Anyone else gone off alcohol?

farway

I used to have at least a couple of daily pints in the pub, stopped 1st Jan [New Year resolution], it was a struggle at first, but my appetite & general feeling better, plus my sleep patten has much improved, and lost weight over the same time

So, for me it has worked, and I can now go into pub and have a coffee whilst having same chats I used to have holding a pint

arrseegee

I drink far less now than I did a year ago before I started losing weight. I used to have 3 beers a night, now it might be three a week. once is started really looking at the calories I decided it wasn't worth it, and I feel much better for it.

SteveJWatson

Just for "balance" - I started losing way before MFP - went from 17st 8 to 11st 10, drinking every Friday and sometimes Saturday too.

It can be done, just allow for you drink calories. That said, 2000Cals/day is a pretty drastic cut for me.

SunofaBeach14

I quit drinking years ago.

I used to be a fat drunk.

Now, I'm a fat ex-drunk.

:drinker:

^ This sums it up nicely.

All joking aside, the reality is that you can lose weight while drinking in moderation. That said, I'd never encourage someone to keep drinking if they didn't want to. And cutting back is almost always a good thing.

FiresongUK

I'm having real problems with alcohol. Not like alcoholic type problems, just the pressure on me to drink often. It's never been a problem before I started counting calories but now I realise they've made up a big part of excess calories over the years. Go out to the pub? Friends buy you a drink. Friday night in with the boyfriend? Bottle of wine to celebrate the weekend. I don't enjoy myself as much if I don't have a drink anyway, because I'll be the sober one amongst loads of energetic drunk people and I just wanna go home. If it's with my boyfriend then he'll say I've got to have at least one otherwise he'd be drinking alone. Then there's my sister who every now and then will come round with a bottle of wine, and my dad who will bring me a few cans of cider in from the shop on a weekend when he comes up to visit. Alcohol is just everywhere for me and a lot of the time I feel obliged to drink and make merry or else be boring.

CiCi924

I usually only drink a few drinks every other weekend, nothing major mostly low-calorie mixed drinks at home. But I used to drink every weekend probably slightly heavier than that, so I haven't eliminated it completely but I've definitely cut back.

willowcat2005

In the past I was lucky and able to drink quite heavily and it didn't effect me at all! But when I started my diet it was easy to cut out drink in favour of foods and as my diet went on I found that I was less able to handle my alcohol so i cut back even further and as I was reaching my target weight I started to have the occasional drink as a treat. I don't worry about alcohol and calorie content anymore as I've turned into such a lightweight and now I can only handle one drink! So my attitude has completely changed and that's probably not a bad thing!

tonibrindisi

9 years ago! so I don't worry about booze anymore. And soda. So I drink only herbal teal, or black, and use stevia to sweeten. But I used to drink, exercise daily and diet and for the most part I was good. But as I got older I found I had to watch everything and giving up booze was something I did for my personal journey in life, and cigarettes, so as we age we give up things that may not be that great for us. If you limit yourself to a few drinks per week it should work for you....anymore than that you should look at if you are drinking too much. Personally, I'd rather have a small plate of nachos!

QS82

I haven't drunk alcohol for a couple of months although it's not really because of dieting but rather that i've moved to a new area where I don't know many people yet and my partner is away for months so I don't want to be drinking empty calories on my own. :bigsmile:

Having said that though I don't miss it at all and I have found weight loss relatively easy whereas I have found it harder with drink in the past because drink tends to make me feel like snacking, plus I don't miss feeling groggy in the morning! I've never been a big drinker but when I do start again I intend to keep it to weekends only and cut the midweek bottles of beer that used to feature at times. I also exercise 5 to 6 days a week now and I don't think I could manage it if I felt hungover. :noway:

rachelamber_x

I'm not really a big drinker so it isn't an issue for me. I think the last time I drank was new years eve, but I don't really know.
I prefer to eat my calories
That doesn't mean no high calorie drinks, but if its a choice between hot chocolate and alcohol, I'm going for the hot chocolate every time!!

charlicee

The fact I am limiting my alcohol, going low cal and low carb, is upsetting several of my friends, because when I visit they often invite me to a glass at their place. Granted, I am not much of a drinker, even social drinker, because I have always had a low tolerance, even though I have been allowed to drink since I was 14. I may have some moscato or a sweet Riesling with my dinner on the blue moon occasion, or try a shot of some new vodka or whiskey, but I also prefer to eat my calories, not drink them away.

iseanu3

I just started MFP and am struggling with this as well. I usually drink every 2-3 nights and I tried counting the calories but I got too loopy and stopped. I really enjoy my drinks but I don't want to weigh what I do now. I think about quitting but that sounds so boring. I am 45 and I only STARTED drinking 3 years ago. There have been a lot of good things said on this topic but I could use more. Please help me figure this out as well...

