Planning Around Drinking- What do YOU do?

agataarchangel
agataarchangel Posts: 292 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hey Guys!

Just a general question I'm going to throw out there, as I'm wondering how others fit alcohol into their lives while trying to maintain a degree of control/health/planning etc...

I tend to shy away from carbs on days I know I'll be drinking, and generally eat lighter to avoid going MUCH over calories.

Other than fitting alcohol into your macros or overall calorie count, do you tailor your eating differently on the days you know you'll be drinking?

Don't get me wrong, sometimes you gotta just throw your cares into the wind and HAVE FUN, I just wanted to see if anyone else altered their methods or diet at all to accommodate booze days.

Caesar's TONIGHT, baby!
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Replies

  • Brianna716
    Brianna716 Posts: 303 Member
    I can fit 1 mixed drink into my day by cutting out a snack... but I'm going on a date this weekend and I plan to have 2 or 3 beers, so I'll be spending some extra time at the gym before hand.

    I've also learned to like Labatt 52- I can get quite a good buzz for just over 200 calories :)
  • agataarchangel
    agataarchangel Posts: 292 Member
    Nice!

    We don't have that up here, and just started having Michelob Ultra available before the summer- I actually like it, for a "light" beer.

    I don't usually have mixed drinks, but Caesars are on the menu tonight. At least they'll contain a few servings of vegetables! Hahaha.
  • jynxxxed
    jynxxxed Posts: 1,010 Member
    I usually eat a light breakfast/lunch and a big dinner with my first drink. I leave at least 600 calories for drinks and usually some room for snacks/whatever I happen to eat throughout the night as well. I just pre-log it in the morning so I don't go crazy on breakfast/lunch.
  • agataarchangel
    agataarchangel Posts: 292 Member
    I usually eat a light breakfast/lunch and a big dinner with my first drink. I leave at least 600 calories for drinks and usually some room for snacks/whatever I happen to eat throughout the night as well. I just pre-log it in the morning so I don't go crazy on breakfast/lunch.

    That's kind of like what I'm doing today, though I tend to eat a larger breakfast or lunch, then a smaller dinner....
  • bokodasu
    bokodasu Posts: 629 Member
    I work out a little longer and eat a little less and plan to go a little over on calories that day. Flexibility is key.

    Last week went out with a girl I know from the gym and her tactic is to not eat after breakfast. This is a BAD PLAN, unless you are going out with someone who likes puke on their shoes, in which case, go for it.
  • jynxxxed
    jynxxxed Posts: 1,010 Member
    I usually eat a light breakfast/lunch and a big dinner with my first drink. I leave at least 600 calories for drinks and usually some room for snacks/whatever I happen to eat throughout the night as well. I just pre-log it in the morning so I don't go crazy on breakfast/lunch.

    That's kind of like what I'm doing today, though I tend to eat a larger breakfast or lunch, then a smaller dinner....
    Whatever works for you! I tend to feel sick if I don't eat a lot when I first begin drinking so I just plan it like that.
  • Schmelvie
    Schmelvie Posts: 233 Member
    I just try to do a reasonable job of planning in advance what the day will look like. If I'm going out to dinner or drinking, I estimate what I think that will be, and then cut some other things out earlier in the day to accommodate. If it's going to be heavy drinking, I know I'll go over, but some of the choices earlier in the day still help to buffer that.

    For instance, I normally try to leave about 600 caloires left for dinner every day when I get home. Tonight, we're going out to eat, and I know I'll also have some drinks (maybe just wine). So I'm trying to save 1200 calories for the end of the day. I've even chosen my entre already for tonight. I'll still probably go over, but hopefully not by too much.

    And then there are days like last Friday (if you happen to look at my diary) where the evening activities were completely spontaneous. That was not a good day for me with regard to food. I logged it and moved on. I ate less on Saturday to recoup a few of those calories.

    But in general, planning ahead to buffer the extra calories is what I find works the best, and still allows me to imbibe.
  • gemmaleigh1989
    gemmaleigh1989 Posts: 241 Member
    I'll still eat my 3 main meals as per normal but ill cut out my snacks in between. I still exercise on that day, banking up more calories for me to consume and then when I do drink, I'll only drink vodka lime and sodas, they have about 70 calories each (the same as an apple!) I don't drink that often so I don't have to worry about it too much but that also means it doesn't take me much to get drunk ;) I still try and keep to my calorie goal, or at the least I'll allow myself to go up to maintenance level. Having exercised on the day as well, that allows me a fair amount of drinks!

