Alcohol Calories don't count?

amydee714
amydee714 Posts: 232 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
A male friend of mine at work lost about 140 pounds 2 years ago and has successfully kept it off. He does not count calories and has a very specific way of eating (which I'm not going to go into here) but I asked him this the other day:

"How have you managed to not gain back any weight with as much as you drink?" :laugh:

You see my friend (despite being 30) parties on the weekend like a 20 year old frat boy. :drinker: He is the guy that drinks and the next day doesnt remember what happened.

His response what not what I expected. He said that calories from alcohol don't count. He went on to explain that he had researched it (he really is quite smart) and found that it takes our bodies more calories to burn the alcohol that the amount of calories that are in the alcohol. He clarified that this is in just alcohol, not beer or wine which contain sugars/carbs.

I was looking around today and found this: http://www.leangains.com/2010/07/truth-about-alcohol-fat-loss-and-muscle.html

Has anyone else ever heard of this?

Cheers! :drinker:
«134

Replies

  • melsinct
    melsinct Posts: 3,512 Member
    Hahahaha...that would be awesome if true. Sorry, but they count.
  • Lady_Bane
    Lady_Bane Posts: 720 Member
    They count. Trust me......

    the only reason why I go down in weight TEMPORARILY is from dehydration. I gain like 3 lbs the next day then am back to a little above my original weight.

    Do some research on it yourself. Google "weight loss and alcohol".
  • RepsnSets
    RepsnSets Posts: 805 Member
    Part of the reason why Im here losing weight is because of calories in the amount of alcohol I drink.
  • know_your_worth
    know_your_worth Posts: 481 Member
    Lol that would be nice.
  • Lady_Bane
    Lady_Bane Posts: 720 Member
    Part of the reason why Im here losing weight is because of calories in the amount of alcohol I drink.

    LOL WHAT?
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,422 Member
    Hard liquor has 65-100 calories per ounce.

    But you don't care after 400 calories.
  • ahviendha
    ahviendha Posts: 1,291 Member
    naaaaaah.
  • IDCY843
    IDCY843 Posts: 78 Member
    so what do you mean by "just alcohol"? you mean like spirits on their own?
  • Mokey41
    Mokey41 Posts: 5,769 Member
    It may even out because he quite likely gets wasted then feels like crap the next day and doesn't eat much.
  • slkehl
    slkehl Posts: 3,801 Member
    Ever heard of a beer gut? Too many brewskies, and you'll get one too.
  • kimothy38
    kimothy38 Posts: 840 Member
    If alcoholic calories didn't count how is a beer belly explained then? That's like saying there's no calories in broken biscuits - hogwash. I had a gin and tonic last night (yummo) and was shocked to find when I logged it that it was 200 calories. He certainly won't be doing his liver and kidneys any favours and one day he's gonna get some payback.
  • WaterBunnie
    WaterBunnie Posts: 1,371 Member
    I don't believe it. Calories are calories surely?
  • bokodasu
    bokodasu Posts: 629 Member
    You see my friend (despite being 30) parties on the weekend like a 20 year old frat boy. :drinker: He is the guy that drinks and the next day doesnt remember what happened.

    One of the great things about alcoholism is how you start replacing food calories with alcohol calories, which still ARE calories, they just don't have any nutrition to them. Oh, wait, no, that's one of the bad things. Drink enough and you stop absorbing nutrients even when you do eat food. Your friend needs help.
  • felice03
    felice03 Posts: 2,644 Member
    and what planet does he come from?
  • RepsnSets
    RepsnSets Posts: 805 Member
    Part of the reason why Im here losing weight is because of calories in the amount of alcohol I drink.

    LOL WHAT?

    lol Im here trying to drop weight no thanks to my partying lifestyle.
  • jmc0806
    jmc0806 Posts: 1,444 Member
    even Everclear at 190 proof (95% alcohol) has almost 190 kcal per 1oz and that has no sugar or carbs
  • amydee714
    amydee714 Posts: 232 Member
    I drink very rarely (maybe one or 2 drinks once or twice a year) so it's not really an issue for me, but I found the topic very interesting. Especially after I found the article I posted.

