First look book review: The 28 Day Alcohol Free Challenge

After the overindulgence of the festive period it's increasingly becoming a tradition to have a bit of break from the sauce in January.

So The 28 Day Alcohol Free Challenge, published by Bluebird (an imprint of Pan Macmillan) and written by Andy Ramage and Ruari Fairbairns arrives just in time for those attempting a Dry January. Clever marketing eh?!

Available in all good book shops and some online retailers that pay a ridiculously small amount of tax

Now, some of you may have attempted (or even completed) a Dry January or  Sober October before. You may be thinking "how can you squeeze a book out of something as dull as that?"

Well, rather than viewing four weeks' abstinence as a horrific punishment that should be painfully endured, The 28 Day Alcohol-Free Challenge is a guide book to how you can thrive during that month, to not only turbo-charge the rest of your year but perhaps your life as well.

Taking a day by day approach, Andy and Ruari, explain how to not only survive but thrive in social occasions (ranging from surprise after work drinks you cant get out of, to stag dos), unwind after a stressful day and make the most of the all extra time you have on your hands when you decide to take a break from the booze.

As regular readers of my blog will know, this involves taking on a challenge (mental or physical) that will really push your limits. For some that might be taking on a horrendous duathlon, for others that might be studying for a qualification. 

Don't tell anyone, but it's one of Joe Wicks books on the inside

In the words of the authors, "each new day builds on the preceding ones, so by the end of the challenge you'll have a whole arsenal for putting alcohol in its place."

The book also provides weekly assessments so you can keep see the mental and physical progress you are making as you work through the challenge.

I've got man flu so zero for everything for me at the moment

So is it any good? 

Well, at the time of writing, I haven't read the book.. 

I've skimmed through, looked at the pictures, asked my five year old to explain what neuro-linguistic programming is but I haven't actually read it yet. 

Which puts me at a slight disadvantage, you might think, for a book review. However I actually know the authors quite well because, to put it bluntly, they've had quite a profound impact on my life.

Andy and Ruari are the founders of One Year No Beer, the online community that has enabled me to have, at the time of writing, a six month break from alcohol and reassess many aspects of my lifestyle. (And they even invited me to the pre-launch event where I got to meet Joe Wicks.)

I'm therefore very familiar with the programme they have created (and the wide body of academic resources and studies they refer to) that not only helps you cut out bad habits (such as drinking) but also create new healthy habits that benefit your physical and mental health. 

So while I achieved a lot over the last six months, by changing my drinking habits, I do feel there are other unhealthy aspects of my life that I need to work on. 

And while I haven't been drinking over Christmas I do feel as though I've overindulged in other ways, have not been exercising as much as I would like and as a result have lost some of the mojo I gained when I first cut out alcohol.

So to get my year off to a good start, and give me a better chance of achieving my goals for 2018, I'm going to work my way through it day by day and will give a more thorough assessment at the end of January.

If you want to join me you can grab a copy from Amazon, I can guarantee that you won't regret it and it might just be the best money you've ever spent.