“The weekend is here, and the first thing you might be looking forward to is a few cocktails. The problem is, alcoholic drinks can be extremely fattening, especially mixed drinks which contain tons of empty calories which can be detrimental to a diet. Although you don’t need to completely cut out alcohol from your diet, making smart choices at happy hour can help your diet finally succeed.
The first problem with alcohol consumption is that it’s a source of empty calories. With little or no nutritional vale, calories from alcohol are mostly stored as fat. Surprisingly, alcohol has a huge effect on your body’s fat burning ability. Soon after consuming alcohol, all fat burning comes to an immediate stop. Because your body is focused on keeping you alive, as soon as a toxic substance such as alcohol is consumed, your body immediately starts to get rid of it.”
“Sometimes we tend to think liquid items are less fattening than solid foods, but the calories affect your body the same way. To keep the alcohol from adding to your waistline, consider the calories in your drink, and compensate by eating less or lower-calorie foods. Don’t skip a healthy, filling dinner, that will only lead to slowing down your metabolism and overeating later.”
Mixed drinks and specialty cocktails can often contain up to 500 calories, which can easily sabotage your fat loss plan. In addition, alcohol can impair your judgement with regards to making smart choices. Think of how many nights you end up feasting on pizza, cheese fries, and unplanned desserts after drinking one to many cocktails. On an average night out, you could easily consume an extra 3,500 calories, which is a full pound of body fat.
Even if you are careful about your alcohol consumption, all drinks are not created equal on the dieting scale and some choices are better than others. For a list of the amount of calories in your favorite cocktail, check out this link… http://www.personal-nutrition-guide.com/calories-in-alcohol.html
TheFittChick‘s drink of choice is most often a blended vodka lemonade made with Crystal Light. If I’m out, I usually order a vodka on the rocks. To make it taste amazing, I pour it into a tall glass of water and add some Crystal Light Pink Lemonade or MiO. Another good option is a vodka on the rocks made dirty. That’s just olive juice and vodka. Also, a light beer or glass of wine is also “approved” and won’t derail your diet.
Use these tips and make 2013 your healthiest year yet!
Cheers!