Beer

ukgray

Part of the reason I put my weight on was drinking beer at home, four beers Friday, Saturday and sometimes Sunday and if I am honest every now and again on a Wednesday .
I realise that with my diet I must stop drinking beer and I have, but I was wondering what other people on here drink on a Friday or Saturday night after work to chill out .
I suppose what I am try to say what other alternatives are there as I don't like the short stuff i.e whiskey,rum ,vodka


Thanks Graham

thefaceman25

I used to be the same probably had 2 pints a day, now i have 1 maybe 2 a week.
Everything in moderation

Zichu

You don't want to cut it out completely. I don't, but I'm not a heavy drinker anyway and I don't have to drink beer if I don't feel like it. It's nice to have and if you are having a hard day and I fancy a beer I will have a beer.

Usually weekends are the times I tend to have a drink and it's either ale, cider or lager. I just make sure that it fits within my calorie goal. You could just do a bit more exercise on the day you are drinking that way you have room for the alcohol you enjoy. Just don't drink tons, drink a couple a week and see how it goes.

It's all about control.

Skeels

I always drink Kettle one lemon flavored Vodka with Club Soda on ICE....GREAT Low cal drink for the summer time

Sp1nGoddess

I sometimes have one large strong beer and take my time drinking it. Like Unibroue Trois Pistoles....

Usually it's red wine or vodka with Pellegrino & lime.

MaryPhillips90

Everything in moderation.
I just add it to my calorie goals.
However, I was on vacation last week for a whole week and drank EVERY SINGLE DAY and somehow I didn't gain ONE ounce.
I'm trying really hard with my diet and I still drink here and there. Hell, I had pizza and beer last night and I'm down a pound today!

soccerella

what about the less caloric beers? I've been doing miller lite lately, but most of the time when I am being careful about my calories and still want to drink I will do mgd 64 or bud select 55

Alpine005

I really love beer, especailly the darker beers. At this point I really don't drink them much anymore and when I do I'll drink a light, low calorie beer.

I have also been drinking Pierre water. Something about it gives it a beer taste/flavor/texture. I've been drinking alot of them.

ding30180

Hi Graham - actually there is no need to cut out beer completely, BUT you are right, that if you are like me (and it sounds like you are), then you will have to make some adjustments to your beer intake.

I am a BIG beer guy and like you, just started on MFP. I wrote a little on my beer blog about this subject here - http://www.dingsbeerblog.com/?p=4971

I plan to follow up with other beer related calorie posts, so keep an eye out for that.

I'll send a friend request, and you can see my food diary that DOES include beer, but to be honest nowhere NEAR the number of calories I was consuming a month ago. In short you can carry on drinking, but you'll need to plan, cut-back some and generally just be more aware.

Cheers

Ding (Englishman living in USA).

rgrange

I have beer or liquor every night- to excess on weekends. I've done alright in the two years I've dropped 85 lbs, so I firmly believe if it fits in your calories and you've already met your macros, it's okay to drink. :drinker:

Alpine005

I've also read that sometimes having some beers will reveal weight loss. Obviously it's not the reason you lose weight, but the alcohol draws the water out of the fat cells that have been emptied.

tonihayden

I love my bud lite lime!!
But i don't drink everyweekend...it's random for me.
I have tried a couple of the low calorie beers and OMG.....gross not to mention u wud have to drink a case to even catch a buzz!! LOL.

Alpine005

+1

mandemonious

Beer is wonderful, but eats up my calories far too often. Delicious, microbrews and craft beers are generally higher in calories and those are, of course, the ones I love.

I agree with the other posters...moderation is key. But don't give it up if you love it, unless your love for it is a problem that is difficult to balance...that is a different story.

elainecroft

Either one really good beer, or a couple of crappy light (miller 64 or bud 55) beers, depending on my mood. Also, wine. I like that it comes in a perfectly sized package for 2 people.

Onesnap

We make our own beer. We grow our own hops.

We have 3 beer flavors on tap in the garage.

We even pay our kitty sitter in beer.

So, just log it and move on. If you want to have your calories in liquid form do so. Just really don't have more than 1 a day if you can...1 a day actually has health benefits (for men).

Qarol

My go-to drink is gin and diet tonic. Low cals and low carbs. But if I'm a good little girl and do my cardio, I get to haz wine. Red wine. White wine is just inferior.

I do love a good beer, but I can't drink very many before my tummy feels too bloated.

