The Money Mustache Community
General Discussion => Throw Down the Gauntlet => Topic started by: bittheory on January 04, 2016, 10:18:57 AM
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Call it cliche, but January is the perfect time for me to go completely sober for the month, for a variety of reasons, most importantly as a personal challenge. I'm a moderate drinker, but the holidays kicked my ass with all kinds of opportunities to booze I didn't pass up. I must have had 20-24 drinks in two weeks. That's a lot for me. Call it detox, call it a challenge, call it whatever, but my goal is to not have a single drink this month.
Beyond not drinking, I'm also challenging myself in other ways:
-No red meat, and no more than 1 serving of meat a week
-No sugar, no sweetened baked goods, no desserts.
-Read every day
-Walk my dog 10 minutes longer every morning
-Walk 1-2 miles on my lunch break every weekday
If I can achieve half of above in addition to abstaining from the sauce, I'll be a happy camper. I've done this in the past and it's probably the best I've ever felt health wise and mentally in years. I also approach this challenge as a way to save money, save time, lose weight and be more productive. Ideally, Dry January transitions into Dry February and moderate drinking for the remainder of 2016. Who's in?
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I would join, but I drank on the 1st & 2nd since the New Year was landlocked by the weekend. I am fairly certain that I can go the rest of the month without any booze. I could use to cut way back on the booze. 2015 was one of the most challenging years in recent memory and I did hit the hooch hard as a result. Looking forward to being relatively sober this year while saving some $$$. Good luck to you as well with that and your other goals. Reading more is also on my list.
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I would join, but I drank on the 1st & 2nd since the New Year was landlocked by the weekend. I am fairly certain that I can go the rest of the month without any booze. I could use to cut way back on the booze. 2015 was one of the most challenging years in recent memory and I did hit the hooch hard as a result. Looking forward to being relatively sober this year while saving some $$$. Good luck to you as well with that and your other goals. Reading more is also on my list.
Do it. It's a fulfilling and rewarding month for reasons both physical and psychological. Also, I technically started my dry out yesterday, so we're in the same boat. Let's go!
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Hehe... I had plenty to drink for the last 3-4 days but I'm long overdue for a cutback.
I'm going to just box up and store all my home booze, but not necessarily forswear the odd social indulgence. Kudos to all who go to 0 though.
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I'm in. We're doing a Whole 30 (no grains, dairy, sugar, alcohol, etc.) and caffeine purge as well. Let's ride!
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I'm in. We're doing a Whole 30 (no grains, dairy, sugar, alcohol, etc.) and caffeine purge as well. Let's ride!
Coincidentally, I woke up this morning and decided to skip coffee for the first time in several months. I'm thinking about pushing it out for a while... the month, or whatever.
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I'd do this... but there is no point with alcohol for me--I love the stuff, but in a normal month don't drink more than 5 days and rarely have more than 10 drinks in a month. Although December was a bad one, don't take that as a normal month!
I am going to try to cut out red meat and cut way down on the heavy carbs though. Pants are fitting way too tight for my comfort.
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Count me in as of today! I have on average at least 2 drinks a day on the weekdays, 3-5 on weekends. I cut back on craft beers the past couple months and started drinking wine with dinner in place of it. I can honestly say that I've lost 15 pounds just from that and feel much better overall.
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I'll do it from 1/6-2/6 since I have a work happy hour tomorrow with clients/channel partners.
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I'll join in on this for the rest of the month. I'm not a huge drinker as it is, but I'm on a mission to lose weight and this can only help my cause.
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Count me in as of today! I have on average at least 2 drinks a day on the weekdays, 3-5 on weekends. I cut back on craft beers the past couple months and started drinking wine with dinner in place of it. I can honestly say that I've lost 15 pounds just from that and feel much better overall.
Yes! Craft beer is a cruel temptress.
My goal is to eliminate craft beer entirely except for a special bomber to share on special occasions. No more craft IPA six packs. Those are love handle makers in disguise.
I hope to stick to wine when my dry out is over, maybe a bottle a week or so.
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I'm in*. I drank way too much in December. High point was vomiting on my workmates (don't worry, I live in Australia so people just think I'm a legend instead of being embarrassed by my drunken behaviour).
*I was actually already doing this as part of an elimination diet in January to isolate some food intolerances, but I can still join the challenge, right?
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OK screw it I'm in. Although I did have a beer last night only because it was the last one in my fridge left over from a dinner with friends two weeks ago. I didn't have alcohol for a week between Christmas and New Year because I was sick and to be frank I only drink out of habit. I was a social drinker until I had kids and pretty much stop going out with friends at night. From there I started drinking beer by myself because I was substituting it for going out, crazy how we are programmed even though we think that we are immune to advertising. I now associate beer, mixed drinks, hard liquor, and wine with having company and friends. So when I'm lonely at night I go and grab a beer.
I'll go from 1/4 to 2/4. I'll still go out to bars with friends but I'll have water or my go to tonic and lime trick when I've had one to many.
I also plan on joining a gym and work out at night, that way I'm not stuck at home thinking if I should have a drink or not. Idle hands are the devils playground. I wanted to join months earlier but there was a crazy $150 membership sign-up fee, but it is being waved for January so I'm going to join now.
Good luck everyone!!
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Thrilled to find this.
