Less Alcohol - February 2019 - One Day at a Time
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So I made it through January - the longest, coldest, darkest month - sans booze. And I'm really proud of myself for it. But I'm not proud that I drank yesterday (about 5 or 6 drinks) just because it was February 1. In any case, man did I feel it today. I haven't had a headache that bad in ages.
I treated it sort of as an experiment. I kept a diary of how I felt throughout January and wanted to compare it to how I felt today, the day after drinking. In summary, Saturday mornings are soooooo muuuuuuch betteeeeeeeer without a hangover. Which isn't rocket science, but I am happy for the reminder.
I've got a few occasions coming up this month where I will plan to have no more than a few drinks. Target is 5 days (or less) over the next three weeks (we're going to an all-inclusive on Feb 23 so I'll cross that bridge when I get there).1 -
Polydactylkat wrote: »Today I plan to have my first AF day. I’m setting my goals ‘low’ at first as I am making big lifestyle changes between what I eat, what I drink (or don’t drink), and how much I move. Trying to replace my after work drink routine with gym time and/or cooking a nice meal time.
So I think I’ll try AF today, one Af day this coming week, then increase to 2 next week, then 3,then 4. Ultimate goal - only drink 1 or no days per week, unless there’s a super special occasion and then limit what I have.
I’m tired of feeling yucky and cloudy headed And now that I’m logging, I have WAY too many calories from alcohol. One draft beer can be over 200in itself! Yeesh.
Yes, I started slowly too. When I signed up for MFP I had drinks every single day for 6 months. It became an after work habit to be sure. I started with 2 AF days the first week -- and it was surprisingly hard! I went 3AF the next week and then settled into 4AF per week as my goal.
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Goal: 4AF days per week. It is a short month.
February 1 - 3 drinks
February 2 -
February 3 - Superbowl!
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Well, I made it through Dry January and feel proud of that accomplishment. At the beginning of January, making it through a long, winter month without wine felt very daunting. I had my eye on Feb 1 knowing I could have a drink then. Originally I thought one month dry, then I'd try to only drink on weekends. But Feb 1 came and went and I decided NOT to buy a bottle of wine. The truth is that I don't trust myself yet. I'm not sure I can stick with drinking only at the weekend because I'm famous for making excuses as to why I can drink a little more and a little more. So I've decided to continue AF through February. I'm hoping a longer dry spell will make it easier to not fall back into a bad habit once I allow wine back into my life.
There is an event toward the end of Feb that may make this commitment more challenging, but I think knowing it's a shorter month and I only have to make it 28 nights, 27 now, will make it feel easier to keep going. No idea how things will shape up for March, but for now, I'm just taking it weekend by weekend. I don't think I really crave drinking during the week anymore, with the exception of particularly stressful workdays, so that is something positive that has come out of this already.8 -
February accountability ~2 days so far
No Alcohol: 2 days
Alcohol: 0 days (0 drinks)
Goal: AF days 4 per week / 16 per month
Including the last few days of January to monitor my weekly goal which I have succeeded!
Jan 28 - AF
Jan 29 - AF ! Yeah me! Dining Out group.
Jan 30 - AF Office celebration mexican restaurant without margaritas
Jan 31 - Planned 2 but kept to 1 glass wine! Celebrating retirement from company after 30 years
Feb 1 - AF
Feb 2 - AF Brunch without mimosas
Feb 3 -
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@kittybeann @WinoGelato @MissMay @Sub4_2018 @Womona
Thank you to all those that wished me well on the retirement in the January thread. First day of retirement Feb 1 I sat down and decided I needed a plan (you have to know me I LOVE LISTS). Well I mapped out my weekly and daily activities to get myself up and going starting with a walk, bike ride and/or yoga each day. It was wonderful to put on my calendar things that I personally want to accomplish instead of conference calls, meetings, reports, driving 2+hrs round trip to the office, etc etc that kept me at my desk or sitting all day.
And though I'm celebrating ... the first half of January showed me that I can do that with less wine. Today's retirement celebration brunch I skipped the mimosas. Why is it that when people find out you are retiring they all think of celebrating with food and alcohol? Today was my 5th celebration. (3 out of 5 celebration dinners/brunch AF; Jan 25 celebration was not pretty but Jan 31 I did much better) Whew!
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I did well in January but towards the end starting having a few unplanned days of drinking. Last night was a planned night since I went out with a co-worker. I drank a couple times last week and while I didn’t gain weight, I didn’t keep to my losing trend I had going. I’m excited to get back on track this weekend but today was hard. I have a very small bottle of rum, one of those tiny plastic ones, enough for a few drinks. I really wanted one but it definitely wouldn’t have fit in to my calorie goal. I’m happy that I was able to resist. I wanted to save it for a day next week when I’m home with my husband. I’m hoping I’ll be able to resist it tomorrow as well. I have a big work out planned!
I’m happy to have you all here for February!2 -
Lilylady3k wrote: »@kittybeann @WinoGelato @MissMay @Sub4_2018 @Womona
Thank you to all those that wished me well on the retirement in the January thread. First day of retirement Feb 1 I sat down and decided I needed a plan (you have to know me I LOVE LISTS). Well I mapped out my weekly and daily activities to get myself up and going starting with a walk, bike ride and/or yoga each day. It was wonderful to put on my calendar things that I personally want to accomplish instead of conference calls, meetings, reports, driving 2+hrs round trip to the office, etc etc that kept me at my desk or sitting all day.
