Less alcohol- February 2018- one day at a time
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kcn2bluesky wrote: »JulieAL1969 wrote: »I'm in. ... but .... Can someone help me though. I used to enjoy one glass of wine each evening to wind down, or maybe a cold beer on a warmer night, now that I have stopped that (like in the last few weeks or so), I seem to crave chocolate at the end of the day - this is a new thing. Is it because my body was used to sugar at the end of the day? The chocolate craving is what I am struggling with atm. So tonight I had a mandarin after dinner - like it was super sweet and juicy, then I brushed my teeth so I won't want choc.
It has seemed to work for today. Anyone else experience anything like this?
OH yes! Many of us are seeming to crave chocolate or sweets. I've been dipping a spoon into peanut butter and decorating it with chocolate chips!! Several people on this thread mentioned that since alcohol is a sugar and we are cutting it out, our body is craving it. Having an assortment of tea around helps curb craving. Or let yourself have a little chocolate anyway. I love mandarins. That was a great idea!
@eminater @JulieAL1969 Julie is absolutely correct about many people craving sweets after going alcohol-free! I'm in that boat as well. I am not generally big on eating desserts, but I have felt like I need something sweet pretty much every day since the first week of January. At first I didn't really think much about it, but then as my dry weeks passed, I noticed I was literally craving something sweet every single day. I read somewhere online about the connection with craving sweet foods after stopping alcohol and that has been confirmed by so many others in this thread. I've allowed myself the luxury of having a dessert of some kind every day and just going with it for now. I'm not going crazy with the desserts, though, as I am in maintenance with my weight and I'd very much like to keep it that way.
Dessert ideas that have really helped (& satisfied!) me these past 5 weeks:
- an orange from the tree in my backyard
- sugar free pudding in a mini graham cracker crust (my favorite lately is banana cream pudding, and you can purchase the little pre-made graham cracker crusts. quick and easy sweet treat)
- plain Fage greek yogurt, sliced banana, unsweetened coconut flakes, semi-sweet chocolate chips
- plain Fage greek yogurt, fresh blueberries, an ounce of blueberry Bear Naked granola, honey
- a homemade chocolate chip + glass of almond milk
Hope those ideas help!
Karen
Great ideas, Karen! These were creative ideas!1 -
@WinoGelato Happy you enjoyed the first one. And as for the second, you realized it was doing nothing for you. Takes strength to pour it down the sink. Have a fun night! Enjoy !1
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@eminater Yum! Pancakes sound good! I guess no eggs in them? You must be a good cook!
@runtodayamyrun Day 3 - yahoo! Keep it going, my friend!
@Sabine_Stroehm I think you should count it Day 5!!!3 -
@robinacasey Teamwork is a wonderful thing!
@Stepping18 Really on a roll with your weight loss! Calories saved not drinking.
@NormInv Chik-Fil-A is really the best of the fast foods. I believe it's real chicken:). My son is such a frequent customer , he has a special gold or platinum card they gave to him.
@bdbchick Yes, I've been tempted too. I used to enjoy going to eat and drink by myself with my ipad as company. It was me time. Recently, I did go to a cute little bar alone and just had club soda but good food and relaxation. I have to break the connection between relaxing and dining out and alcohol. Seems youre doing very well!4 -
islandbeez wrote: »jenifer7teen wrote: »
I might be one of the heaviest alcoholics in this thread (averaged close to a bottle of wine six days a week). But i work out 1-2 hours a day and have such a high tolerance that weaning down like this (vs. Abstaining) seems to be the only way i can succeed.
Good luck everyone. Reading these posts (from january) helped me stay focused and i am sure i will need them this month too.
Oh, heavens, not the heaviest by a long shot! My job was part time, so that means I had several days a week worry free so I just drank all day. Day 15 here, and there is no way for me to moderate, so I will have to be an abstainer. I agree about making that glass of tea and heading to bed feeling victorious, I love that so much more than stumbling down the hall to collapse in my bed. Every post has been helpful to me, I appreciate these threads so much. I did not have the courage or desire to make a change up til now.
So true! Jenifer and many of us drank some serious amounts. That's why this thread is so good; it makes us see we are not alone, an anomaly. Xo
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I like the way you think!JulieAL1969 wrote: »@eminater Yum! Pancakes sound good! I guess no eggs in them? You must be a good cook!
@runtodayamyrun Day 3 - yahoo! Keep it going, my friend!
@Sabine_Stroehm I think you should count it Day 5!!!
