Alcohol

debbieb1971

Hi

Without sounding like i have a problem - i usually have a couple of bottles of wine over the weekend - and i'm going to find it really hard to go without this weekend. I work hard all week and use it as a reward to myself. However, i don't want to waste my calories on alcohol - especially in my first week of following a proper calorie controlled diet.

How do others cope, or do you still manage to have the odd glass or two.

Deb

alyssalanier

I'm the same way and without sounding like I have a problem, it is worth it to me to eat salads on Fridays and Saturdays and go for a jog so that I can enjoy my wine without the guilt. Good thing I'm not fond of beer.

yaseyuku

Personally, I was a big drinker before trying to lose weight. Now when I want to drink, I allot for it in my daily calories.

This might not work if you're prone to binging while drinking, but I personally just wasted a lot of calories on drinks themselves. Limiting myself to a certain amount (and not every day) has generally worked for me.

palmerar

I'm the same way and without sounding like I have a problem, it is worth it to me to eat salads on Fridays and Saturdays and go for a jog so that I can enjoy my wine without the guilt. Good thing I'm not fond of beer.

The light beer that I drink actually has fewer calories in a 12 oz serving than the 5 oz servings of white wine that I drink, so I don't really find it that hard to fit beer or wine into my calorie budget, and I love both equally.

cosmic8o8

I still enjoy my happy hours, but have cut back on how much I go out during the week. When I drink, I try to limit myself to no more than two cocktails a night.

HardcoreP0rk

When you go out, space out your drinks with a glass of water in between.

JBeaner

I treat myself to a 6 pack of bottle Michelob Ultra. I really watch my calories the day I will be "treating" myself, but as of late, I hardly finish the 6 pack. I make sure I alternate glasses of water in between the beer.

1brokegal44

Cut back. Find alternatives. Log everything. I'm a big wine drinker, but it's just too easy to suck down half a bottle (or more) before you realize it.

Mixed drinks are better for me. Gin or vodka with diet tonic, or the classic 7&7 using diet 7up. Vodka and cranberry juice using light or diet cranberry...You get the idea. :drinker:

Poprocket_2012

I treat myself to a bottle of red wine every friday evening and i'm still losing

AAllin38

i still drink....
that's how i cope with that problem.
haha..
.

I prefer jameson - on ice.

wcj61

If I had to swear off wine, I'd quit MFP. Seriously. Some things are more important than others. Personally, I can't drink an entire bottle of red by myself in one sitting, and I'm not small. Those who can might think about drinking a little less before it becomes a problem! That being said, I'm gonna open something yummy this evening and see how far I can go.

SoViLicious

i still drink....
that's how i cope with that problem.
haha..
.

I prefer jameson - on ice.

Is it too soon to say WOULD BANG?

1ConcreteGirl

Personally (and there's no real reason for this, I just like it), I take one week off alcohol and the next on. In an "on" week, I will drink a bottle of whiskey or two bottles of wine.

It hasn't hindered my progress at all. Just make sure you have the calories for it.

aletadiana

I am also a person that enjoys wine and could easily drink a bottle and a half- two bottles over the course of Friday-Sunday as it's a big part of dinners with my friends, family and socializing after. Wine with dinners is a standard thing with almost everyone I know. However, I have found that naturally I desire it less when I am going to have a tough workout the next day. So my Friday night drinking has naturally dropped off aside from 1 glass with dinner and then I plan for it with my calories counter on Saturdays. However I never ever cut back on my "base calories" I only use extra calories that I have gotten through working out because obviously substituting regular food with wine IS a problem Sometimes it causes me to go over my calories, but it hasn't seemed to be a problem with the results I'm seeing because my weeks are so much healthier now.

fysty75

When you go out, space out your drinks with a glass of water in between.

This!!^^^^^^^^

I stick with wine mostly.

I made the mistake this past saturday of Beergaritas. consumed an estimated 4000 calories that night not to mention my stuff at home. BRUTAL. but it was a "one off" thing. I go with wine or if i feel like hitting the hard stuff it's on the rocks, neat or with water and just a splash of diet coke for colour. the research i have done suggests NOT to have diet coke with liquor as it affects the metabolization (I just invented a word???) of the alcohol. also, if not used to drinking neat or on the rocks, it REALLY slows you down as it takes a while to get used to the taste!

happy drinking!!:drinker: :drinker: :drinker: :drinker:

1ConcreteGirl

i still drink....
that's how i cope with that problem.
haha..
.

I prefer jameson - on ice.

Jameson.... a man after my own heart

cityjaneLondon

I have a Pernod every night, logged as 100 cals. On Friday I might have two. - did tonight. Or share a bottle of wine. - logged as 300. But log it all,, it makes you think about it. Drink can lower your willpower, watch out for that. No munchies! :noway:
The good news is that as I have lost weight I can drink far less than I used to. Half a bottle has me well out of it! :laugh: :drinker: :blushing:

eric_sg61

This exact question seems to come up every weekend on MFP.

dressagester

I alcohol

You can deal with this two ways:

1. Cut back on the wine, burn more calories to "earn it," or eat slightly less during the week to make up for weekend consumption. It all averages out.