hmg90

I'm having real problems with alcohol. Not like alcoholic type problems, just the pressure on me to drink often. It's never been a problem before I started counting calories but now I realise they've made up a big part of excess calories over the years. Go out to the pub? Friends buy you a drink. Friday night in with the boyfriend? Bottle of wine to celebrate the weekend. I don't enjoy myself as much if I don't have a drink anyway, because I'll be the sober one amongst loads of energetic drunk people and I just wanna go home. If it's with my boyfriend then he'll say I've got to have at least one otherwise he'd be drinking alone. Then there's my sister who every now and then will come round with a bottle of wine, and my dad who will bring me a few cans of cider in from the shop on a weekend when he comes up to visit. Alcohol is just everywhere for me and a lot of the time I feel obliged to drink and make merry or else be boring.

I'm the same as this...
I grew up with parents having a glass of red wine for dinner, my teenage years was spent in France where rose wine with lunch was pretty common. Even now at 23, I like to relax with a Gin tonic after a rough day.
I feel like since the alcohol is a big problem I come across as an alcoholic or something, but compared to most college students I don't actually drink that much - I never get flat out drunk or black out like some do. But I do enjoy getting tipsy and it's pretty much always part of a night out, whether it's clubbing or just a drink with a girlfriend.

I don't see going cold turkey as possible long term. I have a date in about a week in a nice restaurant and I'll probably have wine with dinner. I think one or two days per week should be fine if I work it in and am still at 1200 the other days. But I just find that it slows my metabolism sooo much... So if I can I will try to not drink anything at all on most days. Curious to see how the weight loss goes from now on.

GeordieRover

Drinking is a comfort habit perhaps,one trick that is helping me is to pour zero sugar lemonade into a pint glass with approx 200 ml of beer at most.
You still get the beer buzz but consume much less alcohol.
Basically a shandy with no sugar.

neanderthin

I didn't move to wine Country to stop drinking it.

Melmade

Yes and no. My husband & I are usually regular drinkers. We go through periods of drinking more and less. My weight doesn't take a hit with drinking as long as I'm working out regularly. I can still log and not really count the alcohol calories and lose weight, as long as I'm working out. Otherwise, I gain and feel poorly. When I do drink, however, it's dry wine or vodka soda with lemon--not high-calorie, sugar-laden drinks. When I go out for drinks with friends I try to always have a pint glass of water or soda water between each drink.

hmg90

Well that was a promise that went down the drain..I suppose next time I'll start my dry month with NO gin in the freezer.

tigerblue

I just budget calories for special occaisions, date nights, or meals out. Most of the time I would rather eat my calories, and over indulging in alcohol has never been a problem for me. The local donut shop in my neighborhood is next door to a liquor store. I always say I have a much bigger problem with the donut shop! But there are certain meals with which I like a glass of wine, and I do like a margarita with my chips and salsa when we go out for Mexican. And I always log the calories.

I guess what I am saying is that as long as too much alcohol is not a problem for you, then perhaps you need to consider what will be a lifelong sustainable plan for you. Because you are not going to be on a diet forever! So learn to manage it now, and include it in your calorie allowance occaisionally.

Just my 2 cents worth!

Florawanda

It's really a matter of whether I want to spend 2-300 cals on something that not only gives me less resistance to chockies, etc. but OR to have a filling pudding or snack. Most of the time its a no-brainer. However, we have always made Saturday special, with a bottle of wine between us, and where it used to be half and half, I now tend to have one and a bit glasses, and make sure I have been to the gym or been out for a walk to earn that treat! Occasionally I might have a half pint of beer, but I can make it last for ever - ditto an orange juice.
If you have an event coming up where wine/ drinks, is served, try to plan and visualise yourself refusing a drink, etc. Or try to think of a strategy that will avoid you being pushed to have another drink. Eg offer to pass round the nibbles - you can't hold a glass as well as two plates of nibbles!!
Good luck!

writergeek313

I haven't been able to drink since December of 2012, when I started taking a medication that doesn't mix with alcohol. I hated it at first, since I was an avid craft beer drinker, but I adjusted pretty quickly. My health and well-being are more important to me. The two biggest changes I've noticed is that I sleep a lot better and that I've found healthier ways to deal with stress.

