Giving up alcohol for vanity?

[VanityWitch]

So, I'm thinking of going teetotal, yes, for my health, but mainly because I am terribly vain and my skin is crap at the moment and my sleep quality is also crap. I don't drink much, as in, I tend to only drink at weekends plus one week night, so Friday, Saturday and Sunday or Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday, for example. Usually one or two glasses of wine. Not bucketfuls, but not thimbles either! So I guess that is a bottle of wine a week?

I'm sure by MN standards this makes me either a raging alcoholic or a puritanical stick in the mud, but you know.

Anyway, I'm planning to quit as an experiment, to see if I glow!

Is anyone thinking of doing similar? Would anyone like to join me on here to document our journey to glowage?

How are you getting on @VanityWitch ?

I’ll admit I’ve been having my fair share of wine since before Christmas (every single night). So, I’ve set a date: January 11th and I’m going to quit then. As I’m starting January late, I’ll do Dryish January and Dry February. I’ll see how I go after that ...

but at least it gives me a chance to really assess the wrinkle reducing powers of being dry. I’m quite enjoying the experimental aspect of it

A buddy of mine drinks like a fish and has no wrinkles! Her ‘secret’? She is serious about her avoidance of the sun - we’re talking tights in summer and a parasol serious!

Hello please can I join!!!

Stopped drinking for dry Jan (started late...last drank on 1st Jan) this is probably the longest I've gone without alcohol in years!!

Very concerned about my weight and skin. If I can do 100 days I'd be so proud of myself!! Very keen to do it for my vanity too!!!

I love this vanity thread. It is the only giving up anything I have ever done online and I needed it to be superficial.

Welcome CountryLady - not too late, I think we’ve all got different start dates!

I like the ‘responsibility’ of checking in daily flicka. I feel really pleased with myself being able to report another day dry to you all.

Reading that is dedication! I think it’s too late for me. I’m obsessive about sunscreen now, but have damage from being stupid as a teen.

One week in. I feel better. Fresher. Less tired.

I just want to mention Annie Grace’s 30 Day Alcohol Experiment again, for those who have just gone alcohol-free.

It’s free of charge online and it has absolutely changed my life. I started it last August to see if I could give up for 30 days - I’m now on day 147 with no intention of drinking again. And I was a proper boozehound.

Really worth a try.

@Bomblette

Yeah me too! I wear it now but didn’t as a child or teen or even 20s! My friend never had a tan but now her skin is flawless!

@LunaNorth

I did the 30 day alcohol experiment & found it easy but unfortunately I found it easy to go back on alcohol! I listen to her podcasts too (often with a glass in hand!). However I’m getting fed up of the seesaw and am definitely quitting from Monday - temporarily anyhow.

anyone 7 days in and not glowing yet?

6 days in - not glowing but then my skin is totally buggered (rosacea, scarring) BUUUTTTT despite being shattered on wake up feel so much fresher and energised within 15mins of being up - evenings are admittedly boring but I'm already starting to see the appeal of being AF. I've found my crunch point which is about 7.30 pm where I really want a wine but once I've got to 8.30 I feel like I'm on the winddown to bed and I've gotten over it? 6th continuous day of exercise as well - nothing major but have the energy to do something each day which is great.

Also my app tells me I've saved about 3000 odd calories (which indicates shamefully how much I was drinking before Christmas)

Still going here and definitely feeling much better. New Peloton arrived on Monday and despite it taking me 15 minutes to get clipped in one day, it’s proving to be a great distraction / motivation.

I don't think January is ever a very glowing month But I look much healthier than I did a week ago.

Actually, psychologically, I find the difference huge. Much better equipped to deal with this lockdown.

the one real big difference for me one week in is sleep. I don't wake up anymore at 3 a.m. unable to go back to sleep.

I’m planning to ditch the booze for sleep and mental health more so than vanity @robinwisperer It is good to know your sleep is improving. I was sleeping well for a while from booze but it’s no longer working, so time to move on!

I don’t think I’m glowing yet. I knew, pre Christmas, that the first week back would be tremendously busy work wise (was dreading it!) and it has been.

So I look knackered and I need to wash my hair, but what I have done is managed to sleep, remembered to take a walk in the fresh air and generally made fairly sensible decisions. (Plus keep more or less on top of homeschooling, but screw the kids, this post is about my face )

poopyface which app do you use? I just downloaded one but it doesn’t give me calories. I do like a metric!

@Bomblette

I'm (mostly) sticking to Dry January. I had a minor lapse upon the announcement of Lockdown numero 3. I've just weighed myself, I've lost 2 pounds since 1st January!

I've upped my water intake and exercise, but wow! That's spurred me on. Better sleep too. We can do it ladies!

Day 9 here and finally this morning I can see a difference in my skin, not exactly glowing but brighter, less redness and more even. Heart rate down by 7 beats per minute too which has got to be good!

I'm in and on day 5. The most noticeable change is that I am sleeping better. And I weighed myself for the first time in ages my clothes have been feeling a bit snug and I've put on about 4kg since spring 2020, so losing those will be a great start. I'm 64 and pretty fit, thanks to a very energetic dog, but I am better at 58kg than at 62kg. So that's the goal.

Anything else is a bonus!

Best of luck @XingMing