# Sober October



## Broughtonblue (25 Sep 2014)

Anybody doing this? After coming back from an AI holiday, where I was embarrassed to walk from my sun lounger to the bar topless because of all my wobbly bits( I'm male by the way and 17stone) I decided alcohol had to go and this seems a good idea, going to try to do till Christmas if poss.
Also dusted the bike off!!!


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## Drago (25 Sep 2014)

No. Our big Boss at work urged us all to do this last year, but all the talk of the dangers of booze simply made us want a drink even more.

Seriously though, its no bad thing ditching it if you're trying to lose weight.


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## Ganymede (25 Sep 2014)

I think it's a great idea to give up booze for a bit, really shows you how much you normally drink!

I do wonder if all the other months are in the process of being brain-stormed by charities - after Movember and Sober October, what next? March in March? No-Fib Feb? Snore-gust where we all have to go to bed on time? 

However I do think a spot of sobriety is a good thing - makes you enjoy life a lot more, especially if you are a heavy drinker, you suddenly find out what your missing! (according to a friend of mine!)


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## thefatcyclist (25 Sep 2014)

No, but I decided to give up for a hundred days to lose a bit of weight and I've lost 12lbs in just over 4 weeks without trying to hard. Oddly enough not missing alcohol in the slightest and I seem to have much more time to do other stuff.

Good luck with it.


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## Roscoe (25 Sep 2014)

If it's any help with motivation, I stopped drinking on 29th December, ostensibly for the January Dryathlon. This has now lasted for 38 weeks and I have no intention of starting again.

The benefits so far have been:
Lost 5kg in weight, down to 71kg and on track for my target of 68kg.
Sleeping better
No anxiety/panic attacks
Feel fresher, brighter, less tired
Increased fitness as have so far cycled 2300 miles this year (managed 1300 for the whole of last year)
The ability to get up early every weekend and go for a minimum 2 hour ride, Saturday and Sunday without fail
No hangovers!
More money for bike goodies


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## ColinJ (25 Sep 2014)

I have given up everything except food and chocolate, from Jan-Dec!


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## Dayvo (25 Sep 2014)

Surely it must be easier to grow a mo in Movember! 

Good luck. Once you make changes to your lifestyle and begin to see positive results, then there'll be no stopping you.


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## Shadow (26 Sep 2014)

Good luck to you and let us know how you get on. Increasing exercise while decreasing food and alcohol intake will reduce your weight dramatically. Set realistic goals in terms of weight loss and importantly, do not forget to reward yourself.

If you are a heavy drinker, I would not advise stopping alcohol immediately but reduce it to zero over a short period of time. Alcohol is a drug and as such, the side effects of total and immediate abstention can be unpleasant. If you do continue drinking over this period, always have it with food and always follow each unit with at least one glass of water.

I'll raise a glass to you on wednesday!!


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## fossyant (26 Sep 2014)

We are going to give it a go as my father in law is dying of lung cancer. My wife has forgotten that there are three family birthdays and two end of season parties at the caravan site pub. We may fail.


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## sunrise65 (26 Sep 2014)

I am doing this purely for weight loss reasons as I love a pint of local ale or two maybe  Been about 2 weeks now and not feeling it at all though my social life is somewhat different to where I was a year ago. Going to try to get to Christmas and then try not to over do it..


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## Broughtonblue (27 Sep 2014)

sunrise65 said:


> I am doing this purely for weight loss reasons as I love a pint of local ale or two maybe  Been about 2 weeks now and not feeling it at all though my social life is somewhat different to where I was a year ago. Going to try to get to Christmas and then try not to over do it..


with you all the way on this, although it didnt help last night when mrs BB opened the duty free we bought home, and waved it front of my face asking if i wanted some. 
an argument commenced.........


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## nappadang (27 Sep 2014)

Errrrrrrr..........NO!


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## Shut Up Legs (27 Sep 2014)

Shadow said:


> Good luck to you and let us know how you get on. Increasing exercise while decreasing food and alcohol intake will reduce your weight dramatically. Set realistic goals in terms of weight loss and importantly, do not forget to reward yourself.
> 
> If you are a heavy drinker, I would not advise stopping alcohol immediately but reduce it to zero over a short period of time. Alcohol is a drug and as such, the side effects of total and immediate abstention can be unpleasant. If you do continue drinking over this period, always have it with food and always follow each unit with at least one glass of water.
> 
> I'll raise a glass to you on wednesday!!


I quit the sudden way, but didn't have any adverse symptoms (don't know why). I just switched from drinking a large amount of spirits daily to drinking no alcohol. I scared myself into doing it, because the symptoms of alcohol use were becoming very apparent.


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## Saluki (27 Sep 2014)

My Stoptober is scuppered already as my guitar teacher has a nice single malt hidden up ready to celebrate a year of lessons with him next friday. My Stoptober is starting on the 5th.


