Keeping Kosher Group

Hi Devorah!

I eat back about half my exercise calories; I get too hungry otherwise. And I'm losing weight at the rate I want to be, so it seems to be working.

Discovered today that I'm walking about 3.25 mph (Went to my sister's and got the walking route off of Google maps, including distance covered).

We have someone coming to fix the water damage in our spare bedroom. It's in the basement, below the kitchen. With the leaky faucet. Seems that the pipe has been leaking into the bottom of the sink and then draining into the wall, soaking the insulation, and coming up through the spare room carpet. Sigh. They're going to need to cut the drywall to fix it all. Meanwhile, there's a dehumidifier going.

Have a great night1

Hi, Devorah!

I'm a snacker and I usually eat back no more than half my exercise calories. When the munchies hit, I let myself go up to 75% of them. Otherwise, cherry tomatoes, sliced cucumber, or water/tea/diet drinks

Well, they came to continue fixing the flooding in the spare bedroom. The dehumidifier did the job. Today, they broke the drywall and got rid of the damp insulation. They're drying out what's left and will probably be back Sunday or Monday. Sigh. Under the kitchen sink, the drywall is moldy and crumbling. It just doesn't end. My husband is going to try to contact someone he knows and if that person can't come soon, we'll get these people to do it.

Congrats on getting the temp! And Mazal tov on the wedding!

I'm more of a snoods and berets gal. The last time I wore a sheitel was at my sister's wedding, about six years ago.

I'm cooking tomorrow, too. Hubby wants juicy broiled hamburgers. I'm doing a chickpea lentil stew with (homemade) pomegranate molasses. Another item I have yet to see under hechsher, here, but fortunately pomegranate juice, sugar, and lemon juice are all obtainable and that's all I need to make my own.

I'm also on my shul's chesed committee; we send over a Shabbat meal for people who have recently given birth, moved house, taken ill, or just got up from shivah. In this case, it's a birth. I'm doing a salad. In other words, I'm making a dressing, chopping up a carrot and halving some cherry tomatoes... and adding a Bodek salad mix.

It looks like I'm not going to have anything overly hands-on and/or time-consuming to prepare. The only thing that comes close is a potato-beet salad, and that's only because I need to boil the potatoes and beets separately.

Have a good one!

Esther

Soot is being a cuddle muffin. It is a riot the way he knocks on the door when he wants to come in. (And if it's pouring rain and I don't come? He camps on my office window sill and meows.)

Shabbat was great. Three guests and just under three hours of walking.

Hopefully, repairs can start this week. The drying equipment is still going, but technically, they could have started work Saturday, were it not for Shabbat. So now waiting to hear from them.

I was down 0.6, which is fair enough since I had that major 3-lb loss last week, which was undeserved. Some weeks, I do everything right and the loss is modest. Some weeks, I guesstimate more and exercise less and the loss is greater. I just look at trends.

I don't blame you for taking another day off so you'll be more rested. Have fun at the wedding!

Hi, Devora!

I'm fasting today. I'm something of a night owl, so I was up until 3:30 writing a scene of fanfiction. Then I had a slightly larger breakfast than usual and went to bed. I'm going to try to keep going till 9:45 when it ends here. A little sad I won't exercise today.

My reasons for eating include boredom, stress, and emotion. So, it's not so much that I'm hungry as that I'd really like to be nibbling on something right now. (I think I mentioned I keep low-cal options on hand like popcorn and dry cereal.)

I've tried meditation before. When I was in college, I took a stress management class (in Montreal, we have something like junior college where the profs give the students a bit more hand-holding than college, but more freedom and responsibility than high school. At the time, over two years/four semesters, taking four phys ed classes was mandatory. I'm not athletic, so my main goal was to avoid team sports. Stress Management was offered under 'theory'.) that covered different coping strategies, including meditation. And in drama workshops at camp, they usually started with some meditative exercises. Mostly of the 'relax your body, one limb at a time' variety.

I hear you on the siddur. Sometimes, I feel a connection, but it's almost entirely independent of the words on the page. I do try, especially during Aseret Yemei Tshuva.

Well, the wall in the spare room has dried out and B"H, there was no other leak beyond the sink upstairs. We had someone come over this morning to start a drywall job in one of the bathrooms. (There was a leaky pipe causing dripping from the ceiling and it turned out to be an issue in the shower, so we've had a couple of holes in the wall and ceiling for a while. Since it's a basement bathroom, we haven't rushed to fix it, but it's time.) He took a look at the spare room and we should be getting it fixed up shortly.

The drywall under the kitchen sink isn't going to be so easy, because of all the pipes. Fortunately, it doesn't smell, but it is crumbling. I guess we'll have to wait and see.

For now, I'm just taking it easy at the computer. Posted my fanfic. Soot came in to cuddle, but it's a sunny day. He's outside snoozing now.