    Ever heard of a beer gut? Too many brewskies, and you'll get one too.

    Haha! :laugh:

    That's why he said excluding beer and wine. He was talking about straight alcohol like Vodka, Rum, Whisky, etc. Same thing I found in that article.
  • spangey13
    spangey13 Posts: 294
    That's like saying there's no calories in broken biscuits - hogwash.

    Half the biscuit = half the calories. You can have twice as many :-)
  • BeingAwesome247
    BeingAwesome247 Posts: 1,171 Member
    He does say moderation....not being an alcoholic and when I initially started losing weight....going out and drinking never hindered it. :drinker: Maybe that's also b/c I was dancing my *kitten* off
  • drmerc
    drmerc Posts: 2,603 Member
    sweet, gonna go get smashed thanks OP!
  • IDCY843
    IDCY843 Posts: 78 Member
    Hard liquor has 65-100 calories per ounce.

    But you don't care after 400 calories.

    this lol
  • JohnMessmer
    JohnMessmer Posts: 536
    Wow, that would be as awesome as zero calorie Double Bacon six Cheese Pizza.


    ________[img]http://sfgf.lilyslim.com/PzhJm6.png width="400" height="80" border="0"[/img]________
  • PHXBlondie
    PHXBlondie Posts: 26 Member
    Everyone's body processes things differently. I think the key is to figure out how your own body works and eat in a way that supports your weight loss. I lost 60 lbs in 2010 and was able to maintain the loss quite well eating whatever I wanted - as long as it didn't include wheat. I could eat butter, cream, cheese, corn, rice, etc. in whatever portions I felt like eating without gaining. But, as soon as I started eating wheat again on a regular basis, my weight just skyrocketed. I've gained almost 20 lbs in the last 2 months (4 weeks of which I was traveling) and the culprit for me is the wheat. I know it and I don't know what I was thinking ... like the results would be different for me this time. lol So, I'm back to the low fat and wheat-free diet until the weight comes off again - when I can add more fats back into my diet.

    If your friend can maintain his weight loss drinking alcohol freely (without all the high calorie mixers, I'm sure), then more power to him. The proof is in the ... well, the proof. He's maintained the loss doing what works for him. Here's to hoping we can all figure out what our kryptonite is and stear clear of it. :-)
  • LowcarbNY
    LowcarbNY Posts: 546 Member
    The Drinking Man's Diet.

    Plus, if you spend the next day puking your guts out ....

    I think your friend may have killed off a few too many brain cells with that hard life.
    He does not count calories

    Since he doesn't count then he really doesn't have any data to back up his claim that alcohol calories don't count, does he?
    Maybe he just gets so wasted that he doesn't eat.
  • Colstriper
    Colstriper Posts: 71 Member
    Good enough for me! Let's go to the bar!
  • Espressocycle
    Espressocycle Posts: 2,245 Member
    It is actually true that alcohol does not lead to weight gain... in alcoholics. So basically, if you are an alcoholic, you can drink all you want and stay skinny. Until your liver fails and you die.
  • MidsummerNightsDream
    MidsummerNightsDream Posts: 25
    Alcohol counts. A lot.

    If your friend is drinking as much as you say, suffering from blackouts he most likely has a serious drinking problem, and looking for excuses the justify that it is OK for him to drink because he read online that alcohol calories don't count, and we all know that everything we read online is true (LOL) The fact is he drinks too much to the point that he is staying thin from the alcohol. I have a sister who is an alcoholic and is rail thin as a result.

    The occasional glass of wine, or even a drink drink will not do you great harm, but drinking as much as your friend is will work against your dieting.
  • rileamoyer
    rileamoyer Posts: 2,412 Member
    I think that only works if you dance all night long too. LOL
  • TR0berts
    TR0berts Posts: 7,739 Member
    Step 1: Drink as much as you want.
    Step 2: Eat as much as you want.
    Step 3: Throw up everything.

    Repeat as needed.
  • RunIntheMud
    RunIntheMud Posts: 2,645 Member
    Well, as a matter of fact. If you drink enough you don't remember it in the morning. And, if you don't remember a drink, the calories don't count. Right? Sound logic to me. :bigsmile:

Categories