January, The month of New Year resolutions, kept and broken. Apparently one third of resolutions are kept, which is encouraging.

That seems lot to me, but I guess it depends on what the resolution is? I suppose if it is to have 19 cigarettes a day rather than 20, it is registered as a success. Some resolutions are achievable, whilst others are ludicrously grandiose.

My Resolutions

My 2020 resolution is to once again join in the slightly nauseating fad of ‘Dry January’, to cleanse my self from December excess. I am also attempting to give up sugar in coffee and tea, whilst taking on more water.

I did dry January last year and despite it being a bit of a slog early in the days, I completed it with reasonable ease. The first day of February was interesting. I drove to Basingstoke looking forward to a glass of wine, only to find myself stuck in a blizzard on the A30 for six hours. This resulted in a splitting headache when I arrived, so I had one glass of wine and hit the sack.

This year I got off to a flier by foolishly mixing the grape with the grain (red wine, prosecco and beer) on New Year’s Eve. Two days later, I still can’t stick the thought of booze. Don’t try it at home kids.

On the whole, I have reduced alcohol consumption dramatically in the last couple of years. Oddly enough, it was when I felt constantly tired in December (when I drank on all but six days of the month) I realised how much better I feel without booze.

My problem with reduced alcohol intake, is my increased desire for sugar. It makes you realise how much sugar there is in beer. So, oddly, I might well find tea and coffee without sugar harder to stay free of than the dreaded booze.  

That said, I do find that if I haven’t got something, I don’t crave it. For example, if there was a packet of chocolate digestives in my cupboard, there would only be one result. Yet, if I didn’t have them, I wouldn’t feel the need to go to the shops and get some.

Realistic Targets

The sensible thing to do with resolutions is being realistic to avoid disappointment. I can remember once boasting I would go for a run every morning for a year. This was a preposterous idea when you consider I don’t really like running.

I lasted four days and when I missed a day, that was it for me. If I had said I would run once a week, I would have probably kept it going for longer. Instead, it was all over on the 4^th January.

Ultimately, any resolution that you make has to make you feel better in body and soul, or both. Otherwise, what is the point of it all? I kind of know what booze does to me. I do love a beer, particularly in the summer, but over consumption makes me feel a bit low and lethargic. It also adds inches to the waistline.

Psychologically, we are all different and there was one enlightening thing that I found about not drinking last January. During the following months, I hardly drunk at all. It was only in the summer my consumption went up again and even that was not by much.

It made me realise that, as humans, many of our vices are based around being creatures of habit, rather than addiction.

Have a happy and prosperous New Year and if you have made a resolution, good luck!