We get it, it’s tough to go from couch potato to man of the match, and nobody expects it to happen instantly. We’ve all been there, and everyone will understand, so never feel you must push yourself. 

It’s a good idea to try and boost your activity levels little by little over the weeks, as being inactive is linked with being overweight, type 2 diabetes, some types of cancer and even early death. Here are some fail-safe ways to do just that. 

Take the stairs 

Your first instinct is to take the escalator. It’s there, it’s easy and it’s quick, so why wouldn’t you? But making the effort to climb the stairs instead can really pay off. It’s a quick burst of exercise that’s great for building your leg strength. 

Walk more

Instead of watching TV for hours on end in the evening, try going for a walk, even if it is a short one around the block. Go with a mate and debrief together over your last match, or spend some quality time with Spotify as you walk. Either way, even if you’re only out for half an hour, it breaks up the evening and means you get some much-needed activity in. 

Park further away or…ditch the car

A parking spot right outside the shop is the holy grail, but parking further away will ensure that you’re forced to get in a little exercise. Plus you won’t get caught up in the frustrations of trying to beat other drivers to that perfect spot. 

Get used to making walking your first mode of transport wherever possible. If it’s a 5-minute drive away, ask yourself if you really need to take the car. Of course, there will be times when it’s not practical to walk, but if you’ve got time to spare and it’s not raining cats and dogs, try and walk it. 

Get up, stand up

Sitting too much is bad for our health, and studies have repeatedly shown that sitting or lying for too long can damage our hearts, make us more prone to dementia and increase our risk of developing type 2 diabetes. 

The NHS says that many adults in the UK spend 9 hours a day sitting down, which is a lot. 

The UK Chief Medical Officers recommend that you should regularly break up lengthy periods of sitting by getting active for 1-2 minutes. And no matter how unfit we are, we can all get up and move for a max of 2 minutes, right?! How about a walk upstairs, a set of squats, or even consider using a standing desk? 

Get an activity watch

If you’re a competitive sort or motivated by stats, you can boost your activity levels by investing in an activity watch to track your steps over the day. The general recommendation is that we aim for 10,000 steps a day, but any increase in your current activity levels is worth celebrating. Think about getting a watch to take note, or health apps can now do the same job on your mobile.

Don’t think of getting active as an all-or-nothing thing. You don’t need to suddenly start working out for hours on end. It’s unrealistic and if you’re very unfit you could do more damage than good. Start small and make easy-to-maintain lifestyle changes and you’ll be surprised at how much it can improve your fitness. 

We need sleep for our body to restore and repair, as well as it being vital for our brains and mental health. The (not so) secret to good sleep? Good sleep hygiene. 

Sleep hygiene is a term used to describe your practices and routines around sleep. It includes your sleeping environment, daily routines, and general attitude to sleep. 

You can improve your sleep hygiene by setting up good habits that promote consistent, restful sleep. 

On average, we need around 7-8 hours of sleep a night. Factoring in the time it takes to drift off, this means you should aim to carve out 8-9 hours to get a full night’s sleep.  

Here’s some tips on how to use the concept of sleep hygiene to sleep well.  

Wind down well

Look at what’s going on before you drift off. Is it too stimulating? Is it calming? Are you scrolling through your Instagram or Facebook feeds until the early hours? Making small changes like leaving your phone out of the bedroom, having a bath before bed or leaving serious (and often stressful) discussions about finances to earlier in the day can aid more restful sleep.  

Set up your sleep environment

It’s not always possible but aim to make your bedroom a space where you can leave your busy life at the door and retreat for optimum sleep. Switch off screens as phones, tablets and laptops emit blue light which is stimulating and disrupts your circadian rhythm. If space is a problem, try and change the space from day to night mode by changing the throw on the bed or using a lamp at night only. 

Use a sleep diary

If you’re finding it difficult to get a good night’s sleep, it might help to keep a sleep diary. Make a note of when you feel sleepy and awake to help you identify your natural circadian rhythm or body clock. You can also start to identify patterns and triggers that lead to poor sleep, like particular foods, working out too close to bedtime or room temperature. 

It can be incredibly frustrating when try as you might, you can’t get a good night’s sleep. Changing your lifestyle and setting good habits can be ways of helping yourself get the sleep you need. 

Lack of sleep can bump up stress levels and make it harder to make good choices. Poor sleep plays havoc with weight loss as it also affects our hormones. 

Studies show that those who sleep less than 6 hours per night are more likely to be overweight and find it harder to lose weight. So how well are you sleeping? 