I'd already started but it's good to have a thread devoted to it instead of just me giving marty998 daily updates, which I'm sure he's sick of already. :D
Other goals for January: no soft drink (pointless without spirits anyway), and no phones in bedroom (trying to create better tech boundaries in the long term, had to buy an alarm clock).
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I'm in*. I drank way too much in December. High point was vomiting on my workmates (don't worry, I live in Australia so people just think I'm a legend instead of being embarrassed by my drunken behaviour).
*I was actually already doing this as part of an elimination diet in January to isolate some food intolerances, but I can still join the challenge, right?
Onya. :)
Did you read Peter Fitz's piece last week on his year off booze?
http://www.smh.com.au/comment/peter-fitzsimons-how-i-gave-up-the-grog-20151202-gldn92.html
My favourite line:
(Part of it is, that as I am sober, I am no longer inclined to tell her, wit' shum detail, now you lishen to me ... a few things she desperately needs to be told!)
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Did you read Peter Fitz's piece last week on his year off booze?
http://www.smh.com.au/comment/peter-fitzsimons-how-i-gave-up-the-grog-20151202-gldn92.html
That was odd but good, thanks for the link! I liked what he said about sugar, too - my elimination diet has accidentally eliminated sugar from my diet (because what am I going to do, add a spoonful of sugar to my steak and veges?!) and I've been amazed at how I'm just not hungry like I usually am.
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As has been my tradition the past few years, I'm also abstaining from alcohol this month, with the exception of the last week of the month, while I'm vacationing! Also trying to eat half as many carbs over the same 3 weeks.
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HuffPo back on the (band)wagon: http://www.huffingtonpost.com.au/entry/dry-january-benefits-sober-resolution_568a7bede4b0b958f65c1666?ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000063§ion=australia
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I'm in.
Too be fair, I have just completed 4 years of sobriety, but have had an increasing interest in the last few months in starting drinking again. Part of me just wants to see if I might be able to handle a moderate amount of drinking, but part of me does not want to tempt fate.
So, I pledge to not imbibe at all this month.
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Thrilled to find this.
I'd already started but it's good to have a thread devoted to it instead of just me giving marty998 daily updates, which I'm sure he's sick of already. :D
Other goals for January: no soft drink (pointless without spirits anyway), and no phones in bedroom (trying to create better tech boundaries in the long term, had to buy an alarm clock).
But I won't be joining you sorry :P
I love my drinks too much to do it. My little luxury in life.
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Thrilled to find this.
I'd already started but it's good to have a thread devoted to it instead of just me giving marty998 daily updates, which I'm sure he's sick of already. :D
Other goals for January: no soft drink (pointless without spirits anyway), and no phones in bedroom (trying to create better tech boundaries in the long term, had to buy an alarm clock).
But I won't be joining you sorry :P
I love my drinks too much to do it. My little luxury in life.
Excellent. That way if I get too tempted by the (extensive) contents of the booze cupboard, I can count on you to come clean it out. :)
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Lemme at it lol
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Nice. I'm glad people are on board. Seems like this is something of a trend in the UK as well.
I plan on doing weekly updates throughout the month starting next Monday.
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So it's only day 2 of not drinking and I almost went and grabbed a beer. I didn't though because I felt the accountability and didn't want to let everyone else down. Hang in there everyone!
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So it's only day 2 of not drinking and I almost went and grabbed a beer. I didn't though because I felt the accountability and didn't want to let everyone else down. Hang in there everyone!
Was it desire or habit?
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I'm a little reluctant.... But I'm going to try. Ran out of homebrew kegs, finished the store bought keg, sold our beer festival tickets for this weekend, and my friends have said they will decline a beer at yoga tonight. The beer gods seem to be directing my fate.... If I can make it through one weekend I think it will get easier. That's better than nothing right? I can't remember a Friday, Saturday, or Sunday in years where I haven't had a drink! Also, I'm going to have to try really hard to not make up for it with other vices.
I'm excluding bitters. As that's the only way I'll make it through a day. Bitters, lime juice, and seltzer water have been quenching my thirst after work.
Monday 1/4 was the first drink free day for me!
And to remind myself later..... I'm hoping a dry January will remind or teach me:
- I can do physical activities without a reward drink.
- There are other things to do and places to see around the city other than breweries!
- I can be social without being loosened up by alcohol.
- $$$$$$$$
- That I am strong and can change my habits and life if I want to.
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I'm a little reluctant.... But I'm going to try. Ran out of homebrew kegs, finished the store bought keg, sold our beer festival tickets for this weekend, and my friends have said they will decline a beer at yoga tonight. The beer gods seem to be directing my fate.... If I can make it through one weekend I think it will get easier. That's better than nothing right? I can't remember a Friday, Saturday, or Sunday in years where I haven't had a drink! Also, I'm going to have to try really hard to not make up for it with other vices.
I'm excluding bitters. As that's the only way I'll make it through a day. Bitters, lime juice, and seltzer water have been quenching my thirst after work.
Monday 1/4 was the first drink free day for me!
And to remind myself later..... I'm hoping a dry January will remind or teach me:
- I can do physical activities without a reward drink.
- There are other things to do and places to see around the city other than breweries!
- I can be social without being loosened up by alcohol.
- $$$$$$$$
- That I am strong and can change my habits and life if I want to.
