Alcohol

And yet I lost 40 lbs while regularly consuming alcohol. I guess I'm a special snowflake.

Alcoholics often get very skinny (although, often they are "skinny fat" with fatty livers). The point is, that alcohol is an impediment to weight loss--but if you cut your calories enough, you will lose weight anyway. If weight loss were the only criteria, then it would appear not to matter--however, maintaining one's health while eating at a deficit can be a much trickier proposition.

I cut it completely while I was trying to lose weight (6 months). I now drink maybe once every two months. If that. The body doesn't metabolize the alcohol like it does other food. It converts it almost directly to fat, and since I'm trying to lower my bf I try to avoid it.

The body converts it to fat? Do you have a link I could read?

http://www.medicinenet.com/alcohol_and_nutrition/page2.htm

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/drobson194.htm

here are a couple interesting articles I looked up. I quit drinking alcohol while I was trying to lose weight.
Training for a half marathon, drinking and running did not work out for me at all.
The first week was the toughest for me once I got passed that I was good to go.

Ok so I've gotten a lot of feedback about my alcohol comment. Let me clarify:

I drink alcohol about once a week, if that. My calorie goal (according to MFP) is 1200, which I am almost always under. I exercise every single day for at least a half hour, usually more, with cardio and strength training included.

So no, I don't count my drinks (alcoholic or non-alcoholic). But it's not impeding my progress, either. I only started my account on here about a month ago and I've already lost 6 pounds.And not to toot my own horn but if you look at my pictures, or my BMI (which is about 22, by the way), I'd say I'm doing pretty good. Yes it's possible that I'd be losing weight quicker if I never drank any alcohol, but I'm still losing weight without cutting anything completely out of my diet, like dessert or alcohol. So I'm good. Thanks for the advice though, but I think I'm gonna keep doing what I'm doing.

Ok so I've gotten a lot of feedback about my alcohol comment. Let me clarify:

I drink alcohol about once a week, if that. My calorie goal (according to MFP) is 1200, which I am almost always under. I exercise every single day for at least a half hour, usually more, with cardio and strength training included.

So no, I don't count my drinks (alcoholic or non-alcoholic). But it's not impeding my progress, either. I only started my account on here about a month ago and I've already lost 6 pounds.And not to toot my own horn but if you look at my pictures, or my BMI (which is about 22, by the way), I'd say I'm doing pretty good. Yes it's possible that I'd be losing weight quicker if I never drank any alcohol, but I'm still losing weight without cutting anything completely out of my diet, like dessert or alcohol. So I'm good. Thanks for the advice though, but I think I'm gonna keep doing what I'm doing.

You are definitely not eating enough. Or logging accurately. No way someone 5'10" should be eating 1200 calories. :noway:

And yet I lost 40 lbs while regularly consuming alcohol. I guess I'm a special snowflake.

Alcoholics often get very skinny (although, often they are "skinny fat" with fatty livers). The point is, that alcohol is an impediment to weight loss--but if you cut your calories enough, you will lose weight anyway. If weight loss were the only criteria, then it would appear not to matter--however, maintaining one's health while eating at a deficit can be a much trickier proposition.

I've maintained my health, lift regularly, hit my macros and micros over a weekly average, have increased strength, have lost weight and I just started running again. I guess having one or two drinks, 2-4 times a week hasn't compromised my health, my fitness or my weight loss goals.

Please stop being so absolute. It's not a choice between health or abstinence.

I think there are a lot of caveats to drinking and trimming body weight, and some of the less knowledgeable here will take what you have said as carte blanche to drink while drastically reducing calories. When you have sufficient calories (such as those doing cardio and a fair bit of lifting) some can afford to waste a few calories on alcohol (and make no mistake, it is nothing but wasted calories). But many simply cannot afford it. As I said before, I have a friend on MFP who drinks about a third of her 1,100 to 1,300 calories in vodka/gin or beer and many of the remaining calories are spent on nutrient-poor processed food choices. She has already had health breakdowns that worry me. I'm hoping she sees this thread.

I believe that the advice on MFP is "Don't drink your calories".

