Wine

karajhol
karajhol Posts: 18 Member
edited November 14 in Health and Weight Loss
I do most things very well, better than most. But wine is my Achilles heel and it appears to be the reason I'm having trouble with my weight. I'm 5'6" 155 lbs., would prefer to be at 145 lbs. i do not want to cut my alcohol calories.
I make a ton of money. I am a 4.0 doctoral student. I am a hell of a mom and wife. I just cannot, and do not want to, kick the nightly wine habit. I was raised this way, as was my mother and her mother before that.

Anybody else going through this?
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Replies

  • Asher_Ethan
    Asher_Ethan Posts: 2,430 Member
    Wino here! I drink on most nights, I find if I lose weight slowly, I can drink more and not be as hungry.
    Cheers!
  • ccsernica
    ccsernica Posts: 1,040 Member
    edited December 2016
    Don't want to cut out wine? Then don't. (And why should you?) Calories are calories. It doesn't much matter where they come from. If you get that extra 125 calories or so every night, just cut them somewhere else.
  • MelanieCN77
    MelanieCN77 Posts: 4,047 Member
    I drink probably 600 cals in alcohol any given day and my cals are set at 1470. I adjust my meals to suit and I have exercise cals. I'm not giving up my beer or my bourbon. I think I still eat fairly well.
  • deluxmary2000
    deluxmary2000 Posts: 981 Member
    By "nightly wine habit", are you talkimg about a glass, or a bottle? If the latter, can you just cut back?
  • esjones12
    esjones12 Posts: 1,363 Member
    By "nightly wine habit", are you talkimg about a glass, or a bottle? If the latter, can you just cut back?

    This. One glass of red wine most nights really shouldn't be impairing your weight loss unless you are going over your calories with it.
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
    I drank wine just about daily when I was losing weight. As long as I logged the calories and stayed in a deficit, I lost weight.

    The only thing to look out for is if it is crowding out other things that you need -- if your calorie goal is low, it can sometimes be a challenge to meet your nutritional goals and drink regularly.

    Exactly this.

    I had a glass of wine pretty much every night while losing. It's ~125 cals for a 5 oz pour. Not too hard to work in especially if one isn't aiming for minimum calorie levels. Now that I'm in maintenance I can usually fit in 2 glasses, sometimes more.

    As a busy working mom like you OP, I changed my habit from having a glass while cooking, a glass with dinner, and a glass or two after dinner like I did before starting to lose weight with MFP. I started waiting till after I got the kids into bed and finally sat down for the night, which really only affords me time for one or two glasses before I need to hit the hay anyway.
  • MagBird1103
    MagBird1103 Posts: 12 Member
    I've lost the first 40 pounds still drinking average of 2 glasses of red wine a day. I switched from white to red, mostly because I drink it slower. It hasn't halted my weight loss at all, as long as I don't go over on calories. Do a little extra cardio every day and you can easily burn off those wine cals.
  • kschwab0203
    kschwab0203 Posts: 610 Member
    I can drink most men under the table so it's no big thing for me to finish off a bottle of wine in one night. If I know I will be drinking I will make room for it in my calories for that day. Large dinner or small dinner and wine? Kinda like a "pick your poison" deal.
  • donjtomasco
    donjtomasco Posts: 790 Member
    Jane, great point(s)!!! Those would be 'High Functioning Drinkers' (or alcoholics). I was one of those until I was not one of those, which is when I had to stop drinking.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    Jane, great point(s)!!! Those would be 'High Functioning Drinkers' (or alcoholics). I was one of those until I was not one of those, which is when I had to stop drinking.

    That's a great way to put it. My father was also one of those until he wasn't one of those. Unfortunately, he didn't stop drinking at that point. I'm glad it was different for you.
  • nutmegoreo
    nutmegoreo Posts: 15,532 Member
    zyxst wrote: »
    Jakep2323 wrote: »
    WinoGelato wrote: »
    I drank wine just about daily when I was losing weight. As long as I logged the calories and stayed in a deficit, I lost weight.