Welcome to the challenge. I live in the land of craft beer (Denver) so the temptations are almost literally on every street corner. I'm 4 days strong now. The weekend will be the true test, however, because like you, I can't remember a weekend without a drink in a while...but I'm feeling good.
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Welcome to the challenge. I live in the land of craft beer (Denver) so the temptations are almost literally on every street corner. I'm 4 days strong now. The weekend will be the true test, however, because like you, I can't remember a weekend without a drink in a while...but I'm feeling good.
I too live in the city of vices! Let's see how it goes. I definitely have reigned it in the last few months by fitting in 2-3 days a week without alcohol. Almost miraculously without trying just by having fancy fizzy water at home instead. I would like to say I don't go overboard on weekends as I've also slimmed it down to only 3-4 on weekend days the majority of the time . But lately it seems like my outings and friendships could be based solely on drinking. I'm probably just overthinking but I want to prove myself that's not the case! It will be interesting if I brew beer without a beer though.
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I would join, but I drank on the 1st & 2nd since the New Year was landlocked by the weekend. I am fairly certain that I can go the rest of the month without any booze. I could use to cut way back on the booze. 2015 was one of the most challenging years in recent memory and I did hit the hooch hard as a result. Looking forward to being relatively sober this year while saving some $$$. Good luck to you as well with that and your other goals. Reading more is also on my list.
Do it. It's a fulfilling and rewarding month for reasons both physical and psychological. Also, I technically started my dry out yesterday, so we're in the same boat. Let's go!
I'm on board. Maybe things in my life will improve as a result. Probably not, but at least I'll be saving money.
I would seldom drink during the week, but on the weekends I would cut loose and have 4-8 drinks in one session on Friday-Saturday nights. It would be more if it was a holiday or special occasion. Around Christmas and New Years, I flat out lost my mind and must have had 30+ drinks each of those weeks.
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So it's only day 2 of not drinking and I almost went and grabbed a beer. I didn't though because I felt the accountability and didn't want to let everyone else down. Hang in there everyone!
Was it desire or habit?
Habit. I usually have a drink or two after work to calm down. Started up running again to help break the habit.
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I'm in. I am not a huge drinker anyway. I partied like a rock star in my 20's, which resulted in bad stomach ulcers and a permanent no more than 2 drinks rule, so its not hard for me to cut back.
I typically drink for enjoyment, rather than getting drunk so that bit I will miss.
I am doing a less strict Whole 30 too.
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Awesome! I'm already doing this for January-February with several friends :)
I've realized that too many of my social interactions involve booze. Also, I recently got a new job that has a free company happy hour every Friday... so my regular (albeit free) drinking has increased a bit. Oh and the holidays happened. I'm due for a detox.
I've gone a few weeks without booze every once and a while, but never a whole month (well... since college). I figure 2 months is enough time to get used to not drinking at social engagements and resisting the urge to have a beer at company happy hours (even if it is "free").
Today is Day 6 and it's been super easy because I've been a recluse after the holidays. I can already see several opportunities for free booze in the next week, and I will drink water instead at all of them.
Cheers!
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Something that I have been trying when I'm at a friends place is having a mixed drink that is mostly pop. 1/2 shot of bourbon, 12 oz. of pop--people think you're drinking, you are drinking, you can participate in the social drinking stuff, but I'm not drinking even a single drink. Add in that I really don't like pop, and I can milk it for quite a while.
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Last night was hard for a few minutes. It was the one night a week I am all by myself and I usually just relax, read, and have a drink or two and putz around enjoying the quiet. I made pasta for dinner and literally had my hand on the boxed wine above the sink. I grudgingly put it back. But 5-10 minutes later I was over it. Really only day 3?
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Last night was hard for a few minutes. It was the one night a week I am all by myself and I usually just relax, read, and have a drink or two and putz around enjoying the quiet. I made pasta for dinner and literally had my hand on the boxed wine above the sink. I grudgingly put it back. But 5-10 minutes later I was over it. Really only day 3?
I've been there. Maybe find another fancy non-alcoholic drink to enjoy? Like instead of relaxing with a glass of wine at night, I might make hot tea instead. Or sparkling water? Whatever you're into.
That way you're still "treating yourself" on your alone night, but without the alcohol.
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I'm in by default as I quit drinking 5 months ago :-) I was a heavy drinker before and am feeling infinitely better without alcohol. Highly recommend a dry period to anyone!
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Started Jan. 2 (anniversary was the 1st).
I have done eight months dry before with great results - I will do January and then decide what the plan is going forward.
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I turned down 3 free drinks today at a work party.
High-five for will power!
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I turned down 3 free drinks today at a work party.
High-five for will power!
Well done. Free drinks are some of the hardest to give the Heisman.
It's going to be tough for me tonight. A snowstorm just hit the city and sometimes there's just nothing better than sipping on an imperial stout by the fireplace while snow falls at night. Sigh, maybe next winter.
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I turned down 3 free drinks today at a work party.
High-five for will power!
Well done. Free drinks are some of the hardest to give the Heisman.
It's going to be tough for me tonight. A snowstorm just hit the city and sometimes there's just nothing better than sipping on an imperial stout by the fireplace while snow falls at night. Sigh, maybe next winter.
