WAYY too much alcohol

fasyle

Thanks everyone. It's so great to see the kind of support people with all kinds of questionable habits can get on MFP! I like the no alcohol in the house rule. It think that, at least, will help me see if cutting way back or quitting completely is an option for me, or if I find myself going crazy for a drink. At that point, I will know I need more help.

But as far as the weight loss part is concerned, I know that drinking that many calories has to mean I'm not eating enough to meet macro goals. OK--cold turkey until I'm at least half way there, then special occasions only! That's my new mini-goal......

Best of luck to you!!
Coming from someone who definitely isn't addicted and has never gone through any kind of alcohol withdrawal - I know that for me if I drink even just 1-2 beers that the next day my workout suffers. I can practically feel the alcohol weighing down my muscles. When you feel tempted by the booze think about how much better you've been feeling not having it! That helps me anyways.
Rooting for you

colors_fade

Have any of you MFP's seen alcohol as being a barrier to your weight loss? What did you do? When did you have to admit to family that it's a problem for you?

At times it's been a source of excess calories for me, and all excess calories hinder my weight loss. What has helped me has been tracking, and changing the way I think about food, and adding exercise. I no longer cut foods or beverages out of my diet, I just moderate. I definitely consume less alcohol than I did earlier this year.

I'm not always perfect with it, but I prefer moderation to elimination. Eliminating foods or beverages from my diet is something that has never worked for me. I don't like the restriction, and I don't like the way it messes with my mood and attitude. When I first joined this site, one of the things I read, which jived with my own thinking about weight loss, was: Don't give up anything you're not willing to give up for the rest of your life.

I often have days where I don't drink, and those are days that really help maintain my calorie deficit for the week. However, my wife and I love to have drinks with dinner, or after dinner when we're winding down for the evening watching a show on TV. So I quite often partake. Sometimes I can moderate nicely - one beer after dinner, or one glass of wine, or one Fireball, sticking within my calorie budget.

Social occasions are something completely different. My wife and I have a philosophy: someone invites you to their place to break bread, you break bread with them. We eat the food and drink the drinks. No guilt. Social events are to be enjoyed, so we enjoy them. I never get drunk at such events, but I do enjoy myself.

I'm never perfect, and I don't expect myself to be. Last night was a prime example. I worked out hard yesterday and had a couple walks to get my 10K steps, and earned a lot of excess calories for the day. We're big fans of "Hell on Wheels" and I just realized season 4 had already started. We downloaded the first episodes off Amazon and started watching. Well hell, gotta have some Fireball if we're watching "Hell on Wheels", right? I went a little overboard, but it was fun. And I still had a (small) deficit when all the tracking was done. I would have had a really awesome deficit without the Fireballs, but I'm not going to feel guilt over that, or beat myself up about it. This is life. I enjoyed every sip.

Bottom line is that you have to figure out what works for you. Moderation works for me. If I couldn't maintain a calorie deficit and continue to lose weight each week, I'd cut back on it more. The weight loss is more important to me. But right now I feel like I have a pretty good balance going. I enjoy my foods and drinks, and am losing. Win-Win.

gelendestrasse

The one way to check your ability to stop with alcohol is to do just that - stop. If you can. If you can't then get help from your group of choice.

I cut my beer back to one or two a week and lost 10 more pounds. It will definitely help your weight because you loose the carbs and the munchies.

It's probably your best path right now. I'd go for it.

Oh, and the one thing is that this is like squeezing a balloon. You give up the Jack's and start on the ice cream. Be careful and get support. Add me as a friend if you want to.

lisahenneberry83

I agree:)

horseswinelife

You are speaking to my heart! I also have the same issue but with wine and am working very hard to stop! I wish you all the luck!!!

holly_wendelin

I have similar issues. I don't drink every night, and generally only on the weekend, but when I do, it is 4-6 drinks. 4 drinks really puts me into that drunk place where I'm going to have a hangover.

So this is what I did to help myself:

Get all of the booze out of your house. Do not buy any more, and do not allow your husband or other family members to bring it home.

Don't drink ANY alcohol for 30 days. Just 30 days. If people ask about it, tell them it is a health and fitness plan you are on.

If you are unable to remain sober for 30 days, then you do need to find help. Not everybody who drinks this much has a problem with quitting, but a lot of people do.

After the 30 days, don't go back to your old ways. Still do not allow alcohol in the house but have a drink if you go out to dinner or to a party or whatever.

I hope this helps, I did 30 days and was surprised by how easy it was (I thought I was going to need help).

