Someone tell me to stop drinking ...

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buffalogal42
buffalogal42 Posts: 374 Member
in Motivation and Support
I have been doing well on my weight loss and fitness journey ... down almost 100 lbs and a heck of a lot stronger. However, I have "stalled" but I know at least some of the reason. I let alcohol back in. Before I really buckled down in about June, I drank 2-3 drinks a night ... more on weekends. Vodka and a no calorie mixer. When I started really using MFP, I never cut out alcohol completely but I stopped drinking Mon-Thurs and would limit myself to 2 per day on weekends (alternating with sparkling water), plus I started tracking and accounting for the calories in my allowance. That seemed to work. But things got stressful at work and in life and I find my drink count sneaking back up. I am eating less "real" food to compensate ... and honestly I am not a snacker when I drink. Alcohol kills my appetite. I never drink to excess (getting drunk) but I know the calories aren't helping.

Just need a few people to smack some sense into me again, apparently.

Replies

  • itsalifestylenotadiet
    itsalifestylenotadiet Posts: 120 Member
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    Does my children's father at the age of 49 for one whole week dying from alcohol help any? You are the only one who can kick some sense into yourself. Think of your family, friends, children/grandchildren if you have any, and what they go through and what you put yourself through. Sorry, i'm really not seeming supportive although I am. You and only you can change what goes to your lips. Be strong, go to AA and commit to YOU, so you can be the best you can for yourself.
  • dejavuohlala
    dejavuohlala Posts: 1,821 Member
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    As above.
  • buffalogal42
    buffalogal42 Posts: 374 Member
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    Weirdly enough, that's not the direction I expected that to go. I am very sorry about the loss of your children's father. That is never easy.

    I don't drink to get drunk ... I don't drink and drive. My drinking doesn't affect my job, my money or my hubby (no kids) ... mostly it is the extra few hundred calories at a crack that I am concerned about and had cut out for some time. I guess realistically, though, I drink more than I want to, so I do have to kick some more sense into myself.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    itsalifestylenotadiet wrote: »
    Does my children's father at the age of 49 for one whole week dying from alcohol help any? You are the only one who can kick some sense into yourself. Think of your family, friends, children/grandchildren if you have any, and what they go through and what you put yourself through. Sorry, i'm really not seeming supportive although I am. You and only you can change what goes to your lips. Be strong, go to AA and commit to YOU, so you can be the best you can for yourself.

    Yep, all of this
  • JustMissTracy
    JustMissTracy Posts: 6,339 Member
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    buffalogal42 wrote: »
    Weirdly enough, that's not the direction I expected that to go. I am very sorry about the loss of your children's father. That is never easy.

    I don't drink to get drunk ... I don't drink and drive. My drinking doesn't affect my job, my money or my hubby (no kids) ... mostly it is the extra few hundred calories at a crack that I am concerned about and had cut out for some time. I guess realistically, though, I drink more than I want to, so I do have to kick some more sense into myself.

    Only you can make the change. I understand tho!
  • itsalifestylenotadiet
    itsalifestylenotadiet Posts: 120 Member
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    buffalogal42 wrote: »
    Weirdly enough, that's not the direction I expected that to go. I am very sorry about the loss of your children's father. That is never easy.

    I don't drink to get drunk ... I don't drink and drive. My drinking doesn't affect my job, my money or my hubby (no kids) ... mostly it is the extra few hundred calories at a crack that I am concerned about and had cut out for some time. I guess realistically, though, I drink more than I want to, so I do have to kick some more sense into myself.

    He didn't drink to get drunk either. He still died because of the alcohol he consumed and not from a car accident. Liver cancer is what it progressed too and knew for 8 years he was dying but wouldn't quit drinking for anyone, not even himself. Btw, he drank screw drivers the last 10 years of his life. Thought he could mask the smell from all of us but didn't care to realize that we all knew anyway. You have taken the first step which is "admitting" you drink too much which was something he wouldn't do. You are damaging your liver every time you take a drink and basically pickling your insides. This site is very informative on the issues related to drinking in excess. http://www.liverfoundation.org/abouttheliver/info/alcohol/
  • StepWise123
    StepWise123 Posts: 180 Member
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    I know exactly what you mean. You don't have to be an alcoholic for drinking to undermine your goals. It only has to be a bad habit to be dealt with. I love my wine but it's the same situation. So I just don't buy it and have found that after a while the habit has faded away. I try to think of how much money I save ... and it's enough money to join a gym and buy organic food.
  • JeromeBarry1
    JeromeBarry1 Posts: 10,182 Member
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    @buffalogal42, The only good reason for you to drink alcohol is a reason that you want to believe in. So, ask yourself to examine your best reason to drink and try to defend it.

