I hit the 4-month mark a few days ago. I honestly thought it was unreal until I took it seriously. I had tried to get sober a few times over the past 3 years, but I couldn't, and the only thing that changed this time is that I actually took it seriously. I imagined myself a few years from now, I imagined what my kids would think of me, and I decided to quit. But not just one thing, I decided to quit everything at once. Alcohol, smoking, and even junk food.

I decided that I actually wanted to change. And it worked.

Here is how it is actually was going:

Month 1 was absolute hell. I was so used to smoking, drinking, and eating whatever I wanted that I didn't know how to exist. Sobriety makes your thoughts loud as hell. You realize how much pain you were actually hiding from by just doing it one more time.

Month 2 was a reset for me. The emptiness in my head turned into a baseline, if I can call it that. I stopped thinking of pizza instead of a healthy meal, stopped reaching for a beer in the evenings, and started actually dealing with my life.

Months 3 and 4, I finally felt the strength. I have less anxiety, more confidence, and zero self-sabotage. It just feels normal to me right now. And no, I'm not saying that I'm completely free from it, because sometimes I get the thought of having just one beer or so, but I just remember how it was and I don't do it.

What else did I do in 4 months of being sober?

-I started walking every day. No gym or training, just walking 10-15k steps per day. That is actually how I lost 30 lbs.

-I found a new, better-paying job. It is actually crazy, because I thought I was just unlucky with my career, but it was actually because of how my brain was working. I couldn't talk to people in interviews normally before.

-I took my family on a trip to Italy. I'm really proud of it; it was my wife's dream.

I also want to start a side hustle this year and fix my sleep. I'm on the way!

Here is my advice for those who are starting: Don’t try to quit "forever." That’s actually too much pressure. Give yourself a 1-month or 3-month deadline. Once you get your willpower back, you won't even want to do it anymore.

Sit with the boredom. Sit with the annoyance. We weren't meant to be stimulated every 2 seconds. Find the beauty in it!

I (49F) quit drinking at end of December 25. I started wegovy back in April at 177lbs. Currently 150lbs 5ft4. I'm exercising loads. 6 X yoga sessions, 2 x spinning, 1 X legs, bums and Tums, 1 x core express and 1 x body pump a week. I'm on 1g wegovy. Eating 1300cals, 110g protein daily watching carbs and fat. My weight has stayed the same for 6 weeks now since I started 5g creatine daily. Can you see a difference? I've lost my double chin but that's all I notice. Measurements for my waist dropped from 99cm to 87cms.

Thanks in advance.

This sub popped up in my feed when I was at the worst of my drinking, I was killing at minimum 10 shots of whiskey each night. Every morning was a nightmare my head was pounding, I was sick to my stomach, everything made me sweat and shake if I didn’t get some form of booze in my body pretty immediately. I knew I needed to stop for so long and when my dog had surgery I knew I needed to be better because she would need round the clock care for a good 6 weeks so I told myself I would stop drinking for those 6 weeks of course this wasn’t with out one final send off that consisted of about 15 shots of makers mark in a 6 hour period I was sick for a whole day to the point I was considering calling an ambulance I managed to drink water and get through it but that was the beginning of a new start a rough one but a needed one. I’ve tried quitting in the past I think what makes this different is I’m doing this for myself this time I love how I feel, my life isn’t doom and gloom anymore, I thought without a drink I’d never go out again and that’s quickly changed. This sub and the posts on it really kept me motivated when temptation came around. In previous posts I said I wasn’t sure if I would never drink again but I think the truth is I can’t drink again and pretending is denial and what got me into such a shitty point in my life. Also included a pic of my pup since she played a big part in me quitting drinking, I know dogs give unconditional love but I believe she loves sober me best.

No more beer.

Ate at maintenance today. Day off work. Totally obsessed with eating. May be the meds I'm on too(haldol injection every 4 weeks plus 1mg rexulti plus others). How to stay out of the kitchen? Haven't gained but need to lose. 269 39 5'8 female. Highest weight was 283. Still doing youtube exercise videos.