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## edindave (27 Sep 2014)

I'm joining in. I went alcohol free from Jan-Apr this year, until a Majorcan cycle training camp beer drinking training camp intervened!


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## briantrumpet (28 Sep 2014)

thefatcyclist said:


> Oddly enough not missing alcohol in the slightest [...]


Same here - I had a health concern to cut it out initially, but was surprised that I didn't miss it. Since then bottles of spirits or wine given to me reside in the cupboard until being taken to friends or given away. There's just one special pub where I will have the occasional half or two (maybe about five or six times in a year), and on my extended stays in France I'll drink a glass or two of wine with meals (but only when friends come to stay).

The thing was, I didn't plan abstinence as an extended thing ... but the old cliché of 'one day at a time' ("Do I want a drink today? No.") just carries on. There doesn't seem to be any point in getting back into a habit that I don't miss.


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## sunrise65 (29 Sep 2014)

For me it was always social drinking, I have never drank by myself but the social work drinking at various points got a bit out of hand but thankfully I never became dependent. I do love malts though but again I have it as a treat and not an everyday thing. After a nice walk yesterday I did have a hankering for a pint but..


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## Hacienda71 (29 Sep 2014)

Despite having been a smoker for many years (now given up) drink has never hooked me in a similar way. I enjoy a drink occasionally, but can go for weeks without a drop passing my lips and not even think about it.


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## coffeejo (29 Sep 2014)

I enjoy Baileys over Christmas and New Year, which is always difficult to give up in January, but I don't miss it during the rest of the year. Chocolate on the other hand...


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## Brightski (29 Sep 2014)

Everything in moderation


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## ColinJ (29 Sep 2014)

Brightski said:


> Everything in moderation


Except for moderation itself!


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## Broughtonblue (5 Oct 2014)

Biggest test came yesterday, down the pub before the match. Got a round in, £3 for a pint of lemonade, enough to turn you to drink!!!


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## Sara_H (5 Oct 2014)

I gave up alcohol almost three years ago. I lost about a lb evry week for the first few weeks, without changing anything else.

Never looked back, feel much fitter than I did when I was still drinking. I'd fallen into the trap of drinking more or less a bottle of wine every evening, which I knew wasn't doing much good, so decided to make the change for good.


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## Hugh Manatee (5 Oct 2014)

So far so good...but only by accident. I haven't touched a drop so far this month. In main, this is down to a pretty naff cold which means I haven't been able to taste much at all. Not much point drinking ale or whisky then.

It's a blow as the mother in law is staying with us and if I ever needed a drink.....

What's worse is that she has brought her own cold with her so it looks as if we're all about to get ill again!

Good luck to everyone doing it for real!


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## DaveReading (5 Oct 2014)

Ganymede said:


> I do wonder if all the other months are in the process of being brain-stormed by charities - after Movember and Sober October, what next?



Not forgetting the ladies' equivalent to Movember, at the beginning of the year: Fanuary.


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## glasgowcyclist (5 Oct 2014)

Broughtonblue said:


> Anybody doing this?



No, I'm saving myself for Cannae Remember December.


GC


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## Low Roller (5 Oct 2014)

And I'm saving myself for when those "stop drinking tablets" become available. I'll wash them down with a pint of beer.


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## Broughtonblue (5 Oct 2014)

Sara_H said:


> I gave up alcohol almost three years ago. I lost about a lb evry week for the first few weeks, without changing anything else.
> 
> Never looked back, feel much fitter than I did when I was still drinking. I'd fallen into the trap of drinking more or less a bottle of wine every evening, which I knew wasn't doing much good, so decided to make the change for good.


Well done on giving up.
I'd fell into in the same trap, booze most nights then even more at weekends. It had become 'the norm', a habit. 
Do you ever fancy a tipple, even if you go out for a meal or sociable with friends?


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## Sara_H (5 Oct 2014)

Broughtonblue said:


> Well done on giving up.
> I'd fell into in the same trap, booze most nights then even more at weekends. It had become 'the norm', a habit.
> Do you ever fancy a tipple, even if you go out for a meal or sociable with friends?


No, I read the Allan Carr Easy way to stop drinking book. Before I'd even finished reading I couldn't stand the thought of drinking at all. Never had any cravings or urges.
I've replaced the nightly bottle of wine with a bottle of sparkling water.
I must admit, I don't really enjoy going to the pub anymore, just seems pointless to me. I'll generally try to steer friends down the route of going out for a meal rather than a pub crawl if we're going out.


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## Broughtonblue (5 Oct 2014)

Sara_H said:


> No, I read the Allan Carr Easy way to stop drinking book. Before I'd even finished reading I couldn't stand the thought of drinking at all. Never had any cravings or urges.
> I've replaced the nightly bottle of wine with a bottle of sparkling water.
> I must admit, I don't really enjoy going to the pub anymore, just seems pointless to me. I'll generally try to steer friends down the route of going out for a meal rather than a pub crawl if we're going out.


Mmm, might have to give the book a try, obviously hard hitting from what you've said


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## deptfordmarmoset (5 Oct 2014)

Did someone say Octobeer?


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## Sara_H (5 Oct 2014)

Broughtonblue said:


> Mmm, might have to give the book a try, obviously hard hitting from what you've said


There's some magic in those pages, I don't know how it works, but it did the trick for me.


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## woohoo (6 Oct 2014)

For no good reason (other than for the hell of it), I decided to give up alcohol completely (I guess I was in the 14 to 21 units a week range but would do the occasional half bottle of wine) a couple of years ago and.... as far as I can tell, it had made no difference at all. My weight, run times, blood pressure, general health are as before and I feel no different. I must have save a bob or two and I guess my liver is happier but that's it.

(OTOH, I feel no desire to start again; water does me fine now).


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## fossyant (6 Oct 2014)

We are a week in and no alcohol. Will probably go until the 25th when there is an end of season party at our caravan site. Although I have a funeral to go to in the next two weeks. My father in law has just passed away tonight.


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## Ganymede (6 Oct 2014)

fossyant said:


> We are a week in and no alcohol. Will probably go until the 25th when there is an end of season party at our caravan site. Although I have a funeral to go to in the next two weeks. My father in law has just passed away tonight.


Sorry to hear that, fossyant.


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## Tin Pot (6 Oct 2014)

I stopped drinking for five years, I didn't lose a single pound in weight.


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## Haitch (6 Oct 2014)

fossyant said:


> We are a week in and no alcohol. Will probably go until the 25th when there is an end of season party at our caravan site. Although I have a funeral to go to in the next two weeks. My father in law has just passed away tonight.



Sad to hear. Condolences to the family.


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## Broughtonblue (19 Oct 2014)

How's everyone doing?
I'm still dry since sept 21st,


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## Rustybucket (19 Oct 2014)

I've done around 101 days - aiming to completely stop now. Can't afford both cycling and drinking....


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## Broughtonblue (19 Oct 2014)

Rustybucket said:


> I've done around 101 days - aiming to completely stop now. Can't afford both cycling and drinking....


Do you ever fancy a tipple?
I wasn't the type of person to drink out, but did (probably too much) drink at home. I still fancy one at weekends although weekday drinking urges have died off


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## arch684 (19 Oct 2014)

I'am doing both sober October and bender in November


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## thefatcyclist (20 Oct 2014)

Dry since 25th August so just over half way to the 100 days I set myself. Also just had the in-laws down for a week with us on holiday and watching them and my wife polish off three litres of Gin plus wine didn't tempt me to join them in fact it has made me think of extending it further.


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## Hugh Manatee (1 Nov 2014)

Who managed the whole month then? I did!

I also didn't really feel any better/different. Not exactly a heavy drinker though. I'm thinking of carrying on through November and falling off the wagon in time for the Christmas holidays.


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## ColinJ (1 Nov 2014)

Hugh Manatee said:


> Who managed the whole month then? I did!
> 
> I also didn't really feel any better/different. Not exactly a heavy drinker though. I'm thinking of carrying on through November and falling off the wagon in time for the Christmas holidays.


26 consecutive months now ...

I still can't get used to being clear-headed all of the time, but I don't miss the hangovers or the beer gut.


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## edindave (2 Nov 2014)

I made it. Had a couple of beers last night to celebrate.


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## Broughtonblue (2 Nov 2014)

Yep, completed here too!
Friends have been asking when I'm going to start again, I told them 100 days was my target (nice round figure!) just checked and realised Christmas Day would be my 95th, not sure I can do Christmas period without a drink, although that means my time would be up New Year's Eve! But then I wanted to do January like we did on here last year, dilemma, this not drinking is causing me problems. So much easier when I drank!
Plus side is a stone lost without exercising.


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## Tin Pot (2 Nov 2014)

Welcome to Dryvember!


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## thefatcyclist (3 Nov 2014)

Not had a drink now since 25th August and initially said it was for a 100 days but as I'm enjoying not having a hangover and seeing the results of working out I'm thinking of waiting until Christmas then stopping again in January.


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## ColinJ (3 Nov 2014)

ColinJ said:


> I still can't get used to being clear-headed all of the time, but I don't miss the hangovers or the beer gut.


I made the mistake of drinking 1.2 litres of PepsiMax last night and struggled to get to sleep. I am knackered today and have a funny 'buzzy' feeling in my head, every bit as bad as a booze hangover!


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## Tin Pot (3 Nov 2014)

Lack of sleep and dehydration is the majority of any hangover, alcohol just makes is a bit worse.


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## fossyant (3 Nov 2014)

ColinJ said:


> I made the mistake of drinking 1.2 litres of PepsiMax last night and struggled to get to sleep. I am knackered today and have a funny 'buzzy' feeling in my head, every bit as bad as a booze hangover!



Far worse than beer...


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