Alcohol & Weight Loss

Jasdramaqueen

Hmm. I rarely post but was interested in the alco-issue. I tend to drink a lot when out with my colleagues (British...London...Bankers excuses excuses!) but tend to stick to gin and slimline tonics.

I have no idea how this is affecting my weightloss but figure if I am going to drink, to stick to this rather than beer or even worse, vodka redbull (so calorific!!) but the adverse is that I drink this much faster than say wine or beer ...guess abstinence is the only promising solution!

KeriW626

Alcohol doesn't make you gain fat, it makes you retain water which will go away after your diet normalizes. In moderation alcohol is actually quite good for you.

http://www.leangains.com/2010/07/truth-about-alcohol-fat-loss-and-muscle.html

Summary:
* Moderate alcohol consumption is assocoiated with an abundance of health benefits. The long-term effect on insulin sensitivity and body weight (via insulin or decreased appetite) may be of particular interest to us.

* The thermic effect of alcohol is high and the real caloric value is not 7.1 kcal: it's ~5.6 kcal. However, it's still easy to overconsume calories by drinking. Calorie for calorie, the short-term effect of alcohol on satiety is low. Adding to this, intoxication may also encourage overeating by disinhibition of dietary restraint.

* The negative effects of alcohol on testosterone and recovery has been grossly exaggerated by the fitness mainstream. Excluding very high acute alcohol consumption, or prolonged and daily consumption, the effect is non-significant and unlikely to affect muscle gains or training adaptations negatively.

* The effect of alcohol on muscle protein synthesis is unknown in normal human subjects. It is not unlikely to assume that a negative effect exists, but it is very unlikely that it is of such a profound magnitude that some people would have you believe.

* Alcohol is converted to acetate by the liver. The oxidation of acetate takes precedence over other nutrients and is oxidized to carbon dioxide and water. However, despite being a potent inhibitor of lipolysis, alcohol/acetate alone cannot cause fat gain by itself. It's all the junk people eat in conjunction with alcohol intake that causes fat gain.

I drink wine, either a white reisling or sangria red. red has many benifits for you. I drink it after dinner. It helps calm my mind so I can sleep. It has not hindered my weigh at all. In fact I recently went on a week trip to S.C. I drank a lot, I mean a lot of home made wine. I expected to gain weight on the scale after I returned home. Turns out I lost 2 lbs. So maybe its what you drink?

ksavy

I drink a couple times a week normally. Anything from beer to wine to spirits. I just try to get a workout in that day and I count the calories in everything. I am still losing weight at the pace that I want to, just don't weight for a day or two after the drinking.

maroonmango211

Due to the fact that its summer and out of all our friends I am the only one currently watching what I eat and drink its far too hard to go to get togethers and watch everyone else sprucing it up and partying ( I am 24 after all and a night away from the kids and housework needs to be enjoyed still). If I plan on drinking I try my best to prepare for the caloric intake as well as I've found my favourite way to do so without feeling guilty is vodka mixed with aquafina flavoured water, it tastes great, and at least I'm getting even more water in me to make up for the dehidrating effects of the alcohol. I still lose weight, I still gain muscle and I still get to party once in a while.

I've heard the red wine idea that it helps aid in metabolism, I don't know if I would agree, but since we are also home wine makers its an idea I can live with! a small glass of wine after dinner is a better treat than any brownie could be.

nangel4u

I have seen a video onine about when you drink alcohol and try to lose weight, when you drink your body wont digest any food for awhile until the alcohol is out of your system, which leads to you having to pack on the pounds of what you at that day and allowing your body to over itself by holding on to the alcohol to help you stay functional....i seen it on youtube, and i searched alcohol and weight loss!!!

cheerforsteelers

I definitely enjoy beer and all those other drinks. I've been sticking to vodka with a little bit of tonic and lime...usually in a smaller glass. I have one (or two) maybe once a week or every other week.

UWZander

If I were to quote a chemical dependency councilor I know, alcohol reduces your metabolism by ~70% depending on average stats. And excessive drinking over time causes your liver to swell from the toxins causing the 'beer gut' people think is just from all the carbs. Everything in moderation and if you are struggling with your weight the last thing you want is to bog your body down with alcohol. That includes an occasional glass of wine with dinner.

lilawolf

I am abstaining for the time being (on Medifast)... but I've read that ONE GLASS (3-4 oz) of RED wine can actually speed up the metabolism slightly. Not beer. Not spirits. RED WINE.

Maybe true, but who stops at 3-4oz of wine??? That would be aproximately half of a champagne flute...

I have cut back to almost zero on weekdays (and feel better for it too!) and trying to keep it at 1-3 on Fri-Sun. ~6 glasses of wine a week is MUCH better than what I was doing before. It may decrease even more. I purchased a soda water maker and it is fantastic! I use fresh lemon/lime and a splash of SF raspberry syrup. Yum! I realized that I was having wine as a "special" drink, and I needed something to swap it out with other than water or I would feel deprived. This has worked wonderfully It would also be fantastic with any clear alcohol.

recoiljpr

I haven't really noticed any water weight or any gain when I drink beer. That being said, I generally only drink something like a Miller 65; and even then on a heavy weekend, I usually only drink 4 or 5 of them. That's 325 total calories...

freckledrats

Usually I notice the water weight after 2+ full-bodied beers (not the light stuff, usually, unless it's 3 or more, which is rare for me) or after enough rum and diet to get actually tipsy. Then the water weight screws up my weigh-ins. Always fun to screw up your weigh-in right before the official weigh-in day! I have a bad habit also of eating the occasional microwave soup or other extremely high sodium single item. I always see that the next day O.O

After a while of dieting, I'm actually pretty good at not making a lot of dumb food decisions while drinking, but I haven't always been!

kaervaak

If I were to quote a chemical dependency councilor I know, alcohol reduces your metabolism by ~70% depending on average stats. And excessive drinking over time causes your liver to swell from the toxins causing the 'beer gut' people think is just from all the carbs. Everything in moderation and if you are struggling with your weight the last thing you want is to bog your body down with alcohol. That includes an occasional glass of wine with dinner.