See, this is why I don't necessarily like the "dry" periods if you aren't going to make it permanent. It should be treated as an indulgence. If it isn't a regular thing, why worry?
(I am doing my version of Janudry, which I am going to attempt to make permanent: Limit myself to 4 drinks a week, and actually watch what a drink is, instead of my normal 2-12 drinks a week)
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Good luck! I've been trying to throttle back my own drinking, because I've noticed how much better I feel when I haven't had any. Over the last few years I've had 1-2 beers per day and 3-4 shots of whiskey per week. Slowly been throttling back and am feeling the benefits!
I won't quit cold turkey, but I'm trying to eliminate pointless casual drinking from my life. For example, a habit that I'm trying to break is sometimes while I'm doing stuff around the house, I'll grab a beer to drink just because it's there. To curb this habit, I've been drinking a lot of cold water, which helps.
Another thing that has been working well for me now is sometimes I'll pour a beer, but my wife and I will share it. She rarely wants a whole one anyway, and this lets me enjoy half a drink without really any adverse effects. Also have started pouring myself VERY short pours of whiskey (1/4 to 1/3 ounce), enough to take tiny sips and wet the tongue and just get a few drops down the throat. This has the side benefit of making the bottle last much longer, which my wallet appreciates!
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I turned down 3 free drinks today at a work party.
High-five for will power!
Well done. Free drinks are some of the hardest to give the Heisman.
It's going to be tough for me tonight. A snowstorm just hit the city and sometimes there's just nothing better than sipping on an imperial stout by the fireplace while snow falls at night. Sigh, maybe next winter.
See, this is why I don't necessarily like the "dry" periods if you aren't going to make it permanent. It should be treated as an indulgence. If it isn't a regular thing, why worry?
(I am doing my version of Janudry, which I am going to attempt to make permanent: Limit myself to 4 drinks a week, and actually watch what a drink is, instead of my normal 2-12 drinks a week)
Totally understand. But the personal challenge of just being completely sober for a month straight is why I'm going to stick with it. Plus, the wife is pregnant, so at least she appreciates it.
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I can't commit to a dry January since I've already had alcohol this month, but I was already planning on cutting back so I'm down for that. I'm doing it to save money too as well as cutting back the food budget.
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I really want a drink tonight.
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I really want a drink tonight.
Same here. The "want" really elevates when the weekend arrives.
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I turned down 3 free drinks today at a work party.
High-five for will power!
Well done. Free drinks are some of the hardest to give the Heisman.
It's going to be tough for me tonight. A snowstorm just hit the city and sometimes there's just nothing better than sipping on an imperial stout by the fireplace while snow falls at night. Sigh, maybe next winter.
See, this is why I don't necessarily like the "dry" periods if you aren't going to make it permanent. It should be treated as an indulgence. If it isn't a regular thing, why worry?
(I am doing my version of Janudry, which I am going to attempt to make permanent: Limit myself to 4 drinks a week, and actually watch what a drink is, instead of my normal 2-12 drinks a week)
For me personally, the "dry" periods help jumpstart cutting back in general. I've just gotten so used to saying "Sure, I could have a beer. No problem" whenever offered and hardly ever saying no. It's easier to say no when your weekly limit is ZERO.
Like today, we had free beer at our weekly company meeting. Usually I would grab a beer, but today I had sparkling water instead. I realized that beer vs. no beer had zero effect on the rest of my day (except saving me some calories). As a result, I'll probably stop drinking beer at the Friday meeting since I'm just going to head home anyways and it doesn't really add any value to my life.
I've tried to instill a 6 drink/week limit before, but some unexpected event or scenario seems to comes up. And I think "Meh, why not?" and I end up breaking my limit. But really, it's whatever works for you. :)
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Our Red Wine Friday tradition has become a treasured institution around our place...so, no dice.
*sip*
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So far so good. Although I did make it a point not to go anywhere near a bar or social gathering that might tempt me to have a drink. The weekends are going to though, but my plan is to go workout instead of going out to eat or staying home and watching a movie. My craving/desire for alcohol goes to zero after a good workout. I recently just started exercising at night and I have been sleeping earlier and my overall mood has improved.
Come on everyone let's see how long we can keep this up! You can do it!!
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Off to a good start. Still on the wagon since 1/2. It was not too hard last night after a 60 hour workweek. Fridays/Saturdays are usually my night to imbibe. I still have some rum and Jagermeister left from the holidays, but I had some green tea instead and watched TV.
The quality of my sleep last night was amazing. I slept 9 hours. Sometimes, the alcohol will disrupt my sleep and I will only get 5-6 hours of broken sleep. I also feel energized, well rested and not hungover. I spent 50 minutes in beast mode on my cheap home mustachian elliptical and I feel great!
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I was tempted, but did not fail last night. Just found out I need to spend a lot of time this weekend preparing for something big, so that's all the motivation I need to stay sober until Monday!
I am also sticking to a strict calorie budget and trying to reduce carbs during this month, so we'll see if that results in any fat loss...
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Nine days in now. This is now the longest I've gone without booze since travelling through predominantly Muslim countries in 2011.
And like Public Hermit, the quality of my sleep has definitely improved.
The urge to drink has been totally manageable, much better than I expected. Mostly it's just reminding myself not do, and drinking something else (water, water, water) instead.
