Shanacook - Is that Betty Ford knocking on my door?

[shanacook]

Background: I live in a very active community where fitness is weaved into the average person's day.  This community is also very social, and most bars/pubs are kid friendly.  ...which means I drink frequently, which means I crave carbs in the morning, which means I don't feel like working out...  = weight gain.  

 

My goal is to lose 10 lbs by September.  

 

My plan over the next 6 weeks is to drink only 1 night per week.  

At the beginning of each week I will plan which night I can drink

I will eat at least 1 protein item every morning for breakfast.

 

...and we will see where that gets me.  Pretty sure I can't lose out by doing this.

 

[New moon]

Good luck! You mentioned the fitness oriented community you live in. Are you already incorporating exercise?

As far as drinking goes, I'm from Wisconsin... The land of cheese, beer, and old fashions! Kids are born with whey in their blood and hops in their hands!

Although I did not list it in my goals, drinking less is wrapped up in my eating goals.

[Sovellis]

I also grew up in Wisconsin and have struggled with the impact of that drinking culture. One of my goals includes simply keeping track of how much I drink. Best of luck!

[shanacook]

Good luck to you two Wisconsinites as well!  Yes, I'm sure beer and cheese are all the rage there!  ...as they are in my house!  I'm in Denver, so there are a lot of opportunities for exercise.  I walk work every day,  and I try to jog after work when I can.  You know, nothing too extreme at this point, partially because I'm usually just wanting to settle in with a beer.  ...and honestly, I don't know how it is there, but the pubs and bars are even kid friendly here!  We don't live in the burbs (yet), so we have tons of eating opportunities very nearby, and we never (ever) eat out without at least a couple of drinks.  So yeah, I think if I break the habbit of drinking I can make some serious headway. 

Hey, I'm THREE days in now!  

 

[Blaidd]

so how did your first week go?

 

You might notice that someone has added a tag to your post.  This is not to box you into a corner but rather because your goals or lifestyle have links to the guild you've been tagged and we'd like to bring you to the attention of one of their guild ambassadors. These ambassadors will be able to offer you advice, encouragement and support on your goals.  You don't even have to wait around for them to come introduce themselves to you, you are more than welcome to pop into the Adventurers' board and introduce yourself to the guildies there. I am also around to answer any questions that you might have so do not hesitate to PM me.

 

Good Luck with your challenge

AB xx

[shanacook]

Thanks for checking in!  Well, I've gone 7 whole days, and that's good for me.  Working on day 8 right now. Oh, I guess I didn't make that change in my post, but I'm going cold turkey.  Not doing the once a week drinking thing.   I've tried that too many times, and that method hasn't worked so far.  For the past couple of nights I couldn't remember exactly why I wanted to do this, or what the big deal was, but I chalked it up to temporary insanity and went with it.  That said, I did down a LOT of ice cream last night - I guess to satisfy an obvious sugar addiction.  ...but I did not cave on the alcohol, and that means a lot to me personally since that is the goal that I set.  My husband and I are both doing this (his being a bit more "mandated") and I wouldn't say we are necessarily and happier for it  right now.  The past week we have both been just dragging and can sleep at any given time.  I did Google it and see that the first two weeks (or more depending on your body and addiction) will be that way.  I thought we'd be jumping out of bed in the mornings ready to go and sooooo happy!  We've gone to dinner once and it was hard for us not to order alcohol - but not socially awkward.  The guy we were with talks incessantly, though, and honestly, it really would have been more enjoyable with a couple of beers.  It just would have.  I just have to keep in mind that the health and mental health benefits will outweigh the "benefits" of drinking.  Thanks for letting me know about the pin and the resource that is available to me!  I don't know how you possibly make the rounds to check in with everyone, but I'm so impressed that you do!

[Blaidd]

you've done fantastically so far.  Good job!!  As for the first few weeks - they are a bitch, but after that it gets better and easier.  Remember you're not just minimising alcohol in your life, you're actually giving up sugar simultaneously (alcohol is sugar based too) so you're going to have a lot of those symptoms too.  Just keep pushing, like i said it gets easier.