Less Alcohol - January 2019 - One Day at a Time

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  • Sub4_2018
    Sub4_2018 Posts: 52 Member
    kittybenn wrote: »
    Sub4_2018 wrote: »
    I wasn't very present the first couple hours because I was "negotiating" with myself in my head

    Oh wow, I could not have described this better. You're sitting there looking around at everyone else with a glass in front of them, and your mind is buzzing. Boy, do I get it. Congrats to you for resisting, and all I can say as a veteran of last year's Dry January, is that it will get easier.

    @kittybenn Yes exactly! My mind was racing and it wasn't until (after two hours) when I finally said to myself "you are not drinking tonight" that I was able to quiet those thoughts somewhat. Thank you so much; I'm so glad to hear it gets easier!
  • MonkeyMel21
    MonkeyMel21 Posts: 2,396 Member
    anmille8 wrote: »
    MonkeyMel21 wrote: »
    springsweet wrote: »
    Does anyone else feel extremely tired? I cannot wake up this morning. This could be from a number of reasons but I was just curious if anyone here felt similar?

    Yesterday, for seemingly no reason I was exhausted. I slept an average of 8.5 hours every night last week/weekend and barely even left the house. I was just bone tired.

    My husband was sick over the holidays that partly included feeling run down and tired so I'm still watching out for that but even today I don't necessarily feel sick so I don't know.

    I was super tired saturday I think it was a result of working out a lot and eating less calories due to starting to track my body just wanted to rest I guess that is why rest days are important but I feel pretty normal today.

    That's the same for me, just started tracking calories again and working out, though that's only been 30-50 minutes walking on a treadmill so I didn't think it was too much, lol. I don't feel tired at all today!
  • MileHigh4Wheeler
    MileHigh4Wheeler Posts: 67 Member
    I'm not an alcoholic, but cut out all alcohol a long time ago (except for the VERY occasional glass of wine for a special occasion) because it just undoes so much of what I worked hard to achieve.

    That being said, I'm pretty sure I may have a drinking problem because sometimes when I am drinking from my big gym water bottle I spill it over the front of my shirt. I'm working on this but so far every group meeting says I'm not qualified for them.
  • RockinMBC
    RockinMBC Posts: 48 Member
    So here we are Day 7 and still AF for the month so far. Been fighting small urges by taking time out to make and drink a cup of hot tea. Easy to do because it’s so friggin’ cold out. Have an outdoor nighttime concert to shoot photos at on Wednesday - it’ll be 42 degrees! Ugh - that’ll be rough without some alcohol in my system to ward off the cold. Wish me luck!
  • springsweet
    springsweet Posts: 184 Member
    kittybenn wrote: »
    @springsweet - the one I'm using is the Try Dry app and, yes, it's in pounds! I just convert here if I need the info down to the penny, but one pound is a bit more than $1, so even just knowing pounds is pretty close. I get an email from them every morning, which I like.

    And, yes, I felt tired this morning. Just weird, not hungover. I had to push myself to get out of bed at 6:15, which is rare for me.

    I have to push myself to get out of bed most every morning. But I was sleepy and dragging even by 10 or 11 am. Not sure why.
  • springsweet
    springsweet Posts: 184 Member
    Sub4_2018 wrote: »
    Post-weekend check in! My husband and I were planning on having a low-key weekend at home, but we got invited to a party on Saturday night that he really wanted to go to. I managed to stay dry, but it was harder than I thought it would be. I wasn't very present the first couple hours because I was "negotiating" with myself in my head with things like, "maybe you can just have one and nurse it," or "just wait until you get home and then you can have a drink." It took a good couple hours before I felt fine sitting there, but I ended up having a great time and am proud that I was able to stick to it.

    Happy Monday, everyone!

    This past weekend, I told my hubby that I'm perfectly fine with staying home the whole month of January if that meant less temptations. Because I'm not trying to make this a permanent change, just temporary for the month of January. It would be completely different if I were trying to make a permanent life change I think.
    Does anyone else agree? Or disagree?

    I just want to lose a good chunk of weight, that's all. That's the only reason I'm not drinking.
  • lin_be
    lin_be Posts: 393 Member
    springsweet wrote: »
    Sub4_2018 wrote: »
    Post-weekend check in! My husband and I were planning on having a low-key weekend at home, but we got invited to a party on Saturday night that he really wanted to go to. I managed to stay dry, but it was harder than I thought it would be. I wasn't very present the first couple hours because I was "negotiating" with myself in my head with things like, "maybe you can just have one and nurse it," or "just wait until you get home and then you can have a drink." It took a good couple hours before I felt fine sitting there, but I ended up having a great time and am proud that I was able to stick to it.

    Happy Monday, everyone!

    This past weekend, I told my hubby that I'm perfectly fine with staying home the whole month of January if that meant less temptations. Because I'm not trying to make this a permanent change, just temporary for the month of January. It would be completely different if I were trying to make a permanent life change I think.
    Does anyone else agree? Or disagree?

    I just want to lose a good chunk of weight, that's all. That's the only reason I'm not drinking.

