Weight-Loss Beer

Weight-Loss
If you're serious, you'll cut down on it.

I love beer just as much as the next guy, but that's a little much. What you may want to do is switch what you are drinking. Most people who drink that many drink the cheapest crap they can get their hands on. However, the "real" beer drinkers who enjoy it the most drink much higher quality stuff yet drink alot less. The price tag for a 6-pack is more, but in the end it ends up being cheaper and much better for you. I mean, I can get more buzzed drinking one beer from Breckenridge Brewery than I can drinking four of the cheapies, and it tastes soooo much better. Cheap beer is so stupid on so many levels.

What sucks the most is that most people who are overweight got there due to mindless comfort eating or drinking... just eating or drinking for the hell of it, and you're basically asking if this is perfectly ok. Well... no... stuff like this is more than likely exactly the reason why you're considering trying to lose weight in the first place.

Also, with alcohol, you can't just add up the calories. Alcohol screws with your metabolism and blood sugar and causes more damage than simply ingesting the extra calories. The worst part is that it usually lowers your blood sugar and you get the munchies and eat more than you normally would have subconsciously to raise it back up, and usually that food is a bunch of crap.

As for the "cheat days"... sure... I mean, I'm trying not to be hypocritical because just this past weekend I flew to Colorado to snowboard with my buddies and got sloshed at Breckenridge Brewery and BackCountry Brewery. But, I do that once every 3 years, not every weekend, and my idea of "sloshed" is maybe 6 beers per night, after I have been burning calories on the slopes for 8 hours and can barely walk from being so tired. Big difference between that and 30 beers every weekend.

I guess I'm just trying to say you should try to find a way to enjoy beer without having to feel the need to just drink one right after another all weekend. Yes, it's absolutely going to kill your efforts. Have you really ever heard of somebody who was highly successful at weight loss and they laughed about still drinking 30 beers per weekend? No, it doesn't happen.
 
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Adria said:
The way I see it is that everyone should have a cheat day and if drinking beer is what you like to do then by all means do it. You have to have fun in life. Just as long as you're not drinking it every day... you'll be ok.
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I don't agree with this. So if somebody were to say they were drinking four beers a day, it WOULDN'T be ok? 30 beers a weekend averages out to more than 4 beers a day. Assuming 150 calories a beer, that's over 640 calories a day EXTRA that's just BS calories. That's more than most people should aim to cut on a daily basis. That's more than several of the different foot-long sandwiches from Subway. Plus like I said before, it screws with your blood sugar so the actual situation is even worse than these facts.
 
Hey Guys This Is My1st Post But The Way I Do It Now Is Every 2weeks I Have 1 Day I Drink With My Mates And Stuff.and It Actually Makes It Better Not Doing It As Often.doing It Every Week Makes The Novelty Wearoff.try It Dude.:)
 
20-30?? Wow...

Well, I wont bother lecturing you about the calories or alcohol related problems that will arise from drinking that much alcohol in a short period. Even if you did work it into your calories, probably still not a good idea. My mother is an alcohol and drug abuse councillor, so I have heard this all my life. I wont bother sharing stuff you probably already know.

However, there is another side to this coin you should consider too.

As I said, alcohol and calroies aside, un-checked drinking has other side effects which may dampen your weight loss efforts.

#1 - Will power when drunk! OR NOT!! This is a big one for me. MY buddies I used to go drinking with would spend the night in the bar getting hosed, then would habitually find a 24 hour restaurant afterwards to go scarf down some food before bed, or at very least head home for some snacking. This was part of the routine. Not to mention fries, nachos, pizza, pretzels and more at the pub. Alcohol in any large amount seriously lowers your resolve on things like eating and diet. I know for a fact when I have a few drinks in me everything looks tastier and I tend to lose my resolve about eating better. "Can restart that diet in the morning...." Probably best is to drink alot on a "free day" so you arent throwing a monkey wrench into the gears. But even then, with all the empty calories in the beer, adding food is like throwing gasoline on a fire, which also seems like a good idea when you are drunk... I know... Been there, done that! Hvae the eyebrow-less pictures to prove it!!

