Long ago and far away, I had a pact with Jason to lose weight this year. We had aimed to lose around 60 pounds. I started at 238, a weight I was proud of being at, since it was less than the 270 I had managed to accumulate after my last child was born.
Over the summer I managed to lose about 15 pounds by doing a lot of walking and exercises. I hit the 225 mark and stalled, but I finally broke through that plateau and made it down to about 220, before Halloween hit.
Optimystic asked me to do a write up on the element of Fire over on the Lemegeton list, and this is one of the elements I had planned on working with (at the beginning of the year) to get the weight off. I was hoping to simply increase my metabolism with some gentle work with Oriens, Prince of the East. I was thinking of doing a conjuration of Oriens for the article, and then while I was at it, asking him to up my metabolism.
Due to the experiences of a certain blogger who shall remain nameless related to magic and weight loss, I have been hesitant to use magic to lose weight. A hasty ritual that doesn't take into account basic physiology can be hazardous to one's health. I think that simply increasing my metabolism under the tutelage of Oriens will work. But at the same time, the biggest driver for actual weight loss is always exercise for me. If I build up some meaty major muscle groups, my body burns more calories throughout the day. Long walks and hours spent on the old exerbike seem to work wonders for me. I don't want to inflame my metabolism, and then give it no outlet to burn.
So I'm taking a holistic approach, and resisting the urge to conjure up Oriens and get him to do the driving for me. I'll probably end up Working with each of the elemetnal Kings, and doing some kind of Work on the Guf itself. the Moon's waning, so I'm thinking it's a good time for it.
Even though I've only got a couple of months to lose the rest of the weight. Sigh. I don't think I'll make it to the full 60 pounds this year, but I do aim to at least break 200 by January.
Head for the Red: The ongoing adventures and insights of a magician's attempts to accomplish the Great Work.
I know for me, getting myself to exercise is a fairly difficult proposition. I just always lack the will or discipline to get on the darned eliptical machine and get to work if there is anything else I could be doing.
ReplyDeleteRather than using magic to do something specific like increase your metabolism which could conceivably have unintended consequences, could you approach it from a different angle, that of discipline?
What I mean is, is there a spirit you might invoke, or a rite you might perform, which would help you increase your own desire to exercise and engage in other healthy behaviors? Perhaps another rite to help you find the time to get the exercise you need (careful with that one, so that it doesn't make you lose your job, thus giving you lots of time, for instance).
In this way you would be using magic to give yourself a "nudge" to do those things on the physical level which are healthy for you, and would result in the objective you desire.
This one made me smile :) Yes, I would be very hesitant to lose those 15 pounds again.
ReplyDeleteI wish you the best of luck in your weight loss endeavors. As one of my mentors is very fond of saying "If you cannot be a good example then you will make an excellent object lesson."
Work on the good example, it is easier ... trust me :)
A hoodoo trick I've heard has helped folks: take an egg pray over it; ask that it takes the weight you dont want. Roll the egg over the areas you want lose the weight. Continue like that for a few minutes. Very carefully take the egg and throw it to the centre of a crossroads. Passers by will take the weight in small amounts. Repeat daily.
ReplyDeleteAnother simple one; but harder to pull off. Find someone who wants to gain weight (someone sick perhaps) they must agree they want to take the weight and you must agree to give it. Then they must pay you 1c - when the transaction is complete the weight begins to transfer.
But as you say - exercise and healthy food goes a long way!
One needs to be very careful with weight loss. Women in particular because of the social pressures regarding their appearance suffer tremendous from weight and food issues. Restricting one's food intake is similar to restricting sex, any time you mess with basic drives you can have problems.
ReplyDeleteDieting which seems to be a "common sense" response to losing weight often has a boomerang effect; starve yourself down and lose 10 pounds, boom! gain back 15!
In order to have long term weight loss it really needs to be very slow, perhaps as low as a pound a week and be accompanied by lifestyle changes and even spiritual and psychological reorientation.
This seems like overkill, "just stop eating!" but if it was so easy we wouldn't have an "epidemic" of obesity.
take judo lessons, you'll be exercising without even knowing while just trying to remain on your feet. it worked charms for me
ReplyDeleteYou've hit on a common mistake in magic: instead of working for what they want, people work for something they think will get them what they want. Then they wonder why things are going wrong. Sometimes it's better to let deities/spirits and our own unconcious work out the method. Instead of saying "I want a higher metabolism" or "I want to lose X pounds," why not say "I want a healthy body"? Then your body can work out whatever you specifically actually need, which isn't always what we think we need.
ReplyDelete