    Edit: going out for me consists of lots of walking around and dancing as well so I don't stress about the odd night out. I know my TDEE is going to be higher than average on that day which sort of makes up for drinking :P
  • bee_elle
    bee_elle Posts: 12 Member
    I try to go for a weekly average rather than be under EVERY DAY. So, if I know I'll be drinking or eating out one day, I'll just try to be under by 200 calories or so a few days so that I have more room.
  • omma_to_3
    omma_to_3 Posts: 3,265 Member
    I typically will only drink on days I'm having a cheat meal. I drink very rarely now as I'd rather eat my calories than drink them.
  • creech6317
    creech6317 Posts: 869 Member
    I try to eat something the has a lot of volume for my calories (veggie, etc) so that my stomach has something in it. Then I drink the "skinny" type mixed drinks, and have a water in between if I have more than one, so I make the drinks (and fun) last longer and don't pack as many calories as I would otherwise.
    I will also work out more the day of and take an extra long walk/hike the day after, to help work off the extra calories.
  • KishaO
    KishaO Posts: 17 Member
    Hey Guys!

    Just a general question I'm going to throw out there, as I'm wondering how others fit alcohol into their lives while trying to maintain a degree of control/health/planning etc...

    I tend to shy away from carbs on days I know I'll be drinking, and generally eat lighter to avoid going MUCH over calories.

    Other than fitting alcohol into your macros or overall calorie count, do you tailor your eating differently on the days you know you'll be drinking?

    Don't get me wrong, sometimes you gotta just throw your cares into the wind and HAVE FUN, I just wanted to see if anyone else altered their methods or diet at all to accommodate booze days.

    Caesar's TONIGHT, baby!


    What I've done becaue I do not want to cut out the fun in my life becuase I am trying to lose weight - I will eat very little carbs that day becuase I know I like beer but I also drink Dirty Martini's or Ciroc Vodka with Sprite and splash of a juice so I don't want to add the "extra" carbs so eating about 15 that day helps me. I also go a about 30 minutes longer at my workouts to burn liqour off (its mental thing - I actually don't even know if I''m burning it off). I don't drink sweet drinks so that is what helps me stay at a decent point with drinking while I'm out. I live here in Texas and everyone is always trying to put a flavored magarita in my hand but I stay clear of those!! Lol :)
  • CaffeinatedConfectionist
    CaffeinatedConfectionist Posts: 1,046 Member
    I just try to do a reasonable job of planning in advance what the day will look like. If I'm going out to dinner or drinking, I estimate what I think that will be, and then cut some other things out earlier in the day to accommodate. If it's going to be heavy drinking, I know I'll go over, but some of the choices earlier in the day still help to buffer that.

    For instance, I normally try to leave about 600 caloires left for dinner every day when I get home. Tonight, we're going out to eat, and I know I'll also have some drinks (maybe just wine). So I'm trying to save 1200 calories for the end of the day. I've even chosen my entre already for tonight. I'll still probably go over, but hopefully not by too much.

    ^^^ This. I know I'm going out to dinner and for drinks tonight, so I've already looked at the menu for where I'm going, decided what I want to eat, and done my best to calculate the calories by taking the average of all the similar dishes on MFP. So I've prelogged dinner and drinks (I figure 6oz of whiskey is sufficient, since my alcohol tolerance has gone waay down lately) and have calculated how much extra time it will take me to burn it all off if I work out before I go. Now that I know all that, I'm off to exercise! And then I can enjoy my evening to the full, knowing I've already earned it and won't regret it.
  • Santerre1984
    Santerre1984 Posts: 60 Member
    Rasberry stoli and diet coke. One shot 60 calories.
  • Anthonydaman
    Anthonydaman Posts: 854 Member
    I just make sure I have done plenty of exercise so I can enjoy some cocktails. Plan on seeing a slight raise on the scale, but don't fret it's mostly just water
  • Erica_theRedhead
    Erica_theRedhead Posts: 724 Member
    If it's just 1 day of going out, I try to eat light the rest of the day, and fix myself food before I go out. That way I'm a little fuller, so I tend to drink less, and don't have the need to order pub food when out. If it's a nice dinner, screw it, it's just one day. Eat, drink, and be merry!

    Sometimes I end up drinking multiple times per week, sports, parties, happy hours, etc. In that case I try to burn off the calories before I consume them. So on football sunday, I drag my butt out of bed in the morning and run 6 miles or more, allowing me break even on roughly 7 beers.

    Sometimes, the best laid plans aren't enough and I lose track. The only thing to do after that is to drink copious amounts of water, and be on track with diet and go hard at the gym the next day.
  • vbutterfly12
    vbutterfly12 Posts: 1 Member
    I read recently that having one cheat day a week actually keeps your metabolism revved up and actually helps you with weight loss. I think as long as you balance it out the rest of the week.
  • desiv2
    desiv2 Posts: 651 Member
    I don't drink very often, not even once a month. For this reason, when I do, I can be relaxed about it. I tend to stick to vodka/rum/etc. and diet soda. My problem is i'm a light weight and when I get real tipsy I eat whatever is in front of me too. lmao
  • olDave
    olDave Posts: 557 Member
    I just count calories. So...it's a simple matter of allowing for the calories in the beer I drink.
  • spud_chick
    spud_chick Posts: 2,640 Member
    I always leave extra room when I know we're likely to go out to dinner so I can have a drink or two then, but may skip the alcohol depending on the entree choice. We don't drink that much anymore, but on weekends when I've got the most time to exercise, it's nice to have earned the wiggle room. On emergency red wine days after/because of work, I sometimes have to make last-minute swaps that aren't great for my health but keep me from going over. Nothing makes a crummy day worse than seeing yourself in the red.