Our hormones, which are chemical messengers, can help us to understand how sleep could be the missing part of your weight loss puzzle. 

Leptin and ghrelin 

Ghrelin is a hormone that tells you when you need to eat. The less you sleep, the more ghrelin you produce. Leptin does the opposite of ghrelin; it sends a signal to the brain to let you know you’ve eaten enough. 

The less you sleep, the less leptin you produce. Lack of sleep and these two hormones makes you more susceptible to overeating and less likely to feel satisfied afterwards. 

Cortisol 

This is a stress hormone that breaks protein down into glucose. If there’s too much glucose, it gets stored as fat. Excess cortisol makes the body use soft tissue like muscle for its energy needs instead of fat. 

Your cortisol levels increase the less you sleep at night. It also triggers a hunger response in the brain, causing you to think you’re hungry. Sneaky. 

Melatonin 

Melatonin is a powerful antioxidant that manages our circadian rhythm (sleep-wake cycle). It’s released at the onset of darkness to prepare your body for sleep. Studies have linked melatonin to increased metabolism. 

Insulin 

Insulin helps your body to absorb glucose from the bloodstream. Not enough sleep can lead to too much blood sugar, and that can lead to insulin resistance. 

This means the body will produce more and more in order to function and could eventually lead to diseases like diabetes. The dreaded D word. 

Growth hormone 

Your body creates more growth hormone while you’re asleep. It stimulates cell reproduction, regeneration and growth. More growth hormone means a higher metabolism, meaning you burn up energy more rapidly. This gives us the potential to lose weight faster. 

Value your sleep and prioritise it just as much as you prioritise your diet and exercise. Your body needs time to rest, recover and rejuvenate and sleep plays a vital part in this. So, sleep tight and don’t let the bedbugs bite. 

You know you want to lose weight, but do you know how much you want to lose and why it matters? Grab a pen and let’s make a plan. 

Sweeping statements like ‘I want to be healthy’ and ‘I want to feel confident’ are well meant, but they do little to spur us into action.  
 
Setting yourself some healthy ambitions, goals and targets, on the other hand, can be really motivating. Finding out why you want to lose weight, really digging into the reasons behind it, can mean the difference between plodding along as you are and dropping the pounds. 

Finding a healthy weight 

The body mass index (BMI) calculator can tell you what your healthy weight range is. It’s imperfect as it’s not accurate for everyone, including athletes who have a very high muscle mass. Many experts consider the waist-to-height ratio a more accurate way to measure things. 

A healthy BMI is between 18.5 and 25, so picking a goal weight between these two numbers is a great place to start. Or aim to lose 5% of your body weight as studies have found this to be a point where you’ll see great health improvements. 

Track your progress in different ways 

This is so important as weight loss isn’t always linear. Hormonal changes, what we’ve eaten and even the time we weigh can all affect the numbers on the scales.  

Even if you’re doing all the right things, sometimes the numbers don’t head straight down. We’ve all been there and know how disheartening that is, so try taking photos to see your progress instead of relying solely on the scales. 

Sometimes losing a few pounds might seem insignificant but you’ll be able to spot the difference in a photo. Taking measurements weekly and seeing the inches melt away can also be extremely satisfying. 

Set mini goals

It can feel daunting if you’ve got a lot of weight to lose. It might be some time before you’ll get to your goal weight but break it down into manageable chunks so you can celebrate each step. 

Ticking off every 7lbs lost and every stone is very encouraging, with each mini goal bringing you closer to your ultimate goal. You can also add in a celebration when you lose 5% and 10% of your body weight. Don’t forget, every loss brings health benefits as well as goal points for your team too.  

Set SMART goals 

Set yourself some SMART goals to help you reach your weight loss targets. Don’t forget, weight loss isn’t all about the numbers on a scale, it’s how you feel, how your clothes fit etc., so factor this in too. Your goals should be:  

• Specific 
  • Be clear about what you’d like to achieve. “I’d like to lose 16lbs, which is 5% of my starting weight” is better than “I’d like to lose weight”. 

• Measurable 
  • “I’d like to be able to wear my favourite jeans again” is better than “I’d like to fit into smaller sizes” because it’s something you can easily measure. 

• Achievable 
  • Be realistic. As much as we’d like it to, 5 stone won’t come off in a week, nor will you be able to run a marathon in a month if you’ve never run before. But committing to tracking what you eat every day for a week, or sticking to the couch to 5k running plan is achievable and something you can keep building on. 

