Even though you may enjoy having a few drinks with friends, when going out for dinner, or maybe just to unwind at the end of a long day, there may come a time where you want to slow down your alcohol consumption. And, let’s be real here, that can be a difficult undertaking. This is why we are sharing some of our top strategies to help you control your drinking.
We all have heard of the negative side effects of excessive drinking, so this article isn’t here to highlight these, we polled our team and asked them to share their strategies on how to limit your drinking and enjoy the drinks you do have fully.
Here is what our team came up with;
1. Eat and Drink Plenty of Water
The first strategy to keep drinking under control is to eat something and be adequately hydrated before going out for drinks with friends. This is important because alcohol dehydrates and the only way to counterbalance this is to drink plenty of water before, during and after consuming alcohol. Have a glass of water at your side while enjoying your alcoholic beverages and switch between each as the night goes on. This will reduce your desire to drink and reduce the amount of alcohol you take. This will also severely reduce the effects of a hangover if you do end up overindulging.
2. Pace Yourself
This strategy helps to ensure that you do not drink more than you had planned. If you plan to have two drinks, do not rush to enjoy them. Take your time, enjoy your beverages by sipping on your drink and have some water in-between. You can also try and put a time limit on your drink, such as having one drink per hour. You can always rotate alcohol with a non-alcoholic beverage to slow down the pace of your drinking. With a plan firmly set, you will be able to turn down more drinks than planned by telling friends that you are pacing yourself.
3. Do Not Stock Up
Another way to control your alcohol intake is by not stocking up. Many of us have the habit of stocking up on every visit to the liquor store. This includes beer, wine, and spirits. If you do not have a bar full of alcoholic beverages at home, it is easier to skip having drinks. For many of us, we stay stocked up in case we have guests or for those occasions that just call for a toast. Well, if the time arises and you don’t have a needed beverage at home, you can always call an after hours alcohol delivery to get you what you want and when you want it.
4. Set a Limit
Drink responsibly by setting a realistic limit of alcohol you will have at any given event or get together. When you are at an event or hang out with friends and you reach your allotted number of drinks you planned, you can excuse yourself and head home or request non-alcoholic beverages like water.
Keeping your alcohol intake under control is at times easier said than done, even with the knowledge that there are long-term health benefits. Changing your alcohol intake needs to be a personal choice, help yourself drink responsibly by adopting the above tips.