Alcoholics often get a majority of their calories from alcohol and it has devastating effects on their health. There is no nutritional value in alcohol (other than carbohydrate calories) and frankly, most people cannot afford the empty calories while on a calorie deficit (especially women who already have reduced calorie limits over men). There are a few nutrients in beer and wine but distilled spirits are basically just a "pure poison" that the liver must process.

In addition, the liver is impaired in fat burning for up to 24 hours by the processing of alcohol. One of my MFP pals drinks every day (it looks like mostly vodka) and in analyzing the rest of her food diary, I see a LOT of nutritional deficits. I hope she retains her health but I fear she will not.

Alcohol isn't a carbohydrate. It's its own macro nutrient. If a person gets all of their daily micro nutrient needs met through the foods they eat, and have some additional exercise calories left at the end of the day, there is not problem with having a drink or two.

Up to 24 hours? I can't imagine this would apply to anyone other than alcoholics that consume the majority of their calories through alcohol. One or two drinks (150-300 alcohol calories) will be metabolized within hours, however long it takes for the body to use 150-300 calories and will not have a significant impact on weight loss.

It is generally counted as a carbohydrate because it has calories and it is not a fat or a protein. I recognize that it is in a category all by itself but is is handled in a way that is similar to the handling of fructose in the body.

from Fitday.com "...[alcohol impairs fat burning.] Alcohol can affect the amount that your body can burn. A study found that consuming 24 g of alcohol [the amount represented by a glass and a half of wine] could decrease your body's whole body lipid oxidation [i.e. the] ability to burn fat, by a staggering 73 percent. When alcohol passes [through] the liver, it produces a by-product called acetate, which inhibits the fat burning capabilities of the body. This means that if you drink alcohol constantly, the fat burning processes in your body take a back seat. This results in more fat stored in your body, which can significantly increase your weight.

Increases Appetite

Another study has proved that alcohol consumption results in increase of appetite more than any other type of drink. Not only do meals appear tastier and more appetizing when there is a bottle of beer to pair with it, people also get hungry more after drinking alcohol. People who are seriously trying to lose those extra pounds should try their best to avoid beer and other alcoholic drinks so as not to perk up their appetites.

Decreases Testosterone

Drinking alcohol can decrease the production of testosterone and increase that of cortisone, a muscle-destroying hormone. Aside from the fact that decrease in testosterone can affect a male's sexual drive, it can also have an effect on his weight, especially if he is trying to build and tone his muscles. To successfully build muscles and burn fat, it is imperative to up one's testosterone levels and get rid of cortisol. More on that, drinking alcohol also affects muscle distribution. In simpler terms, more fat goes around the waist and there is less overall muscle mass in the body.
Reduces Vitamin and Mineral Absorption

Another harmful effect of alcohol that has something to do with weight is the decrease in vitamin and mineral absorption. This happens because, when you consume too much alcohol, the liver becomes preoccupied in turning alcohol into acetate. Therefore, any vitamins and minerals that you take in just goes straight to the detoxification process. In other words, alcohol interferes with the absorption of most nutrients. Even if you eat a healthy meal right after drinking alcohol, it won't be as [beneficial].

Causes Dehydration

Since alcohol is a diuretic, which can elevate rate of urination, it can cause dehydration. Water is very important not only to muscle building, but also to general health. It can impair the progress of your muscle building program and at the same time, affect your overall well-being.

Next time you grab a bottle of beer or a glass of wine, think about its repercussions to your health and your weight loss regimen."

And yet I lost 40 lbs while regularly consuming alcohol. I guess I'm a special snowflake.

Alcoholics often get very skinny (although, often they are "skinny fat" with fatty livers). The point is, that alcohol is an impediment to weight loss--but if you cut your calories enough, you will lose weight anyway. If weight loss were the only criteria, then it would appear not to matter--however, maintaining one's health while eating at a deficit can be a much trickier proposition.

And yet, quite a few studies have determined the life expectancy for moderate drinkers is the highest, and even heavy drinkers had a higher life expectancy than those that didn't drink at all.