I'm in! Love my glasses of wine at night far too much. I am determined to loose weight so really need to cut down. My goal is not to drink during the week and only at weekends socially.

First night last night where Uncle Alcohol didn't visit! I felt SO good this morning. But I got on the scales and I'd put 1lb 4oz on. Gah - that will teach me not to get on them every morning.

Three nights now without alcohol. I can't say I've missed it that much (excepting about 6pm when I REALLY want a glass) but I sleep so heavily and wake up feeling groggy and headachey. I think that over the years I've slept very lightly prolly because of the wine and now that's out of my system I'm sleeping like the dead.

It's our 23rd wedding anniversary Sunday though so think we will go out.

Thanks Martha and Christine for your words of support, Julia

OK, first day wasn't the greatest! I had a nice pint of IPA, but stopped at that. Hmmph.

Today and tomorrow will be easier -- I have to have no alcohol for two full days before some blood work on Monday, so that's that! On Monday I'll try to keep with it!

Hope everyone is doing well.

liselyn

Thanks! Feels good -- I had to stay up really late last night to go pick up my son after a school outing, and it was easy with no sleep-inducing substances in my system! Slept great, and feel wonderful today. I hope to keep this up! :happy:

One of the food plans I really like allows for a completely free day per week, :drinker: and one meal during the rest of the week that is free and can include ONE glass of wine or beer. I'm not sure I'd be good at the ONE glass meal, :noway: but think I will try for the only one free day per week. This will keep me on the straight and narrow for both food and alcohol 6 days a week. I have done this plan before for a few weeks when I was starting out, and it seems like a good time to go back to it.

Why is it hard? We know it makes sense, feel great when we don't drink, but still do it anyhow. Stories and theories welcome!

liselyn

It is a good feeling Christine and as the weeks gone on it had got easier. We had a Jubilee Street party on Monday and one of my neighbours brought some home made rhubarb wine. It sounds disgusting but it was gorgeous. Of course I had one and then had another, and another. One's never enough for me - I have to finish the bottle. So it's best not to start.

Good luck and stay strong all xxxx

I'm sure you all know how weirdly scary it feels to stop or severely limit intake!

I have never seriously tried to stop drinking because I "don't see the point" but my weight has really started to bother me the last couple months and I know it's from moving in with my boyfriend and partying/eating fast food, usually late at night since that's when he gets off work. I recently started logging my calories again and it's not my eating that's really the problem, I do extremely well during the day (when I'm at work) and don't even think about eating. But like you've all said, I spend the entire drive home from work thinking about that beer or cocktail! Then after I'm drunk I'm just starving and I don't care if I down an entire carne asada burrito and half a pint of ben and jerry's...

Now that my temporary employment is drawing to a close, and summer is starting, I can already envision lounging by the pool all day, drinking Coronas and sipping margaritas, eating fried and barbecued food to my heart's content while I just get bigger and bigger...I'm already disgusted by the alteration in my appearance when I look at pictures of myself (omfg is this what people see when they look at me?!?) but I'm terrified of changing my lifestyle because I /love/ drinking so much. It's not just not drinking, it's completely changing my whole existence: all my friends and activities and ways of relaxing involve drinking. Where am I even going to start??

I just know it's not an option not to [lose weight] because I'm going to be in my best friend's wedding and her mother, who's making all the dresses, snidely remarked that she'd "have trouble getting the zipper on" my dress during the fitting last weekend...I was mortified, all the other bridesmaids are like sizes 2-8 and I feel like a house. I've always been thick but lately I just feel so down on myself, physically and emotionally. Working on one should make me feel better about the other but I just don't know how to stick with anything, I'm so flaky! Maybe checking in here will give me something to do because drinking water right now instead of cracking cans is seriously depressing.....

NO :drinker: = :sad: :brokenheart: :grumble:

I think you have to decide if you like booze more than you hate being fat. It's as simple as that for me. I LOVE the beer but I hate hate hate my belly.

Hi all --

I just spent a weekend with my sister who stopped drinking altogether in November, and is doing really well. She feels great, is working out other ways of dealing with anxiety and other fun emotions, relaxing at the end of the day, getting happy with friends -- all the stuff we do with alcohol. I have found her inspiring!

I will continue to work on cutting back, but if I can't keep it where I want it, I'll seriously consider joining my sister. She calls this "doing research"!

In any case, it sure is nice to have those calories for food :happy:

Day 5 without a drop... Don't think I've done that in four years since I turned 21. It was pretty bad the third day, pounding headache, but now it's mostly mental. I'm bored, in the habit of having my hands occupied when I'm just sitting with friends, trying to remind myself this will pay off. Optimistically shooting to stay sober until July 4th but I really want to drink at the fair the day after tomorrow, even though I know it will turn into a debacle. Besides just being around all that fair food is already going to tempt me... Should I call it a free day and workout extra Friday? Ah, the ways I validate my dependency.