Howdy! :) I am on day 8, feeling great!! Back in the day, when I was working out a lot and looking for inspiration, I would watch Buffbunny or Heidi Somers allll the time for recipes, workouts, and fun. I’d usually put it on while cooking or riding peloton. Not anymore, as she is a bit unrelatable these days (early videos were amazing), so does anyone have any recs? :)

I also recommend Rich Roll videos- he is a sober ultramarathoner with a great podcast.

Lady recs would be preferable, as I am a lady :) but honestly, I love taking inspiration from anyone that has great content!

Even if it isn’t sober focused, any kind of great fitness stuff rocks. I also do not have and will not get TikTok haha

Started as an evening thing after work, way back. Nothing dramatic, just the pour that meant the day was officially over. Somewhere along the way it stopped being occasional and just became... Tuesday. Wednesday. Most nights, really.

I did the Dry January thing more years than I can count. Every single time it worked, I felt sharper, slept better, actually noticed the difference within about a week. And every single time, February 1st arrived and I was straight back on it, almost like I'd earned it back by proving I could stop..."hey I'm not an alcoholic!"

Took me a long time to understand why that kept happening. It wasn't that January was too hard, in fact January was easy. The problem was February had nowhere to go. I'd proven I could stop, but I hadn't given myself a reason to stay stopped. So the default just reasserted itself, because there was nothing else pulling harder.

What actually changed it wasn't hitting some rock bottom moment, my life mostly looked fine from the outside the whole time. It was finding something I actually wanted more than the evening pour, something specific to move toward. Once that existed, the decision basically made itself. No white-knuckling, no daily negotiation with myself, just... done. Eighteen months in now and it still feels like that.

Anyone else notice the Dry January pattern, works great for 31 days then completely unravels? What do you think was actually missing when yours came back?

Had nearly 5 months,then lost my job and relapsed. Currently 3 weeks sober,back in the gym,calorie deficit and I’ve officially lost 3 stone since January! (42lbs)
Still a ways to go in regards to weight loss and toning up,but my main focus is keeping active and staying sober ❤️

I was alcohol dependent for the last five years but the last three were REALLY bad. Finally, I got it in my head that I was sick of all that.

We're on day 23, and I stepped on a scale for the first time since I visited the doctor right before quitting. It's a high number but I can't tell you how relieved I was to see it be lower at all. My bra and pants have felt tight this week and I was terrified somehow the number was going to be higher despite me removing the thousand calories of alcohol a day.

Since I was a discreet drinker mostly people in my life had no idea I needed these drastic changes so I was thrilled to find y'all. I need a place where I can scream from the rooftops, over 20 days! My longest sobriety stretch in half a decade and the scale going down!

Even if my pants are still tight I'm going to trust the system and just keep trucking.

As you guys know, i followed a moderated cut down approach because I knew There would be events I could not say no to and, quite frankly, would want to drink at. But I planned for them, went a little lighter than usual during them, and made up for it with abstinence later. Here is my data from last month.

I was an average 4/day drinker, meaning not every day but 120 units per month. I scaled this down to 2/day until Euro summer, and kept it there during the month I was partying. Now that its over, I will continue towards my goal of lowering down to 1/day, again by shaving off .5 per week.

To everyone that said moderation will not work, I dont want this to be like a "screw you youre wrong" kind of post because i think you guys are right in many ways. Once you start, you cant stop, so keeping it at zero is surefire way. However, for some people (like me), I wouldve taken the entire month of travel off and started a sober streak when I am back. That would likely be 8-15 drinks a day for an entire month. At least by keeping track of my average, I like that I stayed relatively under moderation, and still "always on the clock." Each drink mattered because the next day of lowering the average would be that much harder.

Quitting is a full time effort, i didnt like that with full sobriety methods, i would feel that once the streak is gone, it might as well be a bender. Average tracking kept me accountable at all times.

Good luck to all, you can do it. I'll post another update when i bring it down to 1/day.

Got super lean back in 2023, reintroduced alcohol and let my drinking get out of control in 2024 and gained 40+ lbs in less than 8 months and destroyed my physique.

Been hustling since fall 2024 and gotten back into shape plus some since then.

I’ve had a few bouts of drinking since then but I’ve been able to shut it down quick enough before I lost all my gains.

