Thanks Casinva! I see a lot of parallels with fitness and sobriety and for me they kind of go hand in hand, the concept of perseverance through adversity, mental strength, listening to and looking after your body and planning ahead help me achieve strength and fitness as well as sobriety. I also find that when I adhere to my training diet my alcohol cravings are much less severe, I think it's because the fat-loss diet includes a lot of low GI foods (Like sweet-potato and brown rice) and that prevents spikes in blood sugar. A high blood-sugar content leads to highs and lows in mood and I think my body sort of 'remembers' being in an alcoholic state when it has high blood sugar, so I stick to my sweet potato and rice and I feel more mellow and stable.
In addition to this being in the gym is a place I feel very in control, there are many things in life that are outside of our control but my body is not one of them, so getting into the gym and doing these routines is very therapeutic to me. And being strong raises my confidence in such a way that when I've had a good day of weight training I feel strong enough that I could take a tour of a real-ale brewery and not feel tempted!
And the motivational concepts are the same too, it's not the guy who gets dealt the best hand who wins, not the guy who was born with good genes or the one with the best start. The guy who wins is the guy who perseveres, in training you play the long game, slow, steady progression. That's how I see sobriety now, playing the long game. Some days it's tough, but you get through it sober and you win that day at all costs. Because when you add up all those days, that makes the difference between winning and losing. And ultimately, between living and dying.