Alcohol and Weight Loss – Lighting The Booze Fuze
Most of us are pretty reluctant to give up something we like – or have got used to. We enjoy a beer or a glass of wine. Alcohol puts us in a good mood (in the beginning) and all our troubles seem less of a problem. It puts a gloss over the trivia of daily living and the world seems a better place. We feel we can cope with life. If we drink too much, the depressing effect that alcohol has, brings us down to earth with a bump, and we live in the land of regret for a while until the clouds pass over and reality stares us rudely in the face again. Whether we drink a lot or a little the choice is always ours – until the spectre of addiction appears, but that’s another issue.
We make choices based on our likes and dislikes. We choose to do something because we have facts that influence our decision, but we sometimes make some bizarre choices and stupid decisions. In fact, it’s said that most of us take decisions based on 5% of the available information. No wonder we get ourselves into a mess.
When it comes to alcohol we think we are pretty well informed. Many of the ‘facts’ we’ve picked up about alcohol are not facts at all, but rumours and hearsay that have been embellished in the telling. This is certainly the case when it comes to the relationship between alcohol and weight gain. ‘If you’re on a diet, it’s okay to drink’. ‘Alcohol makes you fat’. These are two conflicting statements neither of which is completely true.
The first thing to understand about alcohol is that it is stuffed full of calories. All nutrients have different calorific values. Proteins and carbohydrates have 4 calories per gram. At has 9 calories per gram and alcohol has 7 calories per gram, nearly as much as fat!
The interesting thing about alcohol is that it contains no carbohydrate (apart from a few sweet drinks) which means that your body can’t store the energy it provides. Faced with this dilemma it converts this new energy into something called acetate.
The body uses acetate as a source of energy as it would the stored glucose and fat in your body – but here’s the rub. It uses the ‘acetate energy’ before and in preference to your stored glucose and fat. The truth is that alcohol doesn’t make you put on weight, it prevents you from losing it.
If you’re trying to lose weight then you should also be aware that alcohol stimulates your appetite. If you’re trying to lose weight the last thing you need is a stimulated appetite. It also removes inhibitions and melts your resolve… ‘one more cookie won’t hurt’ and you’re on the way to trashing all your efforts to lose weight.
If you’re trying to lose weight, alcohol has some very clear consequences. Whereas total abstinence may make life a little dull, It makes good sense to get into a new habit – a slim habit, if you like – which helps you to moderate how much alcohol you drink. All it requires is a little self-discipline to achieve the outcome you want.
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Tags: alcohol and weight loss, dieting, fat loss diets, how to lose weight, Slim habit, slimming lose weight, weight loss, weight loss diet plan
