Find Your Sober Glow!

Can you believe we are already half way through January!  How is it going? Are you still on track with your New Years resolutions?  Are you feeling strong and heading full speed on the right track or have you given up and fallen by the roadside?

According to a Forbes survey just 8% of people achieve their New Year Resolutions and stick with them until the end of the year!

So if you feel that you are losing your mojo and determination that you had in abundance on January the 1st! Then don’t worry you are certainly not on your own!

This post is hopefully going to help you relight your fire and get you back on track.

So firstly lets look at those of us who are taking part in Dry January, how is it going?  Are you starting to feel the benefit? Are your energy levels slowly starting to increase? Are you feeling good and enjoying the new you and possibly thinking you can carry on past January and beyond?  Or are you struggling? Are you counting down the days until the 1st of Feb so you can return back to the old you, the drinking you?

Well I may be nearly 26 months sober, but you know what? I never completed a Dry January, I just couldn’t do it!  I was one of the latter of the above, who felt miserable and deprived.  Every January I would set myself up to fail. I wouldn’t plan anything in my diary, avoided catching up with people, eat bucket loads of chocolate and spend most of the time feeling like I was “missing out on life” !!- It’s no wonder I didn’t succeed!  I can see what I was doing wrong now, but I couldn’t see it then.

I can see now that it all comes down to your MINDSET,  believing that YOU CAN do it, and being EXCITED about the process.  These early days should feel exciting, new experiences are waiting for you around the corner,  2019 holds a full year of first time sober experiences and believe me it is a whole new world!  I believe that it 100 percent comes down to your mindset, you need to flick the switch from feeling deprived that you are GIVING UP DRINK to being EXCITED about getting so much more out of life as the SOBER YOU!

The main thing that helped me in the early days, and helped me turn stopping drinking into a positive experience, was exercise. (That shouldn’t come as a surprise to any of my regular followers!)  I found exercise something new to focus on.  So instead of obsessing over the drinks I was missing out on I changed my MINDSET and started to focus on the exercise that I could do.  And I’m not talking about doing mega weights sessions from day one, I mean enjoying a gentle jog or walk in the morning and just relishing in the fact that I didn’t have a hangover or felt rough.  In the first few weeks I walked nearly everyday, just enjoying the fresh air and feeling better in myself.   My exercise had always been in fits and starts in the past because my boozy weekends got in the way,  so this time I wanted to be consistent and try to do something every day.  So as my energy increased I started  mixing it up with running, Jillian Michaels workout dvds and then onto weights – but it can be anything, whatever exercise you enjoy doing!

So if you’re struggling this January and you haven’t done already,  why not look at starting some sort of exercise?   The following are points from Mike Trott at Les mills and may help if you’re struggling with where to start:

• First you need to find something you enjoy – this is key. Try everything and  anything, that will keep you busy and keep your mind off the wine!
• Be nice to yourself – some days you just won’t have the energy,  so if your body is saying it needs a duvet day then that’s OK just get back on it tomorrow – remember that not having a drink is your priority.
• Take it steady, don’t overdo it or injure yourself.
• Make sure you reward yourself – if you worked out everyday this week, celebrate it with a new book, a pamper in the bath, a DVD night.  Just something to give you a bit of me time and acknowledge how amazing you are – not drinking AND exercising, double whammy celebration!
• The main thing that you need to remember is that it takes time to build a habit, anything from 18-24 days depending not the individual.  This is a huge variation so give yourself time, others may take longer or grasp it quicker than you – it doesn’t matter, this is YOUR JOURNEY.

 

Now I have used exercise as my focus through sobriety,  but there a million other activities and hobbies out there!  Discover what makes you feel alive, the world is your oyster!

Personally, for me exercise has shown me more than anything how much stronger I am both physically and mentally.  Added to that the boost it gives you in happy hormones and you can understand why so many people use fitness and exercise as an essential tool in their sober journey.

This was my Instagram post today which basically sums up all that I have said in one simple quote………..

CHANGE YOUR THOUGHTS AND YOU CAN CHANGE YOUR BODY (and your life!)

Change your mindset, tell yourself YOU CAN  and the rest will follow!

I will finish with this short clip from Idris Elba who I absolutely love, who doesn’t!!  It’s  not just about stopping drinking but a more widespread message about not giving up on yourself.  It’s so simple but effective, I love it……………..

https://en-gb.facebook.com/BBCOne/videos/1995869284050459/

Remember – You signed up for Dry January for a reason, you set goals and resolutions for a reason – you want to change!  You don’t want t be that person from 2018 who was unhappy with themselves,  so don’t give up on the new you and in the words of Idris –

YOU ARE SO 2019 RIGHT NOW- GO FOR IT!!

Any advice or tips you want to share please leave a comment and if you’re looking for daily motivation and inspiration please find me on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/liftingweightsnotwine/

 

Angie xx