Cheers!

When you’re trying to lose weight, there are many thing’s that can put the brakes on reaching your goal, lucky for me chocolate isn’t a problem like most of the women in my slimming group, I can easily do without it. Apart from the odd pastry based snack or packet of crisps, I eat pretty healthily, no large portions and lots of home cooked meals, the issue I have is alcohol. Fair to say I have cut down a lot and I usually do 3-4 days a week without any at all, but on those 3-4 days I do have a drink, I certainly make up for it. I used to use the excuse that it helped with the pain, which in fairness it does. I even managed once to get a doctor to agree with me, though I got the feeling she couldn’t be arsed arguing and just said I was right to get rid. You could say that I have a drink to be sociable, but that’s not entirely true, because of financial issues and the fact I struggle to walk too far, I don’t go to the pub very often. Most of my drinking is done at home alone, which at first makes me sound like a right sad tosser, though in honesty, I like my own company.

One of the main reasons for drinking is habit, I try to keep busy and motivate myself by doing DIY around the house, but usually by 4pm I’m completely knackered and can think of nothing more relaxing than sitting down with a glass of lager, watching Garden Rescue. I’ve managed to resist this temptation now for quite a while, though that’s not as impressive as it seems because the last series finished in September. On a serious note, I aren’t looking forward to it returning to our screens, as I genuinely associate it with having a well deserved drink. I don’t think for one minute that I’m dependant on alcohol, I can definitely manage without it and don’t start to shake when not drinking. I genuinely enjoy having a beer and the de-stressing feeling it can bring, but I also understand that it’s not helping with my weight loss. I did try non-alcoholic lagers, but not only did they taste crap or do nothing to ease pain, all of them had the same sugar content as the real deal……so that’s a no brainer.

I don’t suppose it helps that one of my DIY projects was to build a bar in the garden. The Yorkshire Leprechaun as I call it is a wonderful happy place to drink and unwind, without the expense of a real pub, it has all the things you need. Friends call round and there are never any nob heads shouting loudly in the corner, apart from when my son pops in. I quite often like to chill in there and contemplate everything the world has to offer, so here’s the dilemma. Yes, alcohol does make you put on weight and yes, when drunk in large amounts, it’s not great for your health, but like I said, it’s a great relief for pain. More importantly the odd small glass helps with stress and worry, both of which can bring on strokes and other issues. So as I sit here, glass of lager in hand, I think about all those who need a calm moment, to reflect and relax and to enjoy the little things that are good in life, to them I say,….cheers!