Drinking alcohol

Runningchick11

So I tend to drink a lot of my calories back in beer. Are there other people out there that have that problem? That is probably the main reason I am not losing as much weight as I could be. I try really hard not to drink but then I have a beer, and another, and another....what are other people doing to control this?

ElizabethRoad

You can't keep yourself from drinking alcohol? That sounds like you have bigger problems than the weight.

CRody44

I went toi AA.

psuLemon

So I tend to drink a lot of my calories back in beer. Are there other people out there that have that problem? That is probably the main reason I am not losing as much weight as I could be. I try really hard not to drink but then I have a beer, and another, and another....what are other people doing to control this?

They are empty calories. And yes, its a good chance it's the reason you aren't losing. Alcohol is a toxin and your body will stop metabolize in order to eliminate the alcohol from the body. You just need to get rid of alcohol from your house. And maybe leave your drivers license in the car when you go to restaurants.

Qarol

One glass of wine, I'm fine. Two or three, and I just want more. But if you really can't stop yourself, that's no bueno.

I started creating a slightly bigger deficit during the week, and tallying up for the weekend. So far, I've got an extra ~700 calories for tomorrow.

rebecca_d35

As much as I hate to admit it, I didn't lose weight until I stopped drinking. I was a one-or-two-glass-a-night wine drinker, then gave it up by accident (I had a sinus infection). I now drink maybe one glass a week at most, and have lost about 5 pounds. I also have more energy.

I still love wine, but I'm starting to realize it can't be an everyday thing for me.

auroranflash

Meh, I drank four beers last night. What? We were watching The Hangover. You can't NOT drink and watch that.

I'm still down from last week. I had calories left over for it, though.

Hasn't seemed to slow me down as long as I don't go over calories. If I do, well then... durr...

Miller 64 calorie beer is nice because it's like a two-fer. It won't really get you buzzed, though. That's what the Bud Platinum is for.

alg121710

I only drink on one or two nights a week. You need to make changes that you can live with and that is what happens to work for me. I've lost 100 pounds over the past 1 1/2 years - it's been slow progress but I feel like I've found a balanced lifestyle I can maintain for the rest of my life.

kelzz193

As much as I hated to admit it too, I can't drink and lose weight as quickly. Even if I "save" calories for alcohol my body just doesn't respond as well. Like a previous poster said it is a toxin so your body tries to metabolize it first. So I personally really have had to limit my consumption to the weekend or special events!

Good luck, take it a day at a time!

jplord

I am a beer nut. Used to brew my own, grow my own hops, blah blah blah. I love beer.

Beer is liquid bread. I had to limit my self to only one REALLY GOOD beer to lose any weight, and that may not be enough to keep me from plateauing.

TO quench my beer craving, I drink a lot of carbonated mineral water or club soda with a lime in it. The cold bubbly fluid kinda feels like beer, the satisfying belch is still there, and surprising bonus: no beer farts.

Good luck. The abstinence crowd may be right, but it is no the ONLY option. My personal definition of alcohol as a problem is not the amount consumed but whether it interferes with your relationships and life. The best way to know that is to listen to other people and your body.

Sucks, huh?

jplord

As much as I hate to admit it, I didn't lose weight until I stopped drinking. I was a one-or-two-glass-a-night wine drinker, then gave it up by accident (I had a sinus infection). I now drink maybe one glass a week at most, and have lost about 5 pounds. I also have more energy.

I still love wine, but I'm starting to realize it can't be an everyday thing for me.

This^^^^

_Bob_

Beer is not something I want to give up to lose weight, yeah if I drank less I would lose faster but then I would gain some back because of my love affair with beer. so I'm going for the slow and steady loose while still living the life I want to live. but I really should cut back on it during the week :drinker:

Nailrep

I try not to drink at all if I can help it. Not only does the alcohol add more calories to the bottom line, but for me, it causes me to get laxed in what I'm eating during the time that I'm drinking. I think it's mostly because of the sugar that I'm introducing into my system that makes me CRAVE carbs when I drink. So, I limit myself to a couple of drinks once a week during my "cheat meal", but factor in those calories.

