A Different Law of Return

No, this has nothing to do with "Who Is A Jew." I am plagiarizing a wonderful phrase from Emma S.. about holidays and weight gain. As she so aptly put it, this is the Law of Kilo Return.

I slacked off in August. I was busy trying to look at other schools for the Boy (who opted to stay at his special ed high school, a decision that so far seems to be a very good one); then summer ulpan was over and I had him and Yossi's kids at loose ends, so we ended up taking the entire tribe to the pool or the zoo or the Dead Sea or someplace where they could be entertained, work off excess energy and yet receive enough supervision that they wouldn't be in danger. We also did serious household tile-and-fixtures shopping.

Needless to say, the gym and pool workouts sort of fell by the way.....yet a certain crisp tang to the air reminded me that the season is changing; that the High Holy Days are approaching, followed by Sukkot. It is a time of reflection, a time of tshuva, a time to be grateful, a time to look forward as well as backward....and of course, being Jewish holidays, a time to eat! (excepting Yom Kippur)

The minute school started, I started back to the gym. The Husband (who never slacks off) and I went daily, tried newer and more advanced workouts and by the first night of Rosh Hashanah, I had shed the August weight creep and got back to what I weighed at the end of July. Whew!!

I wasn't too worried about food--after all, we were doing Rosh Hashanah's two nights and Shabbat ALL at Yossi's mom's house. Moroccan food is meat, not dairy, -based, and tends towards deliciously prepared salads and meats. I figured if I could avoid starches, I'd be fine, especially since it is a longish walk there and back.

To be precise, we figured out later, it is 5 kilometers there and back to our house. In any given 24-hour period, we walked at least 10 kilometers. So we were fairly blase about the food, knowing we'd be walking this distance and half of it was a fairly steep up-hill stretch of the legs.

So how come, despite half-servings and sometimes skipped servings, no starches and long walks, I was five pounds (that's 2.5 kilos) heavier Motzei Shabbat? (The Husband was 3 pounds heavier--No Fair! He ate three times as much as I did, including all the starches!!)

This is where Emma S showed her genius--"ah, yes, the Law of Kilo Return," she explained. Lost a kilo? It will return on any major Jewish holiday or other festive ocassion (bris, wedding, etc.)

So I took drastic action--strict dieting, much exercising and voila! The 2.5 kilos are history! Until Sukkot, anyway.......