I started off with 100 days of no alcohol because 30 just wasn’t long enough. 100 was scary at first, honestly. How on Earth was I going to get through BBQs and happy hours and hard days at work without booze? But now that I’m more than halfway through that goal, I am so glad that I decided to do the whole 365 journey…the last 52 days have whizzed by! Temptations go *way* down once you’ve given yourself a significant chance to dry out. And because I am nowhere near 365 days, any nagging desire for a drink is not soothed by telling myself “just get through the next few days and you can drink again.”
Reflecting on how my lifestyle has changed, the main thing is that I simply have more time.
On nights that I would have spent drinking and zoning out through TV/phone scrolling/reading, I walk dogs or pick up free items to flip or make pie. On mornings when I would have been hazy or at least hungover, and just want to sleep in, I get up early, have some coffee, and start the busy day. Just last weekend my boyfriend and I drove to the summit of Mt. Evans. We got up at 3am so we could watch the sun rise from the top. It was incredible! But if we drank the night before, as I surely would have, I wonder if we would have decided against the drive.
I have also noticed that with more time to do stuff, I am more active generally. I’ve been getting lots of steps in, walking to work and back home, riding my bike, and walking more dogs.
One downside I have noticed is that I have no better willpower when it comes to eating healthy food. I do like to eat healthy stuff. I am lucky to just *like* vegetables and fresh fruit and things that make me feel good. But I also crave a way to indulge, which I used to do with vodka sodas or IPAs or wine. Case in point: last night I ordered a very greasy pepperoni pizza and ate ALL of it. Even when I wasn’t hungry anymore after two slices, I ate the other two. And then I ate the little pudding dessert that it came with.
Then again, I ate *terribly* when I was buzzed or drunk, and the morning after when I was trying to stave off a hangover. So I guess it’s a net no change in food…yet. Well, except the absence of the empty calories of alcohol.
What I want for myself during this year is to establish a routine with food and exercise. It’s hard, because my life is definitely *not* routine… I am constantly running between work and home and my boyfriend’s apartment and the next dog and the next volunteer gig and catching up with a friend and book club and so on.
But within the next few weeks, I will have a new job. And with that new job, I will establish a morning workout. Yoga, weights, running/cycling. And I will recommit to planned meals for the week, all real food, mostly plants, not too much.
And I will learn different ways to indulge. Chocolate and tea (but maybe keep it to just a couple of squares). Reading. Soaking my feet. Face masks. Cuddling. Cuddling that leads to sex. Topo Chico. Movies in the theater. Walks around the Botanic Gardens in the evening. Long talks with my best friends.
And I’ll continue to fill up my days. Relearn the piano. Learn sign language. Refinish furniture. Scrub my shower from top to bottom. Tend my garden. Experiment with new recipes. Brush my kitties, and play with them. Find a new TV stand for grandma, and a new fridge. Scour thrift stores. Write thank you notes. Print photos and mail them to friends. There is so much to do! And I’m so glad I have more time to do it!
100 Days Booze-Free 