He has gone 31 days without alcohol, but that doesn’t mean Matthew Goodwin will be reaching for a beer at midnight on Friday.
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Mr Goodwin took the Life Education Ocsober challenge to abstain from alcohol for the month of October and the Bolwarra Heights resident is cruising to the finish line.
The All Saints College, St Joseph’s Campus, Lochinvar teacher has enjoyed both the personal challenge and significant health benefits.
“I had thought about it for some time to give it a go, mostly for that challenge, but also to see if it made any improvement to my health,” he said. “It has been very positive, I’ve lost about 5kg.
“I go to the gym and think I’m a fairly healthy person, but cutting that alcohol out altogether has made a big difference.”
Mr Goodwin, 37, said he had adapted to life with no beer better than expected.
“I like a beer as much as the next man but I’m not crazy with it,” he said. “I take in a beer or three once in a while but it’s not a massive lifestyle change for me.
“I still thought I’d be struggling more than this.
“Some of the kids at school have been having a joke with me saying stuff like you’re a bit cranky today sir, need a beer?
“But I’ve been pretty good.”
Life Education aimed to raise $1 million during Ocsober for its drug, alcohol and health education programs, which have been delivered to more than 600,000 school students each year for the past 35 years.
And at 12.01am on November 1, will Mr Goodwin celebrate with a beer?
“Probably not, it’s something I want to keep going with,” he said.
“I won’t be as regimented and I won’t cut it out completely, but I’ll limit it to certain occasions.”