Anyone else gone off alcohol?

hmg90
hmg90 Posts: 314 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Anyone? I have decided to drop it while I'm dieting. First of all, I can never have just one glass of white wine...and in the past, even though I've calculated in a gin with diet tonic, I've just never lost weight.
If I were to try and fit two drinks into my 1200 cals I'd hardly have room for any food as well.

It's a little ****ty as I'm used to having wine with dinner, and I'll have to skip on going out with friends as well.

Anyone in the same boat? Do you notice that the weight loss is more effective?
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Replies

  • SwampWitch666
    SwampWitch666 Posts: 110 Member
    I used to drink 3-6 beers (casually) a night for almost a year. I started quitting January 16th, I weened myself off in about five days. My anxiety shot up like no one's business and my stress levels have definitely risen. But my bloating has gone down, so I'm sticking to it. All in the name of progress!

    I've thought about trying a glass of red wine at night, but I've never really been much of a wine person. I wouldn't know where to begin with brands. And I always hear mixed reviews about it health-wise. *shrug*
  • charlisobel
    charlisobel Posts: 31 Member
    I think if left to my own devices I wouldn't drink much. Whilst tracking there have been three evenings in the last six weeks where I've had a drink because I'd rather eat my calories!
  • vanguardfitness
    vanguardfitness Posts: 720 Member
    Not quite, but my performance at the gym doesn't degrade as much and my sleep isn't disturbed. I found that even 1 or 2 pints consumed several hours before bed gave me a real hard time sleeping.

    I used to drink once a week, about 3 pints at a local bar. Now it's usually once every month or 6 weeks. I've been like this for over a year and don't mind it.

    And if I do drink now it's home alone because none of my friends can be bothered being synchronized with my diet :P
  • SwampWitch666
    SwampWitch666 Posts: 110 Member
    I'd rather eat my calories!
    ^This!
  • momtastic2014
    momtastic2014 Posts: 99
    I like having wine with dinner often and shots a couple times a week at home. Since I have benn working out, by the end of the day I feel so relaxed that I'm fine without it.
  • tennisdude2004
    tennisdude2004 Posts: 5,609 Member
    Anyone? I have decided to drop it while I'm dieting. First of all, I can never have just one glass of white wine...and in the past, even though I've calculated in a gin with diet tonic, I've just never lost weight.
    If I were to try and fit two drinks into my 1200 cals I'd hardly have room for any food as well.

    It's a little ****ty as I'm used to having wine with dinner, and I'll have to skip on going out with friends as well.

    Anyone in the same boat? Do you notice that the weight loss is more effective?

    Good luck to you.

    I'm struggling to do the same with red wine.

    I keep slipping up though. Dinner just is not the same.

    I'm definitely keeping an eye on this thread for some helpful tips.

    Keep up the good work????
  • lemur_lady
    lemur_lady Posts: 350 Member
    I do miss having the odd drink but I would rather get food for my calories than drink them. I love my food so much its not much of a battle to decide between them lol

    I will however have them on special occasions where I am just not counting calories that day lol.
  • SARAHOC89
    SARAHOC89 Posts: 3
    I've stopped drinking while I'm dieting as well... My friends like to drink beer with everything and I told myself, I wont be losing any weight while drinking beer.. So I completely cut it from my diet. Its been 2 strong weeks lol I think I will slowly bring it back with the more weight I lose. Good Luck :)))
  • metalloz
    metalloz Posts: 77 Member
    I gave up 51 days ago. It's been hard but if I exercise enough it curbs a bit of stress and anxiety
  • PuckBunny1919
    PuckBunny1919 Posts: 50
    I've stopped. I do like to drink, but my health is more important than that.
  • Dreamingallday
    Dreamingallday Posts: 47
    I stopped because I could just keep taking down rum and cokes like water. Empty calories and I was worried I was going to develop a serious drinking problem...
  • amblight
    amblight Posts: 350 Member
    Sort of. I used to be the first to suggest to get hammered, but now, having calculated that the amount I used to drink on a night out tskes up more than my daily calorie allowance, I'm not so inclined. I think I've been drunk three times since I started MFP in late december.
  • vsprocket04
    vsprocket04 Posts: 26 Member
    I don't miss it, first week (6th jan) I was so bored at night I would go to bed early! I used to drink a few glasses of wine a night, my stomach is defiantly going ( lost 5inches in January) but I'm putting that down to diet and gym 3x week .
  • Rak0ribz
    Rak0ribz Posts: 177 Member
    Anyone? I have decided to drop it while I'm dieting. First of all, I can never have just one glass of white wine...and in the past, even though I've calculated in a gin with diet tonic, I've just never lost weight.
    If I were to try and fit two drinks into my 1200 cals I'd hardly have room for any food as well.

    It's a little ****ty as I'm used to having wine with dinner, and I'll have to skip on going out with friends as well.

    Anyone in the same boat? Do you notice that the weight loss is more effective?
    Diet tonic is _so_ not worth it.

    I've had better luck with exercise when I don't drink so much, so I've backed off a bit lately. I'm also fortunate to be a pretty big guy, so my calorie allotment has more wiggle room in it.
  • ChrisM8971
    ChrisM8971 Posts: 1,067 Member
    I am not sure I could sustain an eating regime with no wine in it so that makes giving it up at the moment a bad idea. I have cut back a lot though
  • TamsinEllis
    TamsinEllis Posts: 293
    I've had two shots in the past 13 months (one for my 21st and one at my work Christmas party). I found when I stopped drinking I lost the weight much quicker (I used to drink a pint nearly every night though so it added up to a lot of extra calories per week). I found when I stopped drinking I felt better, had much more energy the next day, and the two times I've drank since the next morning I had awful (like really gut-wrenching) stomach pains and felt like I'd just recovered from the flu, so I'm definitely off alcohol.
  • rebeccaaa_elizabeth
    rebeccaaa_elizabeth Posts: 56 Member
    I've cut back some, but will never completely eliminate anything I enjoy. Alcohol included. That's just not realistic.