Alcohol metabolism takes precedence over normal digestion while it is in your system - so in the short term, this is very true and I can definitely believe the 70% reduction in normal metabolism number. Once the alcohol has been processed your metabolism goes right back to normal. A small amount of alcohol simply delays normal digestion by an hour or so, it doesn't cause you to store any extra fat (unless the calories in the alcohol cause you to go over your daily needs that is).

okeedokee5

I think the initial weight gain from drinking is due to your body retaining water while it fights through the dehydration that alcohol puts your body through. I've cut WAY WAY back on drinking (no more drinking during the week, and maybe only 2-3 glasses of wine or beer throughout the whole weekend.

My downfalls are vodka tonics and gin&tonics. My trainer said to try to switch up to gin and seltzer, and its almost no calories. I haven't tried it out yet, though. The good news about cutting down on alcohol and losing a good amount of weight is that it now takes me almost nothing to get a buzz, so with even just two drinks, I'm feeling pretty good!!!

dynad

read all the comments boy its good to see that I have lots of company. The summer BBQ's, block parties and out door bars really make a person get off track!

candy_mcswole

I LOVE me a good drink! MM-HMM!
Google " Skinnygirl cocktails ". It's a brand that supplies lo-cal vodkas, cocktails, and wines.

Greenrun99

With summer here, its hard to not have a few while tailgating, bbqing, at festivals, or outdoor bars.. Its really only nice outside 4 months of the year.. so gotta enjoy them while they are here, then its back to business.. I only go out once a week, avoid stopping to get any food afterwards or to snack at the bar (pretzels, peanuts, those salty snacks they offer).. and I drink whiskey/water, vodka/diet.. usually drinks with no added calories besides the actual alcohol...

Sabine_Stroehm

Alcohol doesn't make you gain fat, it makes you retain water which will go away after your diet normalizes. In moderation alcohol is actually quite good for you.

http://www.leangains.com/2010/07/truth-about-alcohol-fat-loss-and-muscle.html

Summary:
* Moderate alcohol consumption is assocoiated with an abundance of health benefits. The long-term effect on insulin sensitivity and body weight (via insulin or decreased appetite) may be of particular interest to us.

* The thermic effect of alcohol is high and the real caloric value is not 7.1 kcal: it's ~5.6 kcal. However, it's still easy to overconsume calories by drinking. Calorie for calorie, the short-term effect of alcohol on satiety is low. Adding to this, intoxication may also encourage overeating by disinhibition of dietary restraint.

* The negative effects of alcohol on testosterone and recovery has been grossly exaggerated by the fitness mainstream. Excluding very high acute alcohol consumption, or prolonged and daily consumption, the effect is non-significant and unlikely to affect muscle gains or training adaptations negatively.

* The effect of alcohol on muscle protein synthesis is unknown in normal human subjects. It is not unlikely to assume that a negative effect exists, but it is very unlikely that it is of such a profound magnitude that some people would have you believe.

* Alcohol is converted to acetate by the liver. The oxidation of acetate takes precedence over other nutrients and is oxidized to carbon dioxide and water. However, despite being a potent inhibitor of lipolysis, alcohol/acetate alone cannot cause fat gain by itself. It's all the junk people eat in conjunction with alcohol intake that causes fat gain.

^^This^^
I enjoy a glass or two of wine any time I want one.
If I'm out and want a cocktail, I mix vodka with club soda.
And I'm at my goal weight, and maintaining (and drank when I wanted to while getting here). I maintained for 12 years while having wine...

Yes, the scale goes up a pound or two. It goes up when I use soy sauce on my sushi too. I haven't given that up either.
Drink more water, if you want to have wine.
Or, better yet, drink water (club soda) WITH a cocktail, or even WITH red wine (you could make a fabulous "sangria" or spritzer with club soda and some fruit chunks.

Water weight is just water weight. I wouldn't fret too much about it. You know it's not actual pounds.
But, always be mindful of the mixers, and the calories, and what you eat when you DO have a drink. If a glass of wine leads to 3 beers and some nachos, you may need to abstain to reach your goal.

Good luck!

Sabine_Stroehm

I have seen a video onine about when you drink alcohol and try to lose weight, when you drink your body wont digest any food for awhile until the alcohol is out of your system, which leads to you having to pack on the pounds of what you at that day and allowing your body to over itself by holding on to the alcohol to help you stay functional....i seen it on youtube, and i searched alcohol and weight loss!!!

Was it a reputable source? Or just some buff guy with no shirt?

Sabine_Stroehm

I think the initial weight gain from drinking is due to your body retaining water while it fights through the dehydration that alcohol puts your body through. I've cut WAY WAY back on drinking (no more drinking during the week, and maybe only 2-3 glasses of wine or beer throughout the whole weekend.

My downfalls are vodka tonics and gin&tonics. My trainer said to try to switch up to gin and seltzer, and its almost no calories. I haven't tried it out yet, though. The good news about cutting down on alcohol and losing a good amount of weight is that it now takes me almost nothing to get a buzz, so with even just two drinks, I'm feeling pretty good!!!

Vodka and seltzer would be just as good.

krisiepoo

Alcohol is the reason I am a chub scout. And oh how I wish I craved celery when I get the drunk munchies.

bwahahahaaa.... :flowerforyou:

bcattoes

I rarely drink mixed drinks, but I've not had that experience with beer or wine, which I drank regularly (most days) throughout my weight loss and maintenance.