Weight Loss For The Lord

[Alycin]

[quote name='CatherineM' post='1577693' date='Jun 20 2008, 03:52 PM']Alycin-I'm on a modified version of the Mediterranean diet. Whole grains, lots of fruits and vegetables, lean proteins like salmon and chicken breast, olive oil (in moderation), and measured in calories. I add in a lot of soy products that the Greeks probably wouldn't normally. I have a bad case of portion distortion, and can only make it work if I measure everything and write it down. There's a woman I saw on TV once who at the time was a diet guru to the stars. She had been heavy in the 50's, but had lost the weight, and more importantly, kept it off for decades. She still wrote everything down that she ate. Journaling is important. If your problem is spending, writing down where you spend every penny works, for me it's food. I also have to exercise. With my disabilities, about all I can do is walk or water aerobics. Movement is very important for me. I wish I could lose the weight I have left quicker, but I have to be patient and do it slowly. I didn't put it on overnight, and can't take it off quick either.[/quote]


Thanks.

[jkaands]

[quote name='alicemary' post='1577305' date='Jun 20 2008, 08:05 AM']There are worse factors then merely weight that affect ones longevity and usefulness. Several, like genetics, you have no control over. I am overweight. I am 54. I am in relativity good health, good enought to go out each day and work as a nurse on a very busy unit. I am not keeling over yet, nor unproductive, so be very careful of judging others.
And there is definetly some sex discrimination going on....an obese man is allowed to enter the seminary, and I don't hear a discussion of it. Oh heck, all men have beer bellies....sure. A woman is always expected to be rail thin.[/quote]

Well, women entering the non-habited OSB's aren't expected to be thin, judging from recent pix of the Cottonwood ID OSB's, who have had a number of professions in recent years, and the OSB's of OL of Grace in Beechgrove, IN, who had 4 final profession's recently and two were thin and two--weren't. As a matter of fact, one thing I've noticed about women entering religious life in recent years, albeit not entering the Collettines, have NOT been 'thin'--at all. However, when I look at the Nashville OP's and the DMME's, some look 'chunky' but none is fat--so for them a reasonable body weight may be a requirement. Do any of the discerners have info on who brings up the weight issue and who doesn't?

[jkaands]

[quote name='Saint Therese' post='1576959' date='Jun 19 2008, 10:57 PM']It must be a relief to know that thin people never get sick or have health problems.[/quote]

Sorry, I don't make the rules. The statistics show that obese individuals have many more serious health problems earlier. There is an epidemic of obesity in this country and health care providers and people in public health are frantically trying to bring it under control. People in their 30's are developing diabetes, hypertension and heart disease at unprecedented rates.

I have just as much trouble as every one else, but I'm a lot older. When I was young, long ago, I was a lot thinner than now, --and now I'm in the upper range of my overweight BMI, flirting with OBESE--aaugh!!!--and I can tell you that it just gets harder with age. Just do what works. I'm now doing salsaerobics and trying to survive from one week to the next--ha!

[jkaands]

[quote name='CatherineM' post='1564133' date='Jun 8 2008, 10:44 PM']IrishS-I lost twice that much in 6 years, so your goal is obviously reasonable. The Center for Human Nutrition at the University of Colorado has the best information. They maintain a weight loss registry where anyone who has lost at least 30 pounds and kept it off for at least a year, can register and they collect information about how they did it. Most people on the register have actually lost 100 lbs. and kept it off for 3 years. 3 years is the the goal because they have found that once you keep it off for 3 years, it gets much easier to not regain. They have a listing of the 7 habits of highly effective weight loss maintainers, that has been very helpful to me.[/quote]

Very useful information and congratulations on your weight loss!! Very impressive!!

Also congratulations on your recently published book!!

Edited June 20, 2008 by jkaands

[jkaands]

[quote name='gloriagurl' post='1577470' date='Jun 20 2008, 10:32 AM']THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU

I might also add that men don't have the same problems as women when seeking to enter religious community later in life. Yes, some seminaries/orders are starting to have age limits for men, but I've not seen anything close to the 33 or 35 year old limits I see for many women's communities. They may be out there but I've not seen them. For heaven's sake, I've seen 1 or 2 communities for women with a 29 year old age limit......Jesus Himself would have been too old for these folks.

When I think that it is women imposing this kind of (at least, borderline) discrimination on other women, I shudder. How sad that God's own daughters treat each other so shabbily and call it by various terms such as "discernment", "wisdom" and my personal favorite when we want to reject someone, "it is/isn't God's will that you be accepted to do this/that".

