Journey to the Sunnyside

Welcome to Journey to the Sunny Side, the podcast where we have thoughtful conversations to explore the science of habits, uncover the secrets to mindful living, and of course, your own mindful drinking journey. This podcast is brought to you by Sunny Side, the number one alcohol moderation platform. And if you could benefit from drinking a bit less, head on over to sunnyside.co to get a free fifteen day trial. I'm your host, Mike Hardinbrook, published author, neuroscience enthusiast, and habit change expert.

Welcome to another one of these ten minute Mondays. And today we're going to tackle a term that you may have heard of, you may not have, and that is intermittent sobriety. And the reason that we're bringing this up is because this is a growing trend that backs up a lot of what we're doing. This is not about quitting alcohol completely, but it's about finding a better, more balanced lifestyle that meets your goals. And so today I'm going to talk exactly what is intermittent sobriety.

We're going to cover why this matters, the cultural and generational shifts that it's indicating, and why it's gaining momentum right now. And then I'll leave you with some parting takeaways that you can go and implement yourself. So the first one is, what is intermittent sobriety? And it's really all about choosing when and where we drink with intention. So some examples would be skipping alcohol on weekdays, maybe drinking only on special occasions, or trying month long challenges, or similar to Soberish October challenge that we're doing here at Sunnyside.

And it's all about setting limits, scheduling your drinks, having alcohol free days, counting your drinks, and things like peer support. So if you're thinking right now, well, this sounds really familiar to something that I might be doing right now. Well, that's because you're correct. And there's a significance in why I'm actually doing an episode dedicated to this, why this new name actually is significant to something that we're already currently doing. If you're a mom or a dad, you might relate to this, but do your kids ever come to you like they have the hottest new thing and you're like, yeah, we did that before you were born when you weren't even around.

That was a thing. Well, this is sort of the case here. But as I said, we're going to talk a little bit about why am I doing this video about this if we already know kind of what it is. And that is what leads into why this trend actually matters. So the first thing is, is it's significant because it's showing a trend that with Gen Z specifically, over sixty one percent of them are cutting back on their drinking.

And they're citing the reason, not because it's necessarily a problem, but in an effort to get towards a better relationship as far as wellness, clarity, and balance in their life. And that is also a narrative that's going on that says, it doesn't have to be a problem. We can change our relationship with alcohol just to be healthier. Another indication that's significant is that it's showing industry growth. So non alcoholic beverages are booming right now.

It's predicted in the next two years to be a $2,000,000,000 industry, and companies like Athletic Brewing Company and Ritual Zero Proof are having massive growth right now because of this trend. So this is really backing up some of the things that we're already doing that is shifting more into this new zone of how we view alcohol and how we view wanting to make a change around it. And that basically leads me into this cultural and this generational shift that we're seeing right now. And with the rise of these new terms, that people in other generations, by and large, not just single people, huge groups are adopting this new mindset. And that is basically to see alcohol as something that's optional.

It's not tied to anything that is necessary to go out and have fun. It's just, we want to have a better relationship. It's now tied to, I'm going to change my relationship with alcohol in regard to wellness, in regard to my mental health. And moderation is all about control and not deprivation that I can still enjoy these things that I'm doing, that I don't have to completely go all or nothing and change myself just because I want to be healthier. The other thing is that it's showing mainstream acceptance.

The non alcohol brands are a major indicator that they're not just for people that abstain. These are for people that are seeking more balance, want to go out, have a drink in their hand that isn't just soda water and enjoy themselves all the while having more healthy, habits. So I also want to talk about why is this gaining momentum now? Well, the narrative really around this is driving more innovation, driving technologies and data, things like Sunnyside, of course, that help you track your habits, you make moderation much easier and attainable and fun. We also see a shift in the social norms that alcohol is no longer the only center of social interactions, that you're seeing these non alcoholic bars that are popping up.

You have non alcoholic events more often. And we're just seeing that people don't want to just make the center of the party all around the bar, that they want to go at a deeper level, but at the same time, enjoy themselves, choose the time that they want to enjoy it. So the key takeaway here is basically that we are seeing a real shift. This is not a trend. This is not a fad.

This doesn't have to be tied to the old historical narrative that if you are wanting to change your relationship with alcohol, then there must be a problem. That this is saying that, no, we as a society, we at certain generations are saying to ourselves, we want to live healthier. We want to live more clear, but we also want to make more mindful choices when we do decide to have alcohol, when, where, and how much. And we want to actually talk about it. We want to normalize this conversation and not put it fringe, not have to quietly order our non alcoholic drinks.

So speaking of that, another key takeaway is that the options are coming out more and more varied as far as what you have to choose from. So you have more places to go. You can feel more open to have these conversations and you'll find out that there are tons of other people that are on this journey. Here at Sunnyside, we have almost 400,000 members that don't identify as ever having a problem, but wanting to be healthier and clearer and be in more control of their choices around alcohol. And that makes it that much more fun.

So you can go out, you can have fun, and you can find that balance. And just remember, and this is the key takeaway, remember that you were always cool because before this term of intermittent sobriety, you already were doing it. It was already cool. And hey, if the kids think it's cool, then it must be. All right.

I hope you have a wonderful week and thanks for listening. Take care and here's to your mindful drinking journey.

This podcast is brought to you by Sunnyside, the number one alcohol moderation platform, having helped hundreds of thousands of people cut out more than 13,000,000 drinks since 2020. And in fact, an independent study showed that Sunnyside reduced alcohol consumption by an average of 30% in ninety days. And as one of our members shared, Sunnyside helps me stay mindful of my drinking habits. It's not super restrictive. So if I'm craving a glass of wine with dinner, I just track it and I move on with my week.

If you could benefit from drinking a bit less and being more mindful of when and how much you drink, head on over to sunnyside.co to get a free fifteen day trial. You'll get access to everything that we offer, including tracking and planning tools, coaching from our experts, a vibrant community of people just like you, and the motivation and advice to stay on track with your health goals, all with no pressure to quit. That's sunnyside.co.