Giving up Alcohol

Anyone else giving up alcohol as part of their plan? I'd love some support. I have been cutting drastically back as that's my only source of extra calories, but man, do I miss that glass or two of wine at the end of the day when the kids have been crazy!
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Replies

  • SchroederNJ
    SchroederNJ Posts: 208 Member
    I'm trying to cut back (esp. on the beer) but not necessarily quit all the way ... I had a glass of wine last nite but I logged it
  • seansquared
    seansquared Posts: 328 Member
    Haven't had more than a sip of wine in the last 79 days as a tasting, spit it out when done.

    So yes, and it's easy, just remove it from the house and stop buying it. Try another stress relief method for dealing with kids\work\family\etc. I suggest pushups! :smile:
  • BeLightYear
    BeLightYear Posts: 1,550 Member
    edited July 2015
    Nope, I just workout more to earn my after work beer :mrgreen: and I have lost 25 pounds so far this year.
  • RMSchmidt17
    RMSchmidt17 Posts: 30 Member
    seansquared- lovely idea but my husband decidedly is not joining me in giving it up and we have (no joke) a 1,000 bottle wine cellar. But good point on avoiding having it around- I will lock it and have him keep the key. It's hard not to join him and it's hard socially when people invite you out for drinks. I will say that the fact that I'm running early every morning is a good deterrent. Much easier to run at 6am when you've slept well and are hydrated....
  • nknjansen
    nknjansen Posts: 33 Member
    I feel so much better after giving it up.

    I'm not entirely inflexible, but I wil only drink on very special occasions and if it has been preplanned.

    For example, I went out for my friends milestone birthday ths weekend which included drinking and dancing. But the fact that I was so sluggish and awful feeling the day after even thought I didn't get "drunk" reafirmed that I made the right choice.

    There is nothing wrong with enjoying a non alcoholic drink when out with friends :-)
  • serenity1097
    serenity1097 Posts: 135 Member
    This has been a huge hurdle for me...I've been trying to "cut back" but I'm beginning to think that I just need to cut it out completely. I've always been an all or nothing kinda girl, and that doesn't sit well with opening a bottle of wine & only having one glass :/
  • hbrittingham
    hbrittingham Posts: 2,518 Member
    I didn't give it up the first time I lost 40 lbs here on MFP. I did give it up on January 1st of this year. I will say that working out is so much easier when you actually are eating your calories rather than drinking them, at least for me. I figured that I was actually only eating about 900 calories a day when I was drinking. I much prefer eating those extra 400 calories! And I sleep better, too.
  • MickyMo
    MickyMo Posts: 48 Member
    I am a rum and coke fan and I have not had any as part of my diet for 49 days. It wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. I think it was more of a habit than anything. Now I'm to the point where I don't want the extra empty calories. I have tried cutting back in the past but I'm finding giving it up completely, at least until August when I go see Kid Rock, is the better route to go. It's kind of nice waking up with a clear head on the weekends!!
  • Lonestar5775
    Lonestar5775 Posts: 740 Member
    I never drank so did not have to give it up but I did completely cut out sweets which was my weakness. After reaching goal and maintaining for 6 months I gradually began adding some back in and now enjoy sweets again but with full control to keep me within my calorie allowance. I hope you are able to reach a similar place.
  • MickyMo
    MickyMo Posts: 48 Member
    P.S. I am a single Mom right now and have 5 kids (15, 13, 13, 10, 10) so trust me when I say, I know what you mean about kids acting "crazy."
  • Soopatt
    Soopatt Posts: 563 Member
    It is just not worth the calories so I hardly drink any more. I had one night of drinking in 4 months and I went completely overboard. It almost doubled my calories for the day and I struggled to get my eating on track the next day too as I felt terrible and wanted to eat everything greasy I could lay my hands on.

