Alcohol...

Rimroses
Rimroses Posts: 30 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hi. I usually have a glass of wine at night at 160 calories a glass. I am Mom of a 7 month old, so it is kind of my chill out at the end of the night. I am going to cut out that glass for the next week and see what it does for my weight loss. I have been pretty steady with my weight loss so far, about 13lbs over the past 2 months at 1500 calories a day, but I was going to see if cutting out that unnecessary amount of calories would help. I was wondering what others experiences have been with cutting out alcohol. I know I will miss it, lol, I love my little boy to death, but Mommy needs a little relaxation occasionally, so this will be my little sacrifice. I do not plan on replacing those calories during the day if I can help it.

Replies

  • bayoucitygirl
    bayoucitygirl Posts: 54 Member
    Do you drink white wine or a lighter red by any chance? I like doing a wine spritzer -- half mineral water, half wine. That way I can still enjoy it and still get that bit of relaxation if I need it. Also, if I don't do that, I try to limit my alcohol to a couple times a week, and lately have been opting for tea to unwind in the evenings.
  • magj0y
    magj0y Posts: 1,911 Member
    Replace it with a candle-lit hot bath and soothing music maybe?
  • krickeyuu
    krickeyuu Posts: 344 Member
    Well, I very much enjoy wine with dinner so I build it into my calorie count--usually by exercising more. You should do what you think is best for you but I have lost 20 lbs since January and I drink wine every day, so it is not impossible.
  • Cespuglio
    Cespuglio Posts: 385 Member
    I'm going to go ahead and play devil's advocate and say if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Although the wine spritzer idea sounds yummy! If you're losing weight just fine having your wine, why add the extra stress of cutting back even more? Especially with something you enjoy? You don't want to cut out TOO many calories because then your body will adjust to that deficit and end up maintaining at that low amount of calories. Enjoy your chill out glass, I'd say :drinker:

    P.S. Just giving my two cents. Not trying to step on anyone else's opinion :smile:
  • jane987
    jane987 Posts: 36 Member
    1 glass of wine a night? Enjoy it!! As long as you're not finishing the bottle you should allow yourself that small treat. A red a night is good for the heart anyway, right?

    I also drink quite often but just make sure I factor it into my daily calories. I would rather have a wine with dinner than an extra snack during the day. All comes down to priorities I guess! You can definitely still lose and drink wine :)
  • jane987
    jane987 Posts: 36 Member
    p.s. no offence, but replacing wine with a hot bath and soothing music is just not going to cut it!!
  • mussmom
    mussmom Posts: 362 Member
    I was thinking why not a hot bath, soothing music AND a glass of wine!!! I also agree with those that said that one glass is not bad at all, enjoy your calories.
  • kokaneesailor
    kokaneesailor Posts: 337 Member
    Cutting it out of my diet was the "BEST" thing I ever did. Empty calories that I don't miss. :smile:
  • lap012165
    lap012165 Posts: 24
    Thank God!!! I'm so glad to see someone that is being honest. I've gone from 162 down to 127 and did not give up my night time treat. I have 3 kids and I too love them to death, but It's nice to have that "cocktail tail" for you as a special treat. Also I find it real hard to believe that everyone out there doesn't have a little sip now and then.

    So more power to you!!! I'm proud to know that like me and others we didn't fall for the absolutely "NO" alcohol rule. It's not true and I don't care what anyone says.

    More Power To Ya!!!!!!!
  • lilpoindexter
    lilpoindexter Posts: 1,122 Member
    Wait to make up your mind after not drinking it for a week. You'll probably speed up your weight loss...then you can decide what you want to do. I gave up drinking beer and soda last year. I don't miss that crap at all. I drank at least a 12 pack of beer a week, and had a gut to prove it.
  • Kristin2984
    Kristin2984 Posts: 54
    I really dont think its going to make any difference. If you were drinking a bottle a night or a six pack of beer a night, then yes, you would speed up your weight loss if you cut it. One glass a night? To me, it doesnt seem like a big enough vice to give it up, especially being a new mom.
  • schell81
    schell81 Posts: 187 Member
    I have a 15 month old daughter and also love my wine. 160 calories is about an 8 oz glass I believe, depending on what you're drinking exactly. Maybe just have half a glass or I like the spritzer idea. I still have a drink almost every night and I have found I really like a shot of raspberry stoli (70 calories) with low sodium club soda (0 calories!). My weightloss has been good so I'm not going to give up my drink, or my mini chocolate bars for that matter :tongue:
  • amyLhuff
    amyLhuff Posts: 102
    Have you tried the skinny girl wine? I like it but I usually drink vodka it's 65 cal and zero carbs use a no cal mixer and relaxxxx I too have a 7 almost 8 month old I know what you mean
  • anemoneprose
    anemoneprose Posts: 1,805 Member
    Idk, you've got to do this in a way you can live with long-term.