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Is anyone else drinking non-alcoholic beer on their non-drinking days? they are less calories but have a smidgeon of alcohol in them. I like Clausthaler or Bucklers. I only have one a night but it helps me break the wine every night habit. Thoughts?2
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robinacasey wrote: »Is anyone else drinking non-alcoholic beer on their non-drinking days? they are less calories but have a smidgeon of alcohol in them. I like Clausthaler or Bucklers. I only have one a night but it helps me break the wine every night habit. Thoughts?
I looked to see if BevMo had any craft NA beers the other day and they didn’t. I don’t drink them - but I was thinking if I found a NA beer I like it would be awesome to have on hand for the summer when we like to sit outside and bbq3 -
I'm in, trying to stay clean during my bday in a few days.4
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SanDiegofitmom wrote: »robinacasey wrote: »Is anyone else drinking non-alcoholic beer on their non-drinking days? they are less calories but have a smidgeon of alcohol in them. I like Clausthaler or Bucklers. I only have one a night but it helps me break the wine every night habit. Thoughts?
I looked to see if BevMo had any craft NA beers the other day and they didn’t. I don’t drink them - but I was thinking if I found a NA beer I like it would be awesome to have on hand for the summer when we like to sit outside and bbq
They aren't craft beers but Clausthaler and Bucklers are way better than the old time NA beers. Many grocery stores carry them. I'm not a big beer drinker (but my husband is really into craft beers) but I pour it in my wine glass just for fun.3 -
Okay. Let's give it a shot.3
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I cut out alcohol since Jan 13th except for one day. I’m down six pounds. I’ve replaced with hot tea in the evening when I would have had wine. I still fight cravings at times but am seeing the benefit of clearer head in the morning and weight loss.
I had been at weight plateau for months with food tracking and exercise, staying within calorie goal. I’m amazed that I could stop alcohol and break through that plateau, even when replacing those calories with real food like Greek yogurt or almond milk. Definitely has shown me that my body does not process alcohol like it did when I was younger.7 -
Sheesh, that is ridiculous. If anybody shoulda been sneering it was you. You are being super strong and pursuing your health goals and nobody should be condescending toward you. But I think it will prob be a valuable lesson in life: not caring what other people think of your drinking, but also your possessions, your home, your job, your car, your choice of friends . . . you get the idea. Rock on! You're doing great.Last night I went out to tea and took some of my own drink ( with the alcohol removed) and when i was asked what i was drinking i told them it was non alcoholic etc.. and they sneered at me.
I went to a beer-heavy festival yesterday with my husband and had one glass of Chard. It was delicious and I enjoyed having a drink with him. But that was it. I'll prob do one glass again today during Super Bowl, but I don't feel any need to have more. Going to go back to being dry tomorrow - Thurs.
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Me too @kittybenn - actually looking forward to the dry week
I finally get the stitches out of my leg tomorrow - 2.5 weeks of an infection and antibiotics. And a cold on top of that. 
I am ready to work out again! We are having friends over for the super bowl. I’m planning on one glass of wine or one beer and that’s it! Good luck and have fun today all! 3 -
@WinoGelato - WTG n that wine dumping! Also, great tea suggestions, thanks! Somebody here recommended putting a Polar or some other type of club soda in a wine glass with a little fruit, I think it was. That sounded like a great idea for the "second glass of wine." Something about drinking it out of a wine glass would satisfy me, I think. Gonna try it!WinoGelato wrote: »Happy to report I’m typing this after dumping the second half of that glass and making myself a tea. I need to pick up some new tea tomorrow at the store - remind me what everyone has been enjoying?2 -
Hi @robinacasey, I have been dry since Jan 1 but I have had some NA beers occasionally. There have been some that I have really enjoyed (Super Bock Black Label, Krombacher, Erdinger), and I have found it helpful to sip on one of these some evenings, rather than tea or water etc.2
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Hi @robinacasey, I have been dry since Jan 1 but I have had some NA beers occasionally. There have been some that I have really enjoyed (Super Bock Black Label, Krombacher, Erdinger), and I have found it helpful to sip on one of these some evenings, rather than tea or water etc.
Thanks for these suggestions. Good for you for going over a month w/o drinking!1 -
One local tea shop has a few I want to try: (all decaf) Chocolate Monkey=chocolate banana, Lotta Colada=pina colada like, bourbon vanilla = caramel and vanilla, and Casa Blanca=strawberry raspberry!!
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@robinacasey, thanks, this thread has helped a lot!2
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