ALCOHOL QUESTION PLEASE HELP

Aimee,
I too have questions about alcohol. I like to drink wine, and generally drink it with dinner at night. It seems like I end up having 2-3 glasses many evenings. I watch my calorie intake, and include the calories from the wine. (114 cal per 6 oz.) I just don't seem to loose weight. And I have read alot about the effects of alcohol also. I have read that when you drink alcohol, it is burned first, making you store other calories/food as fat. I have also read that it alone is stored as fat.-this is in a book on how to quit drinking without AA. Something about the maltose it is made of. I am wondering what you think. I am allowed 1200 cal/day. And am staying within my allowance each day & exercising (buring about 300 cal/day) I feel like I should be loosing weight!!! and I am not, therefore it makes me think it has got to be the alcohol. ? like last night, had a salad with 4 oz of chicken breast on it, and then had 3 glasses of wine. I am wondering if no matter what, what I ate was stored as fat?? since I had the wine? Even if I am within my calorie allowance???
Let me know what you think,
Thanks,
Crystal

I drink every week and I know I shouldn't. But you don't know my friends. LOL I usually eat first (if i don't, I throw up). If I know I'm going to drink, I do save calories from earlier in the day and I NEVER eat after. ( I used to do this in college and that is how I even got this way!)

don't eat less, but try and get a workout in to add extra calories for the alcohol!!

Definately!

Funny you should ask!!! I just got back from my workout, so now I will be able to enjoy my "beverages" tonight and munchies afterwards (probably steak and shrimp fajitas) without worrying about going over my daily calorie allotment. :happy:

When I drink I try to save my calories for my liquor I love my Jager, I just have a low cal snack before if I feel the need.

I also work out extra hard at the gym the day i want to drink my face off. and i may eat a little less calories during the day if i know im going to want a snacky. :drinker:

Alcohol does more to your body than just put calories in it. Yes the study contains only 8 people but inside our bodies all handle it the same way. And I like my Sailor Jerry on occasion.

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/130545-the-real-effect-of-alcohol-on-your-waistline

OH SHIZNIT!! Not good news but useful news nonetheless.

From the Health Hound

As part of my commitment to staying current on the research,
I have sniffed out some research on alcohol consumption that
may surprise you.

A popular myth is that you can drink clear alcohol and as
long as you count the calories in the alcohol (7 calories
per gram) you will be fine. Because carbohydrates and
protein contain 4 calories per gram, and fat contains 9
calories per gram – the reasoning is that 7 calories in
alcohol are simply calories and nothing more.

Well, according to research carried in the American Journal
of Clinical Nutrition, alcohol puts the brakes on fat
metabolism (your body’s ability to burn fat as energy) in
more ways than one. In the study, eight people were given
two vodka drinks separated by 30 minutes.

Fat metabolism was checked both before and after each drink.
It turns out that even hours after drinking both drinks, fat
metabolism dropped by an incredible 73%. What is happening?

When you drink alcohol, your liver converts it into a
substance called acetate. (The acetate levels in the
subject’s bodies were 2.5 times higher than normal). And it
is the acetates in your body that make losing blubber almost
impossible.

Your body prefers burning acetate to all other sources of
fuel (fat being one of them), and basically shuts down its
normal process of burning off any other source of energy.

In other research, alcohol has been shown to increase
appetite. When you combine alcohol with meals, studies have
shown you tend to eat more. And since the alcohol is going
to serve as your body’s primary source of fuel, all the
calories go directly to your waistline.

And finally, alcohol increases your cortisol levels and
decreases your testosterone levels for about 24 hours after
you imbibe. And this definitely is not good for trimming
down or adding muscle!

So, if you think an alcohol calorie is just a calorie –
think again!