Dry January has become a popular phenomenon in the last decade with over 20% of US adults over the age of 21 participating in 2024 according to MorningPro Research. The benefits of reduced alcohol consumption are well documented from improving your overall health, sleep, and saving money as well.

But look a little deeper and Dry January may not be all it’s cracked up today. For most people who drink regularly it is very difficult to just stop drinking.  A recent survey showed that the average Dry January participant only lasted 10 days, and 10% gave up by January 3rd. 

Even those who succeed if you hear them talk it sounds more like survival than behavioral change…”Just gotta tough it out… or just get through this”  and they end up counting the days until Feb 1st when they can drink again.  And many folks myself included have completed Dry January only to drink more than they usually do in February to make up for a month of abstinence.

It has been scientifically proven that anyone can make behavioral changes easily for the short term 1-day, 1-week, or 1 month. But the true measure of any change is sustainability. Like so many fad diets that have yielded quick results but are not sustainable, Dry January is a great start for many people but not a long term lifestyle for many participants. 

Moderation Drinking that I practice using The First Round Last Call Challenge Coin™ is a lifestyle, a choice,  and a commitment to drink less, and is something you can use and practice any day, any week, or any month.

For me Dry January was great when I did it but it didn’t help me later in the year when I’d hit what I call “trigger events” – those things that move you into a mode of overdrinking—like, bachelor parties, weddings, sporting events, holidays, parties, etc.. You know, all the fun stuff!  

That’s why The First Round Last Call Challenge Coin is so effective for me and many others..it is a tool you can use anytime, anywhere to limit your alcohol intake.  When I choose to deploy the coin I am only allowing myself TWO DRINKS. And you can’t get the coin unless you agree to a Code of Conduct that says when you deploy the coin you can have one drink FIRST ROUND, then a second drink LAST CALL... and once last call is done then you STOP drinking alcohol for the rest of the day. The STOP is the Challenge part of this coin.

A few other tactical things I’ve done to help limit my intake is keeping a drinking log or journal. You know how when you go out to a bar and you’re having a good time and you think you only had 2 or 3 beers and the bill comes and turns out you really had 5 or 6. When I had my year of sobriety I kept a calendar log and I put in a zero for each day I didn’t drink. It was like in baseball when a pitcher has a shut out or a no hitter and you just keep putting up zeros. Powerful stuff if you can do it and be honest with yourself.

Another thing that has really helped me is non – alcoholic drinks. I have become a student of non-alcoholic beers and some of them are pretty good they have legit taste and foam up with a nice head like the real thing… all without the buzz (pro tip CLAUSTHALER NA beer from Germany is hands down the best).  And most of the time now I will begin with a non-alcoholic beer and maybe switch to a regular beer. 

Like any lifestyle you want to embrace its good to spend time with like-minded people.  In the course of my sobriety and then re- entry into social drinking in moderation I have definitely shed some old relationships where alcohol was a glue that kept us together.

Like anything… Dry January is a mindset and if it helps you explore your relationship with alcohol, great. Just know it’s not a long term solution. It’s kind of a one and done thing at the start of the year.