Alcohol and Weight Loss – Dos and Don’ts
Does alcohol consumption make you fat? Is it possible to lose weight without quitting alcohol completely? To maintain weight at current levels, how often and how much booze can I consume?
All these are burning questions if you are someone who enjoys their drink with family and friends, over the weekend and sometimes during weekdays too. And the first thought that comes to mind, if you are a social drinker or just someone who loves their drink, and trying to lose weight is how do I manage this with alcohol? Well, like most things in life, it is not a black & white answer and the grey areas need to be understood.
First up, let’s understand how alcohol is metabolized by the body. Alcohol or Ethanol is commonly referred to as the 4th macronutrient. A gram of alcohol has 7 calories. Fun fact, fat has 9 calories per gram. Calories from alcohol are usually called empty calories since they have no nutritional value. It is treated by your body as a toxin and yes, it is one and is processed mainly by the liver. About 10% of the quantity consumed goes to your brain, via the bloodstream to give you that buzz. Since it’s a toxin, all your body’s energy will go in metabolizing that alcohol over 24 to 48 hours, depending on the quantity consumed to expel it out of your system, which is primarily done by the liver. So, during that period, the body will not burn stored energy, glycogen, or fat and weight loss will stall.
Does this mean you have to quit completely? No. Keep these points handy when you plan your next drink and the damage will be minimal.
- The type of alcohol you consume is important. If cocktails, liquors, starchy beers, and sweet & fruity wines are your poison, you are in trouble. These drinks are loaded with sugars, sweet mixers plus alcohol and that is a deadly combination. One cocktail or a glass of baileys can have up to 400 calories. The best alcohol to have is hard liquor. So whiskey/rum/gin/vodka/tequila/brandy all do fine, just make sure the mixer is nothing but water. One 30 ml drink of hard liquor with water is about 80 to 100 calories. See the difference!
- Alcohol does two things, say after the 2nd One, it increases appetite, and two, it reduces inhibition. This is double jeopardy! If you are not extremely careful, you will not only make the wrong food choices but you will end up eating more too. Never drink on an empty stomach, this will not only intensify the intoxication but you will also end up binging on the wrong kind of food. Think fried chicken, French fries, nachos with salsa and cheese, and the like. The best foods to have with your drinks are salads, grilled veggies, and meat in limited quantities
- Alcohol is also a diuretic. It dehydrates the body, depleting it of electrolytes. The more you drink, the more salty and fried snacks you will crave. Make sure to alternate your drinks with a tall glass of water.
- Now for frequency & quantity of consumption. If u can restrict yourself to 2 drinks (30 ml) only. Great! have those 2 drinks every day. It will not stall your weight loss, provided you eat healthily and exercise at least thrice a week. Most people I know don’t fall into this category, unfortunately. So daily drinking is always avoidable. Drinking on weekends is a better idea, helps you unwind and socialize. Once a week, restricting yourself to no more than 3 to 4 standard drinks in a session. And make sure it is only one such session on the weekends.
- Most of us tend to have double dinners when we drink. One whole portion with drinks, which we call snacks or sides, and then dinner. This will stack up against your calories and you will gain weight. Ensure that your snacks and the main dinner are one meal only. Avoid carbs and processed food, stick to salads and grilled meat, preferably poultry and fish.
If you find yourself binge-drinking till you pass out, or drinking heavily every day, then weight loss is not your primary problem! I would like to leave you with this guide and a caveat that I don’t support or condone alcohol. As adults, it is a responsible choice for us to make.
