Mindful Drinking & Moderation in Midlife: How to Drink Less, On Your Terms
How do I drink less without quitting completely? What's the difference between alcohol-free, low alcohol, and no alcohol drinks? Why can't I handle alcohol like I used to? How do I cut back when everyone around me is still drinking? Why do alcohol-free drinks cost so much?
If you're in your 30s, 40s, 50s or beyond and asking these questions, this is your podcast.
Welcome to the essential show for midlife adults who want to drink less, on their own terms—without the pressure to quit completely, follow rigid rules, or label themselves as sober.
I'm Denise Hamilton-Mace, your mindful drinking mentor, magazine editor, writer and public speaker on all things low, no and light. Each week, I help stressed parents and busy midlife adults navigate their relationship with alcohol through practical approaches grounded in real-world experience and behaviour change strategy, not willpower or wellness culture
What you'll get:
Mindful Moderation Solo Episodes – Deep-dives answering the questions that matter to sophisticated drinkers who want to moderate smartly:
- How do I cut back when my partner still drinks at home?
- Why do premium alcohol-free drinks cost the same as full-strength versions?
- How do I navigate social situations when I'm the only one moderating?
- What really works: willpower vs. strategy?
Drinks 101 Mini-Series – Short educational episodes demystifying the confusing world of low and no alcohol drinks:
- What does ABV actually mean?
- What's the real difference between non-alcoholic, alcohol-free, low alcohol, and light beer?
- How are alcohol-free drinks made?
- Which drinks are safe for pregnancy, driving, or recovery?
Meet the Makers – Intimate conversations with the founders, brewers, distillers, and visionaries creating the premium drinks and experiences that support your moderation goals.
This podcast is for you if:
- You want drinks that taste like the ones you already love
- You're looking for practical advice that fits your demanding life, not another wellness overhaul
- You recognise that coasting with mid-strength drinks, zebra-striping, or bookending your evening with something non-alcoholic are all valid strategies
- You want better mornings without giving up celebrating life's special moments
This isn't about going completely dry or reinventing yourself. It's about keeping energy for what matters most: family, health, career, and living life on your own terms.
Join the moderation revolution happening in midlife – because while Gen Z gets the headlines, you're the one actually doing it.
Mindful Drinking & Moderation in Midlife: How to Drink Less, On Your Terms
Mindful Drinking Advent 19: Set Yourself Up to Succeed at Home
GET READY FOR YOUR BEST (ADULT) CHRISTMAS YET & GET YOUR FREE MINDFUL DRINKING ADVENT CALENDAR AT http://mindfuldrinkingadvent.com/
On Day Nineteen of the Mindful Drinking Advent Series, we focus on preparation — the difference between struggling through December and genuinely enjoying it at home.
As work parties wind down and family time ramps up, this episode explains why stocking your fridge, upgrading your glassware, and thinking like a bar rather than relying on willpower makes drinking differently feel effortless.
Being prepared turns good intentions into easy, satisfying choices — especially when everything else slows down.
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You can email me at denise@lownodrinkermagazine.com
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🗣️ Join the growing community on Substack
https://lownodrinker.substack.com/
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🌱 Reset the way alcohol shows up in your life with the 4 Week Midlife Mindful Drinking Reset
https://www.lownodrinker.com/4weekreset
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🧮 Drinking Impact Calculator: Find your personal tipping point
https://mindfuldrinkinginmidlife.com/products/drinking-impact-calculator
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🧐 Take the quiz and find out what's REALLY driving your midlife drinking habits
https://www.lownodrinker.com/
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*Some links are affiliate links. If you make a purchase, Low No Drinker may earn a commission. Thank you.
