Sky Tshabalala's DryJune journey

We have finally completed Sky's 30-day DryJune! Our sports presenter randomly woke up one morning and made the decision to no longer enjoy a beer(s) for the entire month of June. 

We are extremely proud of him for taking this self-discipline journey. He shares that it was not so difficult really except the first week. 

Well, we had a before DryJune vs after DryJune. Have a look at that glow: 

As June came to an end on the last week, Sky was to reunite with a beer or two or six, if he will. We have really enjoyed seeing him effortlessly go through the month without a drop of alcohol. 

Not because he loves it so much or anything of that sort, because he has truly done well in terms of this discipline journey he challenged himself on. 

We got the chance to speak to his partner in sobriety and just check if our guy is still sticking with it. Might he have to go longer? 

We should probably host something significant to celebrate this commitment or get brands to give our boy a high-five for his dedication, regardless of all the possible things that could have kicked him off the wagon. 

For those that just got on board, Sky has been on a sobriety journey from June 1 2021 hoping to complete it by 30 June 2021. 

It all began here. 

READ MORE: Sky Tshabalala shares heartfelt message with healthcare workers after loss of his mother

Rugby players are known to love their beer and it is no different with Sky. When he casually shared that he will be taking a break from alcohol during the month of June, we had to find out the full reason he will not be cracking open a cold one. 

He shared the finer details of this alcohol break in this brief Q+A: 

Why did you choose to do this 30-day sober challenge? 

I have never done it before and everyone seems to do it at least once a year to detox and readjust the body. I think I am also doing it to practice some discipline during this time. There is no real reason like health or anything. It would actually be great to wake up without a hangover on a Sunday. 

READ MORE: Sky Tshabalala shares heartfelt message with healthcare workers after loss of his mother

How much money do you think you will save from not purchasing any beer for the month? 

I'm not a heavy drinker so I'm assuming a couple of hundred bucks or a grand, maybe. I cannot confidently say as I haven't been in this boat before. I guess I'll find out at the end of the month as I'll be going out less to avoid temptation or insistences from mates to have a sip. 

Do you think you can challenge yourself to take the break for longer than 30 days? 

No, no. On the first weekend of July I'm having the coldest draught. I am not going longer than 30 days. I'm not punishing myself here. This is a challenge about me and seeing whether I can do this or not. Should this break go extremely well, maybe I will consider it some other time. 

READ MORE: Prince Harry reveals why he was drinking a week's worth of alcohol a day

Who is there to hold you accountable other than yourself if you fall off the wagon? 

I have a partner I'm doing this with, so we are going to keep each other in check.  

Is there a penalty should you fail to follow through with the full 30 days? 

So, my partner and I made a deal that anyone who drink owes the other R1,000.

READ MORE: You can now earn Smart Shopper points on alcohol app

Do you have anything you are using to substitute, like sodas, coffee, a food item etc? 

I don't know, hey. I'm entering the unknown, but I think I'll have those zero percentage alcohol-free draughts should I feel the urge. 

What are the health benefits you feel will come out of this break? 

Oh, there are probably plenty. I won't have a hangover and a sore body which I think will be beneficial in some way. I'm a beer man, I really enjoy my beer, so I think I will lose some weight. 

It was interesting to see people assume that Keri will be the one taking a break from alcohol on Twitter.  

As Sky started this sobriety journey in the first few days, we were skeptical. So, we called Sky's roommate James on the show to find out if he is aware of Sky's new lifestyle change for the next 30 days. You will be thrilled to find out more tasks he has to complete in the house should he buckle on this challenge. Take a listen to our chat with him:  

We are allcrossing our fingers for "Umfwetho" to finish strong on his 30-day break from alcohol. 

Sky experienced his first alcohol-free weekend, but we received an interesting text in our DKS Whatsapp group. 

We were then convinced he had already fallen off the wagon inside six days. We made a call to his rugby coach to hear if was able to stick to his journey of discipline regardless of the injury: 

So we  officially reached his halfway mark in his #DryJune - it really has seemed to go more smoothly than he anticipated considering he has never done the challenge. 

On June 15 we celebrated Sky's completion of half of 30-day journey. We found out about the laws in SA placed at sporting events regarding alcohol where alcohol is not longer permitted. Considering the tradition of having a beer while watching a game or having the soccer players spray champagne after winning a game, we imagined Sky as a sportsman would have views on this new law. 

This law applies only to foreign big games as our COVID-19 laws do not even allow spectators at events yet. And in true DKS style, our very own Sky agreed with the law. Should anyone - spectator or sportsman - be at a game, they should refrain from alcohol consumption at any point of the game(s).

We love to see Sky pushing through his test of his own self-discipline with DryJune. There were so many chances for him to fall off the wagon but he was like "I'm good". 

And now, we countdown to the end of Sky's DryJune.