Wondering whether it's permitted to sit on a stability ball on Tisha b'Av. I need to ask. It's low enough. I just worry that it may be inappropriate for the day. But sitting on the floor, even with a cushion, makes me sore after an hour or so. I bought a toddler-sized folding chair some years ago and that's not much better. Neither is a small ottoman that Mothers of Bais Yaakov included with the Mishloach Manot a couple of years ago. The ball is comfortable. (Which might be a problem on Tisha b'Av, but I'm going to ask.)

Best!

Esther

Hi, Devora

No worries!

It was a great Shabbos. A girl at my shul became Bat Mitzvah and there was a seudat shlishit at her house. I did my walking. We had three guests for lunch, including my walking buddy. And I was down 1.8 lbs this morning! So that's a total of 70.6 lost, 54.4 to go!

Just bought an adjustable 20lb ankle weight. Got more of a workout getting it home (I walked and the store is over an hour away). I'm just glad I brought a backpack with me; I doubt I could have managed carrying it in my hands all the way. The strength training exercise I'm doing give three levels for each exercise. I use the weights for leg lifts and I'm transitioning from L2 (15-20 reps with 1-3lb ankle weights) to L3 (8-12 reps with 5-10lb weights). The store didn't have 10-lbs in stock, but since the weight I got is adjustable, I can just take out the bits I don't need. Eventually, I may work my way up to the full 20, but for now, this is good.

Enjoy Lakewood!

Devorah,

Kudos on your 3 lbs!

I've been keeping to the plan and reminding myself that weightloss isn't linear. In other words, the scale is telling me things I don't want it to. The only weigh-in that 'counts' is Sunday morning, but I do check daily. And I know that

1) I haven't been off-plan
2) There are a million reasons the scale could be up, not limited to water weight, sodium, hormones, using some database entries that are lower than the actual foods, etc.
3) By Sunday, it may have resolved itself.

Meanwhile, I'm annoyed. Not panicked. Not stressed. Just irritated.

I've slowly built up a (discount!) home gym with dumbbells, ankle weights, a mat, a cardio step, a stability ball, resistance tubes and bands, and a couple of balls. (My warmups include using a ball and one of the interval workouts I do when I feel like I'm in a rut and want to mix up my exercises a bit does, to. I think it helps with core and balance.) And I do notice changes. Like when I'm in the fitness store, I'll try picking up a 15-lb dumbbell and realize that I can actually do a few reps with it, when a few months ago, I could barely lift it and set it down again gently without slamming. Or when I started doing lunges, doing 2 sets of 10 with no weights was hard to complete. And when I started 'leveling up' doing one set of 10 and one set of 12 with 3 lb weights, I was positive that I wouldn't be ready to increase the difficulty for about a month. And yet, a week later, it was 2 sets of 12 with 3 lb weights. And this week, it was a set of 15 with the 3s and a set of 12 with 5 lbs! (Next week, IY"H, it'll be 2 sets of 12 with 5-lb weights). And it's an effort and a bit of a strain, but it's something I can actually do. Me, the uncoordinated gym-class dunce! And the strain doesn't last long. A soak in a hot bath and I'm fine the next day.

We're going to be a full house for Shabbat lunch. We're friendly with two related couples. Twin brothers who married two sisters. They're sort of a package deal; I don't think we've ever had one couple without the other. And last night, a couple of our semi-regulars messaged me asking if they could join us. So, we're going to be eight. B"H I don't know how not to cook for an army when Shabbat comes along.

I've been reading the Nesivos Shalom on the Three Weeks and the Shoah. And I just picked up R. Chaim Kanievsky's book on the Three Weeks as well. I also got a novel by Toby Orlander, Who by Fire Who by Sword. Four journals of fictional Jewish women living during terrible times. (Going by the back of the book, that would be the Crusades, the Inquisition, Gzeiros tach v'tat, and the Shoah.)

Oh, and I got my answer about using the stability ball on Tisha b'Av. According to my rabbi, it's fine. Not that I'm really looking to exercise, but I find it really hard to sit on the floor and the low chairs I have aren't much better. The ball is much more comfortable. Which... probably defeats part of the purpose, but at least I won't be constantly moving around, trying to find a decent position.

Anyway. Shabbat is supposed to be happy. Have a great one! Enjoy Lakewood!

Esther

I would like to join the group. I am shomer shabbos and I find it hard to log food after shabbos; especially if I have shabbos dinner at someone else's house.

Hi, Devorah!

I was fine with the fast. I stayed indoors where it was air conditioned. I ended up breaking it with a 4-egg omelet (usually, I'd only have 3, but I wanted a little more protein) and some oven-baked french fries and carrot sticks. As well as the pudding.

One thing about hanging out in these forums; you start to learn the difference between the healthcare professionals. Apparently, to be a nutritionist, you just need to pass an online course that can be taken over a weekend. Registered dieticians study for years. (Of course, I'm not saying that there are no good nutritionists and a university degree doesn't make anyone infallible. But in general, one would assume an RD to be more knowledgeable. That's who my appointment is with.) At any rate, I'm going to be bringing in a few pages of my MFP food log, along with the reports. I'm not opposed to good advice. If it turns out I need to include more potassium, fiber, etc., and s/he has tips on how to do that, wonderful. But I would like him/her to realize that I've been losing weight steadily without cutting out any foods.

