4 ms·

The thing that I find holds me most accountable is exercise. If I'm preparing for something (a race or a bout) then drinking undoes all the hard training and it

The thing that I find holds me most accountable is exercise. If I'm preparing for something (a race or a bout) then drinking undoes all the hard training and it's evident in my performance. The longest I went was about a year. I still enjoy the odd drink and very occasionally might have a bigger night but I feel fairly well moderated. If you're really going for zero (or close to zero) then it's going to need a bigger habit change (which could be assisted by something like forming a new complementary habit). As for social settings, it takes a lot of personal discipline but I find most people are quite respectful and encouraging if you assert that you have kicked a habit for good.

FrontierPsych 4y ago
Regular iron-clad dedication to exercise cures many ills. For me, exercise kills my appetite for garbage food, cures me of snaking. The "feel good" hormones - endorphin, seratonin, oxytocin, dopamine - are released during exercise, and continue long after you are done exercising. These hormones life you out of a depressed mood or level out a too high mood and de-stresses and de-anxieties people. Those times are when one wants to drink, eat, smoke, whatever. Not everyone, maybe, but a lot of people start with bad behaviors when stressed or anxious. So exercise helps you level out your mood and prevents stress eating, stress smoking, stress drinking.
LouisSayers 4y ago
Exercise can change habits for sure. I used to do gym training (functional fitness followed by boxing class) Saturday mornings. Because of this I had a reason not to drink Friday night - having an intense workout the next morning is not so fun, even after just a couple drinks... If I ate or drank something bad the day before I could tell instantly what I did wrong. So for the OP, I guess figure out what your reasons are and have some emotional buy-in if possible.
uptownfunk 4y ago
Yes this is one of the best answers. Exercise makes such a huge difference.

FrontierPsych 4y ago

Regular iron-clad dedication to exercise cures many ills. For me, exercise kills my appetite for garbage food, cures me of snaking. The "feel good" hormones - endorphin, seratonin, oxytocin, dopamine - are released during exercise, and continue long after you are done exercising. These hormones life you out of a depressed mood or level out a too high mood and de-stresses and de-anxieties people. Those times are when one wants to drink, eat, smoke, whatever. Not everyone, maybe, but a lot of people start with bad behaviors when stressed or anxious. So exercise helps you level out your mood and prevents stress eating, stress smoking, stress drinking.

LouisSayers 4y ago

Exercise can change habits for sure. I used to do gym training (functional fitness followed by boxing class) Saturday mornings. Because of this I had a reason not to drink Friday night - having an intense workout the next morning is not so fun, even after just a couple drinks... If I ate or drank something bad the day before I could tell instantly what I did wrong. So for the OP, I guess figure out what your reasons are and have some emotional buy-in if possible.

uptownfunk 4y ago

Yes this is one of the best answers. Exercise makes such a huge difference.