How to keep a good time good

Getting into the right frame of mind is often the key to a great night out, and a little alcohol can help – just be careful not to push things too far and set yourself some limits and stick to them.

For a lot of us, a couple of drinks can help create a good time feeling. One drink too many and it can easily tip over into drunken arguments, embarrassing behaviour and throwing up in the toilets.

In a YouGov survey for Drinkaware, 48% of the young people interviewed said that they had been sick in the last 12 months as a result of drinking too much, 31% had blacked out and 9% had been a fight because of too much alcohol. Not exactly the ingredients for a good night out.

Good times?

Paul and his friends didn’t manage to stay in the zone on his 21st birthday. They didn't even reach it! “The plan was to go to a cocktail bar and then on to this drum and bass club. But we started drinking cocktails and by the time we got to the club, we were being really loud, and the bouncers wouldn’t let us in.

“I ended up storming off on my own and going home. It wasn’t the best birthday ever.”

Emma from Harrogate knows what it’s like to stay in the zone, and to fall out of it – and she knows which she prefers: “We’ve all had one of those nights at least once in our lives where things get out of hand and next thing you know, you’re throwing up in the taxi – or worse. There’s nothing fun about that!

“Fun is when you’re all together on the same page, having one or two drinks and a laugh. Those are the nights you’ll actually remember. At the end of the night you’re in bed with a smile on your face... and no hangover the next morning! I’ll take that over puking in a taxi any day.”

Know your limits

Alcohol affects everyone differently. Some people can drink a couple of pints with no apparent ill effects, while others start acting embarrassingly after one vodka. Look out for your own warning signals and recognise when enough is enough.

Government health experts advise that you shouldn’t drink more than 3-4 units a day if you’re a man, and 2-3 units if you’re a woman. Drinking twice that much is classified as binge drinking.

Not sure how many units are in your usual drink? Have a look at our unit calculator.

Tips for keeping a good time good

Don’t make drinking the focus of the night
In the best pubs, there’s more to do than just drink to get drunk… Food, pub quizzes, pool, giant Jenga, skittles and so on are great ways for you and your friends to have a good time.

If you’re going out for a meal, going easy on the wine – often the biggest part of the bill – means you can afford to splash out more on gourmet food at a posh restaurant. (And you can put the calories you’ve saved towards an indulgent dessert…)

Or – shock horror! – you needn’t drink alcohol at all. Nights out don’t have to revolve around booze. Skating rinks and late-night bowling, cinemas, gigs and dancing, theatres and art galleries, greyhound racing and ghost walks, driving to the seaside… the possibilities are only limited by your imagination.

If you are drinking alcohol, eat something as well
Alcohol doesn’t go to your head so quickly when you’ve got some food in your stomach. Make sure you have something to eat before you go out, or make going for a meal with friends part of your plans. Restaurants are usually better than bars for conversation, and it's easier to drink slowly: a good recipe for keeping the good times on course.

Pace yourself
Your liver can get rid of about one unit of alcohol an hour – that’s equivalent to one small shot of spirits, less than half a pint of beer or less than one small glass of wine. When you drink fast, the concentration of alcohol in your bloodstream shoots up – and it will continue to rise even if you stop drinking. Happily light-headed can quickly tip over into slurring your words and coming onto somebody you really shouldn’t. So watch your limits, slow down and give your body a chance to catch up.

Have a free pint…
…of water. It’s a good idea to slip a few glasses in throughout your evening so you don’t become dehydrated. drinking alcohol, even in small quantities, can dry you out, especially your brain. So drink some water before you go to sleep. You’ll be pleased you did the next morning.

Beware of the round
When everyone’s buying rounds, it’s easy to find yourself drinking far more, and more quickly, than you want to in an effort to keep up. Don’t be afraid to say no thanks, or to opt for a soft drink instead.

Don’t mix your drinks
When somebody suggests a round of tequila shots, it could be a sign that your good-time is entering the danger zone. Mixing your drinks makes it harder to keep track of what you’ve had, and can also make your hangover nastier.

Page last updated by

Matthew Bateman, 06 Jan 2010.

Page checked on

24 Aug 2009