2. Do what you're doing and enjoy the hell out of it - and expect progress to be a little slower.

Choose the option that you feel is sustainable in the long run and makes you feel best.

CHEERS! :drinker:

AAllin38

i still drink....
that's how i cope with that problem.
haha..
.

I prefer jameson - on ice.

Jameson.... a man after my own heart

I'm about to have a Friday Jameson soon... care to join?

lizsmith1976

A couple of bottles? LOL! I enjoy the refreshing honesty!

I tell people all the time that I exercise so that I can drink more wine. I'm sort of kidding. Not really.

I log it. Sometimes I give up some of the "deficit". SOme days I have burned enough calories in training that I can drink/eat whatever I want. It would be easier to lose weight and have less body fat if I didn't drink wine. But life would be less fun. It's all about choices

AAllin38

i still drink....
that's how i cope with that problem.
haha..
.

I prefer jameson - on ice.

Is it too soon to say WOULD BANG?

it is never too soon.....

PRMinx

baneboy

I still drink at the weekend's, just have 2 work harder in the gym on Mondays! lol

longtimeterp

I have read that the liver actually metabolizes alcohol calories not the digestive system (in regular drinkers) thats why they are "Empty" calories (obviously the sugar in a mikes is carbs, but just the alcohol isnt the same) and that alcohol won't put on weight like food.

http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/aa35.htm

Body Weight. Although alcohol has a relatively high caloric value, 7.1 Calories per gram (as a point of reference, 1 gram of carbohydrate contains 4.5 Calories, and 1 gram of fat contains 9 Calories), alcohol consumption does not necessarily result in increased body weight. An analysis of data collected from the first National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES I) found that although drinkers had significantly higher intakes of total calories than nondrinkers, drinkers were not more obese than nondrinkers. In fact, women drinkers had significantly lower body weight than nondrinkers. As alcohol intake among men increased, their body weight decreased (17). An analysis of data from the second National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES II) and other large national studies found similar results for women (18), although the relationship between drinking and body weight for men is inconsistent. Although moderate doses of alcohol added to the diets of lean men and women do not seem to lead to weight gain, some studies have reported weight gain when alcohol is added to the diets of overweight persons (19,20).

AND ESPECIALLY THIS...When chronic heavy drinkers substitute alcohol for carbohydrates in their diets, they lose weight and weigh less than their nondrinking counterparts (21,22). Furthermore, when chronic heavy drinkers add alcohol to an otherwise normal diet, they do not gain weight (21).

sullus

I was a very heavy drinker before getting serious about losing weight (couple bottles of wine during a weekend? I was more like a couple bottles of whiskey a weekend)

I still drink on occasion - try to fit it in, but I dont freak if I go over (Gonna grab a 6-pack of something nice for the Bruins game tonight - it WILL put me over)

Another thing that's helped is .. There's no calories in pot.

dressagester

I have read that the liver actually metabolizes alcohol calories not the digestive system (in regular drinkers) thats why they are "Empty" calories (obviously the sugar in a mikes is carbs, but just the alcohol isnt the same) and that alcohol won't put on weight like food.

http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/aa35.htm

...When chronic heavy drinkers substitute alcohol for carbohydrates in their diets, they lose weight and weigh less than their nondrinking counterparts (21,22). Furthermore, when chronic heavy drinkers add alcohol to an otherwise normal diet, they do not gain weight (21).

Excellent. I'm going to take up heavy drinking. It's about time by b1tch-*kitten* liver started pulling its weight!

JenAndSome

Perfect.

I drink wine occasionally. I used to drink a lot of beer. Now I try to stick with light mixed drinks like vodka and diet cherry 7 up or diet cranberry. I like vodka with something crisp and fruity, especially now that it's warming up outside.

ScullyKel

I can sit down and kill a bottle of wine myself as well. It's a lot easier not to now that my hubby doesn't drink, but when I do drink...

I space out my drinks by having a glass of wine and then a glass of water or calorie free flavored seltzer. Rinse, wash, repeat....
That way I'm still drinking something (if I'm out and being social), still getting a buzz and rehydrating while pacing myself.

Sometimes if its a really fruity and sweet white wine I'll just make spritzers so that the calorie count is lessened but I am tricking my brain into believing that I'm pounding down drinks :drinker:


Hope that helps!

ScullyKel

Another thing that's helped is .. There's no calories in pot.

LOL... Nope... No There's not!

K_armfield

This is also very hard for me but its the following day that's hard. I am always so hungry because I usually don't eat much for dinner the night before and the general lack of sleep doesn't help. I'm still trying to find a happy medium with all of it but its hard. Good luck!!!