Are you looking into how to do Dry January? The Dry January challenge is a growing trend every year for people to start their year off with clarity.
If you are anything like me, you leave the holiday season extremely thirsty since you haven't been drinking much water... Maybe that has been you all year long. Either way, let's change that.
Practicing Dry January is your opportunity to change your relationship with alcohol so in 2026 you can lead in control, aligned, and grounded.
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During my years of heavy drinking, I practiced "sober February"... The results were astonishing.
Here you will learn how to do dry January and the secret tips to make it successful not just within the month, but may you also reap the benefits all year long!
This post is all about how to do dry January!
How to do Dry January
What is Dry January?
Dry January is where you practice sobriety for the entire month of January. A potent opportunity to notice your patterns within your relationship to drinking. I encourage you to make that your goal and intention: Notice.
Important Question...
I find it so important to ask yourself this question: How do you want to replace your time drinking?
If you do not make the conscious decision to fill that time with a sober activity, it will make it 1000x more challenging to hold up to the challenge. Your mind and body will want to resort to old habits. So, you must fill that void with something more productive, something that aligns with your intentions and goals.
Which bring us to the next point: Have a journal ready to go! Journaling about your experience will help you notice your patterns which ultimately will help you shift your relationship with alcohol.
If you do not have a journal, you can get one here!
Secret Tips to a Successful Dry January
When you are searching for how to do Dry January, check out these top tips and tricks so you can be as successful as possible!
1. Write down what your week usually looks like
Write down a normal week in your life and notice where/when you tend to drink. For example, every Thursday night you and your friends go out for a drink at your local pub.
Write down your workouts, your routines, as much information as possible! Now, look back and ask yourself if your relationship to alcohol is acceptable to you. Do you cringe? Or do you feel a light joy when you see your patterns?
2. Have an intention
Now that you see your drinking patterns and habits it's time to make an intention on what you want to get out of a Dry January challenge.
An important starting point: have a direct intention. Whether that is to simply drink less or stop drinking. Maybe your intention is to do less drinking and more exercising. Make your intention clear!
3. Use the Sunnyside app
A really cool tool you can use this January is the Sunnyside app. An app that gets you mindfully drinking. If you keep using it, the results will only compound. Sunnyside reports 96% of users say they are drinking less within 90 days!
4. Habit replacement
It is time to replace your habit. The idea on how to do Dry January is simple: replacing the time drinking with something more fulfilling. The ideas for habit replacement are endless! Plus, it looks different for everyone.
Though, to be clear about your habit replacement is the key to success. Here are some ideas to get you started:
- Go to a workout class every Friday night
- Drink herbal teas instead of your nightly drink
- Do yoga at home
- Try magnesium mock-tails
- Join a club of some sort
5. Make your plan!
In your daily planner write out your week! Then, repeat for the next 3 weeks after that until every day in January is occupied. Especially those days you normally drink!
Maybe you plan to get up at 5am everyday, or go to the gym every Wednesday and Friday. Studies show that people who put their dreams and aspirations are far more likely to follow through!
I personally use this daily planner because you can write in the dates and there is plenty of room to write your to-dos!
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6. Get a group of friends to do it with you
The #1 best accountability for doing anything challenging is getting a group of friends to do it with you! When my man and I do something challenging together we are WAY more likely to get it done.
We started waking up at 5am every morning, and even when he was on work trips I would call him at 5am and make sure we both got out of bed!
So, doing it with a group of people or even just one really good friend can make it really enjoyable and give you some company and fuel you forward.
Think about going to a workout class at 5:30am, now think about going to a workout class at 5:30am with your best friend and getting coffees after... Just sayin'!
7. Successful night and morning routine
When do people normally drink? At night, right? Then, how do they feel when they wake up? Terrible, right?
So, a successful night and morning routine without booze is a critical step in achieving, not only a month long of being sober, but a new way forward on how you approach drinking the rest of the year. And hopefully, the rest of your life.
For starters, stay away from blue light for at least 45 minutes before bed and 45 minutes after you wake up. The blue light on our phones, computers, and TV's can disrupt our hormones, cortisol, and more.
Plus, it will make it so much easier to transition into this lifestyle if you get your body on a natural rhythm and internal clock! Trust me!
8. Weekly journal updates
Keep your journal close by for journal updates. This will be your saving grace! When you are feeling the difficulties arise, write about it. When you are tempted to go out and drink, write about it.
Writing about it is the BEST way to move through it. Especially, in those brief moments of "should I...?" or those moments of "I really want this...".
I'm sure we all know the powerful benefits of having a journal so I don't need to go on anymore!
9. Other goals
Ask yourself if there are ANY other goals you want to hit this January as you lay off the booze and align yourself. Here are some ideas:
- Go to yoga 3x per week
- Life weights 2x per week
- Spend more time with my family
- Have one neighborhood sober-party this month
- Go on a sober date night
- Get into a better morning/night routine
- and more!
10. Have a reward!
I don't know about you, but when I negotiate with myself on things I don't want to do (but are good for me) I tend to make a win-win situation with myself and by the end I am a happy camper.
Do the same when you are learning how to do Dry January! Have a reward system, that you negotiate with yourself, to make the month-long booze-free time worth it.
Some more ideas are:
- Going to your favorite brewery with friends
- Going on a trip
- Going out to your favorite dinner
- Buying yourself something nice
- Buying yourself something you've wanted for a while
- and more!
I mean think about it, give yourself a positive reinforcement for a month of dedication. That will show your brain that it wasn't that bad, actually! And you can do it again! Much like training a dog to do tricks with a treat...
Now, you know how to do Dry January and what the best tips are so you can be as successful as possible! At the end of your month, go in and reflect. What went well? What did you struggle with?
Hopefully, this gave you some insight into the Dry January challenge and how to be successful, what it really is, and more!