# Anybody else doing a dry January? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 6, 2015, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-doing-a-dry-january/709137 "2015-01-06T16:59:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2015, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-doing-a-dry-january/709137/1 "2015-01-06T16:59:24Z")
Or “Drynuary”, if you will. I hope CS is the place to post this, since it involves the absence of intoxicating beverages. Not exactly a New Year’s Resolution-- it’s just good timing after all the overindulgence of the holidays. I did a dry January last year, so it’s the beginning (I hope) of a tradition. So far so good-- my last drink of alcohol was during the countdown on New Year’s Eve. So still early yet, but I made it through my first weekend (the weekdays are easy). Unfortunately it’s during the playoffs, but I’ll be able to have a couple beers for the Super Bowl. Cutting out the empty alcohol calories plus eating less/better in general, I’ve already lost between 5 and 10 lbs. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2015, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-doing-a-dry-january/709137/2 "2015-01-06T17:03:29Z")
We always do our big vacation in January. Leaving Friday for St Martin, in fact. So, no dry January here, if anything the extreme opposite. ---
**Author:** ![EmilyG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/emilyg/32/364_2.png) [@EmilyG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EmilyG)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2015, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-doing-a-dry-january/709137/3 "2015-01-06T17:41:06Z")
I plan to do it, though I’ve had problems with alcohol in the past, so I’m trying not to drink in general. Good luck, **solost**. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2015, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-doing-a-dry-january/709137/4 "2015-01-06T17:44:00Z")
_Hell_ No. ---
**Author:** ![TheFaerie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c57346/32.png) [@TheFaerie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheFaerie)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2015, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-doing-a-dry-january/709137/5 "2015-01-06T18:03:12Z")
I won’t go so far as totally dry, but I am going to severely cut back on my consumption for awhile, for many of the reasons posted already. Plus my choice of alcohol is pricey and I need to save a few bucks. December was expensive. A glass or two of wine with dinner once a week is still on the table. ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2015, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-doing-a-dry-january/709137/6 "2015-01-06T18:38:28Z")
I do it every year, from the last college football game (Monday) until the Super Bowl. The last few years it has been extending well past the Super Bowl, though. Last year it went through the end of Lent. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2015, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-doing-a-dry-january/709137/7 "2015-01-06T18:38:30Z")
> [@solost](#): > > Cutting out the empty alcohol calories plus eating less/better in general, I’ve already lost between 5 and 10 lbs. 🆒 It’s great that you’re making a change, but I think it’s only fair to point out that if you make _any_ substantive change to your diet, you’ll lose five pounds the first week as your body says “WTF??” and dumps a lot of water weight to make you thirsty so you’ll eat more. This is why _all_ diet plans say “Lose 5 pounds the first week!” ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2015, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-doing-a-dry-january/709137/8 "2015-01-06T19:42:32Z")
Be careful just stopping alcohol if you’ve been drinking heavy for awhile. Our morning DJ had a seizure on air after abstaining a few days. He’d been a heavy drinker for years. He eventually went to Betty Ford and seems on the road to recovery now. Casual drinkers shouldn’t have problems just stopping. I often wait several days or even a week or so to buy more beer. I don’t miss it that much and theres no need to rush to the store. > **[Tommy Smith Unplugged](https://www.katv.com/archive/tommy-smith-unplugged)** > > Some of you may know him as the "Outlaw". Others might know him as the host of the "Show With No Name." But what you may not know about is the serious struggle that Tommy Smith is now going through and the vice that led to a near-death experience... > [@](#): > > Tommy says he recognized he had a drinking problem about a year ago but it wasn’t until a couple of months ago when he tried to stop…cold turkey. > > However his body struggled to function without alcohol. > > On the morning of Friday, September 24th he could barely walk. > > “He had been going downhill all week, trying to give up alcohol by himself. So I knew was real weak that day,” said Karen who even drove her husband to work that day. > > Around 9:30am, Tommy collapsed and started having a seizure. The whole thing could be heard live on the air. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2015, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-doing-a-dry-january/709137/9 "2015-01-06T19:52:31Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I often wait several days or even a week or so to buy more beer. It’s madness, madness, I tell you! ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2015, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-doing-a-dry-january/709137/10 "2015-01-06T20:04:46Z")
