Alcohol and Weightloss

Options
tesshaney
tesshaney Posts: 110 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Would love to know what your thoughts are on this. I live in a city where the entire culture (aside from the AA culture), no matter what group you are in, centers around going out and having drinks. Mon-Fri im all good. Sunday I usually dont have a problem. It always comes down to Saturday night when I want to dance, laugh, and have some drinks with my friends. Sitting at home on a sat night is so not the look. What do some of you do in similiar situations? Do you only have a certain type of alcohol or do you not drink at all? I am mostly a wine drinker although I do indulge in really good craft beer or a margarita from time to time.
«1

Replies

  • deshaine
    deshaine Posts: 195
    Options
    my thought is: I'd rather eat my calories than drink them...

    Margarita's are high in calories and sodium...

    Beer (in moderation) might act like a carb to you.
    Wine (in moderation) might act like a fruit to you...

    As long as you don't over do it, you should be ok... have 1, not 3-4.
  • 00trayn
    00trayn Posts: 1,849 Member
    Options
    I can really relate, I love going out and going out is usually to a bar. I've basically found a few things that help to prevent my weight loss from completely stalling from the drinking.

    - Low calorie drinks only! Resist the temptation to have a delicious fruity mixed drink or a giant icy margarita. They're loaded with calories. My usual drinks are diet coke and something (rum, flavored vodka, etc), light beer, and wine. They are your lowest calorie options. Don't add calories with mixers. Not worth it.

    - Limit your drinking to a few occasions a month. I used to like to have one drink with my meal when going out, but honestly, I'd rather be able to have a few in an evening and enjoy myself then just drink one for the taste. One drink doesn't do it for me... haha. So I'll save my drinking for those couple nights I go out and have a few drinks. Not more than a few... drinking til you're falling over isn't good for you or your diet.

    - DRINK WATER. Actually, drink water between alcoholic drinks. Your body will recover faster if you stay hydrated. And you won't feel terrible in the morning either
  • digitalyssa
    digitalyssa Posts: 112 Member
    Options
    My take: Everything in moderation. I don't drink toooo much. And when I do I drink vodka water with a wedge of lime. (Lucky that that's what I like drinking)

    And of course I'm a sucker for wine. I just make sure I have enough calories to drink a glass or two. But I say, if you like drinking, drink - just be smart about it!
  • mymelody_78
    mymelody_78 Posts: 657 Member
    Options
    I go with Kettle One and club soda and lime. 1 oz of Kettle one is about 64 calories. I try to work out before hand and won't have too many.
  • Shash27
    Shash27 Posts: 172
    Options
    Diet Coke and Vodka (my best friend named that a "skinny *****" ha ha). Only have 1 or 2 and try not to go overboard (but some nights out it's easier to do that than others). I workout before too to give myself some extra room :-)

    I love wine..but I've been trying to stay away from it because of the sugar..but I DO have a glass every once in awhile. I couldn't stick with this if I couldn't live a little.

    Cheers :drinker:
  • Melvillin
    Melvillin Posts: 7
    Options
    Vodka, soda and a lime! Vodka and any Crystal light is good too! Cheers! :)
  • tesshaney
    tesshaney Posts: 110 Member
    Options
    Excellent suggestions! Vodka and soda with lime or Diet coke with flavored vodka sound like a plan. Now, I just have to develop a taste for it. I wish wine was low in calories. I think limiting my going out to maybe once every other week may work for me. Then I wont feel like a complete recluse. I hope that once I lose weight I can maintain a normal social life and just work out not to gain weight. Oy Vey!
  • red01angel
    red01angel Posts: 806 Member
    Options
    I've nixed mixers all together, and have my drinks either neat or with water.
    It's not for everyone, but they definitely have fewer calories than traditional mixed drinks, you tend to drink less because of how strong they are, thus saving calories AND $$, but they still get the job done.

    Beyond that, I drink wine...though I've tried to curb that lately because I'm one of those people who will consume a bottle before I even realize it...
  • Wendybirduk
    Wendybirduk Posts: 92 Member
    Options
    I am a drinker. :blushing:

    Lately I have cut down on the drinking through the week and limited it to the weekend. If I DO falter during the week then I will have a Bacardi and diet coke (in my hand right now lol).

    Work for the booze if you have to. Earn those extra calories but try to make sure you cut back as much as you feel comfortable doing. If you are only having a drink on a Saturday then you are doing a hell of a lot better than me!

    I have faltered several times in the last couple of weeks but have tried to make up for it with exercise.

    Don't beat yourself up about the booze hunny. Some people have too much chocolate or cake. Just try as hard as you can to cut it back and if you do have a blow out on a Saturday night then the punishment of exercising the next day with a hangover should make you think twice!
  • kdiamond
    kdiamond Posts: 3,329 Member
    Options
    If you like margaritas like I do, I have them make a "skinny margarita" (like that girl from Real Housewives).