MzTat2slim

Set a limit before you start drinking. If you only want to drink 2 beers. set those 2 beers aside from the rest. And slowly sip them. This way even if you go for a 3rd, you have stopped yourself from drinking 4. Every little bit helps.

megleo818

I love a couple of glasses of wine or a few beers myself, but I find that if I do that, I also want to snack. I have to be VERY careful. Lately, I've been just pushing through that little voice that comes to me in the early evening saying, "Ooh, wouldn't a beer be awesome right about now?" and I just do something else instead of going to the fridge. Like any craving, it goes away if you ignore it long enough. That said, I do give in every now and then -- had three glasses of wine over a five-hour period last night -- since I'm living this way for the duration, not just until my last pounds are shed. Try telling yourself you'll have that beer tomorrow or after you're down a pound or whatever works for you -- it will help your weight loss.

profgal43

I hear you!! Love my glass of wine with dinner, but starting to realize it can't be an everyday thing as well. And wine is tougher than beer in that portion control is trickier. So I'm trying to only have one glass when I have dinner out (usually once a week) and on weekends when I can share with others.

jg627

I drink a beer from time to time and it hasn't slowed my weightloss down. I count the calories and fit it into my diet like any other food. The only difference is you need to rehydrate. Ask any toxicologist and they'll tell you, all poison is in the dosage. Even water is toxic at high enough doses. If it's holding back your weight loss, then it sounds like you could be leaning toward the toxic dosage. If you can't control that, then you may need a different kind of help than what you get here.

MNA76

I feel your pain. I love craft beer. But most of the beers that I drink run between 250-300 calories per beer (Yikes!). I have greatly limited the amount of alcohol that I consume, but when I do indulge, I figure them into my calorie allowance.

kmturtle3

I get SO tired of reading about everyone who says you can't lose weight and still drink. MODERATION people, jeez.

I am a complete beer freak. I am on a personal mission to visit all of the (over 100 breweries) in the state of Michigan. I don't drink crap domestic beers. I drink craft beers - IPAs, bourbon barrel aged and Russian Imperial stouts, Belgian styles, etc etc. When I started on MFP in January of 2011 I was 250 pounds and a size 18. As of this morning I'm 155 and a size 8.

I have a little beer gut. I always will. I don't care, because I love beer. All I do? I don't drink Monday-Thursday. Friday and Saturday are my days to imbibe. Sunday maybe I'll have one good beer or a glass of red wine or a glass of bourbon. But I never go crazy on Sundays. Saturday? Saturday I go C.R.A.Z.Y. I do try to work with a bigger deficit during the weeks... right now, I NET between 1000-1200 Monday-Thursday... I am kind of a work out fiend and will get anywhere from 500-900 calories from that. I still workout on Friday and Saturday, and Sunday is usually a rest day or something low-key like a bike ride or yoga or foam rolling for a super long time. Doing this, I am basically maintaining. But when I say I go crazy, I mean I drink between 5-10 really big amazing beers, eat nachos, ice cream, you name it. I find that is makes me behave better during the week.

To each his own. I just want you to know that you CAN have your beer and lose weight too. It just takes dedication and committment on a very serious level all the other days of the week.

jg627

I get SO tired of reading about everyone who says you can't lose weight and still drink. MODERATION people, jeez.

I am a complete beer freak. I am on a personal mission to visit all of the (over 100 breweries) in the state of Michigan. I don't drink crap domestic beers. I drink craft beers - IPAs, bourbon barrel aged and Russian Imperial stouts, Belgian styles, etc etc. When I started on MFP in January of 2011 I was 250 pounds and a size 18. As of this morning I'm 155 and a size 8.

I have a little beer gut. I always will. I don't care, because I love beer. All I do? I don't drink Monday-Thursday. Friday and Saturday are my days to imbibe. Sunday maybe I'll have one good beer or a glass of red wine or a glass of bourbon. But I never go crazy on Sundays. Saturday? Saturday I go C.R.A.Z.Y. I do try to work with a bigger deficit during the weeks... right now, I NET between 1000-1200 Monday-Thursday... I am kind of a work out fiend and will get anywhere from 500-900 calories from that. I still workout on Friday and Saturday, and Sunday is usually a rest day or something low-key like a bike ride or yoga or foam rolling for a super long time. Doing this, I am basically maintaining. But when I say I go crazy, I mean I drink between 5-10 really big amazing beers, eat nachos, ice cream, you name it. I find that is makes me behave better during the week.

To each his own. I just want you to know that you CAN have your beer and lose weight too. It just takes dedication and committment on a very serious level all the other days of the week.

High-five for Michigan beer

IveLanded

Maybe set a goal for yourself that you are going to go 6 days without a beer and then you allow yourself 2. I found that the longer I go without beer, the less cravings I have for it.

Sabine_Stroehm

I drink wine. I really like wine. I understand that you really like beer. I also understand that indulging, or even over indulging doesn't make you an alcoholic (I often wonder if the same folks who suggest you're an alcoholic suggest over eaters are addicted to food, or that binge eaters are addicted to food, or diagnose eating disorders based off one post on the internet.)

