Joe Namath: Overcoming Addiction and Improving His Diet | Trending Now

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0:38This week, Joe Namath.

0:44How often would there be drinking, partying the night before a game?

0:53Unless it was with the owners or with the team, there wasn't that kind of thing. At a home game, I'd go out to dinner or so, but there wasn't any partying. Now, when you talk about drinking three or four drinks, you know, that was not abnormal. I mean, I'm not talking about going out and getting drunk the night before a game. Okay. Maybe we did sometimes, too. It's my memory again that gets me. But it would be uncommon to be drunk or hungover on an actual game day? Absolutely. It's absolutely uncommon. To what extent does it bother you that there are stories out there about that, that it's kind of people view that as part of your legend when in reality, as you're saying, it's not as much the case?

1:45Well, I'm not saying it didn't happen from time to time. I'm just saying it wasn't an issue and it wasn't influential on our physical conditioning at the time. At least we didn't think it was. We didn't know. How was your diet back then? I don't think any of us ever thought about what was in the food we were eating. Because on game day, we'd have our pregame meal, and all I'd have is coffee, maybe a piece of toast, and then chewing the back. Really? I was the guy that carried the salt shaker in the back pocket when we went out, on the apples, on the radishes, on the watermelons, you name it, man.

2:25Salt was wonderful. No one knew about the proper diets for athletes back then. They thought they did, but they didn't. We didn't know about how to get the body strong through weight lifting without getting tightened up. So professional football players didn't lift weights until the 70s. There were things we didn't know, and we're glad that they found out for sure. I know guys that have had drinking problems that never gave it a thought because it was like a regular routine And then the next thing you know it is a routine and you're doing it every day and It starts to control your life and destroy it.

3:07So you have to find the strength to shift gears When did you realize you wanted to stop drinking altogether? When my wife My wife told me I needed to when my daughter Jessica was just about a year old. I made a deal with my wife at the time that if I didn't stop on my own I would check into a rehab place. Well I was so terrified of a rehab place and what the consequences of notoriety in a rehab place might bring or feel like that I knew I wasn't going to drink. and I was able to stop drinking and stay sober for 13 years. After getting an education this last time, I learned I was what you call a dry drunk.

3:57Without the education and understanding alcohol and understanding the system physically and emotionally and just quitting with the strength and determination, that's called a dry drunk. You do need support. When I did get an education, it was joyful because not only did it help me spiritually, I saw people that I didn't want to end up like. I believed their stories, their help, you know, and telling me what they're telling me. And it's a matter of shifting gears and carrying fear. I still have a fear for what that stuff does to me and what it could do to me. So every day I'm thankful and I do say my little prayer to whatever God I choose, my God, and it helps.

4:51It helps. What's involved with ultimately overcoming the problem, the addiction? Well, I think sugar has a lot to do with it for one thing. There's a whole lot of sugar in there too. And if you're constantly getting a certain amount of sugar, that could be part of it. But I think to me it was mental, it was emotional, and somewhat of an escape. Being able to shed responsibilities or being on stage as an athlete, as a ball player, and just wanting to say, forget it, let me, you know, and that was a way of escaping some. What advice would you have for somebody who may be watching, who wants to stop drinking but is unable to stop?

5:34Get some help. Go see someone with Alcoholics Anonymous. You've got to want to do it. Understand about it. Understand what it is and ask for help. You know, it's like you ask God. Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change. Courage to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference. Those three things, you know, every day it comes to mind. and it's solid. It's good. If you can get through the physical part of it, what withdrawals there might be or what withdrawals you think there are, it becomes an attitude. I always think of the down times, how it made me feel, how I fouled up everything I ever did in my life.

6:23It seemed that I was really screwy and wrong about. I had some kind of alcohol input. And so I know I'm a slow learning, but by God, I've learned. One quick thing before you leave, please consider giving the podcast a rating and review. Those go a really long way in helping us reach new listeners.