    I ask for a shot of Patron over ice with club soda and 2 limes. I squeeze the limes in it. It is VERY close to the flavor and like 80 calories. If you want you can sneak some Crystal Light lemonaide (the small portions) in your purse then pour a little bit of it into your drink to make it tangier, it might taste a little better.

    I drink at least once a week, sometimes two nights, and I have been able to keep my body rocking. Just be careful of what you drink and what you eat after you drink!
  • KarenBorter
    KarenBorter Posts: 1,157 Member
    Options
    Personally, I quit drinking until I get this darned weight off. I can consume bottles of wine in 1 night and a LOT of vodka in a night. Don't fool yourself, Vodka DOES have calories and if you are drinking 2 or 3 drinks you are consuming a lot of empty calories. BESIDES all of this, when you get drunk your inhibitors are down and people tend to binge eat when they are drunk. If you drink socially this may not be an issue, but man I know that after a few drinks nothing sounds better to me then a thick cheeseburger and fries!
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
    Options
    I love my beer, the darker the better. I tend drink 3 or less in a night, 2 to 3 days a week, I also try to have a glass of water between each one to make it last longer and to stay hydrated. Just make sure you have the extra calories available and if not go for a workout before you go out to give you the extra cals.
  • EDesq
    EDesq Posts: 1,527 Member
    Options
    Drinking excess alcohol is a "diet" killer, and it is far beyond the calories you see. Alcohol causes retention of fluid, depresses the metabolism thus retaining weight, and it makes you hungry for greasy foods particularly the next day and for some it makes them let down their guard and they eat more while they are drinking. All that said, a couple of drinks a week won't hurt you UNLESS it becomes Habitual, so please watch yourself, addictions can "sneak" up on you. Unfortunately, in this Country and some others, we LIVE for the Weekend. Having a great time is about eating and drinking alcohol. That is not in and of itself a bad thing UNTIL it starts making your Life and maybe others we love "Unhappy" or "Unmanageable"...Moderation is the key, plan the occasions to indulge with food and/or alcohol. For Me, when I begin to question whether drinking or eating or anything is "good" for Me or I become Unhappy as a Result of My indulgence (modest or not), that's a sign to Me that it IS A Problem. And I begin to weed it out of My Life.
  • tesshaney
    tesshaney Posts: 110 Member
    Options
    These replies have been so AWESOME! I totally feel like im the only person who is trying to lose weight but likes to have cocktails. I feel so much better about all this. Its truly my main dieting downfall.
  • atynk
    atynk Posts: 400 Member
    Options
    I love to live it up on saturday nights! Vodka water and crystal light are usually my drink of choice.. or doubles so i have less mix lol... or shots so no mix at all! I spent the last year going out most saturdays so I know you can balance it... Try to make sure you work out extra hard that day... you will prob need to burn about 1000 calories ( 10 vodka drinks lol) .. don't starve yourself all day or you will end up stuffing your face before you even get to the bar... so burn that extra calories before you even drink and dance your butt off and you can even end up losing!!
  • Kaye8395BTS
    Kaye8395BTS Posts: 159 Member
    Options
    As a former BIG drinker, I cut it out for the most part on this journey, yes unfortunately has meant I have missed out on a lot of my social event that I normally would have attended, but I figure I partied my a** off to get it that big, I can take a few (so far, 10) months off.

    BUT in order to NOT pull my hair out I have let myself go out once a month on average. It's usually to celebrate someone's birthday and not a random Saturday night. I am a big fan of the water in between drinks, it def helps...and coming from a girl who used be able to put down an 18 pack on her own...take my word :-)

    Ever see those ridiculously skinny girls drinking tequilla straight from the bottle? I always laughed at them before, but they got the right "idea." No juice mixers, its not worth the calories and say h*ll no to the frozen drinks - they are a killer! Go for Vodka and dt soda, also Bacardi is supposed to be low in sugar and carbs ect if you want to go that route. Otherwise, I stick to light beer or a glass or 2 of wine, otherwise I'd be on my tail-bone anyway after not drinking for this long!

    Good luck! and no... you are absolutely not the only one!
  • BaliRun
    BaliRun Posts: 114 Member
    Options
    I have been saying this for a while... If alcohol didn't have so many calories I would drink a whole lot more!!! LOL so I guess it's probably a good thing that it does!!!
  • sublimechik28
    sublimechik28 Posts: 74 Member
    Options
    margarita
    tequila half club soda and half real lime juice no mixers thats all sugar. bars usually have a bottle of real lime juice. and no salt

    vodka club soda and if u want it a lil sweet a splash of cranberry

    pretty much any clear liquor w club soda and a squeeze of lime is low cal. the best liquors are vodka and rum anything brown like whiskeys have more cals
  • HazelDiva1913
    HazelDiva1913 Posts: 194 Member
    Options
    great topic tessie tess. Ive been trying to figure out what everyones drinking thats low cal for a while now. We did great last week though ...patron shots and bacardi and diet coke
  • tesshaney
    tesshaney Posts: 110 Member
    Options
    I think our Patron shots were good-they got me there and we didnt have too many of them so I didnt feel like I was buying drinks all night.

Categories