what exactly makes a beer belly?

I think I have one and this is an obstacle for me... I have realized that I have at least 2 drinks a day! or more some times... wa mostly wine, but at the weather is warmer it is not corona or absolute and soda... even if you calculate the cals in-- does it still cause you to belly bloat with giggly fat?

I am on my 3rd day without a drink. I want to see what happens to the ol' midriff... AND on a different level, I want to make sure I can go with out alcohol as an unwinder or to have fun... alcoholism runs in my family. I fear it, but sometimes I see myself as a social alcoholic but really and alcoholic... is that weird?

First let me say, I am glad you are looking at the NEED for alcohol. I don't drink (maybe 1 or 2 or a glass of wine every 6 months at most) much mostly because I see the effects of alcoholism. My mother is alcoholic as was her mother. My husband, his father and siblings are also alcoholic. I believe it definitely runs in the family (my opinion) so basically my kids don't stand a chance.

As far as the beer belly thing, my husband looks like CRAP. Skinny and drawn everywhere but his belly. My mother is also diabetic and drinks (as did my father-in-law) and has the belly. I am not sure what causes it chemically but commend you on at least thinking about it.

That's a good question, and I'm afraid I don't have an answer for you. I probably have a glass of wine...twice a week or so. I used to drink a lot, and I've lost weight since I stopped drinking so much, but part of that is I'm sure because I'm working out more and eating clean (except for my glass of wine). I never really had a "beer belly" though. I think that you should probably cut back for the mere fact that it's all empty calories. And a calorie from a beer is not the same as a calorie from chicken or veggies. Also, the red wine has the anti-oxidents. And trust me - you can totally have a blast without drinking! My girlfriend and I now go out dancing without drinking anything but water and have more fun I think than when we used to go out and get tipsy! And in my experience, you just feel better about yourself overall when you don't drink as much. Healthier, ya know?

I believe it definitely runs in the family (my opinion) so basically my kids don't stand a chance.

My mom use to say this all the time and it would really upset me. No one tells me what I will or won't become .... I inherited stubborness as well.
I mean we do have freewill and hopefully after seeing the consequences alcoholism has had on their family they will be that much more determined to make better, healthier choices for themselves.

I guess what I meant was the gene for addiction. I think of alcoholism as an illness. I know I could very easily become an alcoholic if I drank for stress reasons. I know you have a choice, I made one and my kids seeing what a mess their father is and basically the rest of the family are has made them determined not to drink . My daughter will be 21 this month and has NEVER had a drink. I know she will probably drink some because she likes to "taste" things (she is studying to be a pastry chef) but I also know she sees how her father is, how he treats me and her and her brother and the fact that they (her and her brother) never have friends over because he is drunk all of the time and will keep that in check. It is just like being overweight. Yes some of it is in the genes but you make your choices as to how much and what you eat and whether or not you exercise.

Congratulations on giving up smoking, that is a MAJOR accomplishment. :happy:

Beer is loaded with gluten. Some peoples bodies do not process gluten well, hence the 'beer belly'.
Just my opinion :happy:

I can answer that question.

First I'll tell you that 55 lbs ago I HAD that beer belly. Now I most certainly do not. And as a matter of fact, I'm getting abs showing now. It takes a while to get rid of it, but once you do, you'll notice your healthier, and your back will hurt less.

First lets go over what causes a beer belly:

Stomach fat is adipose fat (body fat, close to the skin) also called subcutaneous fat. It's where the body normally stores excess energy usually derived from glucose. Your body makes glucose by breaking down (primarilly) carbohydrates. Depending on your size, age, gender, genetics, and weight, you can take in a certain number of carbohydrates at any given time, anything more then that in a reasonable amount of time (around 2 hours or so) and you start packing on the fat. There are variables in this equation, but that's the short of it.

Things to think about when alcoholic drinks are the delivery mechanism of carbohydrates.
- Alcohol is VERY quickly metabolized, far faster then any other energy, and as such, will REPLACE other fuel sources as the primary energy used by the body. This means all those carbs and sugars in your beer, most of them are stored as fat instead of used as energy by the body. Along with anything else you are eating along with it.

- Alcohol decreases inhibitions, this goes for food as well. So all that "will power" you had when sober, out the window when drinking alcohol. That plate of nachos with extra cheese and sour cream? You will find a lot less reasons not to eat it if you are drinking.

-Alcohol is a depressant, it slows down (slightly) the metabolism and heart rate. This causes you to burn less calories, another contributing factor in fat gain.



What does all this mean? A couple of beers (like 2 or 3) once a week won't kill your new lifestyle and healthy eating, but 2 or 3 EVERY day WILL. You're talking about screwing up your metabolism for a few hours every day. That's bad news for your fat stores.

hope this helps.

-Banks

yes, thank you! exactly what i needed!
i think if i stop my unwinding drink at night, i will see a difference..


What i dont like so much is your GIANT red sox banner...


GO YANKS!

BLASPHEMER! Down with the Evil Empire!

Alcohol is different than calories from food. Like Banks says, it does a number on your metabolism in addition to being empty extra calories. You can't look at a bottle of beer as just extra calories, because it isn't just like food...

Jillian Micheal's has stated on her show that consuming 1-2 servings of alcohol cuts your body's ability to burn fat by up to 70%. So you have to work so much harder to lose fat while you are regularly consuming alcohol. If you burn 1000 calories a day, but you drink, it's as if you only burned 300 calories in your workout because that's the effect you're going to cause. To me, it's not worth all that extra effort.

When you work out and fuel your body with good stuff, your metabolism increases. But when you work out and then drink in the evening, you basically negated most of your efforts. That's why you should limit your drinks to special occasions if you are really trying to lose weight.

It sucks, but there it is.

Alcohol is different than calories from food. Like Banks says, it does a number on your metabolism in addition to being empty extra calories. You can't look at a bottle of beer as just extra calories, because it isn't just like food...

Jillian Micheal's has stated on her show that consuming 1-2 servings of alcohol cuts your body's ability to burn fat by up to 70%. So you have to work so much harder to lose fat while you are regularly consuming alcohol. If you burn 1000 calories a day, but you drink, it's as if you only burned 300 calories in your workout because that's the effect you're going to cause. To me, it's not worth all that extra effort.

When you work out and fuel your body with good stuff, your metabolism increases. But when you work out and then drink in the evening, you basically negated most of your efforts. That's why you should limit your drinks to special occasions if you are really trying to lose weight.

It sucks, but there it is.

MS, every time I see your profile picture, it freaks me out a little. I just keep thinking of Alice in Wonderland (I don't know why, did they have oversized tea cups in AIW?)

Maybe cuz I threw up on the tea cups ride when I was little. :sick:
ooh, now I'm a little sick.

I believe it definitely runs in the family (my opinion) so basically my kids don't stand a chance.

My mom use to say this all the time and it would really upset me. No one tells me what I will or won't become .... I inherited stubborness as well.
I mean we do have freewill and hopefully after seeing the consequences alcoholism has had on their family they will be that much more determined to make better, healthier choices for themselves.

I am the oldest child and oldest grandchild on both sides of my family... I heard this CONSTANTLY as every single adult besides me smokes, most of them are alcoholics, and several of them are drug addicts as well. I, somehow, escaped it all. I am still, literally, the only person over the age of 15 that doesn't smoke. The only issue I have is food, and I have successfully overcome that addiction. Don't lose hope for your kids. They may really surprise you. I'm 26 and my family is JUST NOW starting to believe that I won't do a U turn and go back down that path.

As far as the beer belly thing... I have no idea, I do have a bit of a girly jiggly 'beer' belly but mine's really a chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream belly lol.