    I do find that when I drink it's not so much the drinks themselves that make me take a hit calorie-wise, but rather the yummy bar food I end up eating afterwards. :smile:
  • abhull14
    abhull14 Posts: 50 Member
    I love to party and would drink quite a bit on the weekend, I felt like death the days that followed so I decided to quit cold turkey, suprisingly I was not having with drawels or anything. I still go out with friends, I can DD and I just have water. I still think its important to live a normal life and socialize!!
  • skinnyinnotime
    skinnyinnotime Posts: 4,078 Member
    No. I drink most nights, beer or vodka and for me alchohol calories don't seem to affect my weight. Sounds weird I know, but they just don't, if I ate the same amount in I would definately put on weight.
  • littleburgy
    littleburgy Posts: 570 Member
    I have decreased drinking quite a bit with age but I still drink a little sometimes on the weekends when I have the extra exercise calories. Too much alcohol really slows me down.

    Whenever I have been limited to 1200 I don't usually drink, because I'd rather use those calories on food. That said, going for a brisk walk for an hour you could bump your calorie allowance up a little to include that glass of wine on occasion so you don't feel so deprived.
  • marye2021
    marye2021 Posts: 225 Member
    Anyone? I have decided to drop it while I'm dieting. First of all, I can never have just one glass of white wine...and in the past, even though I've calculated in a gin with diet tonic, I've just never lost weight.
    If I were to try and fit two drinks into my 1200 cals I'd hardly have room for any food as well.

    It's a little ****ty as I'm used to having wine with dinner, and I'll have to skip on going out with friends as well.

    Anyone in the same boat? Do you notice that the weight loss is more effective?


    I don't know your stats, but try bumping your calories up even just by 70 and it makes all the difference.

    With that being said I've cut out most alcohol from my diet, I was a. Drinking way too much and b. It was prohibiting my weight loss, but I often had more than one glass of wine or several G&T's

    I still go out with friends now I just get soda water with a twist in it so I still have a drink in hand but not one loaded with calories.

    I also have gotten better at having just one glass of wine (measured) with dinner, as you lose weight it will also hit you differently
  • SunofaBeach14
    SunofaBeach14 Posts: 4,899 Member
    I have.

    It was the worst week of my life . . .
  • OliveRiver
    OliveRiver Posts: 81 Member
    Husband and I are both nightly drinkers, having formerly been in the habit of drinking about 5-8 beers every night, along with our respective mixed drinks. We've both cut back a decent amount over the last couple months. He only drinks 3 beers a day and then makes himself 1-2 Manhattan's, while I've quit beer entirely and only drink 1-2 glasses of Bacardi with Sprite, maybe a glass of wine if we happen to have a bottle.

    Cutting the beer has definitely helped the both of us and the general downgrade in our drinking has left us with significantly more energy/stamina.
  • kristinlitla
    kristinlitla Posts: 24 Member
    I'm taking a break from it for the next few weeks. I've just been on vacation where I had a beer almost every day, and now when I think of alcohol it makes me feel nauseous!
    I want to see how effective it is in regards to my weight loss, and also challenge myself a bit.
  • keithaj1
    keithaj1 Posts: 71 Member
    I'm a social drinker. Usually have two or three drinks when I go out with friends.
    Since I have started to count my calories, I'm definitely drinking a less and being more selective about it.
    I'm keeping things in moderation.
    Going out tonight? Work out a little harder and don't have that high calorie snack during the day.
  • gertrudegreen
    gertrudegreen Posts: 4
    Alcohol is empty calories--would you have 5 pieces of cake a night and still be able to lose weight? Doubt it.

    I try to not drink at home anymore. When I do, I've gone to white wine spritzers. Same amount of liquid, half the calories. its enough to trick me into feeling like I've had a real drink.

    We also just purchased a soda stream. Just putting a tiny bit of cranberry juice in a big glass of carbonated water feels like a big girl drink and keeps the alcohol desire at bay.
  • psych101
    psych101 Posts: 1,842 Member
    I found the more I got into working out, the less I wanted to drink. I'd rather feel good in the morning and I find for me that alcohol really has an impact on the quality of sleep I get. So I just don't drink. If I want a drink then I'll have one, but I find that I don't even want one anymore!
  • Cakewalk25
    Cakewalk25 Posts: 71 Member
    I have! At 1200 calories a day, if I drank any of my calories (other than unsweetened almond milk), it'd be hard to get the rest of my nutrients in and feel full. I actually haven't minded much, I work in a profession where people tend to drink heavily on weekends and waking up on Saturday and Sunday NOT hungover has been really nice and a lot easier on my wallet. Plus, I can have just a good a time if I'm not intoxicated with my friends.

    When I can have more than 1200, I'm sure I'll have the occasional glass of wine with dinner though. Red wine has good anti oxidants in it and if the French's longer life span says anything, it might actually be beneficial to your health!
  • sloth3toes
    sloth3toes Posts: 2,212 Member
    I quit drinking years ago.

    I used to be a fat drunk.

    Now, I'm a fat ex-drunk.

    :drinker:
  • sbarella
    sbarella Posts: 713 Member
    I don't really like wine or drinks but I love beer and I used to drink a lot with my friends. Now I'll have one beer instead of six and I'll walk to the pub instead of inviting my friends at home. So far, so good.

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