    I think that it’s good to address the temptations instead of avoid them. What will happen when you lose the chunk of weight and then go out but you haven’t learned how to resist or cope with the situation? You might just fall back into those bad habits.
  • dawnbgethealthy
    dawnbgethealthy Posts: 7,927 Member
    [Happy Monday, everyone![/quote]

    This past weekend, I told my hubby that I'm perfectly fine with staying home the whole month of January if that meant less temptations. Because I'm not trying to make this a permanent change, just temporary for the month of January. It would be completely different if I were trying to make a permanent life change I think.
    Does anyone else agree? Or disagree?

    I just want to lose a good chunk of weight, that's all. That's the only reason I'm not drinking. [/quote]

    Yes, me too Springsweet.
    My primary goal on cutting down on alcohol consumption is weight loss.
    I still plan on going to wine tastings, making fabulous Mojitos when my mint comes up in the summer, having the odd hot chocolate with peppermint schnapps in the winter.
    When I started Oct 27.18 on MFP I had fallen into the habit of having a few drinks every evening after work. I was surprised to see when I decided to change, that the first few days were actually very hard! I think that I am now settling in nicely to adding AF days to each month.
    I think that you choosing to go a month AF will reset your patterns. I applaud you, good job! Whatever you have to do to attain that goal is personal to you. If that means not going out then so be it.
    Avoiding temptation sounds like a good plan if it works for you.
    I avoid eating in restaurants more now that I am being conscious of my calories for example. Lol, if I am spending money and going out I would want something good to eat. Not too mention everything is so salty, and so many more calories than the exact same thing that one could make at home. I avoid high calories by cooking for myself.
  • dawnbgethealthy
    dawnbgethealthy Posts: 7,927 Member
    HeatherT929 wrote: »
    My daughter (16) is having academic troubles in school. I’m waiting to meet with her teachers. I have so much anxiety building up over this and other problems she’s going through. Really good kid but a troubled spirit right now. Normally I would go home and have a few glasses of wine to come down from this. I’m going to try very hard not to do that. I’m on a great streak this month and want to be strong through this. ❤️

    Best of luck with that. Yes, wine is relaxing, maybe you will find a really nice tea that can offer you something : - )
  • SallyLuvsFitness
    SallyLuvsFitness Posts: 13,724 Member
    You can do it! I hope the talk goes well and is helpful for both. It is amazing what triggers us from old habits. Tonight we are watching the National College football game. First time in a really long time having no wine while watching football! Here is to hot tea!
  • looneycatblue
    looneycatblue Posts: 1,489 Member
    MileHigh4Wheeler wrote: »
    I'm not an alcoholic, but cut out all alcohol a long time ago (except for the VERY occasional glass of wine for a special occasion) because it just undoes so much of what I worked hard to achieve.

    That being said, I'm pretty sure I may have a drinking problem because sometimes when I am drinking from my big gym water bottle I spill it over the front of my shirt. I'm working on this but so far every group meeting says I'm not qualified for them.

    Where is the LOL button! Too Funny!
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    edited January 2019
    Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »
    Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »
    I missed this thread. Thanks @kittybenn for pointing me toward it. I'm also doing a dry January. I have weight loss and fitness goals (post menopause!) that I suspect this will help with. And, in a post meno world I need to see what sleeping is like if I regularly abstain completely. I suspect even one glass of wine affects my sleep now.

    Thanks for having this thread.

    Six days done. So far so good.
    School (work) starts tomorrow. So I'm sure I'll be wishing for an after work glass of wine.
    But, the scale is ticking downward, so that's motivating me!

    7 days done.
    (copied from the other thread):
    A friend and teacher of mine suggested when we set goals we ask three questions (she got this from a Ted talk):
    1. Can I do it.
    2. will the outcome be what I want
    3. is it worth it.

    Regarding my dry January: I can do this, in fact so far it's not hard, just taking some mindfulness. Will the outcome be what I want? I hope so. I hope it will lead to 4-5Lbs loss as I am also dieting to lose some meno-pounds. Is it worth it? ABSOLUTELY.
  • dawnbgethealthy
    dawnbgethealthy Posts: 7,927 Member
    My aim is regulation. I am not doing "dry January", but good for all of you that are!
    Having this thread keeps me accountable.
    I'm not really into deprivation, just trying to be more moderate with food and alcohol.
    My primary reason for AF days is weight loss. Once alcohol is in our bodies our liver concentrates on only that and not on metabolising fat or anything else. Also, being puffy is not ideal : - )
    My goal is 4 - 5 AF days per week.
    I was 16 day AF out of 30 for December, not counting the 31st. Up until October 27th.18 I was having drinks every single day. I have cut back for sure.
    I do plan to have champagne NYE.

