It Wasn’t Punishment (No Alcohol, Caffeine, Sugar and Complaining)
I did it!
30 days without sugar, alcohol, caffeine, and complaining. I didn’t cheat once. No tiny sips of wine, no cups of green tea, no licking frosting off of fingers, no slip-ups – period.
To many, it looked like punishment. “Why would you do that to yourself when you have so much on your plate?!” I’d get asked.
But it was exactly what I needed. These past few weeks at the swim school have been intense. 12+ hour days, seven days a week, on my feet, in the water, behind a computer, on the phone, assembling furniture, moving equipment, and making lots and lots of decisions. Removing sugar, caffeine, and alcohol from my diet didn’t require any action (like take a photo or practice Italian) or extra work (i.e. meal planning) on my end. It allowed me to work harder and smarter when I needed to. And aside from the caffeine headaches in the beginning, I felt great, not deprived.
Here’s what happened:
- I woke up earlier – 5:30 am, sometimes earlier. For whatever reason, I felt motivated to get out of bed at that hour. I always accomplish so much between the hours of 5:30 and 7 am and I love it.
- I turned my devices off early so that I could read, turn the lights off, and get my 8 (ish) hours of sleep. To avoid distractions and temptations, my phone remained in the kitchen overnight, and not on my nightstand. And I was able to fall asleep more easily because of it.
- I worked out 3-4 times per week. I’m obsessed with my new gym. Hooray!
- I hacked my environment. As always, I did my best to create a challenge-friendly atmosphere. I replaced my morning coffee with a hot cacao, turmeric, and protein concoction which isn’t the tastiest of hot beverages, but I’ve grown quite fond of it. I stocked up on La Croix and healthy snacks and bought and on Halloween, I handed out candy I didn’t particularly care for. I turned down a few parties and invitations, but for the most part, I attended dinners and events, allowed the cravings to come and go (because yes, I always had cravings).
- I became very efficient with my time. These past four weeks haven’t allowed much time for leisure. If I wasn’t working or writing, I was cleaning the house, cooking, running errands and spending time with my kids. I found incredible satisfaction in being productive – household chores included. I loved going to bed feeling tired and knowing that I worked hard and accomplished a lot.
- I didn’t complain about the challenge. But I can’t say I was Miss Suzy sunshine either. My obsession with productivity led to a sense of frustration with my family. I nagged and rolled my eyes when I saw my husband and kids sitting around in front of the TV in a room strewn with toys and unfolded laundry. My husband was quick to call me out on my “holier than thou” attitude and I’ve since taken the intensity down a few hundred notches.
I want to point out that while a lot of additional behaviors emerged as a result of this challenge, I never forced myself to do any of them. There were days when I ate pizza, slept until 7 and skipped workouts. It’s 9:50 pm on a Saturday night as I type these words, and I’m perfectly okay with it.
What now?
I work really well when I have strict parameters in place because I don’t waste energy wondering if I should or shouldn’t have a cup of coffee or a bite of a cookie. I just don’t. But when the challenge ends, the lack of constraints makes it easy to make exceptions and excuses. All of a sudden, I will not eat any sugar for 30 days, becomes I shouldn’t have any sugar…but it’s okay if I have a little here and there.
On day 30, I celebrated with a few cocktails. I did the same over the Thanksgiving weekend. It was fun, but I felt it the next day, and it made me realize just how much I loved this challenge and how much better I operated while on it.
It’s been one of my favorites to date.
Wow! So much patience and discipline you have! This kind of lifestyle will really thank our own body. Thanks for sharing the tips. 🙂