Straight from the pen: Judith

I still planned it like this, after the 30 days IkPas of January I wouldn't go back to alcohol right away. But with the backbone of a shrimp, I couldn't resist a glass of bubbly January 31st. Those bubbles tasted delicious, it just made me a little dizzy. However, that feeling soon disappeared and during the dinner that followed, I also had a glass of red wine. (I was planning to. Yes, yes…..to glue with a wet finger, the willpower of a dishcloth.)

In the period that followed up to my 40-day IkPas challenge, I drank considerably less alcohol than before my 30-day alcohol stop. But I did notice that it felt easy again, and especially normal to order a glass of wine or beer, and then another.

Why I fall back so quickly into my old pattern, I want to try to discover this alcohol-free period. Without alcohol I felt better, fitter and above all fresher in my head. So what makes me so quickly tempted by a glass of bubbles, specialty beer or wine? What game is my brain playing with me that makes me give in to something I didn't intend to? Perhaps Erik Scherder knows the answer.

So now I've started my 40 day challenge, and it's off to a good start. Last weekend a trip to The Hague was on the program. Our son and daughter-in-law invited us to a Japanese dinner. I admit I had a bit of a hard time when the waiter brought the wine list, but the thought of how disappointed I would look at myself in the mirror the next morning was enough to make me say no. And that next morning the reward was great, at 8 o'clock we were super fit with a delicious breakfast, and at 8.30 we walked in the sun through a still sleeping The Hague. With alcohol we would probably have stayed in bed until about 9 am, after which we showered and had breakfast with a drowsy head. Well, me then. My sweetheart never suffers from too much glass. The word hangover is not in his vocabulary.

How sweet that he supports me with this challenge, and decided last minute to register for IkPas 40 days. I am very curious how he will experience this period. He is a whiskey lover and has 10 different varieties. So he can only look at that in the coming period.

As a lifestyle coach I have already been able to guide many people who wanted to stop smoking, lead a more active life or lose a few kilos. In short, people who had a healthier lifestyle as their goal. My number 1 tip for all these people, and now also for myself and for you is: don't think about what you miss during difficult moments, but what you gain by persevering in this challenge.

So far, the challenge is still fairly easy for us, except for a single moment. I notice that I feel fitter again and that is very nice. I'm going to try to let that fit, fresh feeling be my trigger and motivation, instead of the languid, relaxed feeling of that glass of alcohol. And who knows, after these 40 days I'll say goodbye to alcohol for good, although those bubbles sometimes beckon me again….

If you would like to read my blogs about the 30-day IkPas challenge, you can do so via my website https://www.my-power.nl

As for this challenge: to be continued….