No Booze February: Week 2
It's been 2 weeks since I've had any alcohol. Check out my Week 1 recap for back story on why I decided to give up alcohol for the month of February.
There have been less temptations to drink in Week 2 than there were in Week 1. For the most part, I don't drink often during the week unless it's for a set happy hour event or on a date. I haven't made any real weekend plans for the rest of the month (minus the Dallas Cupid Undie Run this coming weekend) because I didn't want to tempt myself with a crazy bar night out.
On Friday evening I had a Bumble date. Dating has been the one aspect of my life that I was nervous about doing sans booze. Mainly, because I get SUPER nervous on dates, especially on first dates. Having a glass of wine (or 2) helps me relax and stop overanalyzing what to say, how I look, etc.
Going into my date on Friday evening, I didn't let the guy know that I wasn't drinking (whoops). I figured that since we were going out for dinner (and not drinks only) it wouldn't be totally award to address during the date.
I was pleasantly surprised that it wasn't an issue AT ALL. I ordered a club soda with a lime, and he just ordered a water. Turns out, he doesn't drink alcohol that much on the weekends. Plus, he was driving about 15 minutes outside of Dallas to get home. When he explained to be that he used to be a personal trainer, and doesn't find that the "fun" of booze outweighs how he feels in the AM or sees the impact on his body...I started to like him even more ;)
Our date went well and it was refreshing (yet also kind of scary) to realize how often I've used alcohol as a crutch while dating. The last guy I dated in Dallas, almost all of our dates revolved around alcohol. And that would then lead to late nights, texts that I wouldn't have normally sent so early on in a relationship, and a raging headache the next day. It also makes me wonder if I was really attracted to that man I was dating, or if the alcohol clouded the warning signs/things that I didn't like about him. It's hard to say in hindsight.
The other major perk was that I was VERY productive on Sunday, and leading into Monday morning. A fellow Coach in our accountability group let us know that the 14 day mark is really when your body is getting used to this change and you start to be in your STRIDE. I can tell. I'm sleeping better. My workouts are going better. I'm not feeling like crap at the end of the weekend because of the alcohol and booze that I drank.
On Monday evening I went to a networking event with the Uptown Young Professionals. I was worried about going alone, and not drinking, because like I mentioned earlier, I get nervous chatting with new people. I ordered a club soda with a lime, and was surprised that I was able to talk to a handful of new people with no issue. My "mocktail" could have been vodka for all that they knew. I didn't have to spend any extra money at the event (which in my past has sometimes turned into hefty bar tabs).
All in all, 14 days into no alcohol and I'm feeling great. At this point I'm not thinking about it 24/7 like I was in Week 1. I'm excited to see how the remaining 2 weekends go!
