A common question people ask when they decide to make a change in their lives and improve their health is whether or not they should drink beer or wine. In the UK, where beer and pubs are an integral part of the culture, this can be a tricky question, especially for people who only ever drink pint after pint after pint of beer on a night out.

So is there an alternative? Does getting in shape and living healthier mean no more pubbing and clubbing? Does it mean no more socialising, period?

Let’s get one thing straight before we go any further - balance is paramount. Whether or not you should be drinking beer is down to your goals - what lifestyle do you want? Do you want to lose every ounce of fat on your body? Then you might need to not drink anything but water. You might just want to live a healthier lifestyle, and that doesn’t necessarily mean cutting out beer (though for the majority of people it does usually involve cutting down).

Better to be slightly overweight and happy than slim and miserable. A good balance is essential (Michael Bane’s excellent post on this topic puts this better than I have: Beer necessity).

So no, getting in shape doesn’t mean never having another beer. It likely does mean moderation. And yes, for some people that means standing up for themselves and being assertive - if the people you are drinking with are trying to make you drink more than you want to, or faster than you want to, then drink with better people.

And with the preaching done, on to the tips …

First things first - never drink on an empty stomach. You’ll drink more and absorb the alcohol faster than if you’ve eaten.

Next, start the evening with a non-alcoholic drink. Most people are thirsty when they start an evening so their first drink usually vanishes quickly - not a good thing.

Water is the best drink for you, as far as your health goes - most people do not drink enough after all. Alternating beers with water while out socialising means less beer drunk and the water will rehydrate you through the evening (beer dehydrates you).

Low calorie beers are an alternative, and not all of them are as bad as people make out. One of my favourites is Coors Light, on draft at my local. Normal strength beer but low on calories - a smart choice if you’re going to drink beer at all.

If you’re going to drink beer, try and drink bottled beer instead of pints (of the equivalent in your local). If you’re doing rounds (always best avoided if you can - drink at your own pace), you’ll end up drinking anything up to a third less than those around you.

There are often more drinks than just beer behind a bar, and many of them are a viable alternative if you fancy something different on a night out.

Wines are relatively high calorie, but most people drink far less wine than beer on a night out.

Plenty of pubs in the UK (though I don’t know about elsewhere) offer tea and coffee now. Replacing one pint of beer with a single cup of black coffee will cut a couple of hundred calories out of your evening.

Spirits are very low calorie compared to beer, and they can also be a good choice of alternative. Almost all of the major spirits are fine (I’m quite partial to the odd drop of Jack Daniel’s and vodka is often highly recommended as the lowest calorie spirit of them all). Spirits are only really a problem when mixed with high calorie mixers like coke or lemonade. Drinks like vodka, lime and soda; gin and tonic; whisky and ginger beer or ale are all better than beer, especially over a significant period of time.

Finally, we come to fruit juices. Unfortunately, in the case of pubs (again in the UK), most fruit drinks are not straight fruit juice drinks, but have tonnes of additives etc. Best avoided. Pure fruit juice drinks are relatively high calorie, however they do contain much more in the way of vitamins.

So all together, this means:

• You don’t need to cut out beer entirely.
• Never drink on an empty stomach.
• Always start the evening with a non-alcoholic drink.
• Drink at your own pace.
• If you do drink beer, drink bottled beer.
• If you do drink beer, alternate it with water.
• If you do drink beer and can find one you like, drink low calorie beer.
• Don’t be afraid of alternatives:
  • Wine (the lighter the better as a rule)
  • Coffee and Tea
  • Spirits with low-calorie mixers (or no mixers in small quantities)
  • Fruit juices (without additives)