What Alcohol Coaching Is Really Like (From Someone Who Did It)
Mar 09, 2026
What Alcohol Coaching Is Really Like (From Someone Who Did It)
Michael Levins came on Sober Fit Life to share the unfiltered story of his coaching journey — from a wake-up call at a golf tournament to nearly six months alcohol-free. Here's what happened.
I am so excited to share this episode because it's one I've been wanting to do for a while, a real, behind-the-scenes look at what the coaching process actually looks like from my client's perspective.
Michael Levins is one of my coaching clients, and he came on to tell his story completely unfiltered. And honestly? I think so many of you are going to hear yourselves in him.
The Wake-Up Call
Michael wasn't someone who ever called himself an alcoholic. He was a social drinker — loved the Friday exhale, the weekend fun with friends, drinks at work events. Then came the golf tournament. He overslept, missed most of the round, let his partner down, had his wife panicking trying to reach him, and felt too physically wrecked to even feel guilty about it. That was his moment.
How We Met (A Year Before He Ever Called Me)
What I love about Michael's story is how we actually met — a chance encounter in a gym class in Lake Tahoe a full year before he ever reached out. He spotted me, mentioned me to his wife, and she filed it away. A year later, after the golf trip, she remembered my name and sent him my link. That is exactly why I always tell people what I do, no matter where I am.
What Coaching Actually Looked Like
In this episode, we get into what working together actually looked like week by week. The education on what alcohol is truly doing to your brain and body, the personalized toolkit we built, and how Michael went from dreading a big football weekend with his college friends to coming out the other side completely alcohol-free. Nobody even noticed.
The Road Rage Story That Gave Me Chills
There's a story in this episode about a road rage incident while Michael was picking up his teenage son — totally sober, coming straight from a work event with an open bar. A man got out of his car and got in Michael's face. Michael stayed calm, walked away, and turned the whole thing into a teaching moment for his son on the ride home. He told me afterward he knew exactly how that night would have gone three months earlier, with a few drinks in him. And he was right. Alcohol affects the prefrontal cortex — the decision-making part of your brain — and that night was living proof of what becomes possible without it.
Navigating It When Your Spouse Still Drinks
One of the questions I get most often is: what do I do if my partner is still drinking? Michael and his wife figured it out, and communication was everything. At first he kept a lot of the coaching process to himself, which created some disconnect. Once he started sharing the tools, the exit plans, what he was learning — she got on board completely. A few months in, he noticed she was drinking less too, just from being around him.
On Asking for Help (And Why So Many People Don't)
One of my favorite moments in this episode is when Michael talks about the shame he felt initially around getting coaching. He thought needing support meant admitting he had a problem. I hear this all the time — and it's one of the biggest things that keeps people stuck for years, sometimes decades. We get coaches for golf, for fitness, for business. Getting a coach to help you change your relationship with alcohol is no different. It doesn't mean you have a label. It means you want to feel better and you're willing to do the work.
Where He Is Now
Michael is approaching six months alcohol-free and has committed to a full year. He's working out four or five days a week and getting more from it than ever. His sleep is better, his anxiety is more manageable, his productivity is up, and his reactions at home have shifted. His 16-year-old son — who bet him he'd never make it through that football weekend sober — is watching all of it.
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