Well. Okay. I've cut back on a lot. Here in Ontario, the law is that if a chain has more than 20 locations, they need to provide calorie numbers for every item on the menu. Since I don't think there's a kosher restaurant in the province with more than three locations, that's generally not relevant. BUT we have a couple of coffee shops that get in hermetically wrapped pastries from a kosher bakery and that bakery now has to include calories on the food they send to those shops. As a result, I now know that their muffins are 380-450 calories, depending on flavor, their turnovers are 600, and their jam rogelach are 1210! I don't eat those anymore. I mean, I might have a muffin for breakfast if I was on the run, but the rest of it? Not worth it. But it's not that I can't have it. It's that I've decided that I'd rather not use up my calories on it, so I'll choose something else.

Had a dentist appointment today and tried walking to it, but I should have allowed more time. I thought it would take two hours. At the 1-hour-40-minute mark, I realized that I was about a half hour away from an appointment set for 20 minutes from then. So I hopped on the subway and made it with a couple of minutes to spare. Then afterwards, I went to St. Lawrence Market. They've got a bunch of fruit stores, as well as a bulk shop where I can get high-gluten flour. Between walking there and walking to the next subway station and home, I got 2 hours and 10 minutes, so no need for the fitness glider today. I will be strength training a little later.

Planning on chocolate truffles for Shabbat and I want to make them today. They're not hard to do, but they have to chill in the fridge for a couple of hours and I'd rather handle it when I'm not cooking anything else.

Hope you're having a great day!

Esther

Hi, Devorah.

I had a few errands to run. Grocery store twice. (I bought skinless, boneless chicken breast for my husband and they smelled 'off' when I was dicing them. My fault. It had a best before of August 3rd and I had my signals crossed and thought today was only the second.) The store has a miniscule kosher meat section and they didn't have what I needed. So I bought a whole chicken and roasted it with vegetables. That was trip one. When I was done with the stove and wanted a break, I went to the library to pick up a hold. Came back, made the hummus, realized I was out of salsa. I like to put that in my cholent instead of tomato sauce. A second trip to the grocery store.

So, the chicken for my husband, a 3-lentil dahl, the potato-beet salad I've mentioned before, hummus, mock liver, pareve kishke, the truffles. Beans are soaking for cholent. Still need to slice the cucumbers for salad.

My base calories are 1380 to lose a pound a week. With exercise (and eating back half my exercise calories), I usually come in around 1700 or so.

I have a new fitness challenge involving my stability ball. For abdominal muscles. Doing a deep jackknife with my shins on the ball, hands on the floor. So far, I can only do the 'modified' version with my knees on the ball. Barely. My book says it's 10 reps to a set. I can manage five before the ball does what balls do best and rolls out from under me. At least I don't quite fall off, so much as slide down. I will master this. Eventually. There was a time I could barely manage 10 lunges with no extra weight. Now I do 27 (one set of 12; one of fifteen. Next week, I increase to two sets of 15) holding a 5lb dumbbell in each hand. I'll keep at the jackknifes.

Shabbat Shalom!

Hi, Michael!

Shabbos has always been a challenge for me, too. I think what's been working for me this time has been,

1. Admitting, up-front, that I'm going to have a few indulgences. My 'challenge' isn't to avoid having them. Because if I do that, odds are I'll just overdo the healthier stuff to 'reward' myself for being strong. My Friday on MFP I sort of sat down with myself and asked 'How much do I think I 'need' to eat at kiddush before I can walk away? No, seriously. There's a difference between having a couple things I really want and stuffing my face.' And then I checked the calories on one frosted shortbread cookie and two pieces of potato kugel and came up with about 380. And decided that, considering that was going to be 'breakfast', it was totally worth it.
2. Pre-log everything I intend to eat over Shabbat as much as possible. Obviously, if we're going to a friend's, I can't control what they'll serve. But the meals I have at home? The shul Kiddush that usually has the same foods? Yeah, I have a pretty good idea. I limit myself to two slices of challah at dinner and lunch. Seudat shlishit is Munster cheese on a bagel that I pick up on Friday mornings. Sometimes it's gouda, but usually Munster.
3. I walk for more than two hours on Saturday. Once we turn the clocks back, it'll be 65 minutes on the fitness glider, motzi Shabbos, but until then, long walks.
4. Sunday is my weekly weigh-in day.

Hatzlacha!

Aleichem shalom!

This is a great idea! I find especially shabbos lunch is difficult. And now that it's getting colder, it's more difficult to go for a walk/distract yourself.

Hi, I just joined. A kosher group was the first thing I looked for. I'm a mother of two grown girls and married for 40+ years. My husband is much closer to a healthy weight than I. What do you do about keeping track of eating on Shabbos and Yomtovim?