A woman saved £4k in just six months by going "no spend" - and cancelling subscriptions and ditching alcohol and meals out.

Mia Westrap, 26, decided to overhaul her finances when she was unable to afford to embark on a long-distance relationship with an Australian man she was dating.

When her former partner of six months flew home, Mia said the pair went "cold turkey" and didn't communicate because she wasn't able to afford flights to Australia.

As a health and social care worker - earning £2.1k-a-month - Mia says she realised she was spending too much on socialising.

She would easily spend £200-a-month on eating out and £100-a-month on alcohol without giving it a second thought.

At the start of her "no spend year", Mia set herself the target of saving £4k in 12 months but hit her target in June and has now upped her target to £7k.

Mia, from Southampton, Hampshire, said: "My goal for 2024 was to save £4k as that would be three months worth of living expenses.

"I hit that in just six months and have now set my target to £7k.

"I look back and wonder how I was spending £500-a-month on nothing material.

"I had nothing to show for the money I spent - my money went on food, drinks and maybe on clothes but I already had plenty."

Mia had heard of people doing no spend years but it wasn't something she was interested in or found relevant.

But, after a major abdominal surgery in January, she thought it was a perfect time to start.

She said: "I realised that I was going to be housebound for the first month of the year so I thought why not give it a go.

"I have been finding it quite easy through the winter as I don't want to go out at the moment anyway.

"I will be interested to see how difficult it gets in the summer when I want to go out for meals and socialise with friends."

Mia says she didn't live an extravagant lifestyle beforehand and it was the little purchases that would creep up on her - such as coffees, meal deals and Pepsi Max.

She said: "I didn't have many holidays really, I grew up incredibly poor.

"Going on holiday was something I was not used to.

"I was addicted to Pepsi Max - I was spending £3 to £4 every day which amounts to £1,424 a year.

"When I took a step back to see where my money was going, I realised it was these little costs that I couldn't account for."

Usually, during the summer, Mia says she and her friends would go to beer gardens or out for meals but this year they have been doing picnics and dinners in - to save money.

She said: "My friends have been really supportive, we have been having a lot of dinners in or going for picnics.

"Usually we would go for meals out every time the sun came out or go to beer gardens.

"My summer has been really good and I haven't felt like I have missed out on anything."