    December 31st - 1 pumpkin spice cream liqueur, 2 mixed drinks. I did not get to the champagne.
    January 1st - AF
    January 2nd - AF
    January 3rd - AF
    January 4th - 3 drinks Friday night. I actually had 4, but then threw up lol. This is the reason that I never have more than 3 if I choose to have drinks. Good reminder. Yes, I can never be "drunk" because I can't have more than 3.
    January 5th - AF So curious that each and every day that I have drinks I am down 2 pounds the following day. I think that I read somewhere on this post that it dehydrates you. It comes back the next day of course : - )
    I don't log my AF or not AF until the following morning for the night before.
    January 6th - AF - 5 days out of 6. Very busy week, so more AF days to come.
    January 7th - AF - 6 day out of 7 for the month
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  • htimpaired
    htimpaired Posts: 1,404 Member
    I am trying to reduce my drinking, cause calories. Not to mention all the bad habits that come with my consumption. I am starting with a Dry January and then seeing how I feel at the end. I did have one drink on the 2nd, was out to dinner with my bf and his parents. Had one drink, was fine with it. My hope would be that in the future having that one drink would be enough. My pattern is to have the one drink-like the little buzz I get from it, and then want to keep going. Especially with hard ciders-that's a moderation nightmare for me. I dream of a day when I can just sip one and enjoy it and that be it! Saturdays are the worst-my habit was to drink heavily and eat all the foods that are unhealthy and isolate myself, because the bf is at work all day. I almost caved this past Saturday. But we committed to losing weight together this year, so I texted him that I needed help, and he encouraged me to stick with it, and I am very glad that I did.

    I'm using the Dry Days app. I had another one that was giving motivational quotes each morning but it was geared more for sobriety, not moderation.
  • springsweet
    springsweet Posts: 184 Member
    edited January 2019
    lin_be wrote: »
    springsweet wrote: »
    Sub4_2018 wrote: »
    Post-weekend check in! My husband and I were planning on having a low-key weekend at home, but we got invited to a party on Saturday night that he really wanted to go to. I managed to stay dry, but it was harder than I thought it would be. I wasn't very present the first couple hours because I was "negotiating" with myself in my head with things like, "maybe you can just have one and nurse it," or "just wait until you get home and then you can have a drink." It took a good couple hours before I felt fine sitting there, but I ended up having a great time and am proud that I was able to stick to it.

    Happy Monday, everyone!

    This past weekend, I told my hubby that I'm perfectly fine with staying home the whole month of January if that meant less temptations. Because I'm not trying to make this a permanent change, just temporary for the month of January. It would be completely different if I were trying to make a permanent life change I think.
    Does anyone else agree? Or disagree?

    I just want to lose a good chunk of weight, that's all. That's the only reason I'm not drinking.

    I think that it’s good to address the temptations instead of avoid them. What will happen when you lose the chunk of weight and then go out but you haven’t learned how to resist or cope with the situation? You might just fall back into those bad habits.

    I'm not really worrying about what Feb will be like. I'm just taking this one day at a time. I'm addressing too many other personal challenges while cutting out alcohol right now (Intermittent fasting every day, cutting out dairy to improve my skin) to worry about Feb. If staying home makes this one challenge easier on me, I think it's a good move on my part.
    Besides, I don't really go out anymore anyway so I'm not missing much!

    Oh, day 6 AF here! :smiley:
  • kittybenn
    kittybenn Posts: 444 Member
    @springsweet - all good thoughts! I think success breeds success (not an original thought). It's very empowering to even be able to say that you've done this for one week. You start thinking that if you can do this, what else can you do? Day 8 of Dry January is here for me. So far so good. I must say, knowing that my blood alcohol levels are pristine when I'm driving is a real gift.
  • kittybenn
    kittybenn Posts: 444 Member
    From the Dry January message du jour this morning (for all of us having weird sleep patterns): "You might find that you’re not sleeping well or having crazy dreams. Some people start to crave sugar. Rest assured, this is normal."

    Ah yes, the sugar. I'm finding that the only way I can get a grip on this is to measure out the few little sweet things I'm having today and put them in a little plastic container. When they're gone, they're gone. Today's goodies are a few Haribo bears, two dark chocolate Hershey's Kisses and a few Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Crisps. I try to leave them for after dinner when we're watching tv, but occasionally dip in a bit earlier.
  • SallyLuvsFitness
    SallyLuvsFitness Posts: 13,724 Member
    HeatherT929 wrote: »
    I think @Lilylady3k nailed it with “Appreciating the accountability and lack of judgement in this thread.” This is a safe pace and I appreciate it so much. I’m finding this to be a very helpful outlet when for various reasons, one being that it’s great to know I’m not alone. So much of what everyone writes out here resonates with me. I’m not going dry, but I am cutting way back. Haven’t had a drink since New Year’s Eve and that’s great for me. (I was drinking 2 glasses of wine almost every night, and three is my max so that was a lot. More than I wanted but couldn’t break the habit. It’s been like this for a long time.) I’ve decided I want to save the vino for times I go out with friends and keep it out of the house. So far so good. I feel really good about this change and hope it will soon become my regular lifestyle. I’m off to a good start for me.

    I am so happy for you and your choices. This is the longest I have gone not having my few glasses of wine (or three, I know how to pour). I feel great in the morning and loving my hot tea at night. Like last night while I was preparing dinner a glass of wine sounded great. Until, I thought about dry January, being accountable and how great I have felt in the mornings. I also want to save my wine for going out with friends, special dinner, etc.
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