Can we incorporate some alcohol without stalling?

[Withasherry]

I'm a long time maintainer but now I've got to knock off a few pounds. For me, the days I have alcohol I just don't lose. This means I can have a drink once a week but write off that day.

Do some of you have alcohol during the week and still manage to drop nicely?

[Darkginger]

Yes. I have a couple of glasses of white wine a couple of evenings a week, and a few vodkas at the weekend, most weeks. I still lose, albeit probably more slowly than I would if I didn't drink. Every so often I'll have a month to 6 weeks off the booze, and drop weight more quickly. I enjoy a few drinks, I even make my own wine, so being able to incorporate it in my way of eating - for life - is important to me. I also cook with alcohol fairly often - coq au vin, chicken chasseur, salmon poached in white wine, duck with a red wine and berry sauce - that sort of thing. So long as I make sure I cut back on other carbs for those meals, I still lose. Maybe I'm just lucky!

[synger]

Nope. If I have a glass of wine, I will not see a drop for two days. More than that, and I'll probably see a gain. Part of that is water gain. The other is that after two drinks, I tend to lose all control of what not to eat, and nothing is safe.

[raindroproses]

Same here unfortunately... sometimes I can get away with drinking a glass of wine, or a (very) light beer or two and still continue losing or at least not gain. But alcohol tends to dull the hunger sensors in most people it seems, and so not only do you start to feel hungrier when perhaps you would have been otherwise sated, but you also get that bit of a blood sugar boost from the carbs and the way the alcohol interacts with your body... and that starts the cravings up again for most.

I remember the last time I went to my favorite bar, they have a freaking popcorn popper inside the bar... and they hand out FREE POPCORN. I couldn't escape without eating a couple handfuls after those couple beers convinced me I NEEDED popcorn

In other words though... YMMV. For the most part, alcohol increases hunger and cravings in those who drink it but if you're lucky enough to either escape that or ignore it, you might be okay. I do know that the body supposedly metabolizes any alcohol you consume BEFORE metabolizing fat though, so that's where the "you're not burning fat while consuming alcohol" idea comes from.

Hope that helps

[mimivac]

Alcohol seems to reduce cravings and hunger for me and I always lose after having a drink or two, mostly because I am eating a lot less.

[babycakez]

I always loose a few pounds the day after drinking but am always up a few pounds the following day. It always seems that the days that I want to drink or go out are the days that the scale is being nice to me and I don't want to mess it up by having a couple of drinks.

[picklepete]

I do well with 4 oz wine or 2 oz distilled liquor, infrequently (beer is too high GI for me).

The main hazard with alcohol is the liver making fat out of it but if you're sugar free then it's pretty safe. HC diet + soda/juice cocktails are bad news.

[Gatton]

I drink Miller Lite. It has 3.2 g carbs. I'm fine as long as I keep the rest of my carbs low. I have no problem staying away from sweets, starches, and dairy. But I love my beer; it's my only "vice".

[Jakelilydad]

I, too, have to be careful with alcohol, and try to keep it to once a week. It doesn't make me crave carbs or other junk, as long as I have something safe to nibble on, but I do stall for two days or so. Scotch, vodka, or wine are my poisons of choice.

[Rhubarb]

Originally Posted by Jakelilydad

I, too, have to be careful with alcohol, and try to keep it to once a week. It doesn't make me crave carbs or other junk, as long as I have something safe to nibble on, but I do stall for two days or so. Scotch, vodka, or wine are my poisons of choice.

I stop losing for about 3 days after I drink. And lately, it's been leaving me really dehydrated and giving me leg cramps if I fail to drink enough water. Some of that is because I'm lighter now and I have to be more careful about quantity, but I think I'm very sensitive to dehydration and have to watch it carefully.

I've consumed alcohol sporadically throughout my weight loss --- maybe once every couple of weeks --- and I suppose it's delayed me a little bit. But you have to live and since I enjoy the social aspects of drinking from time to time, I just accepted it as part of the deal.

I try to stick to vodka and soda, to which I sometimes add a little orange flavored stevia if I'm looking for some flavor. But mostly, I just keep it simple and try not to over do it.

.

[livinlarge]

I don't have issues with cravings while I'm drinking, but watch out the next day!!! My appetite is usually out of control after a night of drinking. (I'm a captain& diet girl)

[babycakez]

I had 2 rum & diets last night and woke up to see a pound lost on the scale. I have only drank 24oz of water today and had a few coke zeros. I'm having some crazy leg cramps right now and couldn't figure out why until I read a previous poster mention that it could mean that I am dehydrated and need more water. I usually see a gain the following day after losing some weight the very next morning.. so I am expecting a gain tomorrow of course. I weighed myself for fun right now and I am only up 1 pound when I'm usually up by 2-4lbs at night... curious to see what these next few days bring. If I can figure out how to be able to go out and have a few drinks every once in awhile and not have any consequences that would be awesome!

[NH_Free]

I only gave it up for a few weeks at the beginning, but I always watched my calories and had to give up some food, if I wanted a couple drinks. I'm sure it would've slowed me down, if not for that.