Did you quit drinking in your quest for the "new you"?
SolidGoaled
Posts: 504 Member
I need some advice about alcohol. I have been toying with the idea of quitting completely - semipermanently. I mean, at least until all my weight is off and until I achieve the level of health that I am striving for. I just can't control myself with alcohol. I always say I am going to stop at 3, and it ends up being 12. I actually went alcohol-free for about 35 days recently just to see how hard it was. It was easy for me, but I didn't socialize much. So, the past two weekends I have gone out with friends and ended up overindulging in alcohol. I don't know if I should just try harder to limit it, or quit altogether. This is so strange and sad for me - social drinking has been a part of my life for a long time, and now that I am taking care of myself finally, I am starting to find myself not wanting to drink at all, and I am to the point that if that means having to find new friends, I'm ok with that. But its scary and confusing and I just need to hear from others who have had to ponder where alcohol fits into this weight loss and fitness thing - did you give it up? Did you just cut back? Do you have any regrets? How is it working for you?
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Replies
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I cut back alot (but then I was probably drinking too much, lol). I still over indulge on occasion, and have still lost. I think it's less the drinking and more the food you eat when you drink that is damaging, but that is just my experience...0
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Some of us love to enjoy a great cocktail! Here are some recipes that are tasty yet not to fatty!
The following are low calorie alcoholic cocktail recipes I got in an email and some that I found online. I will be adding more as soon as I find some. Note that these are recipes for low calorie cocktails you can make yourself. It is unlikely that you will find anything that you could get in a bar in this list. If you do want to know what to drink when you are going out, have a look at my post on low calorie alcoholic drinks, which covers low calorie alternatives or brands to look out for on a night out.
Low Calorie Alcoholic Cocktail Drink Recipes
Sangria Sparkler
from: fitnessmagazine.com
Makes: 12 servings
750-milliliter bottle dry red wine
1 cup light orange juice
1/4 cup brandy or cognac
1/4 cup orange liqueur
2 tablespoons sugar
2 medium oranges, sliced
2 cups club soda, chilled
Crushed ice and/or orange peel curls (optional)
In a large pitcher, combine wine, orange juice, brandy, orange liqueur, sugar, and orange slices. Chill at least 2 hours. Add club soda before serving. Serve over crushed ice and/or with orange peel curls, if desired.
Calories: 100 per serving
Pina Colada Cooler
from: fitnessmagazine.com
1 1/2 ounces coconut-flavored rum
3 ounces pineapple juice
4 ounces sparkling water
1 tablespoon of Coco Lopez Cream of Coconut Lite (found in the drink mixers section of many supermarkets)
Pour ingredients over ice and stir.
Calories: 165
Mojito
from: fitsugar.com
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 lime
3 sprigs mint
1.5 ounces light rum
soda water
Put the sugar in a highball glass (or any 8-12 ounce glass), squeeze in the juice of 1/2 small lime, and toss in the squeezed lime shell. Add mint sprigs and muddle for a moment. Then add the light rum and handful of ice, and fill with chilled soda water.
Calories: 122
Bombay Magic
from: health.com
Half a shot glass Cointreau
1/4 shot glass of Tequila or Vodka
lemon juice
club soda
mint leaf
Squeeze 1/2 lemon. Pour half a shot glass of Cointreau, 1/4 shot glass of either tequila or vodka. Top it off with club soda. Use a mint leaf for garnishing.
Calories: 1090 -
No. I have often said I would be @ my goal weight by now if it weren't for weekends. I know the process has been MUCH longer by not doing it. And I do go through spells of drinking and not drinking. But I don't see myself quitting entirely, so I figured that I need to learn to live with it.
When I started I tried to stick to wine and vodka/soda. Beer crept back in in 2010, and my weight went up a bit with it. I think part of the issue is that when I drink beer, I tend to drink more. I'm back to primarily wine now.0 -
There is no reason why you should not go out with your mates and have a soft dite drink (which is what I do) and have the occasional sprit or two. I always tend to have JD now with a tall glass of dite coke and finds it helps keep the erge of having lots at bay and dont feel like I am missing out.0
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I too cut out most alcohol. I was a wine drinker, but wine has TONS of sugar, as do most alcohols. Now IF I drink I stick to plain unflavored vodka and diet soda. Usually I will squeeze some orange in it.
