First off, what is alcohol, really? Or better yet, what ISN'T alcohol? Alcohol is not a protein, carbohydrate, or fat. Alcohol is, well, alcohol. It has 7 calories per gram. Protein, carbs, and fat all have nutritional value but alcohol has none. Alcohol calories are completely "empty" calories. Alcohol is also a toxin, or a foreign substance you're introducing to your body. Very little ingested alcohol is actually stored in our system (in our fat, specifically). Instead, it is prioritized and removed from our system. It is expelled in several different ways, including the following: in your breath, tears, carried out in urine, and through oxidation in the liver. The process in the liver turns alcohol into acetate which then becomes your body's primary fuel source. Put simply, the body will stop burning fat as fuel in order to metabolize the alcohol. Alcohol basically shuts down normal metabolism and stops fat burning. It also prevents the body from processing any food you consume (the food that's still in your body by the end of the night, that is) which means that your kung pao chicken will then be stored as fat. Alcohol is also a diuretic, and with increased trips to the bathroom, alcohol leads to dehydration. As your body loses more and more water, you also lose minerals that are very valuable in physiological processes, negatively affecting the body's performance, kinda' slowing things down. Oh, and let's not forget the many negative effects alcohol has on the liver, nervous system, stomach, etc. Sheesh. I think I'm bummin' myself out.
Another effect of partaking in the spirits, or so I've heard, is alcohol can skew your thinking, diminish your will power, and lower your inhibitions. I found this terribly hard to believe until the Great Cisco's Happy Hour Incident of 2003, but that is a whole other blog :-) Moving on. Alcohol is also an appetite stimulant. Combine this with your lowered level of self-control, and who knows what kind of deep-fried-smoothered-in-melted-cheese-dipped-in-ranch mistake you might stumble in to. SOOOOO, if you've been keeping up so far, alcohol slows your system down, causes foods to turn to fat easier, and can cause you to eat more "bad" foods. Yikes. This is probably killing some of you right now, but fear not! There's hope.
The truth is, if you are in the process of "getting fit", meaning you are still working to achieve a certain goal, be it in regards to your weight, or fitness, or both, then, to be honest, it is hard to justify drinking alcohol. There is just no upside and too many negatives. So, if you are working really hard at attaining fitness goals, and you absolutely must drink, keep drinking at a minimum and choose the lowest calorie alcohols and mixers. Just remind yourself that every time you go boozin' you are taking a multitude of steps backwards for every hard-earned step forward. BUT...
If you have worked hard, stuck to a plan, and attained your physial fitness goals, you are in the clear...sorta'. If you are in what we'll call "maintenance mode", then drinking responsibly is no big deal. Seriously, it's not. Let's face it, most of us like to drink alcohol. It's at parties. It's great for relaxing. It goes great with a hearty meal. So drink up, but remember, in regards to your physical fitness, the key is drinking "responsibly." I am what you might call a "90/10" guy. It's a simple method or "gauge" which means that if you spend 90% of the time eating right, exercising, and taking care of yourself, then use the other 10% of time to have a few beers, eat that cheesecake, or put some extra mustard and ketchup on that corndog. I like to think that through the 90, I have earned the 10, elliminating a lot of the guilt that goes with the occasional bowl or two or five of Cap'N Crunch with Crunch Berries. You earned it. Live a little.
Here are some quick tips to manage alcohol consumption in a fitness lifestyle:
1) Do NOT drink during a fat loss program. The "negatives" are too numerous to list.
2) Do NOT drink daily. Save it for happy hour on Friday or that party on Saturday night. (but not consecutively)
3) Manage your food intake. When you know you will be drinking, try and eat nutritiously going into it.
4) Sneak a few non-alcoholic drinks in between cocktails, a.k.a. HYDRATE! Water works best (duh).
3) Manage your food intake. When you know you will be drinking, try and eat nutritiously going into it.
4) Sneak a few non-alcoholic drinks in between cocktails, a.k.a. HYDRATE! Water works best (duh).
5) Most importantly: ENJOY WITHOUT GUILT! If you choose to drink, and you normally lead a healthy lifestyle, do NOT beat yourself up afterwards. Remember, you earned it.
