alcohol and weight loss

same here -- in fact, i realized i was sabotaging all my exercise by drinking over 2000 calories of alcohol per week. so much for working out, i was wondering for the longest time why i saw no difference on the scale. i've cut that back by a lot -- and i've created an alcohol category in my food diary so that i can really look at it as a treat/indulgence rather than a part of my regular diet.

i have days of the week that i look forward to going out and drinking -- but maybe 2 glasses of wine instead of 4 beers.

I drink fairly often, usually 2 or 3 nights a week and I'll have 7 or 8 shots of vodka. I stay away from mixed drinks because they have so many extra calories, so a shot chased by orange juice is what I do. If I'm drinking beer I stay to the lower cal beers like MGD64 or Budlight.
It helps that I usually know going into to the day knowing I'm going to drink that night so I'll choose healthy low cal foods and exercise a bit more than normal and it helps stay under my calorie goal. I also make sure to drink lots of water that way I don't feel yucky the next day.

I drank rose last month. Quite like it. Not a whole bottle though. I usually share it with the hubs. It's been so long between drinking that two glasses seems to be more than enough.

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Commit to entering the alcohol accurately into MFP and let the cards fall as they will. Most of the time I don't think you will want to wipe out your hard work at the gym/food choices with 350 calories of booze. That said, if you are at a wedding/had a rough week and want to live it up, go for it, just enter it correctly.

I'm lucky that I can't drink wine, or many other alcoholic drinks for that matter. I tend to stick to vodka and diet coke, which, weight-loss-wise, is probably one of the best choices for me as it is around 60 calories per measure. This means that I can easily incorporate a glass or two into my daily calorie allowance, if I fancy a drink to relax at night.

If I'm planning on having a big night out I stick the the vodka and diet coke as well. I know I shouldn't, but I do sometimes eat less during the day than I normally would so that I have more calories to spend on alcohol, although I make sure that I've had an adequate amount of food. As long as I'm still at a calorie deficit for the week, I don't fret too much if I go over on calories on a night out. At the start of the night I tend to keep track of the calories I'm consuming, but that can sometimes go out the window and I just enjoy the night, and get back on track the next day

I did give up alcohol for a long time, as it was one of the main causes for my weight gain in the first place... but now I don't deprive myself of my much-needed nights out, I just try to be slightly more sensible than I used to be :P

I basically had to cut out alcohol to make my calorie goals. I still have about two drinks a week as a treat, but before I started I had a beer or some wine almost every day. Turns out I don't miss it much.

If you work out as or after you drink, it burns right off. I drink 4 - 5 beer a day but only while I'm walking the dogs. I am trying to cut back though.

Mmmmmmmmm........Beer.......

I currently have a drink or two (generally beer, wine, or a Gin and Tonic) almost daily, as long as it fits into my calorie goals and doesn't end up messing up my macros. Sometimes on a weekend or at a party I will have more, and try to account for it.I am at maintenance now, and am fairly active (working out about 5X a week for an hour or so) so my calorie needs are decently high (2600/day). Generally I plan on working in a drink a day, and if I have extra calories and have done a decent job on my macros, I'll throw in a nightcap before bed too.

When I was actively losing, I worked in alcohol, but had to limit it a bit more because my daily calorie goals were lower. I tended toward a drink or two a week (M-F) and maybe an extra beer or something on Saturday. I never had a problem with it stalling my weight loss.

I was sort of surprised at the number of calories in alcoholic drinks in general when I first started logging. I knew that alcohol was high in calories, but when you also add in the carbs (sugars, etc.) in beer and wine, or the content of the mixers, you can end up having 300-400 calories (or more) without even noticing.

I have wine every now and then, and I don't really see any negative effects on my weight. I have found that beer definitely puts weight on you. I am no doctor or nutritionist, but I believe that it has something to do with the wheat content of beer. I was a huge beer drinker in college (big shocker), and at one point I stopped drinking beer for a month and dropped 20 pounds almost effortlessly.

If you work out as or after you drink, it burns right off.

I don't think that is true...

As for alcohol, I have been able to balance a couple nights out (once a month on average) and I usually go hard.

Browsing through these while bored at work, random thought: your ticker is the best thing I've ever seen. lol

If you work out as or after you drink, it burns right off. I drink 4 - 5 beer a day but only while I'm walking the dogs. I am trying to cut back though.

this is not true......it ,might replenish lost fluids but the calories aren't burnt any faster.

Budlight is like 110 cals......not bad at all and Vodka is fine and I throw in some Tequila. Just fit it in.

Just make sure you are accounting for the calories. Correctly. Measure your shots, don't just free pour and guess. Especially after you've had a few. If you need to eat a little less that day or over a few days that week, that's okay as long as it averages out. And yes, I'm pretty sure you do need to drink the whole bottle of wine