Welcome to day 19 of your mindful drinking audio advent here on the Mindful Drinking and Moderation in Midlife podcast. Today we're talking about being prepared. It is Friday, the 19th of December, and pretty much all the corporate style work dues are done by now, all the office-based ones. Of course, if you're working in different areas, you might still be having your due. I remember working in hospitality. We had our Christmas due in January because we had to work and serve everybody else. So for the majority of you, we're now heading into the time where the focus shifts mostly to family and having family come and visit, you go into see them, time at home. Hopefully, between the work dues and the family dues, you'll have a bit of downtime for yourself. It's so important. You need to rest to recuperate to recharge your batteries. Now, nothing derails your good intentions of doing that faster than being unprepared. You've made the decision that you're uh drinking differently this Christmas season. You've done lots of hard work when you've been out, you've managed to use some of your personal guide rails to drink the way that serves you best. And then for these last few days, you're at home and you want to relax and treat yourself with some lovely drinks. And you go to the fridge, and all you've got in there is your usual full strength beers, wines on your shelves or all your full strength spirits. Now, don't worry, I'm not about to say you have to throw them all out. Again, you do as you wish when it comes to choosing to drink full strength or low-no. But if you do want to incorporate regular low-no and light drinking into your lifestyle at home, the best thing that you can do for yourself is to be prepared and to stock up the fridge. Because when your fridge is full of good options, when you've thought ahead, when you've got yourself set up to succeed, that's when these moments stop feeling like uh a constant struggle and a constant battle. And they're just an easy choice that you're genuinely happy to make. So have options. I've mentioned before there is a lot to explore, there's e lots of things that you can grab in your local supermarket. They all now have designated uh blue zones. Uh, I don't I still don't know why they're blue because I keep thinking of like uh an old lady's blue rinse, which I know ages me, but still. Um, but they all have dedicated blue zones, which are their um low-no areas where you can find alcohol-free versions of your favorite types of drinks. Don't limit yourself to just one or two products that you'll soon get bored of, okay? Try a few different things because also you might not like the one or two that you get, and I don't want you to be put off because you've tried two drinks that you don't like and think that oh, there's not much else out there. Um, I was likening it to uh pizza or uh a burger at a restaurant. You know, if you have a bad one, it doesn't mean that you never eat pizzas or burgers again, it just means that you perhaps don't go back to that restaurant or you don't order that topic. The other thing is to stock up your areas, your drinks, areas at home, like you would find in a bar, or at the very least, the same way you stock it up for your full strength drinks. So, for example, if you like making cocktails at home, make sure you've got all of your equipment. Make sure you've got your shakers and your porers and your stirrers and everything. Make sure you've got some nice glassware so you're not just pouring your alcohol-free wine into some purple IKEA kids' cup that you know, we've we've all got those in the cupboard. Um, make sure you've got some good ice. Ice is really important, and it might not sound like it is, but it is. You want good quality, large, chunky ice that fills the glass so that it doesn't dilute too quickly and turn your drink watery. Uh, and lovely garnishes, you know, making sure that you've got a nice slice of orange or lemon or a twist. Of course, if you're not into doing that kind of thing, just making sure that you've made it as easy and simple as possible for you to have something that you like. A single nice glass that's your special drink glass, uh, and making sure that your drinks are always chilled so that it can be served as they will be best presented. Uh, and prep now. Don't wait any longer. We're it's the 19th of December today, to make sure that you've got enough drinks in for the Christmas period. Make sure that you get your orders because a lot of the online retailers, which I highly recommend that you do check out, places like Wise Bartender, of course, Dry Drinker, the Alcohol Free Drinks Co., Mid Strength Drinks. Um, I'll list all of those in the show notes for you as well. Don't worry about um writing them all down. Um, a lot of those will be having their final delivery days uh today or soon. So make sure that you get in a few drinks that you can enjoy. Now, if you go to today's day on the Mindful Drinking Advent email, you'll see a list of all of those online retailers that I've just mentioned, plus uh I think three or four more, plus a few from outside the UK as well for my US listeners. So you can find some places to go and get yourself a great selection of alcohol free, low, no, or light drinks to enjoy for the rest of Christmas. I will see you tomorrow for day 20. And until then, say it with me cheers to a Christmas less intoxicated.