Mistapholeezkat

Can you update us with your success or failures? I am interested to see how well you do.

farfromthetree

Boy, this was so me a year ago. I could not lose weight and always kind of knew alcohol was to blame. Our neighborhood is big on the happy hours and this would carry over to my weekdays. I began a diabetic medication a year ago which made alcohol repulsive to me. The weight came off finally.( I also ate less) But, it really showed me how much I was drinking on a daily basis. I often wondered if in fact I had a drinking problem. Looking back I know it was a really bad habit. I still drink but limit how much in a sitting. I try and not drink during the week and do not keep alcohol in the house.
When I was drinking on a daily basis, I would also wake with a bit of a headache. I was basically functioning every day with a hangover. Just wait until you see how great you feel when you stop waking up this way. I jump out of bed now with energy, and I feel well rested. Many of my friends are going through what you are talking about. Life is busy and stressful but drinking every day is counterproductive in handling the stress and busy lifestyle. Best of luck to you!

sengalissa

Full disclosure here, I've never told anyone that this is a problem for me, not even family. I come from a family where a cocktail every night after dinner for my parents was the norm and drinking at ALL social occasions was expected. I was a light social drinker for most of the time my kids were growing up, with occasional binges that I always regretted (hangovers suck!). Around the time my youngest was 16-17, I began to be more of a drink or two every night before bed. Over the next 5 years that gradually increased to this point where I'm having 5-6 drinks (Jack Daniels is my poison of choice) every night. Sometimes I don't know how I make myself get up and get to work every morning because my head hurts. But I do. I have a great job and would never think of drinking during the work day.

I've gained 30lbs over those 5 years, from eating bad and all the booze. After coming to MFP about 3 weeks ago I've been aggressively tracking my calories in, and am getting exercise 4-5 time a week. I can plainly see now (and this was easy to ignore when not tracking) that every night I drink as many calories as I'm eating in 2 meals.

I know that to stop, I just have to stop. I don't think when you get this far down the road that moderation is an option, at least not at first. Almost all my friends and family have beer or wine or alcohol whenever we're together so I usually lose all willpower at social functions.

Have any of you MFP's seen alcohol as being a barrier to your weight loss? What did you do? When did you have to admit to family that it's a problem for you?

I have never had that problem, though I did like beer and cocktails a lot when I was a student. However, it showed on my hips! I had to be abstinent while pregnant (6 times), so it was easy for me to stop for a good reason.
Back to you, I think there is a perfect social excuse to not drink, which are the calories. Tell everyone that you have to decline the drink because it has too many calories ("Oh, no, thank you. I am tracking my calorie intake - and did you know how many calories this has?!"). That way, you don't have to talk about alcoholism or anything. Since you were able to stop according to your update, I don't think you are addicted which is great!
Be GRATEFUL that your weight loss plan will limit your drinking in passing as well! In a few weeks, you will feel like a new person!

bubblesl40

It's wonderful to read the support and positive comments coming to you. I also want to give you my support. Unfortunately, I have the ugly side of too much alcohol. My husband died last year due to alcoholic cirrohosis, he was only 46 years old. He enjoyed whiskey and Sun Drop daily, drinking whole bottles in a day. After he died I went into some weird different reality and stayed drunk for about 3 weeks (wake up to pass out drunk). Then I woke up one day and realized this crap took my husband from me in a long, ugly disease process. Moderation is the key. I have to agree with the others that if you can't have just a couple drinks occasionally then it's best to just leave it out. Best wishes to you

AddieOverhaul

I have recently been "re-evaluating my relationship" with alcohol as well. I don't drink a lot; sometimes I will go a couple of weeks without a single drink. And I can do the glass of wine or a beer here and there. BUT - if I get together with a group of friends at the pub or a BBQ and people are drinking I usually end up binge drinking. And I'm talking like 8-15 drinks here not 4-6. And sometimes that leads to day-after regrets! Not just because of hangovers but because of things I said or bad decisions made. My friends don't think it's a problem because they say nothing I have done or said is really that bad, but I have shared information I wish I didn't, and I have done a few things I regret. My friends do it too, but that doesn't mean I should be okay with it.

I do like drinking though, but seem to have an issue stopping if I go past three or four. So, I am giving up alcohol for 30 days starting on the 15th, and then after that I will try to not go past 4 drinks maximum at social gatherings. I'm going to see how that goes. If I can't do it, then I will know maybe I need to stop completely. I had issues with drugs when I was much younger, and alcoholism is in my family on both sides, so I need to be careful.

Best of luck to you, and me, and everyone else who needs it!

castlerobber

Around the time my youngest was 16-17, I began to be more of a drink or two every night before bed. Over the next 5 years that gradually increased to this point where I'm having 5-6 drinks (Jack Daniels is my poison of choice) every night. Sometimes I don't know how I make myself get up and get to work every morning because my head hurts.

Yeah...5 or 6 drinks a night, every night, is a problem, and not just because of the calories. That can't be good for your liver, either.

You mention that your drinking increased as your last child was getting old enough to leave home. Is there something going on that you need to work through...empty nest, relationship problems, whatever? (You don't have to tell it here, obviously.)

