Diego (also fairly recently) to be nearer her grandkids. Perhaps most importantly, her politics and mine are aligned. We often talk either US and/or Israel's politics. It's a great way to spend an hour out of my week.

Gut shabbes / Shabbat shalom, all.

[gazelle18]

Louise, thanks for a great week, and good shabbos to all.

Louise, I think you should sit yourself down and ask: why am I resistant to a weight loss drug (like ozempic)? Is it fear of the unknown, is it an inner desire to stay the same weight, is it inertia, etc. ? Do some reading about these drugs before dismissing them out of hand. I watched the Oprah special the other night regarding semiglutides and found it quite interesting. I know several people who are taking this drug, with some success. It is certainly not the answer for everyone, but it may be good for some of us.

Have you read “The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store”? It’s lovely. You’d like it.

Have a great day, all

[lee058]

Good afternoon everyone. Hope you are all well and SAFE! Please pray for Israel.

Re today's topic: I am truly grateful that the Ozempic has been working for me, and I hope that the switch to Wegovy (same ingredient but higher dose) will work even better. louise, I was scared to start, too. However, I felt that I had to do something, and I was NOT going to go the bariatric surgery route. If you have any questions, I would be happy to help if possible.

re books: I've mentioned her before, but Laurie R. King has written a series about Sherlock Holmes, who meets and marries a Jewish woman. They get very involved in cases, and the series is wonderfully written. I recommend them highly.

hollygail, I think you're amazing; I just stay away from some subjects with my one Christian friend.

Have I mentioned lately how grateful I am for friends like all of you in this thread?? Because I really am. Have a peaceful rest of the day, Lee