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Hosted a boardgames night last night and didn't even feel tempted to drink (not even at the start which is the weakest point of a social event for me, when people are just meeting each other and it's a bit awkward).
Interestingly almost no one else had a drink, and I think the most anyone had was two beers - the host sets the tone for drinking more than I had realised.
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OP here. First update since I started this thing. Overall, not bad. Having done this before, I know that the first week is probably the easiest for me, for the same reason the first week is easiest for gym-going resolutionists.
The week was a piece of cake. I don't drink much during weekdays anyway, so I had that built in advantage and mindset. Then the weekend came, which threw out temptation that was easy to turn down. I went to a happy hour with co-workers on Friday, ordered two club sodas with lime. Surprisingly easy to be the only one not drinking. Also nice to save the $12 that everyone else spent. Stayed in Saturday night and turned down an opportunity to watch a movie with friends and get drinks afterwards. Went over to family's house last night for dinner and turned down a nice bottle of red. Also, surprisingly easy.
I'm sleeping so much better now than usual and feel physically great. Even two glasses of wine left me a little groggy at times. It's great not to have that sensation at all. But this early on, the effects aren't really compounding yet, but I hope and imagine by week four I'll have lost a little weight in addition to feeling physically better.
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I haven't noticed any difference really. Once or twice I have though about grabbing a drink, but it didn't bother me to just get a water. Hopefully the calorie thing makes a difference as I am trying to lose weight. I plan to stay dry through the first week of February because I missed the first week of January. After that, I'll probably try to keep drinking limited to special occasions.
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I keep having dreams that I drink a beer and break my sober-streak! Then I wake up disappointed in myself... until I realized that it was just a dream and I'm still awesome.
I have stress dreams about everything though (even missing little appointments or movie dates with friends), so it doesn't surprise me that I'd have stress dreams about giving up alcohol.
I'm also hoping to save some calories and slim down during sober month as well... but I've definitely replaced a few beers with hot chocolate. Oops :-P
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Jan 1 weight: 184.4 lbs
Jan 11 weight: 176.5 lbs
I know the reduction in alcohol is just a small part of it, but it certainly looks nice on my tracking charts.
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The week was a piece of cake. I don't think much during weekdays anyway...
I am going to try this. ;-)
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The week was a piece of cake. I don't think much during weekdays anyway...
I am going to try this. ;-)
Haha oops. Meant to say I don't drink much, but that's also true.
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I keep having dreams that I drink a beer and break my sober-streak! Then I wake up disappointed in myself... until I realized that it was just a dream and I'm still awesome.
I have dreams like this about smoking. It's been almost fourteen years since I quit cold turkey and yet still have the same dream once or twice a year. Used to be more often in the early days.
In the dream I suddenly realise that I'm holding a cigarette and that have already almost finished a pack. There is this huge sense of disappointment and 'oh no what was I thinking'. Very vivid, usually takes me some time after waking up to convince myself it was just a dream.
Wow. The way you wrote this just really struck me as to how powerful addictions can be. Congratulations on getting free, that is amazing.
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So just to chime in. I gave in. I could not make it through Friday night or the weekend. Also, my plan of scheduling booze-free activities did not work. We did the activity and then went to a brewery on the way home. This happened both on Saturday and Sunday... Fail! At least I didn't start drinking until 5pm on Saturday when I usually start around noon (or breakfast if I have stouts on hand!)
I'm still calling it a win though because I made it through Mon-Thurs without any booze and I am repeating it this week. I am going M, T, H without this week (brewing meeting this week). I think I only had 5 drinks the entire weekend. After some reflection, I realized this challenge may not be for me. I obsess over money and self improvement all day everyday. To the point of always finding a reason to be unhappy with myself. So I threw out any resolutions and intentions I had for 2016. Instead I'm just taking a step back and being mindful and enjoying the moment. No reason to deprive myself of a beer if I want it as long as I'm enjoying savoring it! I've already cut back a lot over the past year so I'm okay with it. The same goes for self improvement, I deleted all the blogs on my RSS which would email me articles everyday with depressing titles. I think they were just reinforcing happiness at this point rather than guide me to it. Waking up to 5 articles with "Learn to love the job you hate" and titles like that are NOT helpful.
I am more proud of my husband who has been the usual 2-3 beers after work every night and took the whole week off too! He also drastically cut down on the weekend and I can tell he is starting to enjoy the effects of less and pay attention to how much he is consuming instead of drinking mindlessly out of habit. He just kept saying how good he sleeps and how much better he feels. Finally realizing there can be a different normal.
We have definitely saved money though. And I enjoyed actually getting to spend money on doing something for once instead of just having all our discretionary money to go to alcohol. That is a big takeaway and incentive for me to continue to live on the drastically reduced intake.
Sorry that this wasn't the most encouraging post. But alas it was not for me and I'm okay with it. Best of luck for the rest of the month!
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I keep having dreams that I drink a beer and break my sober-streak! Then I wake up disappointed in myself... until I realized that it was just a dream and I'm still awesome.
I have dreams like this about smoking. It's been almost fourteen years since I quit cold turkey and yet still have the same dream once or twice a year. Used to be more often in the early days.
In the dream I suddenly realise that I'm holding a cigarette and that have already almost finished a pack. There is this huge sense of disappointment and 'oh no what was I thinking'. Very vivid, usually takes me some time after waking up to convince myself it was just a dream.
