Fit Happens Chapter 3: The No Booze Cruise (Part 1)

As I did three years ago, I have devoted the month of February to no alcohol drinks whatsoever (editors note: we shall never speak of the events of February 3rd, which was reserved for the consumption of a plethora and variety of craft brews imbibed during the 49ers loss in the Super Bowl).

This no-alcohol month was done in two parts: (1) to give myself a challenge that I knew would be tough, especially with how many alcohol-based situations I am in on a weekly basis and (2) to help in the process of losing weight for the Fit Happens challenge.

I knew the chances of repeating as the Biggest Loser based on percentage for the month of February would be difficult, so I figured some kind of dietary change had to occur for this to happen (in addition to working out harder and more frequently).

I have kept track of all of the potential drinking opportunities and how difficult it was for me to abstain from drinking. I'm actually surprised at how often I'm in drinking situations, which surprises me that it surprises me.

Without further ado (listed by the date where temptation presented itself)

1st - As is the case every Friday, bowling always presents its share of temptation of delicious beer, usually 312. It is also harder to not drink when the team when you are bowling is a bunch of booze hounds - which was the case today. Seeing as though I bowled below average this particular week (peaking at a 191 in game 2) as our team got swept, a pint couldn't have hurt. Temptation Level: Medium

2nd - This day contained visits to two separate bars - Olivers and Zante's. Oliver's was with the family (not with my usual Wednesday night hooligans, so no difficulty there. Zante's was a different story.

Here's a story on Yelp a few years ago from someone who went there:

• Elite '13
• 304friends
• 160reviews

• Dana G.

Frankfort, IL

 1/6/2011

If there was a hell mouth for douche bags this is definitely one of them.

Do not come here on a weekend if you like your sanity. This place THINKS they are a Chicago club and so do the people that frequent it. They have a freakin' bathroom attendant... seriously thanks but I can wipe my own damn hands and I'm not paying you a dollar for a stick of gum. The door guys/ bouncers are rude (probably from the hair gel leaking through their skulls.

AVOID AVOID AVOID

This summary sums up my thoughts on the place. The best part of the place this particular night was that there was one table of awesome people and an awesome birthday girl. Otherwise, this review is how I feel about the bar. So needless to say, the urge to drink this night was particularly high. I did buy drinks...but they weren't for me. Ada (the birthday girl in question) and Jen enjoyed a lemon drop shot as part of my birthday drink gift. My 3-4 glasses of water were my only beverages consumed. Temptation Level: High; Total Bar Visits: 2; (Month-to-Date: 2)

3rd - (We're forgetting about this day. Damn Ravens)

6th - Wednesday night bowling doesn't usually have the same alcohol temptation that Friday does, but there are a few teams we enjoy bowling against whose enjoyment of a couple drinks might get our team to do the same. However, when the team you are facing is named "BYE" and has no people on the team, the possibility of being tempted by them is nil. After bowling is usually a trip to Olivers, but sticking with the theme of a BYE week, my usual duo of knuckleheads were both MIA - no appearance to Olivers necessary. Temptation Level: Low

8th - Another bowling night, but with a team that doesn't interact with us in a way that others do (where there may be a shot here and there), there was no temptation to drink, although sadly, I have to say we all did take shots from a shot glass. They contained water. I bowled well that night (610 series, topping out at a 241 in the first game), so that's all I really need from a bowling night I realized. Temptation Level: Low

9th - I went to visit my friend who lives in Bloomington. If you know anything about us, you'd know that pretty much every time we've hung out (dating back to the start of our friendship in college times), there has been a couple of beers consumed. We did go to a bar, but we just grabbed lunch and then hung out at his place before heading back home to the South Loop in the early evening.

After this was one of the most alcohol-filled situations I've been in: Geno & Jen's engagement party. Over two dozen people were at the party - I believe all of them except one thinning white boy with a faux hawk were drinking something that night. With celebration drinks and clinking glasses surrounding me, I stayed strong with my 36 ounce water jug (between Bloomington and this party, I refilled the jug about 8 or 9 times - over 300 oz's of H2O in my body throughout the day). Talking about brewing beer with Ed didn't help matters. We also went to a bar (The Shamrock) after for a couple of drinks. But, as is the theme with this story, I stayed strong. Temptation Level: High; Total Bar Visits: 2 (Month-to-Date: 4)

10th - Another day with G & J, another day of bowling, but surprisingly, not as much temptation. This bowling league on Sundays is more of a social league than a serious one, but on this particular day, no one on the team was drinking. I'm a substitute for the team, bowling when needed. Afterwards, we went to Diversey's to grab dinner and catch some of the Blackhawks game. Again, shocked to see no one was drinking. Jen and I left before the game ended. However, at the bar, I set up my next drinking temptation event, which coincidentally enough, involved going to a Blackhawks game. Temptation Level: Low; Total Bar Visits: 1 (Month-to-Date: 5)

Pierre & Geno

12th - I was invited to go to a Blackhawks game with Geno, for the low price of buying him a couple rounds of drinks. At this point, he knew that I was not drinking this month - and as such, he respected my stance of not drinking this month. We took a free shuttle from The Crossroads to the United Center. After not drinking there amid a 3-2 Blackhawks defeat, I went back to the bar with Geno (but not before running into New Orleans Saints running back Pierre Thomas, who I took a picture of with Geno). The urge to drink was a little higher than the previous temptation, but certainly not as bad as it's been this month. Temptation Level: Medium; Total Bar Visits: 1 (Month-to-Date: 6)

13th - I headed to Atlanta for a few days, where I was to meet with my co-workers, including my new boss (who I had never had the chance to meet before). I was in my hotel room for several hours before I got a call from him to meet him at the hotel bar. As I did many times so far this month, I explained my no-drink situation, so my beverage of choice was water throughout the 48 hours together. I also managed to avoid drinking at a restaurant we went to when Jake got into town. I did take a shot of something - strangely, it was an oyster/calamari shot. I assured the new boss that I would be enjoying adult beverages with them on our company trip next month in Hawaii. Temptation Level: High; Total Bar Visits (including the hotel bar): 2 (Month-to-Date: 8)

14th - The second night featured dinner with a client in a downtown restaurant and visiting a pub where the boss wanted to see an old friend of his that he hadn't seen in a couple years. The client dinner was fantastic - no drinks, no worries. Same with the visit to the bar. We didn't stay there long, as every one of us was tired and wanted to get some shut eye. Temptation Level: Low; Total Bar Visits (including restaurant): 2 (Month-to-Date: 10)

15th - I got back into Chicago around 7:30 pm, just in time to get back to the suburbs for bowling. Like the bowling situation on the 1st, we faced a team full of guys who are never shy about their consumption of buckets full of piss water known as Coors Light. Avoiding drinking was not a problem though. Temptation was lower than normal, considering the team we are bowling against. One thing I did notice - as I go with beer drinking at bowling, so goes my team. Not once this month has my team had a beer to drink while bowling. Temptation Level: Low

More to come on this as the month finishes. I will also update everyone on my weight loss and whether or not I am able to defend my Biggest Loser crown from January. Peace!