I decided I had to quit drinking on Nov 11th. I am an alcoholic. I thought once I quit, the weight would fall off. WRONG!! I crave sugar so bad. I have gained about 5 lbs. Some say I shouldnt be trying to lose weight now. But I think its the perfect time. I need to stay busy. I need to take care of myself. What better way than to combine great, healthy food with exercise? I have to do something POSITIVE.

I am proud of what I am accomplishing by moving towards sobriety. Alcohol was ruining my life and killing me. So, I guess, in a way, I want to do the opposite and improve my life and live.

Anyone else going through this?

I'm working towards quitting drinking too. It's totally normal to gain some weight after you stop something like drinking alcohol or smoking cigarettes. Why wouldn't you try to lose weight now? By getting sober, you made a huge step towards health and happiness and a prolonged life and healthy body. Why not nourish your body with healthy, good food as well? If I were you I wouldn't place all of your focus on losing weight, I would put all of your focus on eating good, healthy foods like whole grains, fruits, vegetables, lean meats, etc, and regular exercise, and losing weight will be a byproduct of it. The goal here isn't to lose weight. It's to get healthy. And if losing weight is a result, then more power to you.

I'm in the same boat, I'm just unhealthy right now and I'm working towards a healthier lifestyle, and weight loss is a natural result of it.

This is something you can do! Do you mind me asking if you're in any kind of treatment program or AA?

I quit drinking on September 4th. The same day I recommitted myself to losing weight. For me it was because I had to take away (almost) all of my crutches to get to the nitty gritty of why I needed them in the first place. I've done a lot of soul searching these last 4 months and I feel so much stronger and comfortable with who I am. Good luck with your sobriety and weight loss. They can be done at the same time. It won't be fun but it's definitely worth it in the long run.

I stopped drinking about 6 months ago. I was not an alcoholic but I felt like it was going to do damage to my body one day. I never liked the taste of beer and giving up my mixed drinks was HARD.... But after a month I didn't crave or miss it. And I still don't. I think it was the social environment I was in that was causing me to want alcohol in the first place.

You have accomplished something completely amazing just by giving it up all together. It will make a big difference towards your weightloss because you won't be drinking all those extra calories. Good luck with what your going though. One day at a time

I am an alcoholic who quit drinking July 12, 1976. Yep that is right 35 years sober as of now.

Sugar cravings in the beginning of sobriety are normal and they will pass. Alcohol is loaded with sugar and your body is simply going through a withdrawal process. Experience has shown that indeed it is not wise to stop all sugar at this early point in sobriety. If you do you may well relapse back into drinking. As I said this phase will pass and you will have a lifetime to give up sugar after the withdrawal period. The choice is entirely yours to make. No one including me is going to tell you what to do. CHOOSE WISELY.

If you have any questions feel free to PM me and I will do my best to answer them for you.

Larry,

Don't beat yourself up if you gain some weight (or at least TRY not to). Beating an addiction is hard but worth it even if you get a few more pounds in exchange. You can always lose them again once you have a better handle on your quit. I'm in the same ocean (not boat) since I just quit smoking two months ago. I am just now trying to lose weight again. Good luck!

Thank you everyone! Everyone tells me the sugar cravings are hard but expected. I just think I need to find healthier alternatives. I try to eat a lot of fruit and have some chai green tea at least once a day.

bandit bear: I am in AA. I think its going to be great for me.

Congrats! I quit when I got pregnant and have not started again (Oct 2009). Two months already, that is fantastic and you should be very proud!!

I was a "skinny" drunk, 109lbs at my lowest, I never bothered with food when there was a drink to be had. I was so ill though, you can imagine, as we are the same height. Congrats on living your life without alcohol.

For me, I had to search hard as to why I drank (aside from the obvious physical addiction, most of us have reasons we drink too much). Larry has given you good advice

AA works best for most and it can work for you also!!

Hang in there, you are worth it

Larry,

To all of you who are conquering this difficult addiction, and those of you who are early in the process...... you are my Heroes.

MissyShelle -You go for it - whatever you think is best for you. We will cheer you on through thick and thin!

I will pray for you too, if you don't mind.

I was a heavy drinker, a smoker and super-morbidly-obese. I quit everything all at once. Cold turkey. The first few days were H*LL and I probably should have been under a Doctors supervision. But after about a week, when the all the "puffiness" went away I felt a million times better. I remember sleeping like a baby for the first time in years.

It can be done, but it is very hard. I didn't relapse (on alcohol or cigarettes) because I am a stubborn old goat, and I knew that my days of living on the edge were over. Funny though, I've been sober/smoke free for almost 4 years now, and I RARELY even think about having a drink or cigarette...but sugar...awe, sugar. It was my first true love and *MY* very hardest habit to kick. There's been a few too many relapses with the white devil.

Good luck to you. I wish you the very best in whatever path you decide to take.

Thank you everyone. I decided I should quit on November 11th. My last relapse was 5 days ago. Thats why I went to my first AA meeting today.

I keep telling myself this: Its all a matter of choice. Have a vrink or not. Have a cookie or not. Workout or not. But better be ready to live with the choices I make. I make the choices that determine what my life is. No one put the drinks in my hand. Except the bartender, but they asked for money first...lol

MissyShelle
All I want to say is I'm proud of you for taking the first steps to better health.
May God be with you.

Dear MissyShelle,

What I did was a little different from what you're going through -- I'm not an alcoholic, but I *was* a long-term binge-drinker, and about nine months ago, I decided to stop (which for me meant going from ~20 drinks/wk to drinking moderately maybe once a week, and only then in social settings). I quit smoking at the same time, since cigarettes and booze went hand-in-hand for me.

When I cut the smoking/drinking, I felt as though the only way I could stick with it was to let my body do whatever it wanted, so I did. I spent a lot of time sleeping, watching TV, eating chips and cookies and ice cream, and drinking soda. I didn't get on a scale, I didn't berate myself for eating poorly -- I just let it ride itself out. At the same time, I started feeling like exercising, so I incorporated jogging into my routine.

And eventually, after a few months, I felt like I was over the booze/cigarettes hump, and I was strong enough to focus on weight loss. It was at that point that I started calorie-counting, and I found that weight loss was something I could finally do, after years of wanting to but not feeling strong enough.

Basically, I agree with what others have said about giving yourself time to feel comfortable in your sobriety before you focus on weight loss. Trust that you're doing something *awesome* for your health right now, and focusing on that is more than enough to feel proud of.

Good luck!!

I haven't had a drink in 8 days and I've lost 7 pounds so far. I must admit I have a drinking problem but I find if I stay away from sugar I don't miss booze. Well so far it is working. It's nice to talk to other people who have the same problem. I've cut way down on my food intake. I feel pretty good so far. I just take it one day at a time. Good luck to everyone.