Obviously drinking less alcohol benefits are wildly accepted, right?! Though, you might be drinking less and wondering why it feels so challenging, why it might not feel as good as you thought, etc.
Especially, if you are just stepping away from alcohol and curious about what this all means and how to step fully into a more natural and fulfilled life (without the excess booze).
I mean, c'mon, it can be really nice to know your efforts are actually helping you even though it might not feel that way.
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As I was working in a winery in Napa, and had zero time to go out drinking, only drinking a glass of wine at the winery on Wine Wednesday... Obviously, I felt better over time, but also learned the value of great wine in moderation.
You will learn the untold drinking less alcohol benefits you might be surprised by, whether you are sober-curious or already stepping away from the bar scene!
These will give you the support and purpose you need to create a better relationship with alcohol.
This post is all about drinking less alcohol benefits!
Drinking Less Alcohol Benefits
Dipping your toes into the world of less booze has two main pillars to it. One, being the idea of actually drinking less. Which that looks different for everyone.
For me, drinking less (but not being completely sober) means not going out to the bars unless it's a very special occasion and drinking high quality drinks at home.
The second pillar is when you actually do drink... Drinking high quality drinks. Either homemade cocktails with no added sugars, etc, or a bottle of fine wine. Beer can be good too, but just make sure it is good quality (though it's a saturated market).
Here are the top drinking less alcohol benefits you will reap when you step into the lovely sober curious, and fine wine world:
1. Closer relationships
Maybe you are starting to notice the group of people you go out to the bars with is not the kind of socialization you want to do. I could go on about this. But, it's important to note by drinking less and engaging in other fulfilling activities you will find more like-minded people!
You might just find a whole new hobby and community!
2. Increased brain health
A study done in 2022 showed that increasing your daily drink intake from zero to one drink per day was associated with 0.24% reduction in gray matter volume of the brain.
Gray matter is critical for processing information, learning and decision making. So, it seems it might be important to keep it! Protecting your brain from gray matter reduction will help in your ability to processes information and learn better!
Have you ever woken up from drinking and been so out of the loop? You forget your keys, you can't read the menu at breakfast, you feel foggy, etc? Exactly.
Though, moderately drinking red wine may actually safeguard against age-related cognitive decline, this study shows. So, if you do drink opt for red wine, high quality red wine!
3. Better sleep
Another study in 2013 shows that alcohol consumption even at low levels (1-2 drinks) reduces REM sleep by an average of 9.3%. REM (rapid eye movement) is a critical stage of sleep, you know the one where you dream!
Alternatively, higher dosages (3-4 drinks) suppress REM by upwards of 19.4%! Confirming that alcohol prevents the brain from entering into the deepest restorative phases.
4. Better workouts
If you are an active individual, you might know this as a no brainer! Have you ever woken up so thirsty after a night drinking? Where you shove your head under the faucet for relief?
That is because alcohol is dehydrating. Alcohol dehydrates your cells and depletes its energy storages leading to poor muscle strength the following day. To have better workouts, slow down on the drinking! You will have more energy and feel 1000x better.
5. More emotional control
It goes without saying that alcohol can deteriorate our emotional body, right? When I was drinking a lot, I was drinking to escape wildly negative emotions. So, what happened? Did I succeed at dealing with my problems??
I'm sure you're laughing at that, because no! Of course not! It only made my problems worse, made me more emotionally unstable, etc!
Pair drinking less with yoga, breathwork, meditation, scripture, and you will find yourself more grounded and able to process your emotions without the dreary side effect of drinking.
6. Alignment with your highest purpose
Yes, it's true! Removing alcohol from your plate every day, or simply cutting back, will bring your closer to finding your highest purpose.
Alcohol, at its root, is a distraction. It distracts us from our emotional issues, from our problems, from pain, and from the Truth. The truth of who we are, what we want to do, what we are meant for, etc.
As mentioned above with the the studies, alcohol deteriorates our brains and prevents us from making decent decision and learning. So, if you stop drinking as much you will learn quicker and easier AND be able to make better decision resulting in greater alignment with your life's purpose.
7. Noticeably more energy
After I went to Costa Rica for a month long yoga training, I started to wake up everyday more and more energized and clear. We could not drink at this retreat and man could we all feel it!
Though, it was hard and we craved it like no other, but the energy we felt in the morning was so much better. We got up, did yoga for 2.5 hours, and ate breakfast all with tons of energy.
