How To Cut Back on Drinking Alcohol: 7 Steps Toward Mindful Drinking

Are you looking to cut down on your alcohol consumption without quitting? Want to regain control of your drinking habits? 

Perhaps you say things you regret when you drink too much, causing issues with loved ones. Or maybe you are just tired of a casual night out leading to a day-long debilitating hangover. If the choices you make when you’ve been drinking make you cringe when you are sober, alcohol use is impacting your life negatively. 

There are ways you can cut down on your drinking without quitting entirely. We’ve gathered some tips and tricks on the best ways to cut down on drinking alcohol that can help you practice mindful drinking. 

Table of Contents

• What Is the Best Way To Cut Down on Drinking Alcohol?
• 7 Ways To Cut Back on Drinking Alcohol Without Quitting
• What Happens When You Cut Back on Drinking Alcohol?
• What Is the 20-Minute Rule for Alcohol?
• Ready To Stop Drinking? Dove Recovery Provides Alcohol Addiction Treatment in Columbus, OH

If you have decided to practice mindful drinking, congrats! Your desire for betterment and self-awareness is a great first step to reducing your drinking. The most important step now is to make a plan and stick to it. Here are some tips: 

• Make a goal to cut back on drinking. 
• Create an actionable plan. 
• Establish and enforce boundaries with alcohol.
• Identify your drinking triggers. 
• Learn to pace your drinking.
• Get the support of loved ones. 
• Remove alcohol from your home.

Read on for more information on how to cut back on drinking alcohol. If you find reducing your alcohol consumption to be more difficult than expected, there is no shame in getting help. Dove Recovery offers convenient, outpatient programs designed for professionals. Your Dove Recovery program may even be covered by insurance! 

#1: Make a Goal 

Are you ready to start mindfully drinking? Make sure your plan to cut back on drinking alcohol has a specific, measurable goal. 

Actionable goals can help you by giving you exact data on your drinking habits. Pick a number of drinks per week as part of your plan to cut back on drinking, and be sure to keep track of this data.

#2: Create a Plan

Creating a plan is the best way to cut down on your drinking. To lower your alcohol consumption, remind yourself why you want to cut down and make a plan for when the urge to drink hits. Here are some tips for making a plan to cut back on drinking:

• Start with why you want to cut back on your drinking. Write down your reasons for why drinking less is important to you.
• Consider your barriers to cutting back on drinking, such as perceived social obligations and expectations. 
• Make your plan a physical reminder. Print it out and carry it with you, or keep it digitally on your phone so it is easy to reference when the urge to over-drink hits. 

#3: Establish Boundaries

Establishing boundaries means a lot of things, such as refusing invites from well-meaning drinking buddies. Establishing boundaries also means being honest with yourself about your drinking. 

Set a goal for how many drinks you want to have a week and stick to it. By making a boundary for yourself and sticking to it you will gain confidence and discipline, and that is a big step toward managing drinking. 

#4: Identify Your Triggers

Cutting back on drinking requires you to be honest with yourself about what makes you want to drink. These are called “triggers” and they subconsciously encourage you to drink alcohol. 

While it is not possible to avoid all drinking triggers, knowing what makes you want to drink allows you to approach the situation with awareness. Common triggers for drinking include: 

• Family conflicts 
• Getting paid 
• An anniversary, birthday, or holiday 
• Loneliness 
• Depression
• Certain times of day 
• Sports events 
• Use of other substances, such as tobacco or cocaine 

Learning your alcohol use triggers is a powerful tool. It is impossible to avoid all triggers, like holidays and payday, but being informed about what makes you want to drink is a great step toward cutting back on drinking. You can make a plan to avoid certain triggers and tackle the ones you can’t. 

#5: Pace Yourself

Developing the discipline to pace yourself is one of the best ways to cut down on drinking alcohol. This is no small task, as it is easy to keep drinking once you’ve started. 

To lower your alcohol consumption, try to stick to only one alcoholic drink per hour. In between drinks, you can have soda, water, or even a non-alcoholic beer or mocktail. Not only does pacing yourself help cut back on alcohol consumption, but it also gives you confidence and self-discipline. 

#6: Enlist the Help of Friends and Family 

A strong community can go a long way to helping cut down on alcohol use. If you are serious about mindful drinking, ask your friends, family, or other trusted member of your community to help you cut back. You can plan fun events that don’t center around alcohol, and they can assist in keeping you accountable to your goals. 

#7: Don’t Keep Alcohol in Your Home 

This tip might be simple, but it can go a long way to cutting back on drinking alcohol. By taking all the alcohol out of your home you can prevent casual drinking caused by boredom, forcing you to go out when you want to have a drink. You may be surprised how much less you drink when it isn't as simple as walking to the fridge! 

The science is clear — excessive drinking is bad for you. Hangovers are an obvious sign, but alcohol use also makes you feel bad in subtle ways. Those who cut back on alcohol may experience a lot of positive effects, such as: 

• Improved sleep quality 
• Lowered blood pressure
• Weight loss 
• Improved mood
• Better liver function 
• And more! 

However, it is important to note that alcohol is very addictive. If you find that you cannot stop drinking, even if it is obvious that it is negatively impacting your life, you may need to seek help for alcohol use disorder. There is no shame in this — a chemical dependency on alcohol can cause severe withdrawal symptoms, and seeking medical attention is important to ensure recovery. 

If you are worried you or your loved one might have an alcohol use disorder, there is hope — reach out to Dove Recovery alcohol rehab in Columbus, Ohio. We will help you find the resources you need for alcohol use disorder. 

The 20-minute rule is a great tool for cutting down on alcohol use. After you finish an alcoholic beverage, wait 20 minutes before consuming another. This 20-minute break allows the alcohol to hit your bloodstream and reduces the cravings for another drink, preventing you from overdoing it. 

Having a hard time cutting back? Finding yourself drinking more than you intend to every time? You may have an alcohol use disorder. There is no shame in admitting this — the National Survey on Drug Use and Health found that 28.9 million Americans suffered from alcohol use disorder in 2023 alone. 

If you are struggling with alcohol use, Dove Recovery can help. Our programs are designed to treat alcohol use disorder effectively and with dignity. If you or your loved one is suffering, contact us to learn more about a brighter, sober tomorrow.