Alcohol plan

I am a 21 year old college student and I usually go out every other weekend. I can't guiltless-ly indulge on these nights so I have come up with a drinking plan. Please tell me if it is sound or not.

The days I go out I will reduce my calorie intake from ~1800 to ~1400 and workout harder than normal. That gives me at least 400 calories to drink. I will mainly drink hard liquors or liquor and diet soda. Since each shot of liquor has ~70 cals, I'll be able to have 5 drinks. So I wont be drinking on an empty stomach, I'll have a small breakfast, small lunch, and a large dinner.

Now, I read online that alcohol is converted to acetate. When you have an excess of acetate, your body works on converting that to energy instead of fat. Hence beer bellies. Therefore, it seems it would help eat a low fat diet the day before I go out. Let me know if this seems sound to you.

Alcohol isn't just calories, unfortunately.  And the negative effects on the body go beyond a bit of extra flab.   Maybe it would be a good idea to limit yourself to 2 alcoholic drinks, eat more food instead and go with soft drinks the rest of the evening.   You'd not only be slimmer but you'd be healthier as well.

I know how you feel... alcohol is everywhere on the weekends.  Now that I'm done with college alcohol is still apart of weekend get togethers so it's tough. 

I'm actually againgst cutting cals for alcohol. Instead of cutting your calories down, I'd eat the 1800 and do a 300-400 cal burn in extra cardio (maybe work out in the morning and afternoon?).  You don't want to deprive yourself of nutrients and have your metabolism slip while it's trying to get rid of the toxic booze.

I would also continue eating the same percentages of fats and protein and maybe a little less carbs since booze=carbs.  Please do not cut back on your fat intake.  Fat in your diet plays an extremely vital role in hormone transportation and function which in turn helps regulate your metabolism.  Your body will use the alcohol for energy before anything else, not just your fat stores.

Good luck and I second the hard alcohol and diet soda (Bacardi and diet coke ;)!!    

When I go out I have a glass or two or red wine.  I would think the soda you mix with your whiskey/vodka would make it worse for you (diet wise speaking).

 

Hey - I'm 22 and in a similar situation.

This is what I do, and it seems to work for me:  I count the mixers towards my calorie count to encourage me to use high calorie juices sparingly, I count beers for about half their calorie value, and I never count hard alcohol calories.  (If I'm drinking hard alcohol I'd much rather have food in my stomach and go slightly over my calories than not.)

Going out every other weekend isn't a whole lot, so slightly going over your calories once every 14 days (in my opinion) is ok.  The main thing is to have fun with your friends, not go crazy about calories.

Just make sure that you are being good on the other days of the week, don't go too crazy on the weekends, and maybe try to add in an extra workout.

Other than that - drink your gin and tonics and have fun!

I agree with others' comments, but as a 21-yr old college student myself, I have to say that your plan sounds a lot like mine, and sounds pretty good. If you're going to eat less on days you plan to drink, i think it sounds like you have a pretty reasonable approach. don't forget to drink lots of water and maybe have a small planned snack while you are out drinking.

happy partying!

so my game plan usually is just shots.... you only need a few and some (if any) kind of chaser. Jack's usually the easiest for me.

 

Good luck! Have fun, get out on the dance floor and work it off there!! Don't let your diet control your social life or vice versa--have fun, be smart, and remember it's all about moderation (seriously)

I agree with greenfruit. If it's only once every two weeks, you can consider that a bit of a cheat day and eat what you're comfortable with and not have to worry about it to a huge extent. It sounds like you have it under control if you're willing to work out extra to make up for your drinks.

But I just wanted to note that a shot is ~100 calories. An OUNCE is around 70 (for 80-proof type hard liquor), but a shot is an ounce and a half.

I actually do the same thing, in that I plan out my calories to include alcohol.  What I do, though, is cycle my calories and plan for my high-calorie days to be those days that I will drink.  That way I have more room to get all the nutritional stuff I need, and still have room to have enough calories for a good amount of alcohol.  I only drink once every week or so, and I only drink a large amount once or twice a month, so it works out pretty well.

The funny thing is, every time thus far that I have drank a lot, I lost more in that period than any other.  I'm sure that trend won't stick, though, so I don't depend on it to happen that way every time... I just think it's interesting that it has happened both times I drank a lot since I started.

My advice would be Vodka and tonic water! Vodka= 69calories, tonic water=0calories....you can always add a wedge of lemon or lime for taste....that is the lowest calorie "cocktail" I've found.

Original Post by shea1d:

My advice would be Vodka and tonic water! Vodka= 69calories, tonic water=0calories....you can always add a wedge of lemon or lime for taste....that is the lowest calorie "cocktail" I've found.

BZZZT! Incorrect. Tonic water has as many calories as a Coke.

Original Post by freedomfrom:

Original Post by shea1d:

My advice would be Vodka and tonic water! Vodka= 69calories, tonic water=0calories....you can always add a wedge of lemon or lime for taste....that is the lowest calorie "cocktail" I've found.

BZZZT! Incorrect. Tonic water has as many calories as a Coke.

Freedomfrom speaks the truth.  Unless you get the diet stuff, then you're looking at around 120+ calories for a bottle of tonic water.  The diet tonic water can be as little as 2 cals per bottle, but once again I've never seen one that's completely calorie 'free'.

For me, I quite enjoy diet lemonade and vodka.  About 100 cals for a glass, so you could have 4?

Original Post by freedomfrom:

Original Post by shea1d:

My advice would be Vodka and tonic water! Vodka= 69calories, tonic water=0calories....you can always add a wedge of lemon or lime for taste....that is the lowest calorie "cocktail" I've found.

BZZZT! Incorrect. Tonic water has as many calories as a Coke.

Maybe shea was thinking of soda water? That's a horse of a different color.

Original Post by corduroyfirekills3:

Original Post by freedomfrom:

Original Post by shea1d:

My advice would be Vodka and tonic water! Vodka= 69calories, tonic water=0calories....you can always add a wedge of lemon or lime for taste....that is the lowest calorie "cocktail" I've found.

BZZZT! Incorrect. Tonic water has as many calories as a Coke.

Maybe shea was thinking of soda water? That's a horse of a different color.

 My drink of choice, vodka-soda with a squeeze of lemon or lime.  Good to get off as much sugar as possible even if the vodka still has sugar this helps me manage.

what is wrong with light beer?  That's what I like to drink.  Should I switch to the hard stuff?  Miller lite is about 95 calories and 2.5 carbs I think

One flaw in your logic is that while hard liquor is about 70 calories an ounce,  a "shot" is an ounce and a half so your average drink will be 100 calories or more if the bartender is a "heavy pour".  So you need to limit yorself to 4 drinks.  A 12 ounce light beer will have the same or even less calories and you get more nutrients in beer or wine than you do from liquor.

But I'll add that you're on the right track.  You can sucessfully maintain or lose weight while enjoying an occational cocktail as long as you don't ingore the calorie content of what you are drinking and continue to get a well balance diet in addition to the alcohol.

Thanks all for the suggestions and advice

I realize that I am quite a bit older but it was vodka and fresh lime that took me from 160 to a whooping 247!  (I really want to blame the ex boyfriend but it was the vodka!)

I count booze in general if it's with dinner or on a regular day.  If I go out drinking I don't bother.  After 7 or 8 whisky cokes, I usually forget how many I've had ayways!

Remeber after every drink to have a glass of water.  Alchohol has a way dehydrating you.

So if you are going to have five shots, chase each shot with a bottle of water.

Clear alchohol is easier on your liver than the darker stuff.

Remeber moderation in everything.  Drink resposibly.