I had this dream once in college that I cheated on my girlfriend (now wife). Woke up and just "knew" that it had happened, even though I didn't remember it. Replayed the whole last night in my head a few times (no, I wasn't drunk) and finally came to the conclusion that I hadn't. Don't know that I've ever felt that bad.
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I keep having dreams that I drink a beer and break my sober-streak! Then I wake up disappointed in myself... until I realized that it was just a dream and I'm still awesome.
I have dreams like this about smoking. It's been almost fourteen years since I quit cold turkey and yet still have the same dream once or twice a year. Used to be more often in the early days.
In the dream I suddenly realise that I'm holding a cigarette and that have already almost finished a pack. There is this huge sense of disappointment and 'oh no what was I thinking'. Very vivid, usually takes me some time after waking up to convince myself it was just a dream.
I had this dream once in college that I cheated on my girlfriend (now wife). Woke up and just "knew" that it had happened, even though I didn't remember it. Replayed the whole last night in my head a few times (no, I wasn't drunk) and finally came to the conclusion that I hadn't. Don't know that I've ever felt that bad.
That's the worst. :( I typically have vivid dreams, but they get weirder when I drink. I've had several experiences where after a night of drinking, I go to sleep and have extremely vivid dreams that I sneak out my window to go out and party some more, and end up hitting-and-running someone or doing something terrible. I wake up full of guilt and feeling awful.
... Then I realize that the "night of drinking" before was just me having some beers with friends and probably playing board games. And I definitely didn't wake up in the middle of the night for a drunken joy ride. And everything is fine.
I've also had the opposite experience where instead of having a dream where I am guilty, I dream that my SO does something awful towards me. And I wake up feeling terribly angry at him... until I realize that it was just a dream and nothing actually happened. Sometimes it takes a little while to shake that irrational feeling though.
Basically, dreams suck sometimes. Don't let them bring you down :)
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So just to chime in. I gave in. I could not make it through Friday night or the weekend. Also, my plan of scheduling booze-free activities did not work. We did the activity and then went to a brewery on the way home. This happened both on Saturday and Sunday... Fail! At least I didn't start drinking until 5pm on Saturday when I usually start around noon (or breakfast if I have stouts on hand!)
Wanna know why I didn't even try to stop entirely? ;)
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Just got through my kids birthday party and if I can make it without any alcohol then I can make it trough pretty much anything now without alcohol.
Stay strong everyone, don't set yourself up for failure this weekend by being stressed out or putting yourself in a situation where you have to use a lot of will power, remember it is limited.
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Still going strong. No real temptation so far!
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Best of luck to everyone on this challenge!
DH and I went completely dry for a year a few years ago and then added alcohol back in as a treat not a habit. For us, total abstention was easiest for the first bit because we just had to stick with one decision - 0 drinks. Once we started drinking again we set up a few rules: don't drink alone; measure every drink, especially glasses of wine; reach for water/tea/tonic/etc before beer, e.g. when getting home from work; drink the really good stuff - really nice champers at New Years or birthday parties, excellent scotch for Robbie Burns Day, fabulous wine by the glass at a nice restaurant; drink only occasionally and really savour whatever we drink.
This has worked great for us. We lost weight, saved money, eliminated morning after regret and added a treat to our lives.
Everyone's mileage varies but experimenting with a reduced alcohol life is a great way to kick off the year.
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I successfully attended a karaoke party... sober... and rocked it!
Good luck in the next few weeks.
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So far:
- nearly zero heartburn - usually I suffer a few times a week
- combined with close calorie counting, dropping weight like crazy (down about 6-7 lbs since the 1st)
- weekends seem a bit longer - if I don't have a drink or 2 at 6pm on Saturday, then I'm less prone to sitting on the couch doing nothing for the evening (last night I was installing a few programmable thermostats)
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Watching NFL games this weekend instantly got me thinking about alcohol. I didn't even see any alcohol advertising, but I guess all the other times I have watched NFL games the bombardment of ads has made my brain associate football with alcohol, similar to parties.
I'm doing good so far but the next week will be interesting. I'm glad that the Super Bowl is next month, haha. Although I was already planning on see how long I can stay dry indefinitely.
Stay strong everyone.
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OP here. 2 weeks down. I've had a lot of temptation this past week. My NFL team just won a playoff game, I was at a party today with plenty of free beer and wine and even turned down a champagne toast celebrating an event at my office. Here's what I've noticed this past week:
-Sleep is still great. I sleep really well during the week and like a log during the weekends.
-Haven't noticed much in weight loss, but I feel trimmer. Then again, it's only two weeks.
-The social pressures and internal desire to drink are getting easier and easier to handle.
-I am generally more efficient. This past weekend, I decluttered and in the process listed 5 items on eBay and donated three bags worth of other items.
2 weeks down, 2 to go. Who knows, maybe I won't crack open a beer until after January anyway.
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OP here. 3 weeks down. At this point, it's just getting easy.
At this point I've lost 4 lbs, been more productive and generally feel better and healthier. Same results as earlier weeks, but the weight loss is starting to become apparent now. I've also been walking/running a little more than usual, so that helps.