But...not only can alcohol add unwanted calories and sugars, it slows the whole functioning of your body down, so any eating you do while you drink, which most often is unhealthy eating anyhow, takes twice as long to digest.0 -
I stopped drinking it for a whole year, then my 2nd year I decided to only drink one glass for my birthday, and the 3rd year I did the same. Hope that helps!0
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I went from drinking a glass or two of wine almost every night with dinner, to now only drinking it once a week, typically on Friday or Saturday night. I think alcohol should be very limited but doesn't need to be removed completely. If you're unable to limit yourself, however, then maybe cutting it out completely wouldn't be a bad idea for you. Everyone is different. Listen to your instincts.0
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I limited myself to one glass of red wine a week. The next-morning feeling just isn't worth it.0
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I would rather "spend" the calories on FOOD. Rarely drink (a beer or glass of wine) a few times per year.0
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No, but I quit smoking!0
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Some of us love to enjoy a great cocktail! Here are some recipes that are tasty yet not to fatty!
The following are low calorie alcoholic cocktail recipes I got in an email and some that I found online. I will be adding more as soon as I find some. Note that these are recipes for low calorie cocktails you can make yourself. It is unlikely that you will find anything that you could get in a bar in this list. If you do want to know what to drink when you are going out, have a look at my post on low calorie alcoholic drinks, which covers low calorie alternatives or brands to look out for on a night out.
Low Calorie Alcoholic Cocktail Drink Recipes
Sangria Sparkler
from: fitnessmagazine.com
Makes: 12 servings
750-milliliter bottle dry red wine
1 cup light orange juice
1/4 cup brandy or cognac
1/4 cup orange liqueur
2 tablespoons sugar
2 medium oranges, sliced
2 cups club soda, chilled
Crushed ice and/or orange peel curls (optional)
In a large pitcher, combine wine, orange juice, brandy, orange liqueur, sugar, and orange slices. Chill at least 2 hours. Add club soda before serving. Serve over crushed ice and/or with orange peel curls, if desired.
Calories: 100 per serving
Pina Colada Cooler
from: fitnessmagazine.com
1 1/2 ounces coconut-flavored rum
3 ounces pineapple juice
4 ounces sparkling water
1 tablespoon of Coco Lopez Cream of Coconut Lite (found in the drink mixers section of many supermarkets)
Pour ingredients over ice and stir.
Calories: 165
Mojito
from: fitsugar.com
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 lime
3 sprigs mint
1.5 ounces light rum
soda water
Put the sugar in a highball glass (or any 8-12 ounce glass), squeeze in the juice of 1/2 small lime, and toss in the squeezed lime shell. Add mint sprigs and muddle for a moment. Then add the light rum and handful of ice, and fill with chilled soda water.
Calories: 122
Bombay Magic
from: health.com
Half a shot glass Cointreau
1/4 shot glass of Tequila or Vodka
lemon juice
club soda
mint leaf
Squeeze 1/2 lemon. Pour half a shot glass of Cointreau, 1/4 shot glass of either tequila or vodka. Top it off with club soda. Use a mint leaf for garnishing.
Calories: 109
BUMP!0 -
I'm a lover of beers--which is a huge problem! I made the decision to not completely cut it out. I haven't completely cut ANYTHING out of my diet. For me, that's unrealistic and not sustainable for the rest of my life. Instead of going to my favorite bar 4x/week, I now go 4x/month. I try to pick light to medium beers instead of heavy dark ones. Also, if I'm out with the ladies I'll get a diet coke and a flavored vodka. There are so many options and they're only about 75 calories an ounce. Good luck!0
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:flowerforyou: Congrats on your insight... alcohol is highly caloric... especially if you cannot stop at one or two. I have given it up even though I usually only had one or two glasses of wine or bottles of beer. I'm still working on it... aren't we all? God bless you! Keep trying... you are not alone.0
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I would rather "spend" the calories on FOOD. Rarely drink (a beer or glass of wine) a few times per year.
Totally agree! I always say I'd rather eat my calories than drink them!0 -
Yes, I stopped drinking completely.
I wasn't a big drinker anyway and since I have a lot of alcoholics in my family and I didn't want to be like them - it was easy to give it up. There are better ways for me to spend my daily calories than on alcohol.