    Maybe you've got a very good reason to want to drink. State it. Defend it against your rational life and health interest in losing weight and consuming nutritious foods.

    If your best reason to drink is better than your life and health, knock yourself out.
  • harley2424
    harley2424 Posts: 7 Member
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    The best way to resist the temptation is to not have it in your home. And, to make up your mind that you and only you can decide not to drink. After all, it's a crutch for something in your life that needs to be addressed. Do a root cause analysis on yourself and honestly come up with the unlying cause of your drinking. Then, once you determine the cause, you can admister the cure. Good luck on your journey to a better life for yourself.
  • 25lbsorbust
    25lbsorbust Posts: 225 Member
    edited November 2016
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    I agree with harley2424! I'm a beer gal. If I have beer in my home, I will drink a few bottles a week. Which may not seem a lot, but when you're losing .5-1lb a week, it can destroy my deficit. Ugh.

    My s/o and I didn't drink it when it wasn't around for an entire month. If we wanted a drink, we had to go out to the bar and spend like $6 a beer, which we weren't gonna do. It was an entirely sober month as a result! Don't have it in the house, apartment, whatever. Get it gone. Then figure out why you're drinking so often (for me it was culture/boredom/tastes good), and find something to replace it with! I really like carbonated waters, like Topo Chico, and diet sodas.

    Good luck :smile:
  • French_Peasant
    French_Peasant Posts: 1,639 Member
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    @cwolfman13 That was beautifully written. Good luck in your quest!
  • buffalogal42
    buffalogal42 Posts: 374 Member
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    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    @buffalogal42

    I'm going to come at this from a bit of a different angle than fear mongering or just saying "don't do it." I myself have been a habitual drinker for years. I was a bartender for years in school and drinks after work was what we did...that carried over into my professional career and was one of the major players in my gaining weight in the first place.

    I've been at this whole wellness thing for over four years now and I can tell you what has worked for me in every aspect of this adventure has been baby steps and being a realist in terms of knowing I'm not going to do a 180* overnight.

    In all honesty, my drinking is basically my "final frontier" where my health and wellness are concerned...it's been on the back burner for years and has recently come to the forefront and a habit that I'm finally in the right mindset to start addressing...i.e. I'm ready.

    I mentioned baby steps before and for me, that's cutting out completely my weekday drinking (which you did at one time)...I started doing that in early/mid November and have also cut back on my weekend drinking. Initially it felt a bit awkward as I was just habitually accustomed to coming home and poring myself a drink...and then another and another. A couple of things helped me early on...one was to simply acknowledge that "normal" people didn't treat every night like a Friday night and the other was to start exercising in the evening when I got home. Really, after a few weeks it wasn't a big deal and I for the most part stopped having those thoughts on the drive home of popping a cold one.

    I know a lot of people would just say, "why not just quit then?" Well, for me that's where being a realist comes in...I knew I was going to partake over Thanksgiving...I have a holiday party coming this weekend and another in a couple of weeks and then Christmas and New Years. For me, at this point, my baby steps of not drinking during the week and moderating my weekends is "good enough". I've also switched primarily to wine when I do drink...it's not my preferred beverage and thus I can nurse a few glasses of wine without much problem at social functions...whereas if I drink beer or bourbon, I can just put 'em down without thinking much about it.

    I have a go forward plan in January to go the entire month without alcohol...all of our social events will be behind us and I can then focus on the task at hand more enthusiastically. I have a buddy that did this and one month turned into two...turned into three...turned into six...turned into he hasn't had a drop in years.

    I know that ultimately alcohol has impeded to some extent my fitness and health goals. I did drop weight while drinking and ultimately achieved a healthy BF%, but I couldn't get to where I truly wanted to be...and I know it impacts my cycling and lifting. I'm looking forward to, at minimum, what a substantially diminished intake can help me accomplish.

    Good luck...

