MAYBE IT’S BECAUSE it’s because it’s such a sunny Easter that everyone is definitely up for getting outdoors a bit more and making the most of their free time.

The weekends are easily the best time to enjoy catching up with mates but all too often the nights out mean we don’t get as much out of weekends as we could. Why? If you ever get ‘The Fear’ then read on.

While Ireland is drinking 26 per cent less than 12 years ago and less often, when we drink we still tend to drink too much, too fast. This means that for many people a Friday or Saturday night out with mates can write-off part or all of the weekend.

I’m certainly not advocating abstinence. I look after marketing and events for Bootcamp Ireland so my day can be hectic – organising warm-ups for race events, kicking off our new Mummy Bootcamp or planning our next members’ surf trip away. So when the week is over I always look forward to enjoying my weekend.

I’m usually the first person to put up my hand for a party and I love the banter of a Friday night pub. I also know that the reality is that 90 per cent of 18-30 year olds drink alcohol.

I don’t want to spend my days off nursing a hangover

But given the nature of my job and the industry I work in, I am constantly looking at what we do to our bodies through exercise, food and drink, and what effect that has on us. For me it was about looking at my drinking behaviour and what effect it has on my mind and my body.

If I drink lots on a Friday or Saturday, I’m going to spend the next day recovering or occasionally hiding away. Instead, why shouldn’t I be able to go out, have a great night and a reasonable amount of drinks then get up the next day with a clear head ready to make the most of another day? After all, we only get two days off a week so I really don’t want to spend them nursing a hangover.

One of the best benefits of ‘Reclaiming My Weekend’ is no fear on a Sunday! I have definitely suffered from the guilt of a wasted weekend day in the past.

Taking control of my drinking on a night out means I can get up and out and enjoy my day off – whether I decide to spend it enjoying a lazy lunch with friends is another matter! But at least it’s my choice.

Tips

Here are some of the tips that I picked up that should help you avoid completely overindulging on a Friday or Saturday night:

1. Be social: you don’t have to give up going out to be ‘good’, it’s possible to have it all! Pick a date, get your favourite buddies who make you feel awesome and make it about hanging out with each other, the food, the music, the occasion … it doesn’t all have to be about drink.
2. Mix it up: ever tried a pineapple juice and sparkling water in a tall glass? I thought not but it’s delish! I have included it in my repertoire of drinks subbing it in instead of an alcoholic drink, plus it looks pretty!
3. Bottles: if you usually drink pints why not switch to bottles? And remember it’s a marathon not a sprint.
4. Be independent: save yourself a few bob by sticking to your own round. Drink at a pace that suits you not your mates.
5. Have a goal: make like Linda Evangelista and don’t get out of bed for less than 10k … 10km that is! Why not set yourself a goal on a Saturday or Sunday morning of running a certain distance. If running isn’t your thing, why not plan a visit to a local beach, park or outdoor trail that you haven’t been to before? Drinkaware.ie have done a lot of the leg work for you by putting tonnes of good ideas for reclaiming your weekend on ReclaimYourWeekend.ie
6. Get a buddy involved in the morning after the night before: talk your buddy into doing the above activity with you … there is power in a pair.
7. A stocked fridge: nothing gets you up and out of bed like a yummy breakfast. If smoked salmon on wholewheat toast with scrambled egg is your thing, then pick up those provisions on the way home so that you’re dying to get up out of the bed in the morning.

Shelly Browne, ambassador for drinkaware.ie’s ‘Reclaim Your Weekend’ campaign, is Marketing Manager of Bootcamp Ireland. The aim of the drinkaware.ie programme is to promote responsibility when drinking, among those who choose to drink, and to challenge anti-social behaviour related to excessive drinking. For more information see www.drinkaware.ie.

Read:  Irish people consumed 38 million litres of pure alcohol last year