    My strategy involves avoiding situations where others drink and where this is not possible, drinking sparkling water out of a wine glass so that people leave me alone ;)
  • edack72
    edack72 Posts: 173 Member
    I gave up alcohol completely January 8th 2015 and not for weight reasons it was ruining my life and I won't bore you with those details but I dropped almost 30lbs like nothing and I can say I don't miss it at all
  • punkrockgoth
    punkrockgoth Posts: 534 Member
    I don't particularly enjoy alcohol, but unfortunately it is a part of being social. I try to avoid it as much as I can by avoiding situations where alcohol is the activity. It's not as bad if I'm out at a dinner party or something where there are a few people not drinking and it's about the food and company vs going to a pub or bar where you're there to drink.

    But it's still hard because choices in pub situations suck. So you could have a non alcoholic drink, like a soda or juice and still be drinking your calories while getting death glares from the bar staff, or you could triple your calories sharing nachos with your friends or some other form of high fat/sodium/processed pub food. Or you could be the person at the bar drinking water. Sitting there with your drunk friends one of whom will giggle and say "you're not drinking? Haha, you're pregnant?" every single time thinking they're clever and original.

    I avoid the bar at all costs. But it wasn't really my favourite place to go before starting to lose weight.
  • arabianhorselover
    arabianhorselover Posts: 1,488 Member
    edack72 wrote: »
    I gave up alcohol completely January 8th 2015 and not for weight reasons it was ruining my life and I won't bore you with those details but I dropped almost 30lbs like nothing and I can say I don't miss it at all


    Good for you.

  • biodigit
    biodigit Posts: 145 Member
    edited July 2015
    I actually had alcohol last night for the first time in close to a year - regret making that decision. Only had two beers and never wanna touch it again.
  • biodigit
    biodigit Posts: 145 Member
    Soopatt wrote: »
    It is just not worth the calories so I hardly drink any more. I had one night of drinking in 4 months and I went completely overboard. It almost doubled my calories for the day and I struggled to get my eating on track the next day too as I felt terrible and wanted to eat everything greasy I could lay my hands on.

    My strategy involves avoiding situations where others drink and where this is not possible, drinking sparkling water out of a wine glass so that people leave me alone ;)

    couldn't agree more. So many calories, and they're just going to waste - no nutrition benefits whatsoever. I had to sacrifice my protein (and some carbs) intake so I could make some room for it.
  • kcn2bluesky
    kcn2bluesky Posts: 187 Member
    Drinking wine is more of a habit for me than anything else. Hubby and I have already given up all alcohol during the week, and only have a few drinks on the weekend. I'm thinking of giving it up entirely for awhile though. I am only 6 pounds from my goal weight, I've been adding a lot of strength training to my workouts, and the wine is just extra calories that would be better used with actual food.
  • netster5000
    netster5000 Posts: 1 Member
    I have been going for 2 nights of light drinking a week - it affords you some flexibility and makes you prioritize when you'd really like to enjoy a glass of wine or two, rather than including it with dinner all of the time. It's been a good rule of thumb for me and has helped me lose 10 lbs so far.
  • mericose
    mericose Posts: 70 Member
    Glad you posted this today! I was just about to post something similar as I am hoping to meet others who are cutting back / quitting. Feel free to add me :)
  • gobonas99
    gobonas99 Posts: 1,049 Member
    I don't particularly enjoy alcohol, but unfortunately it is a part of being social.

    this is SO not true. I rarely drink....maybe 4-5 times a year, tops. However, I socialize with friends often.

    It does somewhat come down to the types of people you're friends with - a lot of my friends are fellow triathletes, so we're much more likely to get together and go for a bike ride, or meet at the beach and swim, than to go out to a bar. I can count on one had the number of times I've been to a bar (as in a place that serves alcohol and isn't also a restaurant) in the past 5 years. And even those few times I've been to a bar, I just drink soda or water. I've never been given a "death glare" by anyone (granted, if my soda is $1.50, I usually tip $1.50, because that's about what my tip would have been if I were getting a $6-7 drink). I've also NEVER had anyone comment on my drink choice (but again, that goes back to the types of people you're friends with....