.....[/quote]

It's my impression that the traditional habited cloistered groups who are getting applicants are the ones who can afford to lower the age limit. It would be kinder and I think more accurate for them to say that they prefer a younger vocation because [i]in their experience [/i] the younger vocations have worked out better than the later ones. It's hard to argue with that. To say that it's God's will is presuming a lot , when another monastery down the road may have reached a very different conclusion.

[Saint Therese]

I think there is a definite problem when a community is more concerned with how fat a candidate is over what her spiritual life is like.
Are we really "weighing" the value of a vocation in pounds and dollars?

Edited June 21, 2008 by Saint Therese

[alicemary]

Jesus loves me, fat and all. If a community does not want to accept a good, solid vocation because they are heavy, shame on them. And I donl't think very young vocations stay any more then an older vocation would. I dont think Jesus would be happy with the age discrimination thing either. Again I must point out, from the look of many seminarians I see, many are older. I saw a 60 something year old, widow with kids and grandkids accepted to the seminary. Yet many convents still want never married woman. Double standart for sure

[MissScripture]

[quote name='alicemary' post='1578260' date='Jun 20 2008, 11:51 PM']Jesus loves me, fat and all. If a community does not want to accept a good, solid vocation because they are heavy, shame on them. And I donl't think very young vocations stay any more then an older vocation would. I dont think Jesus would be happy with the age discrimination thing either. Again I must point out, from the look of many seminarians I see, many are older. I saw a 60 something year old, widow with kids and grandkids accepted to the seminary. Yet many convents still want never married woman. Double standart for sure[/quote]
Our priest was one of those. He was going to be a deacon, when his wife died, and the Bishop asked him to continue on and become a priest. Another transitional decon we had converted (he had been Lutheran) and he'd been divorced (while he was Lutheran). I think he needed speical permission from the Bishop, though.

[jkaands]

[quote name='MissScripture' post='1578784' date='Jun 21 2008, 12:59 PM']Our priest was one of those. He was going to be a deacon, when his wife died, and the Bishop asked him to continue on and become a priest. Another transitional decon we had converted (he had been Lutheran) and he'd been divorced (while he was Lutheran). I think he needed speical permission from the Bishop, though.[/quote]

I have personally met two older priests--one who was an Irishman from Scotland, and who taught for many years before he entered the seminary--the other was a Trappist brother for 19 years (!) before heeding a call, actually an all-points bulletin, to study for the priesthood to serve in rural New Mexico, where both of these priests now serve. Both appeared to be very happy.

[jkaands]

[quote name='alicemary' post='1578260' date='Jun 20 2008, 11:51 PM']...yet many convents still want never married woman. Double standard for sure[/quote]

...but many accept not only married women, but grandmothers with grandchildren. I don't think that the most trad cloisters want grandmothers, tho' I think this varies, but the 'updated' unhabited convents belonging to the largest orders--Bennies, Dominicans, Franciscans, have a substantial percentage of those joining who are older, formerly married, divorced, annulled, grandmothers with grandchildren who often attend their profession ceremonies!

Many of these new religious also have weight issues.

[CatherineM]

When my oldest was joining the Navy, the recruiter mentioned to me that of the high school kids he was trying to recruit, 50% were unavailable because of their weight, and 25% because of their hearing (ipod buds too high). In a time of hard vocations, it doesn't make any sense to me to cut 50% of potential novices out because they are average in our society.

[MissScripture]

[quote name='jkaands' post='1578795' date='Jun 21 2008, 01:24 PM']...but many accept not only married women, but grandmothers with grandchildren. I don't think that the most trad cloisters want grandmothers, tho' I think this varies, but the 'updated' unhabited convents belonging to the largest orders--Bennies, Dominicans, Franciscans, have a substantial percentage of those joining who are older, formerly married, divorced, annulled, grandmothers with grandchildren who often attend their profession ceremonies!

Many of these new religious also have weight issues.[/quote]
The president of my University is a sister, and her mother became a sister after he husband died and all the children were grown. It's really funny to be around them because you have one sister calling another "mom."

[jkaands]

that's not the only daughter-and-mother-who are sisters pair--Gemma can name others--foundresses and saints, I think...

[Caramelonion]

[quote name='alicemary' post='1578260' date='Jun 21 2008, 12:51 AM']Jesus loves me, fat and all. If a community does not want to accept a good, solid vocation because they are heavy, shame on them. And I donl't think very young vocations stay any more then an older vocation would. I dont think Jesus would be happy with the age discrimination thing either. Again I must point out, from the look of many seminarians I see, many are older. I saw a 60 something year old, widow with kids and grandkids accepted to the seminary. Yet many convents still want never married woman. Double standart for sure[/quote]

I can't agree with you more. God loves us for who we are...not what we look like or how old we are.

[jkaands]

Caramel, I love your moniker!