#2 Dehydration and Hangovers - Nothing spoils a good weekends exercise regime like a killer hangover or massive dehydration. If I drank 30 beers in one weekend I can GUARANTEE I would be suffering and I would not be kicking my ass out the door to go to the gym or walk. That much alcohol, no matter what your tolerance or drinking ability is hard on the body, bottom line. If your goal is just to lose some weight and continue your current lifestyle thats great, I hope it works for you. But if your goal, like many of us here, is to improve your overall fitness levels, drinking to excess is not a good idea. Alcohol certainly has many detrimental effects on the body that we all need to consider. For myself, I also love beer, but I made a point of severely limiting my intake on purpose because of my fitness goals. As a result, my alcohol tolerance has also gone down. In the past I could drink 6-12 cans of beer in a night and have myself a good old time. But now, since I stopped drinking all together for a time and severely lowered by alcohol intake, 2 cans of beer does the same thing for me that 6 used to. And if I want to be pissed, 3 beers does me in! But again, I do that once or maybe twice a month, so my body is no longer to attuned to alcohol and has a lower tolerance.


So, I would say go with what works for you. But try to pay close attention to what you are doing after drinking for the night. Are you also binging on food? Also see how it affects you the next day. Is it a day you spend in bed or unwilling to move?

The key to any successful weight loss program in my mind is moderation. Don't eat too much, dont rest too much and dont do something (like drink too much) that lowers your ability to stay on track...


sirant
 
sirant said:
MY buddies I used to go drinking with would spend the night in the bar getting hosed, then would habitually find a 24 hour restaurant afterwards to go scarf down some food before bed, or at very least head home for some snacking. This was part of the routine. Not to mention fries, nachos, pizza, pretzels and more at the pub. Alcohol in any large amount seriously lowers your resolve on things like eating and diet. I know for a fact when I have a few drinks in me everything looks tastier and I tend to lose my resolve about eating better.
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This is because alcohol lowers your blood sugar like I was saying earlier. If you went on an 8 hour hard bike ride with no food and therefore bottomed out your blood sugar, you would get the same cravings.
 
No Latte for me, I am on a diet, bring me a beer!

Hi all,

Found an interesting website I thought I would share. It deals with (as you may have guessed) Beer, and more specifically, calories contained therein.

Seems beer has gotten a really bad rep as being a sinister anti-weight loss substance. When we think of beer we all think of "Beer Belly's" poking out under teeshirts. We all hear all the time how Beer is just empty calories, and if we believed the hype, we would never drink it again if we ever hoped of losing weight......

IMO, what a bunch of dog poo! Beer is one of the oldest beverages known to humankind and has been around since people starting mixing things into water to make it taste better. And beer REALLY doesn't have all the negative calories I at one time believed. The guys with the enormous beer bellies have them because they drink excessive amounts of beer. The same could be said about excessive amounts of damn near anything. (Coke Belly, Chocolate belly, etc)

For example, a can of coke has 50% MORE calories than a can of coors light and 25% more than a regular can of coors. Yet nobody gives me a second look when I drink a can of coke, but heaven help my diet should I order a beer. How ridiculous! Even crazier is the fact I could chug-a-lug 4 cans of beer and get LESS calories than eating a Starbucks scone!

So people, next time your buddies invite you out for a beer or two after work, don't think you have to say no because you are losing weight. 2 cans of beer = 250-300 calories or less and 200 caloires if you choose light beer. How hard is 200 calories to work into your daily diet?

1 Starbucks Latte = 260 calories (150 for nonfat milk) Mocha = 400!!!! And that is not including the sugar we put in ourselves later!! Yet most deem it accpetable to go out for lattes after work, but crack open a Bud and you are "ruining" your weight loss efforts.

Just letting you all know, you do have choices and don't need to give anything up entirely for the sake of losing weight. Of course beer bellies come from over consumption of beer, thats common sense. We should really start looking at other things, like Coke bellies and Mocha Bellies, which these days are just as predominant.