LB30

I've been trying to give it up for the time being. I love beer. Especially good, craft beer. I have always leaned toward binge drinker, but up until about 2 years ago, it never mattered. I only drank if my husband and I went out somewhere. With little kids, that was rare. I never drank at home, and we usually never even had beer in our fridge. Once we found a love for craft beer, we started buying it. And, since we no longer have a babysitter, we mostly enjoy beer at home. At first, it was only on a Friday or Saturday night. Then I started enjoying one or two during the week. I started supplementing with Yuengling Lite because it is low calorie and low alcohol, but I was just drinking more of them. When I realized I was drinking 'a few' multiple times a week, coupled with chasing the same 2 lbs for more than a month, I decided beer needs to mostly go. I had none during the week, last week. I even skipped a work-related happy hour to avoid it. I indulged on Friday night (high calorie craft brews, of course, so I was way over my daily cals), but I have abstained the rest of the weekend. Its a start. I do like sleeping better and feeling more alert in the morning. I was down those 2 lbs as of Friday. I'll weigh again next friday, and hopefully they won't be back and I'll be down a little bit more.

ebayaddict0127

For the most part, I have. I was drinking every day for awhile before I started dieting. Now I'm down to once every other Saturday. So far so good. I do miss wine so much.

girlpaint

I was a 4-6 pints-per-week drinker for years (and mind you, those were Imperial pints, mostly), and I've basically given up alcohol. That helped immensely with the weight loss I must say. I thought it would be really hard because I LOVED beer, but personally, it wasn't that hard at all.

I definitely miss drinking way less than I like looking in the mirror and being happy with what I see.

KatherinesRiver

A while back I was into Tequila. It felt good at the time. Got me into major trouble too. I had the help of a friend who literally locked me in my room for days. I dried out. This was years ago and the addictive tendencies run in my family. I have not had a drink since. No drugs. Just food issues which I am now dealing with.

Stay away from Tequila. Like the song says.

Katherine

stealthbob

I don't miss it, first week (6th jan) I was so bored at night I would go to bed early! I used to drink a few glasses of wine a night, my stomach is defiantly going ( lost 5inches in January) but I'm putting that down to diet and gym 3x week .

So true...bed early has been a weird reaction to my cutting out beer drinking. It is after all the reason why I shot up to 454 lbs, not hard when you average 4-6 a night.

Dec 31 2013 was my last any drink...31 pounds later its a no brainer. I am going on Disney cruise with my family in March, plan on a couple then...next time my annual fishing trip in May. I think if I hold it to these special events then it wont hurt my progress overall.

dudehitscar

I'm off it. I'm a regular drinker and I'm really not struggling with it much. I gave up alcohol for long periods of time when I lived in Saudi Arabia too.

I look forward to going into bulking phases so I can enjoy a craft beer without guilt.

WhyLime113

I've never been a big drinker, so I don't see much point. I figure it can't hurt me if I already do it so rarely (usually I go months without it, and when I 'stock up' I don't have it more than every few weeks). I've started using wine in cooking though, just as I started eating better, and still been losing weight and feeling good. So it's not that alcohol is bad. It's just important to keep it in moderation. If you can't do that then I do think it's good to cut it out.

That said, if you cut it out, then reintroduce it, you may gain a lot of the 'beer belly' back. If you don't want to cut it out forever, maybe instead teach yourself to take it in moderation
Also, I highly recommend upping your caloric intake! 1200 is too low for most people. Unless your doctor or nutritionist is telling you to eat that low, you're probably better off eating at least 1400. To which you may be able to fit in an occasional drink!

MSWDiet

I CAN'T DRINK & LOOSE WEIGHT; NEVER COULD. TO MAINTAIN MY WEIGHT LOSS I'VE CUT MY ALCOHOL USE WAY DOWN ALTHOUGH I'M NOT EVEN A WEEKLY DRINKER. IT JUST DOES NOT WORK FOR ME EVEN IF MY TOTAL CALORIES ARE UNDER CONTROL.

NOT DRINKING NEVER STOPS ME FROM GOING OUT. I CAN'T LET THAT HAPPEN BECAUSE I'M ON A DIET FOR LIFE. WHEN DIETING I NEED MORE SOCIAL ACTIVITY. I HAVE A REPUTATION FOR ORDERING BOTTLED WATER AT BARS (TIP LIKE YOU'RE DRINKING, STAFF DEPEND ON IT).

FORTUNATELY FOR ME I FIND IT ITS EASIEST TO PASS WHEN I'M OUT. MY WORST TEMPTATION BE IT FOOD OR ALCOHOL ARE AT HOME. THIS THREAD KEPT ME FROM A NIGHT CAP TONIGHT, THANKS!


I'M NOT YELLING AT YOU I'M HARD OF SEEING. ;-)
.

BeckyGee84

I'm going to try to cut way down starting this week. I really blew it this past weekend because of a stressful Thursday. I had a few margaritas. Then on Friday, a friend came over whom I haven't seen in a long time so we drank a lot. Then yesterday I didn't feel like exercising and went way over my calorie goal for the day. So starting this week I'm going to try to drink only once every other week. My bf wanted me to drink with him today but I didn't. It would be a lot easier if he was willing to cut down too.

Llamapants86

I don't like to drink my calories so I tend to stay away from it, and it doesn't really fit into my lifestyle right now anyway. I still go out on occasion, but I get to have fun, remember it and not feel like **** the next day.