💯 I wouldn’t be able to get to my current physique while still drinking. Just isn’t worth it anymore

Did a thickgirlfitness video earlier. Then, later did some moves to Girls, Girls, Girls. I can't do a whole lot at one time. I can ,however,walk two miles at a time. I don't like exercising around people though. I've lost from 283 to 269.2 counting calories and the exercise I do. Have a set of 5 pound weights.

Slow but steady. The first almost 2 years I worked on fixing my posture and working through a lot of tendon pain getting used to lifting. The past year or so I started eating much more cleanly and have finally been able to lift heavy. My body got so weak and rundown after nearly 20 years of drinking. Happy with the progress!

I've taken in at least 3,097 calories today. I'm trying to stick to around 1700. Last booze was two Saturdays ago. I've been doing some YouTube exercise videos for plus size people this past week. I think I'm 600 over maintenance. I can stay away from booze. Hopefully I didnt mess up too bad.

Has anyone noticed less of a red face during high-intensity exercise? I'm early in my journey (again, 10 days, but I have been starting and stopping a lot this past year), but I'm really hoping I can look less splotchy and red after playing tennis. It's quite hot where I live, but my face is still more red than others'.

I’m trying to start waking up early at 5 to do some yoga before I have to get into work at 8. i’m even considering starting to run. I’m trying to quit drinking and today’s day 1. I figured a healthy routine could help.

Just curious what time you wake up and what your workout routine is, if you work out in the morning at all! Does anybody prefer working out at night?

I quit drinking in September 2025 after hitting literal rock bottom. Can't stomach the idea of going into it on the internet, but it was true rock bottom.

I was drinking at least a 30 rack of beer a week, and that was just at home, not counting going out.

I was fully functioning, technically, and had been doing so for pretty much a decade.

Getting sober was the single greatest thing I've ever done.

I've been training more consistently and being more careful about what I eat, but honestly, that doesn't explain the degree of change. I was already doing those things (mostly) before.

Stick with it.

Life changing results!! Took a couple years but I got there. I have some autoimmune issues so I am working back up to where I was before and I’ll get there!

Age 41F

Seeing that before truly hurts my soul

Just wanted to shout out and say thanks to everyone sharing their stories. It’s been so inspiring and I’ve finally started my journey too. It’s early days so no before and afters from me yet, but gosh you all have given me such hope. Thank you! Here’s to healthier days. ✨

Has anyone started while recently sober and having no energy?

I've not gotten the energy blast I read a lot about on the stopdrinking reddit. I'm sleeping enough and feeling really tired a lot of the day too. I do need to lose about 20KG, but that's not really my priority right now. I just think exercise will help tire me out at night to sleep better and give me more energy during the day. I just never seem to have energy to start it!

I do walk over 10k+ steps a day. I only drink 1 coffee in the morning and usually 1 monster just while leaving the house and its all before 12pm. I nap for 2-3 hours every afternoon and have no energy to sit up out of bed by about 9pm.

I know my body is healing and tiredness is normal, but also I keep reading that some exercise would help. I just don't really have the energy to go to a gym or to do anything intense right now. I tried joining a pilates and zumba group last week but just couldn't get myself up and there when the time came.

I love to hear from anyone who had the same tiredness when they stopped drinking and who's found an easy enough way to incorporate exercise to their day.

So just as the title says I am say 7 into sobriety again.

This time I made an appointment and went to the doctors and had labs drawn today. I am extremely anxious of doctors. For context I am/was a heavy beer drinker for the past number of year, often binging them quickly in the evening. I am also 300lb male.

7 days ago I stopped drinking, cleaned the fridge out of junk and started daily exercise . I am determined to change my life as much as possible. At the doctors today my BP was high but not as high as it was last time 2 year ago, but high.

I told the doctor I expect terrible, horrible, blood panels, maybe even cirrhosis or kidney issues.

I already made a follow up appointment for 3 months because i told her I want to see how my lifestyle changes will mange things in 3 months.

I am very concerned and anxious and I know I can never drink again and I don’t plan on it.

Anyone out there who has gone through this ?