    The only thing to look out for is if it is crowding out other things that you need -- if your calorie goal is low, it can sometimes be a challenge to meet your nutritional goals and drink regularly.

    Exactly this.

    I had a glass of wine pretty much every night while losing. It's ~125 cals for a 5 oz pour. Not too hard to work in especially if one isn't aiming for minimum calorie levels. Now that I'm in maintenance I can usually fit in 2 glasses, sometimes more.

    As a busy working mom like you OP, I changed my habit from having a glass while cooking, a glass with dinner, and a glass or two after dinner like I did before starting to lose weight with MFP. I started waiting till after I got the kids into bed and finally sat down for the night, which really only affords me time for one or two glasses before I need to hit the hay anyway.

    I don't think she was advocating drinking a bottle of wine daily? I don't know many people who would advise that :/

    WTF? Where are you seeing either PP talking about drinking a bottle of wine?

    glass.jpg

    If your wine glasses are that big, I recommend a straw. It seems safer.

    OP, I don't drink often anymore, but I would prefer to spend discretionary calories on ice cream or cookies. There is nothing wrong with fitting wine into your daily intake. It's easier to do if you have realistic expectations about not losing too fast.
  • Running_and_Coffee
    Running_and_Coffee Posts: 811 Member
    I have about a glass or two a week, personally. I love wine but would rather get my calories elsewhere.
  • barni71
    barni71 Posts: 30 Member
    I drank at least 2 bottles of wine a week while dieting and managed to get down to 123 lbs just before Christmas (back to 127 now :( )
  • SingingSingleTracker
    SingingSingleTracker Posts: 1,866 Member
    karajhol wrote: »
    I do most things very well, better than most. But wine is my Achilles heel and it appears to be the reason I'm having trouble with my weight. I'm 5'6" 155 lbs., would prefer to be at 145 lbs. i do not want to cut my alcohol calories.
    I make a ton of money. I am a 4.0 doctoral student. I am a hell of a mom and wife. I just cannot, and do not want to, kick the nightly wine habit. I was raised this way, as was my mother and her mother before that.

    Anybody else going through this?

    Buy good tasting, lower calorie wines and enjoy as you log your calories and meet your goals.

    31851744501_1e5ebd2f62_c.jpgPrint

    This blog explains how to do that quite well...

    http://www.shape.com/blogs/fit-foodies/best-wines-your-waistline

    My wife and I love to drink Austrian and Italian white wines which we mix with carbonated water (works great in the warmer months) and makes you "feel" like you had more than you actually did since you are mixing bubbly water in with the wine.
  • angelaypolite
    angelaypolite Posts: 63 Member
    This is why I don't drink daily anymore (I still love my wine tho)...

    From The Zero Belly Diet:
    Alcohol is particularly bad for your weight because it’s a toxin. Your body mobilizes to burn off the calories in alcohol as quickly as possible—ignoring any other calories that might have come along with it. So whether it’s wine and cheese or beer and wings, the body metabolizes the drink while shoving more of the accompanying food calories into fat cells.
  • tennileb
    tennileb Posts: 265 Member
    You had me at wine.

    Calculate it into your calories for the day and enjoy.
  • tennileb
    tennileb Posts: 265 Member
    This is why I don't drink daily anymore (I still love my wine tho)...

    From The Zero Belly Diet:
    Alcohol is particularly bad for your weight because it’s a toxin. Your body mobilizes to burn off the calories in alcohol as quickly as possible—ignoring any other calories that might have come along with it. So whether it’s wine and cheese or beer and wings, the body metabolizes the drink while shoving more of the accompanying food calories into fat cells.

    I'd be Intersted in reading how they tested this? Sounds unlikely (sorry).

    Too much alcohol for me causes (allows) ME to shove aside healthy choices and over indulge.
  • tennileb
    tennileb Posts: 265 Member
    I have to limit wine because like everything it has calories, and some days it doesn't fit in my calorie goal
This discussion has been closed.