Reduce your daytime fatigue AND get better sleep by drinking less... That sounds too good to be true.
8. Increased reproduction health
Obviously, we all know that drinking alcohol while pregnant can cause serious damage to the baby. Well, believe it or not, drinking less alcohol can actually increase reproductive health before conceiving!
In a study, it showed that drinking had a negative effect on men's sperm quality and concentration. The more than man drank, the less potent his sperm became!
For women, the data is a bit more scattered. Overall, they say that women who drink tend to have a decreased ability to conceive. Though, there are so many factors (age, what type of drink, how much, stages of your cycle, etc) that researchers need to address before making a definitive statement.
9. More time for self serving activities
An under-rated and untold drinking less alcohol benefit! And some people really don't understand this until it happens... You have SO much more time on your hands!
Not only more time, but more energy. The two kickers that can propel you forward into some amazing things. Things that are more self serving like weekly workout classes, yoga, art/pottery classes, gardening, spending time with your family outside, traveling, I mean the list goes on!
10. Higher stamina
This ones goes hand in hand with the above on better workouts and more energy. You will notice that once you start to drink less, and I mean really drink less, you will see your ability to stay engaged and focused increase.
That could be in your work, in your relationships, in your workouts. I mean, anywhere you are putting yourself fully into - get prepared to be in it 120%!
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11. More joy
Is this one too obvious? Or you might be wondering, joy? I don't feel more joy when I'm not drinking...
Well, alcohol is a dopamine rush, right? Your brain flows with that good-feeling hormone that takes over your whole body and you feel like everything is perfect. It takes the edge off and you feel relaxed.
Then, you wake up and feel terrible and go into a depression (in severe cases). Why? Because you depleted all your dopamine reserves!!
So, by drinking less you will avoid those potent dopamine rushes which avoids the crash. You will wake up feeling better, clearer, and have more joyful moments throughout the day.
12. Better relationship with alcohol
A hidden benefit of drinking less is creating a better relationship with alcohol. I could go on about this! But, think about it, we have had fermentation since the dawn of time. It is a gift from nature!
Why have we accepted and learned to abuse it?
Just with anything and anyone, having a decent relationship with alcohol is critical. Especially since it is intertwined in the fabric of society! We MUST make friends with it, we MUST be on good terms with it or it can take over.
By drinking less, and learning how to, we begin to repair our relationship with alcohol which can be so incredibly beneficial.
13. Greater balance
Another drinking less alcohol benefit is finding greater balance within your life. Drinking can really consume us, I mean it is addictive after all! So, when you are able to shift to a place of drinking less it puts things into place.
Less time drinking is more time working out, building meaningful relationships, getting better sleep, and more! Balance your life with drinking, don't let it consume you!
14. Increased compassion
Now, I was fully prepared to write this benefit without any data and just based on my own experience. But, then I learned that this study supports the theory that decreasing drinking increasing compassion!
It makes sense, those who drink in excess tend to not have self-compassion or self-kindness. Since over consuming alcohol is obviously bad for your health (hangovers, addiction, etc), yet drinkers do it anyway.
If we can have compassion for ourselves, we are more likely to have compassion for others too.
15. Saving money
An obvious benefit of drinking less is saving money. Yet, it can be so overlooked. I have been out to a bar and spent $70 on a bar tab. Before I even knew it I was racking up drinks, and let's just say I was not stoked about that.
Though, now I do not spend money on a bar tab. Instead I spend it on travel, educational courses, workouts, etc. Not spending money at the bar really does free up your time and wallet for other more meaningful endeavors.
16. More clarity
I bet if you take a break from drinking for a week, after that week you will wake up one day and a light bulb will click.
Things become crystal clear. Your mind is clear, your body feels clean and clear, and the vision for your life and for your day becomes clear. It might actually surprise you when this moment comes! I was so surprised by my mental, emotional, and physical clarity it blew my mind.
17. Having a drink becomes a delicacy
At this point, having a drink is a delicacy and really special for me. It is a means of celebration, a reward. I don't drink fine wine too often, but when I do it is so special. Truly unspoken drinking less alcohol benefits!
I create a whole evening around it and it becomes memorable. A seriously overlooked drinking less alcohol benefit and it is really powerful. This is the true moment we get to change our relationship with alcohol.