I agree with the folks who have suggested AA or professional assistance. Best of luck to you. :flowerforyou:

tulips_and_tea

I have recently been "re-evaluating my relationship" with alcohol as well. I don't drink a lot; sometimes I will go a couple of weeks without a single drink. And I can do the glass of wine or a beer here and there. BUT - if I get together with a group of friends at the pub or a BBQ and people are drinking I usually end up binge drinking. And I'm talking like 8-15 drinks here not 4-6. And sometimes that leads to day-after regrets! Not just because of hangovers but because of things I said or bad decisions made. My friends don't think it's a problem because they say nothing I have done or said is really that bad, but I have shared information I wish I didn't, and I have done a few things I regret. My friends do it too, but that doesn't mean I should be okay with it.

I do like drinking though, but seem to have an issue stopping if I go past three or four. So, I am giving up alcohol for 30 days starting on the 15th, and then after that I will try to not go past 4 drinks maximum at social gatherings. I'm going to see how that goes. If I can't do it, then I will know maybe I need to stop completely. I had issues with drugs when I was much younger, and alcoholism is in my family on both sides, so I need to be careful.

Best of luck to you, and me, and everyone else who needs it!

You are very smart! You know your triggers, are aware of your limits, and don't want to repeat bad behavior. You are on the right track and I think your plan is very good. Good luck!
IMHO, this is where "pride" is a good thing. For me, personally, I decided that I had too much pride in myself to drink too much to where I embarrassed myself. I've tried to instill that in my kids, also, but as you mentioned, friends act that way and don't criticize you for doing it, so it's hard to stop and draw the line. I get it. But you'll get past this and figure out what works for you.

AddieOverhaul

I have recently been "re-evaluating my relationship" with alcohol as well. I don't drink a lot; sometimes I will go a couple of weeks without a single drink. And I can do the glass of wine or a beer here and there. BUT - if I get together with a group of friends at the pub or a BBQ and people are drinking I usually end up binge drinking. And I'm talking like 8-15 drinks here not 4-6. And sometimes that leads to day-after regrets! Not just because of hangovers but because of things I said or bad decisions made. My friends don't think it's a problem because they say nothing I have done or said is really that bad, but I have shared information I wish I didn't, and I have done a few things I regret. My friends do it too, but that doesn't mean I should be okay with it.

I do like drinking though, but seem to have an issue stopping if I go past three or four. So, I am giving up alcohol for 30 days starting on the 15th, and then after that I will try to not go past 4 drinks maximum at social gatherings. I'm going to see how that goes. If I can't do it, then I will know maybe I need to stop completely. I had issues with drugs when I was much younger, and alcoholism is in my family on both sides, so I need to be careful.

Best of luck to you, and me, and everyone else who needs it!

You are very smart! You know your triggers, are aware of your limits, and don't want to repeat bad behavior. You are on the right track and I think your plan is very good. Good luck!
IMHO, this is where "pride" is a good thing. For me, personally, I decided that I had too much pride in myself to drink too much to where I embarrassed myself. I've tried to instill that in my kids, also, but as you mentioned, friends act that way and don't criticize you for doing it, so it's hard to stop and draw the line. I get it. But you'll get past this and figure out what works for you.

Thank you so much! I've done quite a bit of growing up the last few years and I'm really analyzing the choices I make and habits I have. I appreciate the encouraging words!

marko320

This is a great thread. Perhaps I need to reevaluate my addictions.

DamePiglet

I drink ALL THE BOOZE!

Also...

FitOldMomma

I know alcohol calories can be a problem for some people trying to lose weight. I'm glad I never took up drinking alcohol; mainly because I like food too much.
But seriously-coming from a family with a lot of addicts (drugs and alcohol), I know that if you are even suspicious you may have a problem with your drinking- you should heed your own intuition.

Someone I know who has been on Weight Watcher's for a few years recently told me that her love of evening wine has been a hindrance to her success. She simply isn't willing to forgo 2-3 glasses of wine and drinking that many of her daily 'points' leaves her too hungry. I suppose it a choice everyone has to make for themselves.

Good luck.

lisawinning4losing

You and me both sister. I can drink 500+ calories like nothing. I have two birthday parties to go to this week but I'm starting a 30 day no alcohol challenge on Sept. 14. Anyone who wants to join me can feel free to send a friend request.

FrankWorsley

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1405871-living-with-an-alcoholic

GertrudeHorse

Have any of you MFP's seen alcohol as being a barrier to your weight loss? What did you do? When did you have to admit to family that it's a problem for you?

I would agree with previous suggestions that you should get assistance with your drinking.

To answer your question, alcohol has been a problem for me, but never specifically a problem in terms of weight loss. I gave up drinking entirely because I started to realise the harm it was doing to me and my relationships. I regret nothing. One of the best decisions I ever made. There's no shame. Do what you need to do to look after yourself and live the best life you can.