Alcohol Out for 30 Days
One month ago today, I decided to cease alcohol consumption at home only and reserve it only for dining out at local restaurants or craft breweries. There are a handful of reasons why I decided to try this out but in summation, this is why:
- I am a self-proclaimed craft beer snob. I love the culture, the grass-roots nature of the community, the uniqueness of the countless craft breweries across our country and of course the brew itself, especially a juicy hazy imperial IPA. However, frequent consumption interferes with my love of fitness and health.
- I had some deep thoughts ahead of doing this: Why do I love it? Do I crave the effect from it or the taste…or both? My answer is two-fold: sometimes I do like the effect but my hunch was that I just enjoyed it after a day of work and chillin’ at home.
- I discovered a craft brewery fully dedicated to non-alcoholic beer. They are called “Athletic Brewing Company” out of Connecticut and for all the research I have done, they are the real deal. They focus on supporting local farms, hold true to the “craft” and give back plenty to the local and global community. They use a proprietary process by adjusting variables during the fermentation process to maintain extremely low levels of alcohol … up to 0.5%. This is considered “non-alcoholic.”
- Why not? Nothing ventured, nothing gained. Let’s go!
So I began four weeks ago today with my initial order from Athletic Brewing. I got a combination pack of IPAs and a stout. Since, I have tried four of their IPAs and I have been very impressed! The stout is my least favorite but still a solid 3.75 out of 5 stars in my book. They have some sours as well but I have yet to order any. Soon after I started this, I gave away all remaining craft in the fridge. There were some awesome, heavy hitters in there but they were too tempting to me. I could feel the “urge” at night to have one but I really wanted to see this through so out they went. From what I hear, the recipients of those brews have been enjoying them! My stable as of now is below:
One thing that is just a fine detail and not one that “makes the beer” is how they all of the nutrition facts on the can and/or on their website. Below are snapshots of Free Wave, Run Wild and All Out. As someone who has logged a lot of my food since 2018, trying to log craft beer is next to impossible. This data just isn’t provided by craft breweries. BUT… Athletic Brewing KNOWS their customer and that this IS important. When logging food, we always care about calories and the big 3: carbs, fat and protein. Boom…there it is. From a calorie count, by the way, this is LOW as compared to my normal craft hazy IPA. This kind of attention to detail and “speaking” to me as a consumer is icing on the cake. Now… what about the beer? Is it any good?
YES. From the hot tub to the couch watching one of our favorite shows, I have greatly enjoyed these brews and I honestly don’t miss the aforementioned alcoholic craft brews in my home. Here’s another summation of my takeaways so far:
- I even more appreciate the craft brews I have outside of home. I am more selective about what, when, where and with whom.
- Athletic gets it. They are focusing on the craft, the customer and delivering a superior product…without compromise. I can appreciate that!
- I feel better, less bloated, and “think” I am sleeping better. I truthfully do NOT miss the alcohol yet ironically, still enjoy some tasty craft at home, in the hot tub or enjoying a show on TV. That kinda answers #2 up above.
- I’ll be ordering more soon and have no plans to reintroduce alcohol in the home. This has become a great “soft guardrail” to keep me on track with my fitness goals yet still enjoy something I love. I want to continue enjoy craft beer without the negative side effects of it with regards to fitness, sleep, recovery and overall health.
- Less money spent and less “empty” calories consumed: I was trending nearly 1 craft beer a night. That is costly both physically and in the wallet. I actually am drinking less (of Athletic) and spending less as a result. If you’re curious about cost, every 6 pack of Athletic on their website is $13.99 and when ordering two 6-packs or more, the shipping is always free. You can find 3–5 of their high production brews all over the place countrywide but the majority of their offerings are online or local to their locations in Connecticut and San Diego, CA.
RESOURCES: Athletic Brewing is pretty active on social media. I have to recommend their YouTube channel and Instagram accounts. I have especially enjoyed the many short videos they have produced, especially their recently “Journey to 100” film series where they document “One man’s mission to summit 100 peaks faster than anyone ever.” See it here.
Order online/shop here. There are more than IPAs, too. Dark, golden, IPA, sour, lager and wheat are all options.
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