(steps off soapbox).

I measure. It keeps me accountable for the calories. Other folks measure food, I measure wine.
I drink with with dinner as many nights as I wish, but I don't have more than 11 ounces. On fridays if I go to happy hour I allow myself 3-4 glasses if I'm not driving.

Beer is a tough one. I once weighed about 25 LBS more than I do now (When I was younger). I lost that weight and kept it off by giving up beer.
I, personally, wasn't able to lose it while having beer.

Best of luck!

ArroganceInStep

<- Drinks alcohol

<- Has lost 50 lbs in 6 months

<- Went on a bender of a bachelor party weekend and to two open bar weddings in that same 6 months

MNA76

I get SO tired of reading about everyone who says you can't lose weight and still drink. MODERATION people, jeez.

I am a complete beer freak. I am on a personal mission to visit all of the (over 100 breweries) in the state of Michigan. I don't drink crap domestic beers. I drink craft beers - IPAs, bourbon barrel aged and Russian Imperial stouts, Belgian styles, etc etc. When I started on MFP in January of 2011 I was 250 pounds and a size 18. As of this morning I'm 155 and a size 8.

I have a little beer gut. I always will. I don't care, because I love beer. All I do? I don't drink Monday-Thursday. Friday and Saturday are my days to imbibe. Sunday maybe I'll have one good beer or a glass of red wine or a glass of bourbon. But I never go crazy on Sundays. Saturday? Saturday I go C.R.A.Z.Y. I do try to work with a bigger deficit during the weeks... right now, I NET between 1000-1200 Monday-Thursday... I am kind of a work out fiend and will get anywhere from 500-900 calories from
that. I still workout on Friday and Saturday, and Sunday is usually a rest day or something low-key like a bike ride or yoga or foam rolling for a super long time. Doing this, I am basically maintaining. But when I say I go crazy, I mean I drink between 5-10 really big amazing beers, eat nachos, ice cream, you name it. I find that is makes me behave better during the week.

To each his own. I just want you to know that you CAN have your beer and lose weight too. It just takes dedication and committment on a very serious level all the other days of the week.

^^^^ This!!! P.S. My husband and I are hoping to do a tour of Michigan breweries soon. Good stuff!

anunley1

Ok - those who are acting like this person has a problem because they can't NOT drink... that's ridiculous and unsupportive and just don't reply. It's called a social life... I completely understand. One of my weaknesses is that during the week I am on a very strict diet and then on the weekends when my boyfriend and I go out to dinner or drinks with friends, music festivals, family bbq's, etc. the drinks add up and the next thing you know, it's Monday and your calorie intake the past 2-3 days has set you back!! I think it is just really important to log those drinks into MFP and really stick to them. If you know ahead of time you are going to a specific restaurant and you will have two glasses of cab - log it and then really stick to it. Also, my friends and I have researched trying to find the lowest calorie drinks... bloody marys, vodka soda with a lemon and lime, bacardi and diet...It is really hard... I know ! You have a goal you want to achieve but you also want to have a good time and live life. Good luck!!

ski0721

I struggle with this as well....Pretty much every weekend. I also believe this is contributing to not losing any weight recently. So I'm challenging myself to only drink twice in June. June 14th and June 29th (two events those days). I'll be interested to see if this helps getting the weight loss moving again. I haven't lost since March.

Julyfly70

I love wine and I've decided that I've got to do what wil work for me in the long run. I don't see myself giving up wine entirely so I'll figure it in with my calories for the day.

BigDaddyBRC

If you have a "problem", then see Alcoholics Anonymous.

Il_DaniD_lI

Try drinking less beer I think is the obvious answer? If you can't then maybe seek professional help.

mcarter99

If you have a "problem", then see Alcoholics Anonymous.

I think that's like saying if you have a problem with sugar at night, give it up completely, forever.

Put only two beers in the frig, or whatever your allotment is. Put the rest somewhere hard to get to, like your car trunk. Make them rich, filling beers, like Guinness. Make them more expensive than you're used to. Or don't buy any at all until the weekend.

If you're hanging out with people who drink more than that, try some changes. If you sit and watch tv and drink, try less TV. Move your exercise to night time or something.

Or try some alternative 'treat' drinks, like a home made Italian soda or iced coffee.

chezmama

Wine is my beverage of choice. I know it is keeping me from losing. I haven't lost a thing in about three months...and have even gained a little. What I find happens is that I allot the calories to drink the wine. No problem. But my inhibitions are all relaxed and I suddenly think I want to eat snacks I haven't allotted for....and since my "ability" to say no is impaired, I eat them. I am trying to relegate alcohol to the weekends.