• Relevant 
  • Not everyone who wants to lose weight will have the same goals. If you’re not interested in going to the gym, that’s fine, instead focus your attention elsewhere. Don’t give yourself the goal of going to the gym 3 times a week because you think that’s what you should be doing. Make your goals as personal to you as you can. If, for example, you enjoy cooking, make it your goal to cook more healthy meals as a way of eating better. 

• Time-limited 
  • Give yourself a realistic timeframe for achieving your goal. If you don’t, you could find excuses can sneak in and you’ll easily justify putting things off for another day. 

Try writing down your SMART goals to give yourself a real goal that you can visualise and are more likely to achieve. 

Setting rewards 

It’s important to mark your achievements, you’re working very hard to get them. Try and reward yourself with things that’ll help you reach your goal. Treat yourself to a new workout shirt or a sports massage for those newly worked muscles.  

Other ideas include activities like a trip to the cinema or a gig, something active like bowling or ice skating or even just a PS5 game you’ve had your eye on.  

Another motivating way of marking special achievements is adding a pound coin to an empty jar for every pound you lose. This is a great visual representation of your weight loss and can be built on until you reach your goal weight. You can then treat yourself with the proceeds – since you’ll probably need it to buy new clothes in smaller sizes. 

Bit by bit, you can lose all the weight you need to. By setting SMART goals, you won’t feel overwhelmed by the challenge, and you’ll enjoy achieving each milestone.  

Found yourself reaching into a family bag of crisps when feeling down, stressed, or bored? You’re probably an emotional eater.

Many of us turn to food for comfort when things get tough, and you probably don’t even realise you’re doing it. It’s a common and completely normal response to difficult feelings like anger, sadness, loneliness, and boredom, but it’s a pain in the arse when you’re trying to lose weight.

Why do we comfort eat? 

Sometimes eating just feels good, especially when we’re feeling far from happy. Eating triggers a release of dopamine (aka the pleasure hormone) in the brain, so we’re hardwired to seek out these pleasurable foods. 

But while it feels like it’s helping in the moment, eating doesn’t fix the underlying issue, so we end up still wrestling with our emotions but with the added complication of feeling ashamed or guilty about overeating.  

How can I stop emotional eating? 

It’s a tough one, because when we’re in that cycle of turning to food when we feel down (or angry, or stressed, or lonely), nothing else feels like it’ll help, and the more you do something the harder it is to change.  

Here are some ways you can begin to break the habit: 

• Feel your feelings. Get into the habit of asking yourself ‘how am I really feeling?’ because all too often we try to bury unwanted feelings. Acknowledging that you feel angry, low, or lonely is the first step to figuring out what to do about it that doesn’t involve food.
• Learn to question why you want to eat. Sometimes you’ll be genuinely hungry, and that’s fine! But we tend to know the difference between emotional urges to eat and actual hunger, so if you think you want to splurge on snacks because you need a pick me up, stop and think about whether it’ll help. Most of the time it won’t.
• Have an action plan. Ok, so you’ve figured out that you want to eat because you want to cheer yourself up. What can you do to lift your mood that doesn’t involve food? Perhaps you could go for a walk, watch a few episodes of your favourite sitcom, play a video game or meet up with a friend. It always helps to have a few things you can turn to.
• Don’t go shopping when you’re hungry or stressed. Honestly, if you go shopping when you’re hungry or you’re looking for comfort food, you’ll buy the whole shop. Save the food shop for when you’ve eaten and have written a meal plan and a shopping list.
• Avoid buying foods you’ll overeat. Some people can have loads of snacks in the kitchen for weeks and not bother with them, but others can and do eat them all at once. If you know you’re likely to overeat when you’ve got tempting foods in the house, stop buying them, at least for now. 
• Plan your menu and weekly shop. Getting into a routine with what you eat can help cut back on those moments of uncertainty where you end up calling for a comforting takeaway because you’ve got nothing in. Make a meal plan and shop for it, and then you’ll know exactly what the plan is for food.
• Look after yourself. If you’re really struggling with how you’re feeling, it’s time to take a good look at how you can improve things. Work, relationships, money problems…our headspace gets battered when things aren’t going well, so taking steps to improve your situation can help you feel more in control.  

Above all, be kind to yourself – emotional eating is a hard habit to break, but it is possible. Take it slow, and don’t beat yourself up if despite your best efforts you end up sprawled on the sofa with a tub of Ben & Jerry’s after a hard day. 

Planning a nutritious, balanced diet is one thing, but consuming the recommended amount of food is another. 

What is a portion and why does it matter?

How much food you consume will affect your calorie intake and therefore weight loss or gain. The two words used to describe amounts of food are: 

• Serving size or serving is the amount of food listed on a food label. It’s generally a pretty good indicator of a recommended amount to consume.
• Portion size is the amount of a given food you choose to eat. This can be more, less or the same as a serving.  

The government recommends a daily calorie intake of 2,500 calories for men to maintain weight. We should note though that this is generalised and will vary according to the individual. A more accurate reflection of your personal energy requirements can come from your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE). This considers your height, weight, age and activity level to calculate your own personal recommendation. Illness and taking certain medicines can also change your energy needs. 

Making positive changes to your diet, like prioritising fruit and vegetables, will mean you boost the fibre, vitamins and minerals in your diet, and it can reduce the overall number of calories you consume. But it can be easy to over-consume calories if your portion sizes are too big. 

So that means everything in moderation, right? 

Not strictly, at least not in equal amounts. What is a moderate amount for one type of food, isn’t for another. The Eatwell Guide by the NHS shows you how to balance food groups to ensure you get all the nutrients you need. The overall balance of food groups should remain the same when adjusting portion control. 

What does a portion look like? 

If you want to see if you’re eating more than the suggested serving size, then you can invest in some inexpensive digital kitchen scales. That’s the most accurate way to measure serving sizes recommended by manufacturers. You won’t always have to use the scales, but they’ll give you a good understanding and you’ll get familiar with how the amounts look on your plate. 

We know it can get confusing. If you aim for the following portions in your day, you won’t go wrong: 

• Fruit and vegetables (berries, salads, leafy greens, root veg): 5+ portions per day 

• Dairy/alternatives (milk, yoghurt): 2-3 portions per day 

• Starchy carbohydrates (rice, pasta, potatoes): 3-4 portions per day 

• Beans, pulses, fish, eggs, meat and other proteins: 2-3 portions per day 

Top tips for getting to grips with portions 

• Get to know the meaning of food labels and the traffic light system. 

• Think about what you’re eating and don’t snack while you cook. Be mindful as you serve up and while you eat. 

• Use scales and/or measuring cups to ensure accuracy. 

• Avoid doubling up on carbs, like bread and rice with curry, choose one or have a half portion or both. 

• Use a smaller plate. A smaller dish piled high is psychologically appealing and doesn’t leave you feeling short changed, plus it’s much harder to plate up an oversized portion. 

• When dining out, avoid the buffet if you find it hard to gauge what you consume. 

• Avoid second helpings by getting to know when you feel full. 

• Try dishing up all the servings whether you’re eating alone or with company. That way any extra servings can be put into containers and kept for a later meal. 

Reducing calories isn’t easy, especially in those moments where you feel like eating everything in sight. This is where protein becomes your best friend: it can help make you feel fuller for longer. Here’s how you can pump up the protein in your diet.

Eggs

Eggs are a really versatile way of sneaking a bit more protein into your diet. Fried, scrambled, poached, turned into an omelette or a frittata, or even hard boiled and eaten as a portable snack – eggs are a great source of protein, with a large egg containing 7.5g and 75 calories.  

Eggs are also rich in vitamins D, E, K, B6 and B12, so load up and forgo the multivitamin. 

Tofu 

You may think tofu is bland, spongy and firmly reserved for veggies and vegans, but think again. Tofu is a flavour vehicle, and it soaks up whatever you throw at it. 

It can be a really tasty, protein-rich alternative to meat. It has 118 calories and 12.5g protein per 100g, and there’s so much you can do with it. 

Chicken

Ah yes, where would we be without the humble chicken breast? From bodybuilders who eat 72 of them a day to your average Joe who relies on them as a quick weekday meal staple, we’ve got a lotta love for chicken breasts. And with 24g of protein for 100g (which is more or less your average chicken breast), who can blame us? 

Greek yoghurt 

Greek yoghurt is another of those things that seems kinda boring if you’ve only ever spooned it from the tub. It’s tangy, thick and unless you sweeten it it’s probably not what you were looking for when you attacked the tub (it’s nothing like a Muller Corner. Boo). 

But with a bit of thought, you can transform Greek yogurt into a delicious dessert or add it to meals for a bit of creaminess. 

Buy Greek yogurt, not Greek-style, for the good stuff (can’t go wrong with Fage). The classic stuff is 93 cals for 100g, with 9g of protein. 

