Breweries in the U.S. rose from 1,500 at the turn of the century to 8,000 at the start of 2020. I’m taking partial credit for this growth. I call this two-decade span “my drinking years.” Over these twenty years, if I crossed paths with one of those 8,000 breweries, I’d go in and drink beer.
I drank a bunch of beer. I love drinking beer.
I drank a little every day. I drank even more on the weekends. I drank on holidays, I drank on airplanes, and I drank anytime I felt like drinking—usually a little, but sometimes a lot.
I can’t say alcohol ruined my life, but I can’t say it improved it either. I lost my grandfather to alcohol abuse and understood its inheritance, yet I still found myself with a beer in hand most nights. I’ve written about changing my alcohol habits: here, and here, and here.
Near the end of 2019, my alcohol awareness became an action item, thanks to Peter Attia. I refer to Dr. Attia as my digital doctor, not because I receive treatments but because I listen to his podcast and implement many of his recommendations (e.g., Fasting).
The following statement from Attia soon became doctor’s orders:
“I’m not convinced there is a single benefit to ethanol in the human body.”
Dr. Attia further explains a glass of beer contains 15 grams of ethanol. Ethanol is a toxin, and at elevated levels, a toxin becomes a poison. My perception of alcohol changed right then and there.
No wonder hangovers hurt.
When it came time to set goals for 2020, I knew what I had to do.
“In 2020, I will only drink 12 days. One day a month-ish. Welcome to the party! ”
Let’s call it 12 days for ‘20.
It’s not uncommon for me to make a beer-free pledge (see hyperlinks above), but I’ve never made one with the same conviction as when my pencil hit the paper that day.
I’m proud to announce that I made it 186 days without a sip of alcohol and have only imbibed three times since. I’ve consumed alcohol three days since this time and believe I’ll reach my 12 day for ‘20 goal.
How did I do it?
Change your mind. If I believed beer was good for me, I’d still be drinking daily. A single sentence from Dr. Attia took care of this. When I shifted my mindset from “relaxing elixir” to “poison,” change became much easier.
Visualize the results. Because the joys of alcohol are immediate, but the benefits of abstinence come slow, I spent time visualizing a healthier, happier, future me. I also spent time visualizing all the bad alcohol brings and that also acted as a good deterrent.
Start strong. We kicked off 2020 with a sober vacation to Mexico. I—surprise, surprise—used a series of tricks you can read about here, to ensure I started the first six days of the year without any alcohol.
Make it difficult. You won’t find a beer in our house or garage. If I want a beer at home, it will take some effort and a series of steps I’m not willing to take to secure said beer. Similarly, it’s hard to drink while camping if you don’t pack any beer with you.
Reward yourself. Small internal rewards help drive action. I track my alcohol-free wins in an annual plan. Documenting saved money and checking boxes of achievement. I even purchased a new fly rod with the money saved from not buying beer.
Remove triggers. Triggers help make habits. After I _____, I ____. They also help break habits. I removed all the alcohol triggers I could find.
Drink a non-alcoholic beer. Not as a substitute for beer, but because it’s terrible and showcases how bad beer tastes and feels without a buzz.
Tell someone. We’ve all heard this one works and it’s true. I shared my 12 days inn ‘20 alcohol goal with friends, family, and anyone else who didn’t believe it was humanly possible for this beer-lover to reign in his favorite sauce. Hitting publish on this post will only add fuel to the fire.
All things in moderation. Why 12 days? Why not just get rid of alcohol altogether? Because I still love beer. But on my terms. I want to call the shots. I may even cut it a day short to show beer who’s the big boss now.
If you read between the lines – or maybe it’s in the lines – you’ll see my chest puffed out and my head held high. I’m darn proud of myself. And while I don’t have metrics for quantifiable improvements in happiness, productivity, sleep and overall health, I can tell you this:
I feel good.
The two metrics I have tracked are weight and percent body fat. Since kicking beer to the curb, I’ve lost 13lbs and dropped 10% body fat.
No wonder I feel good.
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Another piece of writing inspired by my friends Mario Dot To and Nurture Theory. We believe the thinking discovered through public writing improves our lives. We call ourselves the Western Writers League, and we'll get some custom merch made eventually.