Well, today’s the day. Tuesday 12th May 2026. This date has been in my Apple Calendar for a little while now, staring me in the face every time I check my work shifts or appointments. It was back on Wednesday 8th April that I made the calendar entry, and decided I was going to do this. Finally, give up alcohol for good. I had just woken up with the hangover from hell, after a night of heavy drinking with a good friend of mine. I remembered the majority of the night before, and remembered standing on Rusty’s dance floor in Newcastle, feeling, bored. Unfulfilled. I realised I wasn’t enjoying it anymore. This wasn’t the first time I had felt like this, as I recalled other recent nights out feeling the same. I enjoyed my friend’s company, but I wasn’t enjoying the alcohol.
The reason I didn’t quit drinking right there on the spot is because I know that I’m weak. I know how my brain works. I had a 10 pack of beers in the fridge at home, alongside a bottle of Prosecco and some Italian Red Wine. There was no way I would be able to be sitting in the house on my days off and not reach for a drink. See, I drink in the house out of boredom. I’m very disciplined that I won’t drink on a ‘school night’, the days before I have work. Mostly for my own sanity and also because my job explicitly doesn’t allow it. As much as I like a cold beer, I like being paid more! However, my job also gives me a lot of time off, and that means I get three, four days off in a row. On those days, especially if the sun is out and I have no plans, it’s very likely you will see me with a beer in my hand by lunchtime.
I also had a trip planned to Rome, Italy between the 1st – 4th May, and I knew that on my holidays, I would want a beer, and some nice red wine with my dinner, and want to enjoy drinking. It’s almost become a habit that I drink alcohol with a meal when I have no work the next day. I was brought up that way. My family would regularly spend a Friday or Saturday night around the table, having good food, good wine and a good time. It felt part of my DNA. It still is.
The reason I want to become sober is quite a simple one. I don’t want to waste my life. Right now, as I write this, it’s sunny outside, I have beer in the fridge and I am off work tomorrow. Every part of my brain says to grab a drink and go relax. However, today is the first day I need to fight that urge in hope for a better future. Every morning after a drink, I wake up tired, groggy, dizzy and just run down. Its killed my motivation and had made me feel a bit ‘stuck’ in life. Even starting a new job at the start of the year, should be an exciting, motivating activity. However, it doesn’t feel that way, and I think the booze is to blame.
Why running? I’m 26, and have just eaten any old rubbish my entire life, with little movement and exercise. I have been blessed with a good metabolism, and managed to stay lean, but that gift is starting to fade, and the weight is slowly starting to pile on. Running looks hard. Real hard. But also exciting. I especially like the look of social running, like parkrun, or running events that pop up around the UK. It sounds exciting. I’m also a bit of a nerd, and love stats. I like the idea of keeping my running times and having them as a goal, a motivator, to keep fit and stop drinking. I have ran a little bit before, but nothing major or more than a few kilometres at a time. I am really looking forward to giving it a ‘proper’ go!
Why SobRun? Well, I have tried to quit alcohol before, and failed miserably. Mainly, because I didn’t have anyone to hold me to account. By starting the SobRun (Sober Runner) blog, I feel like the blank canvas of the internet can hold me to account. Once I hit publish on this post, it will be out there forever. Therefore, someone can come up to me one day, show me this, and ask why I didn’t stick to it. Therefore, I want to document my journey here. A journey of sobriety, learning to run from absolutely scratch, looking at ways to eat healthier, which will be a challenge as I am a fairly picky eater, and see the effects of sobriety and what this has on my life.
I’m not running today. Why? Cause I had two glasses of red wine and 4 beers last night and feel disgusting. But no more! I am working most of this week from tomorrow, so plan my first run to start from Monday 18th May 2026. I have my Runna app installed, plan all ready to start a Coach-To-5K style plan, with walk-run’s over the course of 12 weeks, until I can run a 5K consistently. My plan after that is to start attending local parkrun events and hopefully start more social running. My goal right now is simply stop drinking and get moving. Let’s see where this journey takes me from there.
