Any other moms out there having trouble breaking the evening cocktail/treat habit?

My occasional glass of wine and treat had turned into a near nightly habit and my weight was creeping up over the last 6 months. I am not drinking in January (except for a ski trip weekend with friends) to sort of break the habit. I have been substituting herbal tea or sparkling water with fruit in its place. I will definitely go back to having my wine etc. but this feels good, that I don't feel like I have to have it so often.

I was just thinking about this, as I really love having a glass of wine while I am cooking dinner, but sometimes it would turn into two or three. I decided to go alcohol free for a few months and started Jan 1st. I don't miss it as much as I thought I would, but I do find I need some kind of "reward" so I switched to a cup of tea. This is not nearly as rewarding as wine or a cocktail, but the whole thing has raised my awareness as to why I drink. I guess time will tell if the calories made a big difference, but I have to say I feel a lot more energetic in the morning and can put more into my workouts.

Yeah... my local liquor store knows me and my hubby pretty well at this point. No good. I know some people "save" for their treat at the end of the day. I know that each rum and coke I have is 220 calories. A bottle of Arrogant B*stard is 348 calories. And while I feel that my "treats" are worth every darn calorie... It was just becoming to big of a habit.

My hubs was drinking too much. One would turn into two, then three. And by cutting back on food, I was finding my self more effected by the alcohol. Then my moods were getting bad.

The problem is that alcohol is so darn effective. It is quick, easy, and yummy! I am aiming for drinks on two nights a week (which turns into three, but - hey! - it's an improvement). The more I drink, the more I want. When I cut back, I find I crave it less.

Most nights, I "treat" myself to selzter with a splash of cranberry juice (I love the bubbles). I have re-arranged my meals, so I have my "dinner" at lunch time (with the meat and the veggies) and then I have my egg and cheese sammich for dinner. The hot, cheesy comfort of it in the evening has worked well for me.

(also - I am a 36 year old mom, too!)

You could eat/drink less or switch to a lower-calorie alternative. If you really like your evening cocktails and treats, it will need to fit into your daily calorie allotment by either having less calories during the day or less in the evening.

Another option would be to drink a certain number of glasses of water before allowing yourself to have something else. Then you'll know if you really want it or not, because you'll have to drink all that water first. You'll probably feel too full on most days.

Do you like beer? I love beer, but generally find that it doesn't go so well with dessert, so I'm likely to lay off the sweets after having one. Also with the carbonation, I can usually only drink one, so my nightcap tops off at about 150 calories

if you really want to sacrifice the desserts, I find that just not bringing it into the house solves the problem. I will occasionally buy cookies/treats for the kids that I won't eat (if it doesn't have chocolate, I won't eat it). I'm too lazy to drive to the store at 9 or 10 pm when I'm looking for treats. I may then sit there mad about not having it, but the next day I'm glad there was nothing to binge on. If there's turkey bacon made or a cheese stick I'll have that instead.

I am a working mom as well and can relate to wanting to have a glass of wine when I finally "settle in" for the night. Before I started MFP I used to like to have a glass of wine when I got home from work while cooking dinner, then a glass of wine with dinner, and then sometimes a glass of wine after dinner too. Once I started logging and seeing how much that all adds up, I eliminated the before and during dinner drinks and I wait till after the kids are in bed (usually) before pouring a glass. If I wait till then, I usually only have time for one, maybe two glasses, and I'm so exhausted myself that I'm ready for bed. I also just have a small piece of chocolate or something if I want something sweet - if I want something more, like gelato - I usually do that instead of the wine.

I've lost ~30 lbs and have wine or beer pretty much every day. You can do it, you just need to track everything and fit it into your day. If you want more, work out extra. I found a FitBit very enlightening to help me understand how many calories I expend in a day - before I had one I estimated my TDEE to be about 1,800, but when the steps started adding up, I actually burn more like 2,100/day. That allows me to eat enough AND have room for my nightly treats.

Also, if you'd like, you can friend me. I won't judge you if you have 3 cocktails