    Thanks for that. I guess I think more along your lines. There are lots of threads here about "can I have a beer or wine or alcohol and lose weight" and most don't turn into "you're an alcoholic" ... I am not one. I typically do 2 sober months a year as part of an office challenge ... and had been doing fine on no weekday drinking for quite some time until I let life stress push me a little. Not good, I know, but not out of control. I honestly don't plan on quitting altogether ... I like wine and I like vodka ... but I just need to get back to what works for me which is being more mindful about it - a nice glass of wine once in a while with dinner vs. having a cocktail just because I am bored or stressed.

    I do appreciate all viewpoints and thank people for sharing.
  • courtneyfabulous
    courtneyfabulous Posts: 1,863 Member
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    Stop drinking.
  • buffalogal42
    buffalogal42 Posts: 374 Member
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    courtneyfabulous wrote: »
    Stop drinking.

    Perfect! Thanks! ;-)
  • Lazz5k
    Lazz5k Posts: 251 Member
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    buffalogal42 wrote: »
    Weirdly enough, that's not the direction I expected that to go. I am very sorry about the loss of your children's father. That is never easy.

    I don't drink to get drunk ... I don't drink and drive. My drinking doesn't affect my job, my money or my hubby (no kids) ... mostly it is the extra few hundred calories at a crack that I am concerned about and had cut out for some time. I guess realistically, though, I drink more than I want to, so I do have to kick some more sense into myself.

    BTW you handled that BEAUTIFULLY!
  • Lukas_DAV
    Lukas_DAV Posts: 16 Member
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    stop drinking one day you normally would. the next day you say I did it yesterday, I will not do it today and tomorrow I will also resist.
  • VeryKatie
    VeryKatie Posts: 5,933 Member
    edited April 2017
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    I think the reason people are taking in the AA direction is it sounds like you are using alcohol as a vice for something - in your case - stress. To your liver, having 7 drinks in one day is the same as 7 drinks over a week. And you were up at 2-3 per day (and maybe slowing working your way back up there?), so it is still dangerous.

    And I am by no means calling you an alcoholic! I'm not qualified in the least to do so. But it doesn't hurt to have the "check" in your mind or to talk to a doctor about it to make sure (and if you feel uncomfortable talking to a doctor... that might be a sign). And you may never have to cut it out completely. But my advice would be to stop drinking because you're stressed and go back to either a moderate/light schedule or reserve it for more special events (every Saturday can be a 1 or 2 drink special event).

    People love their alcohol, justifying it in any way (oh it has "good for my heart" anti-oxidants, oh it's just one a day, etc.) but all alcohol is toxic, so it's best to be careful (what use is a heart if your liver is dead after all). If you find yourself unable to resist that drink because of stress, it's a good time to talk to someone about it, before it gets worse. Even if it doesn't get worse, it's still risky. Unfortunately you can never know how your body will handle it until it's either too late or you're super old lol.

    Not all alcoholics drink to get drunk or get drunk at all. And there are lots of high functioning alcoholics where the drinking doesn't affect their lifestyle (job, family, driving, etc). However, the dangers are still there.

    ETA: AW MAN the post is old. Bah. I NEVER seem to notice that.
  • kschwab0203
    kschwab0203 Posts: 610 Member
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    I just noticed this is an older post, but I'm gonna put my two sense in anyway...

    After my divorce and during the time when I met my fiance, drinking was a VERY regular past time (about 5 out of 7 days). It is without a doubt one of the reasons I gained 25lbs in the last 4 years.

    Somewhere along the way, we decided to stop drinking every night ( the hangovers get worse in your 30's lol). 5 days became 4 days and 4 days became 3 days. I can tell a huge difference.

    I sleep better when I don't drink, I am not as hungry the next day, and I am way more focused.

    I'm being honest when I say that I enjoy drinking and have no plans to quit all together. I am ok with drinking a few glasses of wine on a Wednesday night as long as I can fit it into my calorie limit.





  • 3rdof7sisters
    3rdof7sisters Posts: 486 Member
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    I can certainly understand the mindset, and totally empathize with you.
    I have never been a big drinker, and now, since MFP, even less. I don't want to waste one calorie on beverages either alcohol or non. Water is pretty much it for me, with occasional diet pop. Substitute food for the liquor, and that is me. I get way more satisfaction from chewing food. You have done amazing with your weight loss, if you really set your mind to it, you could probably do it with alcohol as well, if that is what you really want! Good luck!

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