Beer

SilkyHotspur

Don't skip the beer...If I want beer, i'll save room in the diet for it. Typically I drink red wine...4-5 nights a week...

Z_I_L_L_A

Don't skip the beer...If I want beer, i'll save room in the diet for it. Typically I drink red wine...4-5 nights a week...

This^ I would figure out how many I was going to have and cut back the 6 days before to cover it. I have two spike days after 5 days 1800 cals with hi protein and low low carbs and sugars. Then my spike days I eat the carbs and protein I need for the heavy workouts.

milk_shakes

I love beer. (My fiance and I spend our anniversaries at the Dogfish Head Brewery) We usually split mixed sixpacks of craft beer and if we split each beer, we sip taste and savor and only have 3 each. I get sad thinking about eliminating it. I just now save it for special occasions. If I'm tailgating, camping, etc I will drink Keystone Light or Yuengling Light, but I'm starting to realize drinking (guzzling) those light beers is kind of a waste. I'll drink 5 without realizing it. I'd much rather drink a delicious seasonal beer with a higher ABV (and alas, more calories) and really experience what I'm drinking.
I don't know. Seems like it's something that really should be eliminated or kept to only one based on other's responses. But for me, losing weight is me adapting my life around my new exercise and eating habits, and craft beer is a big part of my life. Gotta find a way to make that work for me!

JRaeZins

BEER! Yum! Just plan for it and try to find one you like that has less calories. I like Corona Light 90 calories!

GallyX0

Beer. The source of, and solution to, all of life's problems. I think beer in a diet needs to be handled two ways:

1. Beer as a beverage: if you normally have a beer with your entree in order to accent it, just treat it like any other beverage on your list. Most sodas, and even fruit juices, have the same or more calories, so if you can squeak those into your diet, or other bete noir's like dessert or condiments like mayo or butter, you should be able to work a nice alcoholic beverage in without too much fuss. If your diet is all gerbil food, its going to go down in flames, and the same applies for your beverage choices.

2. Beer as a mood enhancer: no real way to tap dance around it: beer gets you drunk, and being drunk is usually fun. Having a social event, and including alcohol, is not a coincidence. Alcohol usually is used to enhance it. Some may object, but I personally don't feel this to be a personal failing. So, treat beer as you would a special event: you need to plan for it (save some calories before and after, plan extra activity to offset it) and make smart choices in how you enjoy it. Lower calorie beers are not all trash (Beck's light is only 64 cal. and is quite good if you like German style pilsners) and can help to achieve the nice glow you're looking for at a low cal budget. But realize this: offsetting has its limits. You cannot starve yourself the day before and after and solve a binge, your body doesn't work that way. Its also impossible to spot erase high consumption. If you take in alot of calories in one sitting, your body WILL store it as fat. You can't target specific calories with exercise. You need to decide a reasonable, tolerable level of sacrifice, and if your beverage count is going to be high, sorry micro brew lovers, you're going to have to go low cal or pay the price.

The biggest problem is confusing the two events. If you're going to be having more than 2, you are most likely not in category 1. Its hard to imagine a meal that requires the accenting of 3 beverages that would not crash a diet anyway (sorry 5 course tasting meal, I'm talking to you.) I love butter or cream, but if a meal needed 3 servings of those to be enjoyable, its obviously not on my diet. So, its all about correctly making the call. Don't assume you're drinking for taste when you expect to be drinking in quantity, unless you like being miserable.

BerryH

This may help:

http://getdrunknotfat.com/

LadyIvysMom

I am a beer and wine snob lol.

I just budget beer & wine into my calorie intake for the day or plan to work it off. One or two drinks once in a while isn't going to totally derail you. Treat it like you would treat any other snack.

Darkskinned88

*sings Miller 64 song*

Darkskinned88

Beer. The source of, and solution to, all of life's problems. I think beer in a diet needs to be handled two ways:

greatest simpson quote ever, okay maybe top 5

bcf7683

I think if you could limit yourself to one low calorie beer a day, and maintain the recommended goals, it shouldn't hurt you. If you're knocking back 4-5 beers a night, then thats 400-600 calories extra, which is excessive. Stay towards Guiness - it's actually one of the lowest calorie beers, despite its thick texture like chocolate milk (and it happens to be amazing!).

Okay.... Guiness is good, but where did you hear that it's one of the lowest calorie beers? Maybe it's one of the lowest calorie DARK beers, but when it comes to overall beers- how about Miller Lite? Miller 64? Bud Light? Bud Select 55? IC Light? IC Light Mango? Coors Light?...Do I need to keep going?

Melissaol

I log all my beer and I drink bud select 55. I get a lot of crap about it, thats it really not a beer it's just water. But that's ok it's what I like.

SeaChele77

Its easy - you 1) lower calories through the day to allot for a few beers in the evening or 2) only drink on cheat days and don't log - just drink.

If you feel the need to drink more often, then you should find lower calorie/carb beer such as Mich. Ultra. But if you're more a beer snob - I'd save those for cheat days/weekends after you've busted your *kitten* all week!!