Im in college and I drink.

Im a college student and I live in the student ghetto. There is always a lot of parties around my house on the weekends, so I always end up going to them. I know beer is filled with empty calories and carbs and since I've started college Im starting to get a small beer belly. This freaks me out since I was in such good shape all throughout high school. So since December I've cut drinking out of my life almost completely in my effort to be healthy and lose weight. Even so my friends and boyfriend still encourage me to go out and party on the weekends. Sometimes its really hard for me to have fun because people comment on the fact that Im not drinking or I'm not wasted like "everyone else". It bothers me a little bit but I tend to brush it off. Occasionally I'll treat my self to a Corona with lime, a Chelada, or a dark beer but thats about it. Its a downer that I feel like I can't just let loose after a stressful week at work and school. Is anyone in my same situation? Any advice to be more confident in choosing a healthy life style??

yea it sux that beer is a waste of calories, but if you work it into you daily calorie alotment then you should be ok... i have cut down on my drinking, but i still go out i drink friday and saturday, but its a personal decision id rather drink less then not at all.

idk again you are making the responsible decision, but if its that important to you then stick with it.

ps you could try something other then beer

It's really good that you have made a choice to be healthier but I know how it feels sometimes not to be able to let loose and just drink like everyone else!! I am in the same boat. If you want to actually get -drunk- though, like meowert said you chould choose something other than beer (which doesnt have that much alcohol in at and is high cal), like vodka mixes or shots or something which would have less cals. BUT otherwise, be proud of your healthly lifestyle and ignore the comments about you not drinking, you can still have fun :)

Definatly go for something other than beer!

Wine is pretty low calorie considering the amount needed to feel the effects, to make it go further you could try a wine spritzer made with diet soda.

Also you can get a good lot of spirits for very few calories, a shot of spirit (vodka,rum,whiskey etc etc) is just 56 cal with diet soda!

do copius amounts of tequila shots. you will get drunk with fewer calories.

BONUS: you mite puke, in which case you will have acquired a calorie deficit.

god...im just kidding.

It`s quite frustrating at first, I`ve definitely been there. Good thing about it is that in a while your friends will get used to the idea and get off your back, and the comments of strangers should be much easier to discard with a 'mind your own business' type of remark.

My preferred tried and tested way to get a much more positive attitude from everyone: become the person who looks after the drunk and wasted. Just think of all the people who will owe you big time the next morning! xD

same boat for me!

i keep hearing about girls on campus who lose weight be/c they quit drinking and i did give it up for lent, yet the scale is still the same for me. it was really hard and i have gone back to drinking when i'm out just for fun. i hate to limit myself completely and its so boring if you gi to a small school liek me and there is literally nothing else to do but drink : (

maybe you could try to mix vodka with flavored sparkling water. they have it at wal-mart and i'm sure whatever your local grocery store is. theyre great! they cost about 50 cents each and come in 33 oz bottles and there's seriouslynothing in them to ruin your calorie intake

As a recent college graduate, I think I may have some wisdom for you... 

Go out and party, and don't worry about the calories.  Drink liquor.  Make up for it in the gym!  College is a great time, and I feel like I missed out on many great nights b/c I was so worried about gaining weight--and I did gain weight, but remember you only live once! 

Join intramural teams and do everything to stay active.  Sitting in your room for hours is really why the pounds start to creep up on you.  It doesn't help that the cafeteria food is horrible for you.

Now, I limit myself to drinking one night a week.  I'd like to make it more, because the 'real world' kind of sucks, but I know what I have to do!  Plus, the odds of me working out with a hangover are very low...

Also, having a rec in college was awesome, make good use of it!  Now I feel like I can't find the time to work out, and my motivation has really gone downhill--which is why I just joined cc.

Good Luck! 

yea it is pretty depressing not to drink when everyone else is drinking. you feel like your missing out.

You should try vodka with diet coke as a chaser. lowest in calories, and i've read up that it's one of the top alcohols you can have for your health. (all alcohol is bad of course)

I have always been a beer fan, my friends call me a man and a frat boy, but I like what I like!

I would try the low carb beer so you don't feel like you're depriving yourself, but make sure that you aren't eating other empty carbs when you're going to drink.

the ghetto?

do you go to university of dayton?

i do ( :

haha that's what our senior student neighborhood is called, if you don't go there :P

Yeah its called the student ghetto because its just huge neighborhood that has nothing but college kids. Its pretty fun! They have a bunch of 24 hr places to eat and a bunch of shops like clothing, co-ops, ethic eateries and tattoo shops lol. I go to The University of New Mexico. :]

liquor

oh, also i love that neighborhood. i live in oregon but my best friend lives there. enjoy the sunshine! and go for liquor.

Man I love to drink. I usually make it vodka and diet coke (thankfully the only time I drink diet sodas, or sodas of any kind.) I figure out how much I want to drink so that I can plan my days' calories around that figure. Thankfully I live in a sharehouse myself so I'm able to control exactly what I eat.

However, avoiding the 2am snack attack is another thing altogether...

Yea. Alcohol is 7cal/g...that's almost like fat which is 9cal/g. I totally understand how hard it can be at times because some people don't understand why others chose not to drink so much. Haha. One thing I hope is that you don't smoke...because Cigaretts are inducers for lung cancer...and alcohol is a promoter. So if you put the two things together....uh...most likely will get lung cancer, which is the most common cancer in the US. Haha. I learned it in my toxicology class. Hope this helps!