I’ve been careful with alcohol since I left college. Rum and coke was a favorite then. I haven’t bought a bottle of Bacardi in 15 years. Don’t need it and there’s no reason to have it around. Maybe a couple times a year I’ll order a rum and coke at a club. We go sometimes if a good band is playing. A beer in the evening is fine. Maybe two. 😉 But not every night. Those calories can add up. ---
**Author:** ![Spud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spud/32/347_2.png) [@Spud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spud)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2015, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-doing-a-dry-january/709137/11 "2015-01-06T22:08:27Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Those calories can add up. That was the easiest way to cut back for me. In August I decided to get back in shape and loose some weight. I’m proud to say that today i’m in much better shape and 30 pounds lighter. The key was tracking my exercise and my calories religiously. It is amazing how quick alcohol adds up. It isn’t my first choice of beer, but if I want something that tastes kind of like beer but doesn’t have the calories I’ve started drinking Bud 55. 2.8 alcohol (not even near beer) but only 55 calories. I could have 4 or 5 of these for any “good” beer. Works for watching football with friends (plus I don’t have to worry much about driving home). ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-doing-a-dry-january/709137/12 "2015-01-07T01:27:42Z")
Since this is effectively a poll, moved to IMHO (from Cafe Society). ---
**Author:** ![GrumpyBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@GrumpyBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrumpyBunny)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-doing-a-dry-january/709137/13 "2015-01-07T01:33:12Z")
No. I have a bum knee, and my doctor told me that jumping on bandwagons isn’t good for it. (But if I have 2 drinks a week, it’s a party week.) ---
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-doing-a-dry-january/709137/14 "2015-01-07T01:41:23Z")
Nope. I don’t drink enough to care about it. I go through a liter of bourbon every 3-4 months and maybe a couple 6-packs of cider/craft brew pick-your-own. A bottle of wine here and there when friends come over. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-doing-a-dry-january/709137/15 "2015-01-07T01:54:28Z")
> [@solost](#): > > Or “Drynuary”, if you will. Ahh, I get it! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-doing-a-dry-january/709137/16 "2015-01-07T03:55:10Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#): > > It’s great that you’re making a change, but I think it’s only fair to point out that if you make _any_ substantive change to your diet, you’ll lose five pounds the first week as your body says “WTF??” and dumps a lot of water weight to make you thirsty so you’ll eat more. This is why _all_ diet plans say “Lose 5 pounds the first week!” How does being thirsty make you eat more 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-doing-a-dry-january/709137/17 "2015-01-07T04:09:23Z")
I didn’t realize this was a “thing”. I did 12 months dry last year. I’m back to driving, but trying to limit frequency and quantity. ---
**Author:** ![penultima\_thule](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penultima_thule/32/3833_2.png) [@penultima\_thule](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/penultima_thule)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 11:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-doing-a-dry-january/709137/18 "2015-01-07T11:22:06Z")
In the Antipodes we have [Dry July](http://au.dryjuly.com/). As worthy and successful as the cause is, to run it in January would be unAustralian. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-doing-a-dry-january/709137/19 "2015-01-07T13:02:20Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > We always do our big vacation in January. Leaving Friday for St Martin, in fact. So, no dry January here, if anything the extreme opposite. So you’re doing a wet and warm January. Nice! ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-doing-a-dry-january/709137/20 "2015-01-07T13:05:56Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#): > > It’s great that you’re making a change, but I think it’s only fair to point out that if you make _any_ substantive change to your diet, you’ll lose five pounds the first week as your body says “WTF??” and dumps a lot of water weight to make you thirsty so you’ll eat more. This is why _all_ diet plans say “Lose 5 pounds the first week!” Ethilrist, yeah, I’m planning on a long slog of losing no more than 2 lbs. a week until I hit my goal weight in late spring. But I’ll take the initial quick 7-10 lb. loss, water weight or not 😉 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-doing-a-dry-january/709137.md?page=2)