For anyone interested, here is a link with the colorie contents of soo many beers it is amazing! They even have many imported and rare beers listed. Do the math and look at the calories and you may well be suprised at how few calories your favorite beer has, compared to your daily mocha or latte.



sirant
 
Thanks for that Sirant! Great list. Beer still plays a part in my lifestyle - I just cut out the port etc, and most of the drinking at home. I do still like to go out for a beer, but instead of drinking pints of beer, I buy bottles. My local pub is Anglo-Portuguese, and I usually buy the Portuguese beer Superbok.
 
I halfway agree, but it's not quite that simple, you cannot compare calories alone. First of all your body treats alcohol as a poison and attempts to rid itself of the alcohol as quickly as it can, but by doing so your liver stops processing anything else. Secondly it drops your blood sugar and you end up craving stuff and often eat more than you would have, and often its junk. It's just not a 1 to 1 comparison on calories alone due to the other stuff that the alcohol is doing.

Oh yeah, it kind of kills your ability to exercise too... not that I would kow anything about that. :rolleyes: Last week I came home from work feeling funny and bummed out, so I drank two Miller High Life's and 2/3 of a bottle of Shiraz wine. I was feeling quite bulletproof by that time and ended up running a 4 mile race since my wife was going anyway. :cool: Holy crap that was rough. I did it in about 32:30 minutes worth of pain, everything was burning and I had no energy.
 
True enough

corndogggy said:
I halfway agree, but it's not quite that simple, you cannot compare calories alone. First of all your body treats alcohol as a poison and attempts to rid itself of the alcohol as quickly as it can, but by doing so your liver stops processing anything else. Secondly it drops your blood sugar and you end up craving stuff and often eat more than you would have, and often its junk. It's just not a 1 to 1 comparison on calories alone due to the other stuff that the alcohol is doing.

Oh yeah, it kind of kills your ability to exercise too... not that I would kow anything about that. :rolleyes: Last week I came home from work feeling funny and bummed out, so I drank two Miller High Life's and 2/3 of a bottle of Shiraz wine. I was feeling quite bulletproof by that time and ended up running a 4 mile race since my wife was going anyway. :cool: Holy crap that was rough. I did it in about 32:30 minutes worth of pain, everything was burning and I had no energy.
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Far be it for me to advocate the regular use of alcohol. But of course in the same sense big macs and chocolate milkshakes are ticking time bombs. Everything in moderation. I just hate how people will dump on you for having A beer once a week and not say a word if you order a large fries.....

And you my friend are nuts!!! No offense!!! But 2 brewskis and 2/3 of a bottle of wine, and THEN you ran 4 miles...... Only one thing I can say about that,

Better you than me!!! Rough indeed!
;)

sirant
 
i too have decided that I'm not completely giving up alcohol on my diet... moderation is key!

But I have noticed that when I do drink regularly (read 1 beer or glass of wine a few nights a week) I do tend to snack more, and I do know that alcohol reduces your bodies ability to burn fats and other calories (what corndoggy said).

So, I'm sticking to a day or two a week of alcohol... and dessert only three times a week (light ice cream) We CAN have things that everyone else gets to eat, in moderation, in small doses, etc.
 
I haven't drank beer in over 6, 7 years? I don't even know. But your title was interesting and caught my attention anyway :).

Go ahead, have that beer or two :). Moderation is key and I'd never be one to tell someone not to have a beer even if I'm drinking water instead.

Most my friends drink and they love that I don't. Sometimes though, getting home at 4 am cuz I drove everyone and their sisters and cousins and extended family relations home can be frustrating!
 
For whatever it's worth, I recently saw a study that claimed that 1, and no more than 1, glass of red wine a day, with no more than 20 glasses per month, is the best situation... assuming you're going to be drinking anyway.

I guess I'm just an alcolholic. I am about to finish off a 7 year old bottle of California cabernet. By myself. Mmmm boy, good stuff. I like it with dark chocolate squares. That probably sounds gay for a guy to be saying that. :rolleyes:
 
Corndogggy, is there something you're not telling us? Yep, you sound gay. I think you need to redeem your manhood after that post!
 