Also, I've decided I'm going to go through February 7th and enjoy my first drink on the Superbowl. From there, my goal is to only drink during weekends and limit myself to no more than 5 drinks total during the weekend.
I'm also going to try to stay away from the high ABV craft beers and stick to light beer or session IPAs. Until last week I had no idea that calories in beer are mostly determined by ABV.
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January has been horrid for me (not that I was trying to stop); specifically my birthday was bad (6 drinks) and then my wife's birthday was bad (2 beers with dinner, followed by 2 at the concert, followed by 1.5 pitchers (total) between my FIL and I).
While I never got "drunk", the hangover from not drinking any water after the wife's birthday was bad enough that I think I'm going to try to do a dry February.
Won't do March though. The month of March in Chicago is Gods way of showing people who don't drink what a hangover is like. Might as well drink since I have to go through March anyways.
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Took 1 meal off of Whole 30 on Saturday, but still dry. We're having our official "fat day" this coming Saturday (1/30) and the wife has requested a bottle of our favorite wine (Radius Red Blend), so our Dry January will end then.
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I have to admit staying dry is easier than I expected. The habit was the hardest to break vs the craving for alcohol. Replacing the drinking habit with a new one was essential. Instead of having a drink at night while watching a movie or reading a book, I go exercise. Also changing the venues when hanging out with friends has helped.
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This past weekend was hard to stay dry, but I didn't give in. People say that it is getting easier for them, but for me, it was considerably harder this weekend to not imbibe.
The upside is that I am not as depressed as I normally am this time of year. And I usually get very depressed. I feel like my mood has improved in general. My energy level is also higher when I am awake. I am sleeping more. On weekend nights, it is difficult for me to stay awake past 10pm. Not the case when I am knocking back a few. Best part of all? No hangovers. I am very grumpy when hungover.
This is officially the longest I've gone without alcohol since 2011. I'd like to continue this through February, but realistically, I feel like I could cut down considerably.
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We had a relative pass away last week and everyone took a shot for the relative, and I didn't want to refuse. But then I followed it up with a glass of wine because...oh well, I have already blown it! I don't regret the shot, but the wine was unnecessary. I'm getting back on track now.
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I've done this the last two years and it seemed comparatively easy to this year. This year several groups I am involved in keep having gatherings at breweries, and I cannot imbibe. Tired of root beer & diet coke! I completely gave up eating out (but not drinking out) in November and lost an easy 5 lbs, even though I was drinking a lot more than usual to compensate for my lack of eating indulgences. This month I feel like I am the other way around - eating like crap and not drinking, and I'm about the same weight since Christmas. I guess I know what really affects my weight - although drinking obviously has other affects that make me feel like garbage if I overdo it. ;)
The last two years my dry January ended on Super Bowl Sunday. Doubt I will make it that far this year. I'm in Iowa, and am already planning on a post-caucus drink next Monday in order to celebrate an end to a constant barrage of political ads in the last several months. Gah.
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Full disclosure: I quit dry January a week early. My goal was to...
- Lower my tolerance so that I can have 1-2 drinks only and be perfectly satisfied (check)
- Get used to turning down free drinks (check)
- Save money (check)
- Feel healthier (FAIL)
Other than feeling healthier and losing weight, I accomplished what I wanted to in 3 weeks of soberness. Due to pulling my lower back and getting free food at work, I ate restaurant food way more and worked out way less than anticipated. Not drinking didn't make me feel any healthier.
I had exactly 2 drinks this weekend, and it was great. I didn't want any more than that. So even though I quit a week early, I feel pretty successful. I feel confident that I can cut back to minimal drinking from here on.
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am already planning on a post-caucus drink next Monday in order to celebrate an end to a constant barrage of political ads in the last several months. Gah.
And this is why I plan on extending my dry January indefinitely. Not that I'm picking on you MoustacheKnittah, but I hate that I have been conditioned to have a beer in order to feel like it is a proper celebration or to hang out and have a good time with friends. I HATE the feeling of being conditioned, which I was. Advertising is so much more powerful that people give it credit for, I mean companies don't spend billions of dollars on it because it doesn't work.
It was the main reason I stopped drinking coffee as well, I just felt like I needed it to be productive or to be able to start the day. If I keep this up i'll be the old grumpy guy at a birthday party that refuses cake because it's mandatory, hahaha. But seriously I have my own issues with added sugars.
/end rant.
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I'm game for doing this in February. The rare 29 day challenge.
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Still going here. Will continue into Dry February as well as I am not missing drinking.
One thing that has helped has been making non-alcoholic cocktails. We get so used to having a drink in the evening, so it becomes a habit. So now I make up a drink with fruit juice and tonic or similar and haven't missed the alcohol.
The major thing that I have noticed is how my lack of drinking is sitting so poorly with others. There have been a lot of negative comments from people, almost as if they feel like I am judging them or have signed up to the No Fun Brigade. I am just as social as always and don't comment on what others are drinking, so I don't really understand why it bothers people so much!
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I haven't had a drink since New Year's. As the late great Stuart Scott used to say, booyah. I feel SO much better.
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am already planning on a post-caucus drink next Monday in order to celebrate an end to a constant barrage of political ads in the last several months. Gah.
