Pema Chodron & Working With the Shempa

Pema Chodron - Working With Shempa

Learning that I had gained 15 pounds after my big vegan experiment was a crisis that required some deep breathing. I know this weight thing is a problem I have to face. Vegan or not, this mindless eating that I've been doing all my life is my albatross, my heroin, my big fat fucking problem. And I'm very touchy about it. I hate it when friends give me advice. All I can hear is... "You are fat and we do not approve." This is my sore spot. Yes, I know I need to lose weight. Of course I do. It is not just vanity. It is swollen feet and high blood pressure. It is not being able to hike or even sit comfortably let alone sit cross legged. So I listen to Pema Choron.

Pema Chodron teaches how to work with that thing that hooks you when you do not want to be present. That is the Shempa, the hook. Recognizing it is the first thing then staying present with it and all of its squirmy discomfort. Can I do that? Can I at 58 years old finally learn to eat mindfully?

Eat Fish and Dance

Unlike Dennis Kuchinich I gained weight being Vegan. I was hoping that just being Vegan would be all that was needed to lose weight. I was a good Vegan for two months but then started feeling bloated and was eating too much starch. My favorite "meat substitutes" were for the most part based on gluten, pure starch! So now I've cut way back on wheat and corn and have added seafood, chicken and yogurt. I had a little cheese binge when this all came down. Probably that coconut milk ice cream didn't help.

I still really need to lose weight. More than ever. I'm still working on the President's Fitness Challenge. and am just one filled in red star away from earning a badge. Its pretty easy going at my level but still a challenge. I composed my own aerobic dance half hour set and actually enjoy doing it. Here is my line up... 1) warm up with, Girl From Ipanema by BR6, 2) pick up my 3 lb hand weights and work my arms with Sade's Soldier of Love. 3) Get the aerobic thing going with Madonna's speedy, Ray of Light. Try some hip hop moves with Salt-N-Pepa, R U Ready, Swing it out to Wagon Wheel by Old Crow Medicine Show, Swing it around the world with Stand By Me, Playing For Change. Then finally, stretch it all out with Diana Krall's Let's Face the Music and Dance. Total time = 32 minutes 13 seconds.

R U Ready ~ Salt-N-Pepa