When you are trying to lose weight, it is normal to focus on exercise, eating healthy foods, and looking for reduced-calorie options, but many forget about their beverages. A 12-ounce can of classic Coke has about 155 calories in it, and there is zero nutritional benefit from these calories. Another thing many people do not take into account is alcohol, but it can significantly affect your weight loss progress in ways even beyond extra calorie consumption.
Today, we are going to take a look at how alcohol can actually make it harder for you to lose weight, how it affects your appetite, and why it is important to think about your drink choices if you are trying to shed some pounds.
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Alcohol and Calories
One of the biggest reasons alcohol can keep you from losing weight is that it is full of empty calories. Alcohol alone contains about 7 calories per gram, which is almost as many calories as fat (which has 9 calories per gram). Many drinks contain other ingredients that are full of sugar, which significantly boosts the calorie content; for example, a cosmopolitan martini can have between 150 and 180 calories, and a strawberry daiquiri can contain a whopping 300 calories.
When you drink alcoholic beverages, you are consuming extra calories without getting any nutritional value, so these calories do not provide any health benefits or help you to feel full. They just make it harder to create the necessary calorie deficit that will result in weight loss. Some other popular alcoholic beverages and their calorie content include:
* Calorie amounts can vary depending on the brand, size, or specific ingredients used in each drink.
Does Alcohol Make You Lose Weight?
No, alcohol can significantly inhibit your weight loss journey for many reasons beyond just the empty calories. Other ways that consuming alcohol can influence your weight loss success include:
Alcohol Can Make You Feel Hungrier
Drinking alcohol can cause your appetite to increase because alcohol affects the brain and can interrupt the signals it transmits about hunger. Normally, your body sends cues to tell you when it is full and satisfied, but alcohol can disrupt this process. Also, studies have shown that when you introduce alcohol into your system, your brain releases certain chemicals that make you feel more relaxed and less concerned about what you are doing, which can contribute to unhealthy food choices or eating too much.
Drinking Can Impact Blood Sugar Balance
Alcohol also has an impact on your blood sugar levels and can cause your blood sugar level to drop and trigger feelings of hunger. As your body’s natural survival mode kicks in and tries to return things to normal, food cravings can set in, making you desire unhealthy choices that are high in fat and carbohydrates, like chips, pizza, or fried foods. You eat more than you normally would, even when you are not hungry, because your brain and body are responding to the effects of the alcohol.
Alcohol Adversely Affects Your Metabolism
Another way alcohol can hinder your weight loss progress is by interfering with your metabolism. Your body is designed to convert food to energy and to filter out what it deems to be toxic, so your liver immediately shifts its focus to breaking down the alcohol you have consumed, which it considers a toxin, and puts a hold on the metabolism of fats, carbs, and proteins. This significantly slows down the rate at which you burn calories and can actually cause your body to store fat.
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Alcohol Can Cause Hormone Imbalances
Drinking alcohol can affect your level of hormones like cortisol and insulin, which are both largely involved in how efficiently your metabolism works. Cortisol is often referred to as your “stress hormone” because it is most often released during times of stress as part of your body’s “fight or flight” instinct.
Your body also becomes less responsive to insulin, meaning your cells do not absorb glucose as efficiently and it makes it harder for your body to burn fat. High levels of cortisol and insulin resistance prompt your body to begin to store fat for future use rather than burn it for energy right away, which results in weight gain.
Drinking Alcohol Can Cause Dehydration
Alcohol can dehydrate your body and deplete essential vitamins and minerals you need for your metabolism to function properly.
Drinking Alcohol Can Tank Your Willpower
When you drink alcohol, it does more than just affect your body physically; it also affects your ability to make well-thought-out decisions. This could make it easier to make poor food choices, and you may eat too much or give in to cravings that you might have resisted if you were sober.
Drinking Alcohol Can Affect Your Sleep
Another thing that can happen if you drink is that it can keep you from getting a good night’s sleep. At first, alcohol can make you feel drowsy, but it can majorly disrupt your sleep cycle. Many people do not know how much sleep or lack of it can impact their ability to lose weight. When you do not get enough quality sleep, your hormones that regulate hunger and fullness become imbalanced. This can lead to cravings for high-calorie foods the next day and can cause you to eat more than you should. Also, poor sleep can decrease your energy levels, which makes it harder to exercise and stay active, which is necessary for losing weight.
So the bottom line is that when you drink, your body puts a pause on its normal rate of calorie burn and other metabolic processes to clear out the alcohol first. It messes with your hormone levels and your quality of sleep and triggers your body to store fat instead of processing it for energy, and it increases the likelihood of you eating unhealthy foods, overeating, and basically sabotaging all your other weight loss efforts.
How Do You Avoid Drinking Alcohol At Social Events?
We have covered many ways that drinking alcohol can hold you back when you are trying to lose weight, but you may find yourself in a social situation where it is challenging to resist. Not only do you have to resist something you may enjoy, but you might also face significant peer pressure when choosing not to drink. Here are a few strategies that can help you enjoy the event while gracefully avoiding alcohol and sabotaging your weight loss goals:
- Carry around a non-alcoholic beverage like sparkling water or a mocktail in your hand to deter others from offering you alcohol, as it will look to them as if you already have a drink.
- Be the designated driver so you have a solid and understandable reason to abstain from drinking, and it will also ensure the safety of your friends.
- Anticipate questions about not drinking by having polite responses ready, such as “I am focusing on health goals right now.”
- Actively participate in games, dancing, or conversations to shift the focus away from drinking and enjoy the event.
- If you are unsure about the beverage options that will be available at the event, bring your preferred non-alcoholic drink to ensure you have something you enjoy.
- Inform a trusted friend who will also be attending about your goals so they can offer encouragement and help deflect any pressure if necessary.
Having a drink every now and then may not have a huge impact on your weight, but it is important to understand that it definitely can make it harder to lose weight or even cause you to gain weight.
Where Can I Find Help With Weight Loss In New York City?
Dr. Steven Batash, with Batash Endoscopic Weight Loss Center, is a board-certified gastroenterologist with over 30 years of experience in helping patients achieve sustainable weight loss without involving surgery.
Dr. Batash and his professional team of experts offer non-surgical weight loss solutions for individuals and specialize in advanced endoscopic procedures such as the Suture Sculpt Endoscopic Sleeve and intragastric balloon placements like Orbera and Spatz3. They tailor personalized programs for each individual patient to ensure they receive the highest quality of care and support to help them reach their goals.
Set up a personalized consultation today to learn about how we can help you lose and maintain a healthy weight and permanently improve your health.
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