    Maybe cut out just half the nights, and experiment with other methods of unwinding. I like yoga videos for that. Nothing outrageous, just some very slow, easy sequences, like this:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CgcW_4vssvM

    Also: man. I don't have kids, but this is not inspiring me to make any.
  • pandorakick
    pandorakick Posts: 901 Member
    I'm in the "if it fits your macro's, enjoy it" crowd. At the end of the day I very much enjoy my glass of wine. Cutting it out won't make much of a difference for the weightloss, which btw is fast enough for me at a pound per week. Cutting my glass of wine out would however make the diet change à lot less sustainable on the long run for me.
  • TheVimFuego
    TheVimFuego Posts: 2,412 Member
    I have a left-field view of this based on my, fairly extensive, experience of trying (and succeeding) to lose weight and continue to drink alcohol. Decades of trial and error ... ;)

    I have not had a drink for a couple of weeks now and I have to admit that I was losing more fat WHILE I was drinking (red wine). I suspected this was the case and the last fortnight has proven it.

    I quit for financial reasons, not weight-loss, as I seemed to be doing fine there.

    To be honest quitting the wine has made me more tempted to snack late at night, something I never did before.

    Despite the urge to snack I have not eaten one of the 'empty calories' that I was apparently consuming in their multiple hundreds nightly, all I have done is quit the drink, no change in food calories. Or exercise.

    I hear the logic that the 'saved' calories *must* go some way to help lose fat AND *surely* I am now burning fat whereas before I was processing the alcohol out of my system as a priority.

    It hasn't worked like that for me, I don't say the results are typical, just my experience.

    I can't wait to nail this new job on Friday, adjust the budget accordingly and get back on the vino (and fat loss) to be honest.

    Now back to normal programming ... ;)
  • Rimroses
    Rimroses Posts: 30 Member
    Wow, thanks everyone! I only drink White Zymphendale (horrible spelling, I know). It is the only one I have acquired a taste for, and Dear Lord do I love it. I usually have a Starbucks in the morning as well, so I am cutting that out as well. I don't need it, and would rather have my Wine at night. I may still cut out the alcohol for this week, just as a test, but if I don't notice any significant change, it is coming back, lol. I always keep enough calories in the day for the glass at night, so it fits in my daily calories.
  • LowFatMama
    LowFatMama Posts: 625 Member
    Hi. I usually have a glass of wine at night at 160 calories a glass. I am Mom of a 7 month old, so it is kind of my chill out at the end of the night. I am going to cut out that glass for the next week and see what it does for my weight loss. I have been pretty steady with my weight loss so far, about 13lbs over the past 2 months at 1500 calories a day, but I was going to see if cutting out that unnecessary amount of calories would help. I was wondering what others experiences have been with cutting out alcohol. I know I will miss it, lol, I love my little boy to death, but Mommy needs a little relaxation occasionally, so this will be my little sacrifice. I do not plan on replacing those calories during the day if I can help it.

    Keep me posted on your results. I too have wine every night.. but it usually turns into 2 or 3 most nights :laugh: I
    would H A T E to give it up, but please keep me posted.... maybe ill cut down a bit?? :drinker: Cheers!
  • Rimroses
    Rimroses Posts: 30 Member
    I will. I am a light weight, haha, so one glass is enough to get me chilled out enough. Occasionally I will bump it up to 1 1/2 glasses. Would you mind if I added you to my friends list?
  • LowFatMama
    LowFatMama Posts: 625 Member
    awesome thanks!!! And of course I don't mind :smile:

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