If you wine now, don’t whine later!

Three weeks ago, I came to you with confession time. The Hamster was out of control and needed to reel the reigns back in. For those that missed that post, you can read more about it HERE.  No more excuses, it was time to take control and get back on track.  It’s been an interesting few weeks between dining out, travel and training, but it has been a success!  Time to send out an update on where things are a month later.

Ask anyone, the road to healthy is never easy.  We have obstacles around every corner and challenges to face.  There have been thousands of articles written on the best tips for weight loss, healthy lifestyles and everything in between.  The trick is finding what works for YOU!  Just because something worked for your mom/sister/coworker or friend doesn’t meant that it is going to work for you.

I am back to tracking my food daily. Not just what I eat for meals, but EVERYTHING I eat or drink.  When I have to log what I am putting into my mouth, it makes me think twice sometimes about my choices.  I found quickly that I was reaching for fresh fruits and vegetables for snacks, instead of chips or other snacks.  Veggies have come to join us for dinners more often and often fill more of my plate that anything else.  Don’t get me wrong, I still enjoy meats and potatoes, but I have been sticking with boneless skinless chicken or turkey and other lean meats whenever possible.

When you are tracking what you eat you can see where a little here and a little there can add up over the course of a day or even a week.

The biggest thing that I realized once I started being honest about what I was eating and drinking was how often I was grabbing a glass of wine or bourbon in the evening.  Once in a while is one thing, but  I realized that my once in a while, had turned into grabbing a glass of wine each night with dinner or a few cocktails on a Friday night when together with friends.  Those glasses of yumminess can add up after time.  When I had to start tracking this, it really made me stop and think about my choices.  Yes, I still do enjoy that glass of wine or a cocktail, but it is only occasionally now… and making smart choices about those beverages.

 

How big of a deal are those beverages?  Here’s a few things to consider when making those choices…

Average calories in some of our favorite beverages:
5oz glass of wine = 125
12oz can/bottle of been = 150
12oz bottle of cider = 200
1oz whiskey = 70

Keep in mind, these are just averages!  Dry vs Sweet wine, lite beer vs a full body one, spirits and mixers. Take the time to really understand your options and how it will fit into your plan!

When it comes to wine, dry wine contains fewer calories than sweet: 106 calories for 5 ounces of dry wine and a whopping 226 calories for 5 ounces of sweet dessert wine.  Now, answer my honestly, how many times do you really only drink one glass of wine?  And if so, do you know that it was only 5oz?  My guess is probably not!

A 12oz beer can vary from 65 calories, on up to 200, depending on the variety you choose!  Non-alcoholic beer actually has the same calories as beer with alcohol: 148 calories in 12 ounces. Drinking light beer, you’ll only take in 99 calories per 12 ounces.

The calories in gin, rum, vodka or whiskey depends on the proof, which is twice the percentage of alcohol. For example, 90 proof vodka contains 45 percent alcohol; 100 proof contains 50 percent alcohol. And it’s easy to guess which has more calories: The higher the proof, the higher the calories.  And then you need to account for the mixers that you add with your choice of spirit! (Let’s just say I learned the hard way when it comes to ordering a Whiskey Old Fashioned here in Wisconsin!)

Adding it all up, One beer every night adds 1,036 additional calories per week, or 15 pounds, to your stomach per year. (No wonder they call it a beer belly). Three glasses of dry wine a week will cost you 318 calories, which takes an additional three miles on the treadmill just to walk off the extra calories.

I’m not saying that you need to stop drinking all alcohol, but keep it real and be honest with yourself on how many times you reach for this guilty pleasure!

Now keep in mind, it’s not all just about the calories in your beverages.  There are sugars and fats that can be found in them too.
* Remember that the calories from alcohol add up quickly, and they go straight to the fat in your abdomen.
* Don’t drink alcohol on a regular basis.
* Most people eat high calorie snacks when they drink alcohol, a double whammy in terms of weight gain.

So here we are, a month later.  I started paying attention to the chilly beverages, started being honest with myself about what I was eating and how much I was exercising and I am happy to say I have seen success over the last 4 weeks.  I am down just over 8 pounds, feel great and and an motivated to keep moving forward!

Oh yeah, those jeans that I couldn’t even button last month…They are still snug, but at least I can button them now!

Have you had an ah-ha moment?  Something that you didn’t even realize you were doing?  I’d love to hear your realizations!  The more we pay attention to what we are doing, what we are eating and how much we are moving, the better opportunity we have to reach our goals!

Let’s keep moving forward!