Weirdly enough, when I was racing in my 20’s, I was also partying & drinking with the same intensity…but also getting great results. Makes me realize just how much energy I had back then and if I had just put it all into cycling instead of doing endless 3oz. single-arm curls… 
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I used to be a zero to a few beers a week sort of person until I got my first taste of cross in 2017. While I had a lot of fun, I was not happy at all with my finishes. Fast forward a year and a TrainerRoad subscription later and somewhere in there I just stopped wanting to drink. Not that I’ve gone cold turkey, but I regularly go weeks (maybe months) now without any alcohol.
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I started by keeping the regular 6 pack out of the house… working on the tequila next. Mid-fifties now and feel the day after effects increasing, even with 1 drink.
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I love my craft brew but I make it a point to not imbibe every day to give my body a break (hopefully). Even then I fully acknowledge it has a negative impact on my peak fitness, recovery, and BMI. I’m not racing but if I was I’d definitely have to quit it. Kudos to anyone who’s doing just that 
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I have slowed down my drinking in the past year to maybe a drink a week. I am even thinking of not drinking all of 2019 or cutting it down even more.
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Holy moly, if ever there was a reason, from a performance perspective, this sums it up…
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Wasted my 20’s drinking. It was a (very) long road but I stopped for 18 months in my early 30’s and I’ve never looked back. Started cycling in my mid 30’s (TR users since summer 2015) and its awesome! Picking up duathalon over the last year mixes things up a bit. I still have the occasional beer from time to time, but I much prefer the flower…
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Stopped drinking a while a go.
Once you approach alcohol as a poison (which is what it is, as far your brain is concerned), the temptation goes away quite naturally.
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I stopped drinking last year. Best decision I ever made. Do you know the date or where I can find the thread on asking yourself why you drink? I want to check that out. Thank you! Here is to a fantastic 2019
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@libertygirl70 and @pwandoff the thread was on slowtwitch.com. Originally it was started by a doctor (M.D. perhaps not sure) who got people to try and go alcohol free for the month of January. Check it out here:
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Thank you for the quick response. 
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I read one of Allen Carr’s books on how to stop smoking about 15 years ago and haven’t touched one since.
I later read his book on how to stop drinking and haven’t touched alcohol for about 13years.
Myself and my partner drink Erdinger alcohol free lager, which hits the spot on a Friday night.
I genuinely don’t miss the drugs😀
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I don’t plan on stopping alcohol altogether. I really enjoy the social aspect of going to the pub with mates, and sometimes a drunken giggle is one of the best forms of stress relief and mental health boosts. However like many of the posters in this thread drinking has become much more of a habit than I’d like and as such it is definitely impacting my eating, training motivation and performance. December is the worst time for this with all the festivities.
For over a decade I’ve done “Dry January” and this has been a useful way of breaking the habit and getting things back on track. This year I’m planning on doing “Mostly Dry Quarter 1”. I.e. I’m going to extend it a lot further, but not completely eliminate the going out social side every few weeks. Never done such an extended period before, and I’m fascinated to find out what impact this will have on my weight, motivation, performance etc.
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Does Allen Carr take requests? I’d love to see him write a book on Cakes, Cookies and Nachos.
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I think I spotted one on sugar, but I refused to acknowledge it !
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This thread is refreshing. I feel like the “My recovery drink is BEER!” cyclingbro aspect can be overwhelming at times. Maybe it’s just a vocal group, but it’s nice to see some variety.
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I think extremes are just not good. That’s why I will not stop drinking alcohol…completely. However, I reduced my consumption drastically. 90% of times it was just due to the habit. Currently I drink alcohol occasionally. I just like to drink a beer or two after a demanding, long lasting session, specially if it is a group one. I also like to drink a glass of good wine at lunch, if the atmosphere is right. And of course, there are few occasions every year, when we go out and drink more than it would be appropriate.
What I do NOT do any more is habitual drinking. I used to drink a glass of wine or beer after every single training, usually late in the evening. We also used to drink alcohol every time we went out. Not any more.
So, having a critical judgement is essential. Just do not belive in prohibitions and radical changes.
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Good thread, it’s made me think about my own drinking habits. I tend to drink something most nights; usually some whiskey while I’m chilling in front of the TV. I’ve never seen it as much of a detriment to my training/performance - it’s rare I drink so much in that I feel rough the next morning, so I’ve very rarely missed any training due to drinking. My weight has also been stable at my target weight (70kg) for the last year, plus my performances have continued to improve. It’s definitely become a habit though, so I’m planning on knocking the midweek drinking on the head.
Surprisingly, my HRV readings (RMSSD and resting HR) taken the morning after drinking alcohol don’t really differ from the days when I don’t 
I’m not planning on quitting alcohol completely though; I enjoy a drink, especially a social drink with mates from time to time. I’m only doing triathlon as a hobby, rather than something that’s paying the mortgage, so I won’t be fully on the wagon. Cheers 
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I sort did the same, asked myself “why do you drink?” I now only buy extremely high quality beer and drink it a day or two per week and one bottle when I do.
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