I tried to like this but then I found it does take two (bud select 55 cals) compared to one (coors light 100 cals) because it only has half the alcohol! :eek:

And no problem cubbyprincess! :)

I too was going to suggest a wine spritzer...Of course nothing beats a good glass of wine, if you are going to have more than one, cut it...you get used to it.

I sometimes find wine too overpowering now and yeasty.

Tips for getting off the booze
 

Hey

I'm attempting to lose some weight coupled with not drinking for the whole of August.

Does anyone have any tips for giving up the drink? I'm slightly concerned that as a yoyo dieter I may turn to food to replace the drink.

Thanks

What kind of booze? Beer or liquor? I can speak for beer. I've switched to light beer and I love it and refuse to give it up. I'll have maybe 1 or 2 a week now, and only when I really really want one. I don't think it's necessary to give up light beers as long as your tracking it.

As far a liquor, I just have a natural tendency to not crave it. The last time I had a gin and tonic was about 6 months ago. Although I could have one any day now, just for the hell of it. :D

MK,

I had the opposite effect, I did more snacking when I was drinking.

I suppose you could substitute flavored seltzer water as the beverage, water didn't work for me. For snacks, i just prepped celery sticks, carrots, peppers etc that way if I had an attack, healthy choices were available.

Good luck.
Dave

Best way to give up the booze is to not have it handy and avoid those situations that lead you to consume it. I have to make up my mind before I go out with friends that I am not drinking -- when I am not drinking. I may join you in giving up booze Sept 1st. Too many reasons to drink in August! LOL Including spending a week to 10 days with all my kids and 10 grandkids under one roof in Florida.

Alcohol often lowers your resistance to food. I'm in more danger of over eating if drinking wine. Mary

Ya, that was also a tough one for me.
Too keep my mind off of it, I joined a gym and practically worked out every day- sometimes twice a day for a year or so.
I was either too tired to even think about it or felt to good to ruin the natural high that heavy lifting & cardio would give me.
I would also think of all the empty calories that I would consume if I drank and how crappy I would feel after all the hard work I just out into my workout, especially when my abs were starting to show some definition, I did not want to screw that up over some beers;)- It's a mental game and you just have to outsmart yourself.

Once I got passed the cravings, it got easier and now that I'm in a maintenance mode, I still occasionally drink beers, but in moderation.

Well, I had a pretty good daily alcohol habit (50oz of beer or 6-8 oz. of vodka), followed by eating anything that wasn't nailed down due to the booze removing any shred of "food conscience" that I might have had. That is a recipe for disaster (well, unless you WANT to tip the scales at over 400 pounds).

When I made my lifestyle change on May 5th, 2010 I tried drinking beer once a week. That was OK but the loses eventually slowed. So, I switched to a planned once a month "day off". If I want to drink on that day, no problem, and eat whatever (without going totally nuts) that's fine, too.

I did (and do) make sure to log EVERYTHING, the good, the bad and the ugly that I consume on those days.

Now I've had some 3K or 4K calorie days during the last year and a half and I still lose. This summer I've had probably three or four days that I've equalled or exceeded my burn.

BUT, and here's the catch, you CANNOT DO IT ALL THE TIME!

So if you're not ready to give up the alcohol (and I sure do understand why you might not), plan for one day a month to drink however much you want. It gives you something to look forward to, and it isn't "cheating" because you're planning for it and logging it into your food journal.

Oh, and the only three things I drink are water, black coffee and alcohol (good beer and tequila, usually). All may other calories are from reasonably good food and I keep around a 40/30/30 carb/protein/fat mix.

Regards,
Michael

"BUT, and here's the catch, you CANNOT DO IT ALL THE TIME! "


Sound advice. I'm new to keeping track of daily calories, and right now I'm on fire really going gung-ho. But I can imagine that if I ever got to the point where I didn't give myself a break, a treat once in a while, that I'd get totally turned off to the whole idea. I don't want to ever get to THAT point.

Thanks for replies.

I do eat crap when I'm drunk and it's beer that i drink. I'm seriously doing it. Got to beat my demons so I WILL make it through the whole of August.

I'll keep you up to date