LOL!!!!! No, I used to be the most hardcore beer drinker you could imagine. That scene just kind of made me overeat though. I got like that because my dream was/is to own my own microbrewery. I still like beer, but, I can get the effects of the alcohol faster and more efficient and with better side effects (antioxidants) with red wine. I'm still an alcoholic though, no excuses there. Here's some of my alcoholic pics from the past:









But yeah, some day I hope to own my own microbrew that is on the same level as Rock Bottom, which is a well-known national chain... not that I want to be national, but their restaurants are quite nice and very well known. Very recommended if you visit a town that has one. I've only been to Indianapolis, Cincinnati, and Chicago, but other places also have similar joints, such as Big River Brewery in Nashville, pretty much the same thing.
 
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The summer time is when that dang beer hits me the most! I thnk warm weather and a cold beer go hand in hand with each other. I try not to drink it but it just sucks me in!!:eek: Now I do go out dancing with the girls from work once a month and I drink vodka then but since I never stop moving from the time we walk in I figure I am doing a dang good job of burning off whatever calories I am taking in by drinking!! i don't know if that is true but I think it is a reat outlook on it!!:rolleyes:


Back to the beer I am curious as to what types of beer everybody drinks?? I personally drink Bud light but that is just becuase every one of my friends do so it makes it the thing to buy but I would like to venture out more in the beer world so give me a few ideas here people!!
 
what beer I drink depends on time of year, time of day, and my particular mood... I really like Sam Adams - the do a bunch of different seasonal brews that are really tasty... heavier ones in the winter, lighter ones in the spring and summer. Magic Hat, a vermont based brewer also puts out some really nice products.

pete's wicked pale ale is nice on a hot summer day.
Fat tire is also really quite good.

and wheat beers with a slice of orange are really refreshing.

and there's always guiness for a dark beer and Smithwicks for a little lighter beer.

Im not a fan of mass produced beers - like bud or miller - Sam Adams is becoming one of those mass produced beers...
 
dragonlover said:
Back to the beer I am curious as to what types of beer everybody drinks?? I personally drink Bud light but that is just becuase every one of my friends do so it makes it the thing to buy but I would like to venture out more in the beer world so give me a few ideas here people!!
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I experiment alot, or at least used to, but, personally if I had the choice I drink microbrews from Colorado. Pale Ale's from Colorado are the best I think. Try to find some stuff from Breckenridge Brewery. The vanilla porter and trademark pale ale from Breckenridge Brewery are my favorite beers of all time.

And yes, Sam Adams is somewhat mass produced, actually it has been for a long time, but their brewing methods and quality are still far superior to the typical mass produced beers. Assuming the same type of beer, I think they can hang with most any microbrewery in terms of quality.
 
Over here in Germany where its the norm to have a beer at lunch it really show moderation is the key when you look around and not see those large bellys that are usually associated with beer drinkers.My hubands grandmothers one 76 the other 93 have been drinking 1 beer almost everyday for lunch for over 50years and they are both healthy alert and well aware of whats going on-they swear a beer a day will keep you young.:)
 
Yummy! Me So Happy!

China's most famous beer is Tsingtao (pronounced chingdao) and is brewed in their famous brewery in Tsingtao city which was designed, built and operated by German master brewers. So it is a fine and lovely bit of frotthy goodness. However, as China has never really been much on promoting weight loss (since in the past no one even thought of such concepts) you could scarcely find a diet soda (diet coke and pepsi, thats it) let alone lite beer. But low and behold!!!! Thanks to the world coming to our doorstep next year for the Olympics, Tsingtao has put out a lovely and very tasty Light Tsingtao!!! All the flavour and way less calories! I must admit I sampled a couple large bottles this weekend and was quite pleased! At 180 calories for a 600ml bottle, one can hardly feel guilty for the odd bottle or 2 on the weekend.

Yay Olympics for bringing Light Beer to China!!!!!

(I knew all those skinny nekkid greeks dudes all those years ago were on to something good!!!)

sirant
 
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