Onesnap

Guinness has less calories than most beers. Weird, huh? It's just the way it's made. No light beer for me! Well, except bud light lime.

beezerphd

I mostly drink Kopparberg Mixed fruit cider or Rekorderlig. Beautiful.

phillieschic

I (over) indulge...and then sweat it all out on the treadmill! :drinker:

soccerella

We make our own beer. We grow our own hops.

We have 3 beer flavors on tap in the garage.

We even pay our kitty sitter in beer.

So, just log it and move on. If you want to have your calories in liquid form do so. Just really don't have more than 1 a day if you can...1 a day actually has health benefits (for men).

theres a house for sale next to me that I need to you move into ASAP

Cntrygal81

Beer is my drink of choice as well, and I haven't cut it out completely I've just made modifications. I'm not a huge drinker anyway - maybe once or twice a week. Now if I want a beer just for the taste of it, like with dinner, I'll have a Bud Select 55. If I'm planning to have a few drinks on a night out I'll try to mix a few of the low-calorie beers in with my regular Bud Light. Plus, like mentioned above, I try to do a little extra work on the days that I might drink and try to fit the drinks in with my calorie plan for the day.

My feeling is, If you try to give up everything you love you'll go crazy and revert back to your old ways. Don't give it all up, just enjoy in moderation...

Good luck!

infamousmk

I drink beer almost every day. I just make sure the beers I choose are delicious, flavourful, and worth the calories. I drink fewer because I'm really drinking to taste the beer and enjoy it, not get drunk. If you love beer, don't cut it out completely, because eventually you'll have built up resentment and all kinds of other crazy psycho feelings about it, and you'll binge or give up on your fitness completely. (IMO)

Candy42adore

COORS LIGHT is my friend through all this. Good luck!

ash1976

I've lost plenty of weight and still drink beer regularly. I just make sure i do enough exercise to make up for it!

BruteSquad

I still drink beer. I just make sure it fits. AND I only have one or two. Usually once a week. The rest of the time I drink mostly water, or if I am out, an iced tea.

I wanted to edit this to specify that I do not waste calories on cheap beer

JenniferInNY

One plus is that, as you lose weight, the amount of beer/alcohol that you want/need will go down because you weigh less. I used to like to have 3 drinks on a Friday night when I went out with the gals. Then I lost about 15% of my body weight and went out with them and had my normal 3 drinks…and found myself really full and completely drunk, to my surprise. It was a combination of the weight loss and the fact that I was eating smaller portion sizes with my drinks.

So now I’m down to 1-2 drinks on a night out, and it’s cheaper, has fewer calories, and I still enjoy myself. Just something to look forward to. (And a gentle warning to those who drink after having some weight loss and cutting food portions...your tolerance has likely decreased!)

auroranflash

I drink Miller Genuine Draft 64. 64 calories. I can easily fit two into an evening if I want and have plenty of calories left over for dinner, especially if I hit the gym that day.

It's not the best tasting beer but it's got just enough body for me to enjoy it.

AtticusFinch

You can still drink the stuff but in reduced quantity. Sometimes I have a whole week without alcohol passing my lips, others I'll drink on 2 or 3 days but only in strict moderation unless it's a very special occasion (holiday abroad, Xmas, birthday, etc).

In restaurants or pubs I'm usually driving so the limit is always 1 beer, or glass of wine. At home it's a bottle of beer or cider usually, 2 glasses of wine, or a short as a nightcap, but only from time to time.

Everything in moderation, but there's no reason why you can't drink eg: Guinness as long as you work the intake into your daily allowance or aggregate it over the week.

So really it's whatever your favourite tipple is, but perhaps you should practice some abstinence first so that you don't slip too easily back into 4 pints a night ?

grendel322

Part of the reason I put my weight on was drinking beer at home, four beers Friday, Saturday and sometimes Sunday and if I am honest every now and again on a Wednesday .
I realise that with my diet I must stop drinking beer and I have, but I was wondering what other people on here drink on a Friday or Saturday night after work to chill out .
I suppose what I am try to say what other alternatives are there as I don't like the short stuff i.e whiskey,rum ,vodka


Thanks Graham

Graham: You didn't specify what kind of beer you usually like to drink, but as others have pointed out, Guinness is fairly light on calories compared to most. I tend to go for the Imperial Stouts (of course I would!) which are about double the normal caloric amount. If you're serious about fitness and serious about beer, you need to just plan those extra calories into your workout and diet for those days! No need to do without, but if you want to drink the brew, you got some work to do! Good luck!

dlw13

I sometimes have one large strong beer and take my time drinking it. Like Unibroue Trois Pistoles....

Mmmmm! Unibroue brews some awesome beer. La Fin Du Monde is a favorite of mine. :drinker: