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I Thought Losing Weight Was Difficult When I Was Drinking

I don’t now.

Frustration

This time last year I was hefty. Not massive, but realistically about 2 stones overweight. I was conscious of my belly buldging out over my jeans and ashamed of my flabby arms. I was disappointed it just wouldn’t shift, despite me trying really hard.

I went to the gym 4 times a week, flinging myself around the studio doing fat-burning aerobics/dance-type classes, and walked my dog for miles every day. I tried keto diets, intermittent fasting, ate loads of salad, vegetables, and fruit, but just couldn’t get beneath 13 stone.

It was frustrating.

Do you think empty calorie consumption may be playing a part?

I did suspect that my alcohol consumption may be contributing to it, but red wine is good for you, right? I didn’t drink every day, and everyone deserves a treat now and again. Plus I knew loads of skinny people who drank, so it couldn’t be that fattening could it?

Earlier this year back in March, I gave up drinking thinking I would try out sobriety to see how it fitted me.

It was time.

I was sick of hangovers and beer fear (anxiety over things you can’t even remember from the night before) and wanted to give myself a health and wellbeing boost.

I read loads of quit lit to prepare myself for an alcohol-free life and get inspiration. Weight loss wasn’t guaranteed. I read stories of people who lost 10 pounds in the first month, but also people who gained weight.

Guess which group I was in. Sod’s law. Not a pound came off for the first 6 weeks

I wanted instant results

I know what the issue was. When you give up drinking, to maximize your chances of success, you have to prioritize your sobriety over everything else. So that means no dieting (hurrah). But it also dictates that you feel you have the right to treat yourself during what was the usual drinking times with cake, chocolate, or ice cream…or pizza... or burgers, or whatever you want.

I don’t regret it and would recommend this strategy to anyone giving up drinking. Dieting can wait for a while. Plus hunger can be mistaken for alcohol cravings (trust me on this). But it is disappointing when you get on the scales. At the time, I did feel like I deserved to lose a bit of weight after all that effort, especially with there being around 600 calories in a bottle of wine that was not being consumed several times a week.

Looking back now though, I can’t believe I expected to lose weight with that level of ingestion going on.

I needed patience

Clare Pooley who wrote ‘The Sober Diaries’ promised me that the weight would come off eventually and to be patient. She lost 2 stone in the first year. But I had also read posts on sober groups where people said they just got fatter.

I was convinced this was going to be me, just getting fatter and fatter, but a lovely surprise was in store. I had stopped weighing myself due to the disappointment, but at around 3–4 months sober I could feel it. My clothes were fitting better and my stomach was definitely flatter. So, I nervously got on the scales. I had lost 10 pounds. It had slunk off so slowly I hadn’t noticed it happening. And I hadn’t dieted. But that’s the best way, isn’t it? I’ve spent my life intentionally dieting then putting it all back on.

I plateaued after that for a month and thought that was it. A free 10 pound off. Not bad. I looked less hefty but could realistically do with losing another stone.

Got there in the end

Then around the 8-month mark, I could just tell more weight had come off. My clothes were actually baggy now. I was looking in the mirror and was (unbelievably) happy with what I saw, and even began getting compliments from other people. I got on the scales and found I had lost another half stone. Whoop whoop.

And I still hadn’t dieted.

I had naturally stopped a lot of the early sobriety treats by this time as I became comfortable with not drinking, and had gone back to healthy eating minus the wine. But I wasn’t in any way calorie counting. I was still eating chocolate and ice cream on occasion when I fancied it. Just not excessively. And of course, there was no days where I stuffed my face with junk food on a deathly hangover either, so that obviously helped.

Sobriety I love you

So, I’ve had to admit that it was the wine keeping me fat. While it came off, what felt like very slowly at the time, it was 17 pounds in 8 months which is excellent really.

Provided it doesn’t go back on that’s another huge sobriety win.

Sobriety is the best thing I’ve ever done for myself. I’m down to a size I’m happy with, I’ve got more money than I’ve ever had and I feel so much brighter, and on an even keel.

Everything is better

Beautiful Sobriety

If you’re considering giving up drinking, I urge you to have a go. It’s like entering a whole new world and you are going to love it. Load of benefits come your way, although the first few months are a bit of a challenge so make sure you prepare yourself.

I wrote this blog for anyone starting out on the sober journey with a summary of all the best tips I had to get through the early days. I’d love to hear from you in the comments if you’ve been on the sober journey and what your best tips and bonuses have been.

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