Tim McGraw is better than he used to be, and he’s revealing inside the new issue of People magazine just why that is.

The country megastar, who appears sexy and serene on this week’s People cover, tells the mag he needed to get sober.

“I drank a lot from my point of view and I needed to stop,” Tim says. “I felt quitting was something I needed to do. I didn’t feel I had any moral high ground with my kids in the long run.”

Click here to Tim’s video interview with People.

The father of three reveals he traded in whiskey for weight training five years ago.

“To stay fit, I try to keep it consistent as best as I can,” he says. “Part of my routine is getting up in the morning and taking the kids to school and going to the gym and spending a couple of hours there.”

And the secret to his 16-year marriage to Faith Hill, Tim says, can be summarized in two words… “Yes, ma’am.”

Pick up Tim on the cover of People available Friday.