What Happened When I Gave Up Alcohol for a Whole Month

I made it! Yes I battled through 31 long days of alcohol-freeness and arrived the other side (mostly) unscathed. It was hard at times, particularly over Easter Weekend, but I’m very proud of myself for abstaining from my beloved beers for 1 whole month. I didn’t do it alone, I had the support of my girlfriend (who was doing it too) and some awesome drinks companies who sent me their alcohol-free offerings to get me through.

Things that happened:

I slept WAY better- I’d not slept so well for years. I started having vivid dreams, which again, I’ve not had for a long time. Plus, when I woke up, I had loads more energy which has been useful this month as I’ve had a lot of 6:00am starts. There’s loads of studies on sleep and alcohol. In fact, it’s often the number one thing recommended by doctors to give up if you’re not sleeping properly.
I spent WAY less money- My girlfriend and I could basically wipe £20 off our bill for a date night meal without alcohol. The pub went from being a £30-£40 a night to about £10 (Top Tip: Lime and Soda is super cheap).
I didn’t lose weight- One of the big selling points of a dry month is the potential to lose a few pounds of beer gut. If you do what I did, however, and replace alcohol with chocolate, that ain’t gonna happen. I did manage to maintain my weight without really thinking about it though so small victories. Apparently, craving sugar is very common when people go dry because alcohol triggers dopamine production, just like sugar!

Overall I had a really positive experience. I got a great sense of achievement and the sleep thing was really amazing. I think I’m definitely going to reduce my intake from now on, if not give up completely.

Now, on to the alcohol-free products I tried. I wasn’t paid for any of these reviews but did receive some complimentary products. This is my honest opinion:

Rebel Kitchen Mylks

Oh man these are delicious! Like, seriously, seriously good. They taste as awesome as any milkshake but are vegan and made with 100% natural ingredients! The kids’ ones were actually my favourite. The chocolate orange one might as well have been a blended Terry’s Chocolate Orange it was so delicious. Slight downside: quite a lot of sugar. It all comes from natural date syrup but in the adult ones you’re looking at over 20g in a carton. Still nowhere near as bad as a can of coke, but nonetheless probably not something to drink every day. But, if you’re gonna drink a milkshake, these are the ones to have! I love them!

Check out Rebel Kitchen here.

Nix & Kix

Cayenne Pepper? In a drink? You must be mad! Well they say there’s a fine line between madness and genius and the guys at Nix & Kix have nailed it! The Cayenne Pepper is truly genius, it gives a really satisfying, punchy aftertaste to this range of fruity drinks. They’ve actually just won a ‘Zero Alcohol’ award for their range and well deserved it is too! Again they’re made with all natural ingredients and no refined sugar. Winning!

Check out Nix & Kix here.

Ugly Drinks

Ugly win the prize for making the (seemingly) impossible possible. A refreshing, fizzy fruit drink with NO SUGAR and NO ARTIFICIAL SWEETNER. Like, zero grams of either! So you’d expect them to taste like crap right? Well, no actually. There’s currently a range of two: Lemon & Lime and Grapefruit & Pineapple. I wasn’t a fan of the Lemon & Lime but the other was delicious! A true revelation. Go and buy one now!

Check out Ugly Drinks here.

TreeVitalise Birch Water

Welcome to 2016’s top health drink! Birch water is set to hit the UK in a big way. The story behind it is amazing. Basically, for about 3 weeks of the year, birch trees in Eastern Europe suck up loads of water. At this time they can be tapped and the sap collected which is known as Birch Water! Now, I have to say, the drink itself didn’t really do it for me. It tastes like water with a faint maple-syruppy note. Not my favourite but I love the story behind it and I’m sure it’s going to find a home amongst the uber health-conscious!

Check out TreeVitalise here.

Rothaus Alcohol Free Beer

Genuinely the best alcohol-free beer I’ve ever tasted. And, unlike lots of other tasty alcohol-free beers it’s not just loaded with sugar. I had it by chance at the Duke of Cambridge Pub in Islington which is run by the organic veg people ‘Riverford’. The downside is it’s not widely available yet. I’m sure it won’t be long though! Now that I’m finished, I’m definitely checking out their not-so-alcohol-free offerings too!

Check out Rothaus Beers here.

Brewdog ‘Nanny State’

Those salty sea-dogs at everyone’s favourite craft-beer company have got this delicious, hoppy, unleaded ale. It’s really satisfyingly beery and is the best of what’s widely available in most supermarkets which means it’s deserving of a place in this run-down!

Check out Brewdog here.

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What Happened When I Gave Up Alcohol for a Whole Month

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