And this is why I plan on extending my dry January indefinitely. Not that I'm picking on you MoustacheKnittah, but I hate that I have been conditioned to have a beer in order to feel like it is a proper celebration or to hang out and have a good time with friends. I HATE the feeling of being conditioned, which I was. Advertising is so much more powerful that people give it credit for, I mean companies don't spend billions of dollars on it because it doesn't work.
It was the main reason I stopped drinking coffee as well, I just felt like I needed it to be productive or to be able to start the day. If I keep this up i'll be the old grumpy guy at a birthday party that refuses cake because it's mandatory, hahaha. But seriously I have my own issues with added sugars.
/end rant.
That was a big motivator for me in giving up alcohol and coffee, too. It was much easier than I thought to give them up, although I still have the very occasional cup of coffee.
I will never give up added sugar, though. Back off.
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Still going strong.
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The major thing that I have noticed is how my lack of drinking is sitting so poorly with others. There have been a lot of negative comments from people, almost as if they feel like I am judging them or have signed up to the No Fun Brigade. I am just as social as always and don't comment on what others are drinking, so I don't really understand why it bothers people so much!
It's because your personal choices feel like a direct attack on them due to their personal choices. My wife if always telling me that when people hear that we don't eat bread or pasta they start interrogating her quite aggressively.
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I will never give up added sugar, though. Back off.
Haha, just to be clear I have my issues with added sugar, but I still like sweets. Especially sweets from childhood, we were somewhat deprived, raised in third world country, no money and all that.
My issues specifically is before it was pretty obvious what had added sugar, but now it's in things you would never think of, bread, chicken, and ketchup for crying out loud.
As for your the dry January, I went out last night where I normally had a beer or cocktail. I have to admit the temptation was strong but I went with my tonic and line, which took way my craving and just let me have fun.
Anyone else extending this dry January to February?
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Anyone else extending this dry January to February?
Me!
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OP here. Well, I did it. I think I'm going to go one more week with my first drink possibly coming this Sunday, but who knows. I really don't feel much *desire* to drink, but there are just certain occasions or meals where it would be nice. Like tonight when a foot of snow piles up on the ground.
Overall, I'm really glad I did a Dry January and was pleased to see just how easy it actually was for me.
Things I noticed:
-The "Just have a drink" or "Are you seriously doing that?" comments only lasted about a week, then people completely stopped asking me about it.
-Saying no to free wine, beer, etc was surprisingly easy. I turned down at least 6 opportunities to have free drinks.
-I definitely slept better, woke up more refreshed and felt healthier and more energetic all-around.
-I lost 4 lbs over the course of the month. It's hard to say whether this is due to cutting out drinking or me working out a little more.
-I saved approx $40 this month not drinking if you count the "happy hours" I went to, buy didn't buy a drink.
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OP here. Well, I did it. I think I'm going to go one more week with my first drink possibly coming this Sunday, but who knows. I really don't feel much *desire* to drink, but there are just certain occasions or meals where it would be nice. Like tonight when a foot of snow piles up on the ground.
Overall, I'm really glad I did a Dry January and was pleased to see just how easy it actually was for me.
Things I noticed:
-The "Just have a drink" or "Are you seriously doing that?" comments only lasted about a week, then people completely stopped asking me about it.
-Saying no to free wine, beer, etc was surprisingly easy. I turned down at least 6 opportunities to have free drinks.
-I definitely slept better, woke up more refreshed and felt healthier and more energetic all-around.
-I lost 4 lbs over the course of the month. It's hard to say whether this is due to cutting out drinking or me working out a little more.
-I saved approx $40 this month not drinking if you count the "happy hours" I went to, buy didn't buy a drink.
Congrats!
I caved in on Friday. It wasn't a very good week. I only spent $17 on alcohol this month and did not go out at all.
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I'm not going to officially avoid alcohol any further, but due to severe calorie cutting, I probably won't go back to drinking as often as I was before the challenge. I didn't miss it much.
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I managed to stick to my plan of cutting way back. I went complete dry for 2.5 weeks as well. I'm happy with it and will continue it in February.
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Started 18th January and will finish 4 weeks dry on Valentine's Day as we will go out for a meal. It was not difficult, thankfully, and not sure what I will take out of it but will probably cut way back on days I take a drink, i.e. dry Mon-Fri unless an occasion.
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Worked good so far. I didn't try to go cold turkey, just cut way back.
As a result, I've now had about 50% of my days the last few weeks when I didn't drink anything. Wahoo! This is an accomplishment for me, after so many years of always drinking 2-3 drinks per day and going to bed with a good buzz.
I still get to drink on occasion, but now it's a special treat. The whiskey bottle I got at Christmas is still half full and I haven't bought any bottles of beer yet this year! (My wife has, and I've snuck a few of hers, but haven't got any yet myself!)
Benefits:
- More productive (and like someone else said, weekends last longer!)
- Waking up is WAY easier now, even after way too little sleep (sometimes I only get 3-4 hours to catch an early flight for work)
- Replaced drinking habit with exercise (lifting weights)... now I am hooked on my new weight lifting habit. Cool!
- I have more money! $10/week for a 12-pack adds up fast.
Really like where this is going. I am beginning to feel like I did in my late teens/early 20s, before I started drinking a lot. Onward, hope we all can keep this up!
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Dry February is booking along at day 11. I have also reduced coffee (nothing after 730 a.m.).