And though I'm celebrating ... the first half of January showed me that I can do that with less wine. Today's retirement celebration brunch I skipped the mimosas. Why is it that when people find out you are retiring they all think of celebrating with food and alcohol? Today was my 5th celebration. (3 out of 5 celebration dinners/brunch AF; Jan 25 celebration was not pretty but Jan 31 I did much better) Whew!
Considering I’m in the thick of my career on a bit of an upward spiral right now for both responsibilities and stress - I am so envious of that list you made and the plans you have!
Also so impressive that you’ve stuck to AF through these recent days and events! That is one thing I haven’t mastered yet, outright saying no thanks at social events when others are drinking. I’ve gotten a lot better at limiting myself and stopping once I start - but I still do enjoy the social aspect of drinking with friends.4 -
@WinoGelato AF vs drinking is a journey for me as well. And trying to limit myself to 1 or 2 when the wine cork is pulled is difficult. I love wine and socializing with friends and family. Right now it was good that I had the focus and desire to stick to a plan. When summer comes along I have a feeling it will be much more difficult to keep that resolve!
On the career front. Have you read the book "Lean In" by Sheryl Sandberg? Enjoy the move upward.2 -
You all have been great - but I have come to realize that less alcohol is not going to cut it. I need to be AF. I am going to move over the the Sober Squad Thread.
Best wishes to all of you!7 -
Will_Run_for_Food wrote: »So I made it through January - the longest, coldest, darkest month - sans booze. And I'm really proud of myself for it. But I'm not proud that I drank yesterday (about 5 or 6 drinks) just because it was February 1. In any case, man did I feel it today. I haven't had a headache that bad in ages.
Me too. Had exactly the same experience. Drank Friday and last night and will go to Super Bowl party today and undoubtedly drink some more. I am NOT loving the headaches. We went out to our fancy and very expensive dinner last night to celebrate the end of Dry Jan. Went through two bottles of wine (for four people) and our half of the tab was right around $170. I am pretty unhappy with how much we spent and how much I drank. SO not worth it. i am asking myself what I thought was so great about wine this morning, LOL. Planning to be dry Mon-Thurs this week and possibly beyond. That was my pattern before DJ.
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Goal: 4AF days per week. It is a short month.
February 1 - 3 drinks
February 2 - AF
February 3 - Superbowl!
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Running tab: 1 AFday out of 2 days0 -
I'm kind of struggling with this whole alcohol free Super Bowl Sunday. Here in Texas it's like 70 degrees, perfect weather, and I miraculously have off of work. I feel very tempted, kind of frustrated but still determined not to cave.5
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Well, I didn't start February out very well. I drank my usual amount on Friday night (and didn't go to sleep any earlier!) and then the husband's annoying family came over last night. Despite my best efforts to stick to only one to two, I ended up drinking a lot. I was supposed to get a few errands done today and even though I woke up early, I didn't do anything, so now I have to do it all tomorrow. I'm glad I'm writing this down so I can refer back to it next time I'm tempted to drink on Saturday night. I'm not trying to beat myself up over it like I used to in the past, but trying to learn from it and what I can do differently next time.
Last year I bought the book "Alcohol Explained" and didn't read very much of it because I started reading it right after I'd read "This Naked Mind". What I read of it was interesting but I just stopped reading it for some reason. So my homework for this month is to read all of "Alcohol Explained".6 -
A little disappointed in myself tonight. I had a couple drinks with rum while at home. I had a really great run outside earlier and obviously decided to have a drink, which turned in to three. I’m still below my calorie goal but I would have done even better, or would have had a Girl Scout cookie for dessert if I hadn’t had any alcohol. Oh-well, it happened. I still have 3 pounds to lose and plan to continue with my goal, this just gives me more to think about.4
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I'm aiming for 100% dry February here! But will be OK with only 1 or 2 single drinks if a special event pops up... kinda doubt my husband will want to do anything for Valentines but ya never know!3
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This has been my goal all along. To reduce the amount I drink and not just for the weight loss. I sleep better, I feel better when I dont drink. Problem is my husband drinks a lot and I can get caught up in it. I just want to be happy. Why do I act as though I dont deserve to be happy. Sorry for the rant6
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I got tired of sacrificing food in order to satiate my drinking desires, oh and I got tired of being a drunk (me not you) so I read Rational Recovery a few months ago and have been and will forever be AF. Sometimes the game ain't worth the candle.7
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Managed another week & weekend of alcohol free. Woke up this morning feeling really good and positive. This is a major step for me as I've been suffering over the past 4 years with major anxiety.6
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Welcome to all our new posters this month.
Groundhogs Day and the Super Bowl both in the same weekend...both with anticipated out comes. Hope your predictions came true.
Being the only non-drinker at both a pre-game bash and during the Super Bowl for a 10 hour stretch was not difficult at all.
No worries of driving afterwards is probably my greatest joy.
Monday, another week to drink "less".
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