You can also get 0% varieties which contain no fat, and surprisingly Fage’s 0% variety contains more protein – 54 calories with 10.3g protein. 

Beef jerky

Beef jerky is a solid snack to have on hand as it’s fairly low in calories and can pack a hefty protein punch. There are also many different flavours available, and if you’re feeling fancy, you can branch out from beef and go for salmon jerky, veggie jerky and even reindeer jerky.  

A 40g packet of Tesco beef jerky has 13.4g protein, with 114 calories. 

The downside to jerky is that it’s expensive, with one pack of Wild West beef jerky retailing for £2.99. Yikes. 

Red lentils 

You might have passed red lentils in the supermarket without a second thought, but these little pulses are definitely worth adding to your trolley.  

They’re brilliant at bulking up meals, and with 7.3g of protein and 93 calories in 100g (which is loads), they certainly hold their own nutritionally. 

Salmon

Do you eat enough oily fish? The NHS recommends that we get at least one portion of oily fish a week as they’re high in a whole host of vitamins and minerals, including omega 3, which helps to keep your heart healthy. 

Salmon is an oily fish that is also high in protein, so perfect for upping your protein intake while also getting the other benefits salmon brings. 

For 100g (around an average salmon fillet) it’s 209 calories and 25g protein, and there’s a lot you can do with salmon as the star of the show. 

Almonds 

Almonds are another great snack to have on standby, and they’re surprisingly high in protein. A 30g handful will set you back 182 calories and will provide 7.9g of protein.  

While they’re delicious eaten as a snack, there’s a lot you can do with them to incorporate them into your meals too to add a welcome crunch.  

Heard of a calorie deficit but not sure if that’s good, bad, or just another fad? It’s actually the fundamental of weight loss, so let’s see what it means.

No wonder weight loss feels like a minefield when there are so many different approaches and so much jargon to wade through. But this one is different, and it’s worth taking the time to understand it.

You’ve probably heard of a ‘calorie deficit’, but if you’re not a PT or someone with extensive experience of weight loss, you might not know what it means.

What is a calorie deficit?

To lose weight, you need to eat and drink fewer calories than you burn. When you do that, you’re creating a calorie deficit – where the number of calories from food and drink is smaller than the number of calories you’ve burned through activity and body processes.

But how do I know if I’m eating fewer calories than I burn?

There are two ways you burn calories – through the activity you do every day (which includes exercise and other movement like walking around) and through the necessary things your body does to stay alive (which includes things like breathing, your heart beating, cell production, etc.).

The number of calories your body uses is known as your basal metabolic rate (BMR). It’s influenced by a lot of things, like your age, height, weight, gender, and even the temperature of your environment.

As well as your BMR, for weight loss you need to figure out your total daily energy expenditure (TDEE) – yep, another bit of lingo for you.

While your BMR is how many calories your body needs to stay alive and kicking, your TDEE also includes the activity you do (both exercise sessions and general activity). It’s an estimate of how many calories you burn in a day in total, which includes your BMR.

Confused? It’s a lot to take in, but once you figure your own BMR and TDEE numbers out it gives you a great start for counting calories, which will lead to weight loss.

The most accurate way to get your BMR is to be monitored in a lab, fasting beforehand and breathing into a special mask for an entire day and night to see how many calories you burn when resting.

Since we’re guessing you don’t have access to a lab and a team of scientists, you can use a widely accepted equation that has been found to be pretty spot on. It’s called the Mifflin-St Jeor equation and will give you your individual number based on all the variables we mentioned above.

Don’t fret about the maths! This free online calculator will work it out for you.

Your TDEE is how many calories you’d need to eat to maintain your weight. For weight loss, you need to eat fewer calories than your TDEE. It’s usually recommended that you subtract 500 from your TDEE to lose weight at a safe pace.

If you’re thinking the number seems higher than what MyFitnessPal gives you, remember that MyFitnessPal tends to give everyone a 1,200 calorie goal based on sedentary, smaller people. Your TDEE and subsequent calorie goal is personalised to you.

An example

Let’s take Bob as an example. He’s 36, weighs 280lbs (that’s bang on 20st) and is 5ft 10. He does little to no exercise.

Using the calculator mentioned above, his TDEE is 2648. To lose weight, he should subtract 500 and start off by eating 2148 calories a day.

How to eat in a calorie deficit

The number you end up with after subtracting 500 from your TDEE is how many calories you should aim to eat every day. You can track calories using an app like MyFitnessPal (free with a paid premium version) or NutraCheck (paid), or you can do it the old school way and use pen and paper, although apps make it way easier.