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well at first I stopped completely it was easy as both my wife and I do this together but we started to have at least one day a week where we indulge and that seems to be better not so much the next A.M. but later we are both proud of the fact we have lost wt
and can control the alcohol although are 1 night might be a stretch on those days we hit the exercises harder so as to have more cals
pat0 -
I don't plan on giving up alcohol, I still drink a beer a day, just factor it into your calorie counter and you should be fine. I am about 8 months into my quest for a new me, I have lost 20lbs over the last 8 months, which includes a daily beer.
I have only been here for a week or so, and just started counting my calories. With my size, I can sacrifice a little food calories to drink a beer though. Currently I am on a 2000 calorie a day diet and I use 300 or those for a single beer.0 -
God no. I'm going to go out and enjoy my sexy self and that means I'll drink me some alcohol!! Only once a week though.
That said, I have a new found appreciation of soda water mixed with spirits. I'll typically be drinking things like
- vodka soda
- flavored vodka + soda
- diet coke + something (usually rum)
- scotch and dry ginger ale
Also, if you just get water the bartender is usually more than happy to give you a wedge of lemon/lime in it if you ask. No one usually knows when I've stopped drinking because whatever I'm holding looks alcoholic. It helps if you don't want to draw attention to your lack of alcohol.
And lastly, since you're not drinking as much treat yourself to the better spirits! They're yummier and no headache in the morning!0 -
The thing about alcohol is that 1 - it is fairly high in calories (and when you're only allowed 1200 calories a day, it's not really worth it), and 2 - your body has to burn off all the alcohol before it can go back to burning fat. So you drink extra calories, and you literally put your weight loss on pause. Everybody is different though - see what works best for you.0
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I agree....I don't plan on giving up alcohol, I still drink a beer a day, just factor it into your calorie counter and you should be fine. I am about 8 months into my quest for a new me, I have lost 20lbs over the last 8 months, which includes a daily beer.
I have only been here for a week or so, and just started counting my calories. With my size, I can sacrifice a little food calories to drink a beer though. Currently I am on a 2000 calorie a day diet and I use 300 or those for a single beer.0 -
Also, if you just get water the bartender is usually more than happy to give you a wedge of lemon/lime in it if you ask. No one usually knows when I've stopped drinking because whatever I'm holding looks alcoholic. It helps if you don't want to draw attention to your lack of alcohol.
And lastly, since you're not drinking as much treat yourself to the better spirits! They're yummier and no headache in the morning!
Great points. Definitely drink call brands. When I drink vodka soda I alternate w/regular club soda w/lemon or lime and no one knows the difference. And when I drink anything else, I always have a glass of water available to sip on. As for people noticing, I have a girlfriend that "fake drank" her way through her first few months of pregnancy...no one even noticed, myself included.0 -
Also, if you just get water the bartender is usually more than happy to give you a wedge of lemon/lime in it if you ask. No one usually knows when I've stopped drinking because whatever I'm holding looks alcoholic. It helps if you don't want to draw attention to your lack of alcohol.
And lastly, since you're not drinking as much treat yourself to the better spirits! They're yummier and no headache in the morning!
Great points. Definitely drink call brands. When I drink vodka soda I alternate w/regular club soda w/lemon or lime and no one knows the difference. And when I drink anything else, I always have a glass of water available to sip on. As for people noticing, I have a girlfriend that "fake drank" her way through her first few months of pregnancy...no one even noticed, myself included.
Ahh... I think I need to learn this art of the fake drinking. I don't know why it never occured to me... I definitely get peer pressured into a lot of my drinking. Isn't that ridiculous at the age of 38???
We just have sooo much fun when we drink. It will be sad to have to stop altogether.0 -
Also, if you just get water the bartender is usually more than happy to give you a wedge of lemon/lime in it if you ask. No one usually knows when I've stopped drinking because whatever I'm holding looks alcoholic. It helps if you don't want to draw attention to your lack of alcohol.
And lastly, since you're not drinking as much treat yourself to the better spirits! They're yummier and no headache in the morning!
Great points. Definitely drink call brands. When I drink vodka soda I alternate w/regular club soda w/lemon or lime and no one knows the difference. And when I drink anything else, I always have a glass of water available to sip on. As for people noticing, I have a girlfriend that "fake drank" her way through her first few months of pregnancy...no one even noticed, myself included.
Ahh... I think I need to learn this art of the fake drinking. I don't know why it never occured to me... I definitely get peer pressured into a lot of my drinking. Isn't that ridiculous at the age of 38???
We just have sooo much fun when we drink. It will be sad to have to stop altogether.0
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