T.J. Holmes and Amy Robach are spilling about their relationship with alcohol while they both participate in Dry January.
In the most recent episode of the “Amy and T.J.” podcast, titled “A Year on the Rocks,” the couple divulged everything from how much they usually spend on drinks to their daily alcohol intake — which for both was more than they could happily admit.
“I could easily go through 18 drinks a day,” Holmes said. He based his estimate on the fact that he was often “two drinks in” by 10 a.m., would drink at least two more during lunch, then would have a drink in his hand every hour “from 2 in the afternoon until 7, 8, 9, 10 o’clock at night.”
Robach said she had been averaging “over 30 drinks a week,” adding, “that is embarrassing to me. That is not what I wish it were.”
The pair pointed out that official guidelines defining a standard drink might shrink those numbers a bit, but one figure they’re certain isn’t an overshoot is the amount they spent on alcohol in December.
“We spent in the month of December $2,869 on alcohol alone, period. I thought the number would be higher, to be honest with you,” Holmes said. “But that is an amount of money now that is going to be saved in January.”
Still, they didn’t just make the lifestyle change for financial reasons.
“I am certainly somebody who right now and in years past needs to reexamine my relationship with alcohol, and that’s what we are doing,” Holmes said.
The former “GMA3” anchors attributed their excessive drinking in 2023 partly to stress caused by the loss of their jobs following their relationship scandal.
“I didn’t have a job to go to and I was away from a lot of friends and family. We were lying low. So what did I do? I drank a lot,” Robach said. “I don’t think I have ever gone a full year where I drink every single day, and that was 2023 for me.”
While Holmes had participated in Dry January in years past, Robach said had never done the challenge before — and might not have without Holmes by her side.
“I don’t know if I would have felt brave enough or courageous enough to say, ‘I am 100 percent going cold turkey this month,’ if you hadn’t said, ‘I’m doing it and we can do it together,’” she told him on the podcast.
Whatever the reasons , both Holmes and Robach are both feeling great about their decision.
“We feel amazing,” Holmes said, adding that Robach had noticed a “pep in [her] step” since their Dry January kick started. Each has also lost several pounds since the start of the year.
“That’s the only major change,” Robach said. “We have always been runners, and we have always been pretty good about watching what we eat, so the alcohol is the big change that we’ve made.”