Thankfully, it turns out, you don’t have to give up that occasional drink in order to lose weight. We’ll cheers to that!
Multiple scientific reports have analysed the actual effects of alcohol on our body weight, and concluded that light-to-moderate alcohol intake is not associated with weight gain.
Just to clarify, this means one drink a day for women and two drinks a day for men – any more is considered ‘heavier’ drinking and is more related to weight gain.
You shouldn’t have to put your social life on hold in order to reach your weight loss goals; in fact, trying to do that can make it much harder. The more you obsess about your diet and workouts, the more likely you are to have a blow out or lose your motivation entirely.
Also read: 8 Ways to Change Your Relationship to Food
So whilst this news doesn’t give you permission to guzzle down a bottle of champagne at your next social outing, it does mean you can relax a little, and enjoy that glass of red wine with dinner you’ve been avoiding.
So, what’s the healthiest way to enjoy an occasional glass of vino, without totally ruining your ‘balanced’ lifestyle? P-L-A-N!
Try some of these useful tips at your next social event:
Always go with the intent to not overindulge
If you’ve got a mental plan of what to expect, you’re far more likely to follow through. Before you go to the event, tell yourself over and over again that you’re not going to lose control or go overboard. Set yourself a limit of one or two drinks and stick to it! No buts.
Drink quality over quantity
Find a beverage that you truly enjoy the taste of and stick to it. Perhaps it’s a glass of full-bodied shiraz, a light and fresh semillon, or a cold crisp beer? Whatever you choose, sip it slowly (say goodbye to shots!) and savour the taste. This way you’ll learn to appreciate alcohol, rather than just guzzling it down for the resultant ‘buzz’.
Hydrate with H20
Alcohol strips the body of water, so anytime you plan to be enjoy a drink, pre-hydrate with a large glass or two of water beforehand. Also, get into the habit of drinking one glass of water for every alcoholic drink – sparkling water and fresh lime is always a tasty favourite! You may even realise that you don’t want alcohol, but just want the feeling of a drink in your hand.
If you choose to party hard, workout even harder!
If you make the choice to consume a couple more than you know you should have, commit to working extra hard in your workout the next day. Set a goal to train either at a higher intensity or for a longer duration than usual. Why not schedule in a training session with a friend for the morning after? It’ll give you an excuse to say ‘no’ to another drink and force you to go home at a reasonable hour.
