Controlling alcohol intake
The Basics
Alcohol can be part of a balanced diet though it is worth remembering alcohol is high in calories, containing almost twice the calories per gram than either protein or carbohydrate (7kcals per gram alcohol compared to 4kcal per gram for proteins and carbohydrates).
Alcopops have a high content of sugar which is disguised by the fruity taste – making it easy to drink more sugar, and therefore taking in more calories, than you realise
Alcohol stimulates appetite, so when you drink you will often find yourself eating more – hence the craving for food after a night out, and again in the morning.
Myths and Misconceptions
- “Beer rather than spirits are responsible for ‘beer belly”. No single alcoholic drink is responsible for creating a ‘beer belly’ – the belly is simply the area where men tend to store body fat. All alcoholic drinks are high in calories – consuming more calories than the body needs, regardless of what you drink, will result in the excess being stored (e.g. around the belly) as fat.
Tips and Tricks
- When you are out don’t let people top up your glass before it’s completely empty, otherwise it’s difficult to keep track of how much you’ve had.
- If your glass isn’t empty at the next round, decline another drink until you’ve finished the last one.
- For each glass of wine you drink with a meal match it with a glass of water to help keep the volume of alcohol down.
- Make alcoholic drinks longer with lower calorie mixers: go for a white wine spritzer (made with soda water) or a lager shandy (made with low calorie lemonade).
- Cut down on drinking at home and save it for social occasions only.
- Buy some spirit measures so that when you drink at home you control the amount of spirit or wine that you pour into the glass.
- Wherever you are, alternate between an alcoholic and low calorie soft drink.
We all like to be healthy and to be sure that we're doing the best we can for ourselves, and our families, health.
Join GetFit Nutrition and start leading a healthy life today. No joining fee and we're confident that you’ll find healthy ways to lose weight when you join, but for peace of mind, we'll refund your money within 7 days if for any reason you don't! Click here to join today...