How to eat for weight loss is personal preference, but in general you should aim to increase your fruit and veg intake, cut down on processed foods and booze, and eat plenty of foods high in protein and fibre.

Your calorie needs will change as you lose weight, so it’s a good idea to recalculate after you’ve lost a chunk of weight or if you feel your weight loss has stalled.

January can feel like the longest month of the year. Harness that new year motivation and let’s make any changes long lasting. Here’s how.

Realistic goals

The trick to making habits last is momentum. Set yourself small, achievable targets as that’s far more likely to lead you to your overall goal than aiming for one large goal.

Small targets will also help keep you motivated and give you a regular sense of achievement too.

Be prepared to grind away

Going to the gym a few times over January won’t give you a six-pack or muscles like Arnie. This doesn’t mean you aren’t on your way to achieving your goals though. It takes time to see noticeable differences in your health. Keep the faith and all your efforts will pay off.

Make it a normal daily routine

To make your January change a year-round one, you’ve got to integrate these new healthy habits into your life rather than seeing it as a temporary project. A good way to do this is to figure out what works for you best and see what you need to do to make it a part of your life.

For example, if you find it easier to eat well if you’ve got meals prepped and ready to go, when’s the best time for you to meal prep? If your focus is to drink more water, what’s going to remind you to fill up your bottle – can you do it when you make a coffee in the morning?

When these healthy habits are just something you do as part of your daily routine, they become much easier to follow.

Go easy on yourself

Making a resolution to change is the easy bit, but breaking old habits and creating a new lifestyle is tough. Throughout the year, there’ll be highs and lows, your motivation will be tested at times, no doubt. Be kind to yourself and keep reminding yourself of your long-term goals.

Teamwork makes the dream work

Making big lifestyle changes can be a lonely and challenging time. Having the support of family or friends can help no end with motivation if things get tough. Share your goals with them and lean on them for a little support when you need that extra cheer.

If you feel like you’ve had a little too much alcohol over the festive period, you’re not alone. December can be so alcohol-heavy that many people vow to give it up entirely in January – why not join them?

Charity Alcohol Change states that of the people who take part in Dry January, 88% of them save money, 67% have more energy, and 58% lose weight, which is quite the boast. So if you’re in, here’s how to get through it.

Get some sober support

As with any new habit, a little support can go a long way. If your mates aren’t interested in cutting out alcohol for a month, you’re probably not going to get much support from them. That’s not to say they’re not nice, supportive people (if they weren’t, they wouldn’t be your friends, right?), but the people who are best placed to help you get through it are the people who are also doing it.

This is where social media is great: look for Facebook groups and #DryJanuary hashtags on Instagram and Threads to find support.

You’ll probably find that some of your fellow MAN v FAT Rugby players are cutting down on alcohol too, so reach out within your club for real-life support.

Make small changes

If alcohol is an integral part of your life, as it so often is for many of us, you need to find ways of incorporating your newfound sobriety instead. If your default place to catch up with friends is the pub, can you do something else instead?

It’s a cliché to suggest this, but if you can persuade them to catch up over a coffee, or if you can find something active to do together, it takes away the temptation of alcohol. You might be the butt of the joke for even suggesting it at first, but going for a walk is a great thing to do while socialising.

Embrace non-alcoholic options

If you’re used to socialising over a beer and feel like you can’t get away from that, that’s ok – pubs are handy places to meet, and you don’t want to become a hermit. Stick to soft drinks or see if there are alcohol-free options on offer. Alcohol-free versions of popular beers and other alcoholic drinks have improved so much in recent years as cutting down on alcohol becomes more popular.

Stay strong

There are always going to be people who don’t support your decision to ditch the drink. It’s a bit of a mystery when what you drink doesn’t affect them, but still, unsupportive people are out there, and you might come across some resistance to your decision.

Rise above the temptation to join in just because it’s easier. You’re not doing this to please anyone, you’re doing it for you – your health, waistline, and wallet. If you feel yourself wavering in the face of peer pressure, remember that ‘no’ is a perfectly valid answer, no justifications needed. No, I don’t want a beer, thanks.

Live it

Focus on what you gain by cutting out alcohol, not what you’re losing. Having more energy and saving money are huge benefits. And no hangovers! How good do those Saturday mornings feel when you can roll out of bed without it feeling like someone’s trying to drill a hole in your skull?!