    Michelob Ultra (especially Amber) is good but we also like Yuengling Light. Rolling Rock light was good but they must have stopped making it. Someone here posted a link to a good list of beers with carbs, cals and alcohol content--very useful for planning the best buzz for the caloric buck. I'll see if I can find it later and will re-post. I do recall that Mich Ultra and Yuengling Light were both relatively good options on that front.
  • Erica_theRedhead
    Erica_theRedhead Posts: 724 Member
    Choice of drinks is key as well. Drinking good beers at happy hour can add up to 1000 calories easy, but sticking to liqour/soda can keep me around 400 for the happy hour. Wine is nicely in the middle. I completely avoid margaritas, daquiris, anything frozen because those can easily be 500-1000 per drink!
  • ssieben
    ssieben Posts: 18 Member
    Pre night time drinking shenaies... i go low carb, heavy protein to keep me full. I also try to do my drinking in active environments, such as a club where i can shake the cals off with my booty :D On a side note..... Last friday night I had a quickie workout before going out for drinks. While getting dolled up for a night out I usually fancy myself a vodka diet coke, but after working out I thought a protein shake would be better.... SOOOO I blended a concotion of Chocolate Pro Powder, Almond Milk........ AND CHOCOLATE VODKA. SOOOOOOOOOO good!
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
    I am having friends over for dinner tonight and that will mean at least 2 bottles between the 4 of us.

    My prep: I just finished a 1000 calorie workout on the treadmill.

    Ya gotta do, what ya gotta do........:drinker:
  • spud_chick
    spud_chick Posts: 2,640 Member
    Also, if I think I'm really going to want several drinks, having a hummus & veggie plate for dinner early on seems to keep appetite, calories, and inebriation under control. So I like seeing those on the appetizer list.
  • amyniceneasy
    amyniceneasy Posts: 143 Member
    I don't drink very often, not even once a month. For this reason, when I do, I can be relaxed about it. I tend to stick to vodka/rum/etc. and diet soda. My problem is i'm a light weight and when I get real tipsy I eat whatever is in front of me too. lmao


    this is my problem. IF I could just have one drink I'd be ok...but I drink rarely and when I do the crap hits the fan in the food dept. Once I've got a drink or two in me I have ZERO control in the food dept.
  • spud_chick
    spud_chick Posts: 2,640 Member
    Pre night time drinking shenaies... i go low carb, heavy protein to keep me full. I also try to do my drinking in active environments, such as a club where i can shake the cals off with my booty :D On a side note..... Last friday night I had a quickie workout before going out for drinks. While getting dolled up for a night out I usually fancy myself a vodka diet coke, but after working out I thought a protein shake would be better.... SOOOO I blended a concotion of Chocolate Pro Powder, Almond Milk........ AND CHOCOLATE VODKA. SOOOOOOOOOO good!

    Man, throw a little Kahlua in there and you've got a Skinny Russian!
  • acpgee
    acpgee Posts: 8,002 Member
    Big cardio workout beforehand. Stick to vodka soda.
  • Erica_theRedhead
    Erica_theRedhead Posts: 724 Member
    Pre night time drinking shenaies... i go low carb, heavy protein to keep me full. I also try to do my drinking in active environments, such as a club where i can shake the cals off with my booty :D On a side note..... Last friday night I had a quickie workout before going out for drinks. While getting dolled up for a night out I usually fancy myself a vodka diet coke, but after working out I thought a protein shake would be better.... SOOOO I blended a concotion of Chocolate Pro Powder, Almond Milk........ AND CHOCOLATE VODKA. SOOOOOOOOOO good!

    Man, throw a little Kahlua in there and you've got a Skinny Russian!

    Best idea ever
  • Erica_theRedhead
    Erica_theRedhead Posts: 724 Member
    I just tried a new shot, Patron Cafe. It's delicious, 100 calories per shot, and its tequila so 2 of them do the job!
  • spud_chick
    spud_chick Posts: 2,640 Member
    I just tried a new shot, Patron Cafe. It's delicious, 100 calories per shot, and its tequila so 2 of them do the job!

    I haven't had a shot in five years but I may have to check this out. I'll try almost anything a coffee bean has rubbed itself against.

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