How long does alcohol bloat last and is it permanent?

Alcohol really is counter productive in trying to lose weight. It is essentially a poison that your body needs to break down first. Much of the other other calories you consume get stroed as fat while your body works on the alcohol. There truly is a reason they call it a beer belly.

It really isn't the calories that are an issue, its the alcohol itself.

That's weird. Alcohol makes me feel less bloated (it's a diuretic, so it gets rid of water weight). I find that the nights I have a glass or 2 (or 3....lol) of wine, I almost always have a loss, rather than a gain. The only problem I have with booze is the calories--if I drink way too much and am way over on cals I won't show a loss (though don't usually show any gain, and if I do, it's like .2 lbs, not a big deal). I don't know how much you had or what kinds, but it shouldn't set you back much, and certainly not permanently. I wouldn't worry about it, the effects shouldn't last longer than a couple days. Are you sure that there's nothing else going on?

That's weird. Alcohol makes me feel less bloated (it's a diuretic, so it gets rid of water weight). I find that the nights I have a glass or 2 (or 3....lol) of wine, I almost always have a loss, rather than a gain. The only problem I have with booze is the calories--if I drink way too much and am way over on cals I won't show a loss (though don't usually show any gain, and if I do, it's like .2 lbs, not a big deal). I don't know how much you had or what kinds, but it shouldn't set you back much, and certainly not permanently. I wouldn't worry about it, the effects shouldn't last longer than a couple days. Are you sure that there's nothing else going on?

I also read some place online that the day after drinking you will weigh less (because of course it's a diuretic) but you will see the weight gain 2-3 days later. Nice little delayed effect there....

I used to drink a lot of beer, at least a few pints every day, which was the main cause of my unhealthy belly. The more you drink, the more you can drink (before you get drunk). It's quite a spiral.

However - if you lay off the booze for as long as possible, I find that when you have a drink, you can really taste it and it is a lot more satisfying (hence don't feel the need to guzzle it, but savour it instead). Also, when you do sometimes have a drink, your resistance is much lower and it takes only 1 or 2 to get a nice buzz. :-)) As opposed to 8 or 10 drinks! :-((

If you are going to have a drink, go for the lowest possible calories (the rum and diet coke is about the lowest). Or make it into a long drink, like a white wine spritzer. Or drink soda or mineral water in between drinks to halve your consumption.

Also, if you are going to a party, turn up late, don't eat anything salty or thirst making, stay away from the buffet table, but have a good time!

p.s. If you can't have a good time without the booze, then get some new friends!

A nutritionist told me that if you drink to the point that you don't feel well the next day, not even a full blown hangover that it will stall weightloss. Your body needs to recover and puts weight loss on hold. Someone mentioned that it helps, you can be a little lighter initially after drinking, but that is due to dehydration and once you start hydrating, your weight loss will stall.

Yeah, booze is my dowfall too ... I drink maybe half a bottle of wine quite often and that's 250 calories. Even if I allow for it in my calories that never works because after I've had a drink, I always get hungry and start nibbling those calories back!! I would never drink a high sugar soda with 250 calories in it but I seem to think it's OK if it's alcohol.
I always bloat a pound or two the day after I've been drinking and it takes about 3-4 to get rid of it ...

You are so right, I never drink soda hate it and know it's bad for weight loss, but would drink alcohol. LOL. By the way love your picture!!

I have been interested in the effects of alcohol for quite some time, and have come to believe a few things. Certainly as we get older, alcohol and fitness are at odds with each other. I love to drink, have loved to drink for a long time. But the older I get, I see that it is the one thing interfering with 1) fitness of body and 2) clarity of mind. And, my ability to sleep well has suffered and I had forgotten what it felt like to wake up feeling great every day.

As you get older, your body is not as able to deal with many things as effectively as when you are younger. Maybe you used to be able to make up for a weekend of indiscretion by being "good" the next week. Metabolic processes slow down and systems don't work as well as they used to. I decided to quit drinking altogether because it was interfering with my fitness goals, I noticed that I was developing a thicker waist than I had ever had before, and I just felt like I couldn't think properly. I must say, I enjoy having clarity of mind and being able to work out to my fullest.

My husband is an avid beer drinker. As he approaches 50, he too finds that he just can't seem to drop below a certain weight no matter what he tries. I challenged him to give up alcohol. It has only been 3 weeks, but he is now below this certain weight. Most notable, however, people are telling him that he looks like he has lost a lot of weight! He has not lost a "lot" of weight. I believe that stopping drinking has changed his appearance, and here are my two theories:

1) alcohol causes generalized bloating, most noticeable in the face but it is all over. Do you notice after a night of drinking your fingers swell and your rings don't fit? This isn't just happening in your fingers. Alcohol is a diuretic...you pee a ton when you are drinking, which is why you can sometimes weigh less the very next day. What happens then is that your body seeks to restore equilibrium. It retains water. The water inside your cells shifts to outside your cells to make up for the general losses.Your electrolytes are all out of whack, and you start retaining water in your interstitial spaces. As you drink and get hydrated, your cells rehydrate. You are left bloated all over. It takes several days of not drinking to get your balances back together. By then, perhaps you've had another night out. The circle perpetuates.

2) Alcohol and its metabolites are toxins to the body which can create an inflammatory process (allergic reaction if you will) that can inflame tissues, lending toward the bloated appearance.

If you drink every weekend or more often, you are constantly in this circle and your bloating never really goes away.
These are my theories about bloating. I also believe that inevitably, alcohol does cause you to gain real weight. Used to be when I was young, I could make up for alcohols calories by swapping food for drink. That doesn't work anymore. It isn't just the pure calories in alcohol, but how your body processes alcohol. The body's first priority is processing the alcohol, so it doesn't process the other stuff you have eaten. It goes to weight gain. Alcohol also messes with your glucose levels. I believe it triggers your body to store more fat.
Most of all, like I said, I am choosing to give up alcohol for clarity of mind. You know, I am really enjoying being able to learn new things and retain knowledge. I just remind myself that no matter how good that beer or drink looks, that I don't need it. I mean, what is the point? After one drink, I generally feel tired in an hour or two. What is one drink going to do for me? Nothing. It's just calories that I don't need toward no purpose.