101 Days From Now, I am in the best shape of my life!  We are embarking on a 101-day challenge beginning with goal setting and then phased mile markers along the way to create permanent lifestyle changes.  If you are just joining us, be sure to check out the first post here.  You can find all 101 DFN posts in the “+101 Days From Now” link in the header menu.

Most of the thought we put into our goal setting involved things that will do, or will add to our daily routines.  To achieve some goals, though, the things that you remove from your life are what will really make a difference.  John is here with his first guest post to explain his experience in giving things up during the 101 Days From Now Challenge.

“Quitting the Drink”

When I was in high school, I discovered time travel.  It happened completely unintentionally:  I was out with friends on a Saturday night, and was introduced to whiskey.  The whiskey had been whisked away from the liquor cabinet of some unsuspecting parent, and God, it tasted awful.   It burned my mouth and throat so badly that for a second, I thought I’d been tricked into drinking gasoline.  The time traveling effects kicked in shortly after the burn.  I felt…unstuck.  And the night went on, and time and whiskey flowed through me, and I washed ashore into the morning with bloodshot eyes and a killer hangover.

I’m twenty six now, and it’s been close to a decade since my first alcohol-induced time traveling experience.   It’s odd to think that it’s been that long.  Human beings have a tendency to glaze over the things that they habituate—it all becomes just a part of the routine.  The 101-day challenge put on by Thrive Outdoors has helped me step back from my habits; to look at myself from an outside perspective.  Drinking has often been a social pastime of mine, an easy answer to the weekend or after-work question “what should we do tonight?”

So, in the spirit of a healthier, more productive lifestyle, I decided to quit drinking for the 101-day challenge.  Let me tell you, a hundred and one days seems like an eternity when you’re trying to stop doing something you’ve done—and enjoyed—for almost ten years.  The first weekend into it, I found myself doing laps around my apartment, picking up random things, cleaning, going up and down the stairs; just looking for something, anything, to occupy my attention.  My wife, who almost never drinks anyway, found this to be hilarious.  Her encouraging attitude and lightheartedness has really made this whole process easier for me so far.

I’m not very far into this challenge yet—I quit drinking 21 days ago.  There’s a long road ahead, but I’m already feeling positive effects.  I’ve spent my evenings and weekends working out, reading, riding my bike with my wife, and studying for classes.  I have more energy, I feel more fit, and I’m being generally more productive.  I can’t wait to see how much better I can become over the next 80 days.  I’m sure that down the road I’ll have a beer or two, but this program has jump-started me out of bad drinking habits, and I’ll never go back.

Time traveling is great, but it’s time to slow down.

-JM

Thanks for reading!  Though I haven’t stopped drinking completely, John has motivated me to limit alcohol to the weekends.  Have you decided to remove something from your lifestyle in order to better achieve your goals?  We’d love to hear about it in the comments below!

You are crushing this challenge so far…  Stay motivated!