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Recommend the best alcohol to drink when trying to keep your weight down.

  • 25-11-2009 12:47PM
    #1
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 574 ✭✭✭


    Hi Folks.

    Does anyone know what is the best alcohol to drink when keeping an eye on your weight.

    A little bit about me first:

    I’m 34 yo. Male. Try to drink only once a week, but sometimes twice, i.e. Friday and Saturday night.

    I eat well, fruit and good food in general. I don’t eat sweets very often and seldom eat fast food or any fried food.

    However I feel the ol boozereeny is the cause of any weight a put weight on.:(

    Particularly in the winter when I’m not getting out for exercise, and not to mention Christmas :eek:

    So what is the best drink to drink?!?!?

    I drink Guinness in the winter (not purposely, I just get a goo every October that lasts till March).
    Then during the summer I drink Cider or Beer.

    I drink red and white wine all year round.:P

    Spirits wise I drink vodka or gin.

    I don’t care what I drink in front of others, i.e. wine in a pub, no bother!!!:pac:

    So does anyone have any recommendations?

    Thanks in advance Folks.

    Brian


«1

Comments

  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 78,772 ✭✭✭✭Victor


    It would be best to go with something that is low or no alcohol and sugar.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,260 ✭✭✭jdivision


    If you do a search I think rubadub has done something on this before and Guinness was the best of the beers. Not sure about spirits but suppose it's the mixer that'd be the killer.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 574 ✭✭✭oldscoil


    jdivision wrote: »
    If you do a search I think rubadub has done something on this before and Guinness was the best of the beers. Not sure about spirits but suppose it's the mixer that'd be the killer.

    Wow, Thats interesting about the Guinnah, I always the "Guinness Belly" awaited me in my future life!!! :eek:


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 6,154 ✭✭✭Dolbert


    Guinness belly is often created by the chipper afterwards ;)

    Best alcoholic drink calorie/ carb wise is a spirit with sugar free mixer.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 605 ✭✭✭foundry


    Guinness has the lowest fat while cider has the highest! Beer falls somewhere in between

    Wine is full of fat too like cider.

    Spirits are the best with a diet mixer.

    Or would you drink bud light or bulmers light?


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,114 ✭✭✭corkcomp


    foundry wrote: »
    Guinness has the lowest fat while cider has the highest! Beer falls somewhere in between

    Wine is full of fat too like cider.

    Spirits are the best with a diet mixer.

    Or would you drink bud light or bulmers light?

    OMG, total crap! there is NO FAT in any of the drinks mentioned. you may be confusing sugar / calorie content with fat?


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 33 Grafenwalder


    Less of the attitude?

    I reckon foundry meant sugar and calories... and guess what they turn into?
    Fat.

    OP ~ Spirits with diet mixers all the way

    Best of luck with it, it's hard! we've all been there!!


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 1,885 ✭✭✭Getwellsoon


    guinness, beer and cider are the worst things to drink, with wine following closely behind!

    I'd go for whiskey on the rocks personally, not very ladylike but hey I love whiskey! Or a spirit with a low cal mixer -

    whiskey with low cal ginger ale (tescos own brand is cheap and nice) or coke zero, vodka with sugarfree redbull type drinks or coke zero, rum and coke zero, southern comfort and 7up free...

    most spirits have the same number of calories per shot.


  • Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 5,671 ✭✭✭BraziliaNZ


    A bottle of red has only 5 or 6 hundred kcals. I have lost a stone and a half lately, not that i was really overweight in first place but i'm trying to get ripped.
    Most weeks I would have maybe 4 pints on a Thursday, 5 or 6 on Friday, and I lose count on saturdays, and maybe a few on Sundays. I drink Stout mostly, or lager at home.
    I don't know about others but beer doesn't seem to affect my body-weight at all. I think you piss most of it out or something. It is hard to suppress the drunk hunger pangs i get when walking past the chipper beside my house but it has to be done.
    So yeah I don't really believe in this beer-belly mullarkey, I know loads of skinny alcoholics. It's down to calories consumed from food, it has to be, otherwise I'd have a beer belly.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,114 ✭✭✭corkcomp


    BraziliaNZ wrote: »
    A bottle of red has only 5 or 6 hundred kcals. I have lost a stone and a half lately, not that i was really overweight in first place but i'm trying to get ripped.
    Most weeks I would have maybe 4 pints on a Thursday, 5 or 6 on Friday, and I lose count on saturdays, and maybe a few on Sundays. I drink Stout mostly, or lager at home.
    I don't know about others but beer doesn't seem to affect my body-weight at all. I think you piss most of it out or something. It is hard to suppress the drunk hunger pangs i get when walking past the chipper beside my house but it has to be done.
    So yeah I don't really believe in this beer-belly mullarkey, I know loads of skinny alcoholics. It's down to calories consumed from food, it has to be, otherwise I'd have a beer belly.

    yeah id sort of agree with most of that .. ive never found alcohol to cause too much weight gain, as long as diet is good. i have a feeling if i consumed the same calories in food that it might cause weight gain, dunno really .. a lot of people who think they have "beer bellies" are simply taking in too many calories from food and not doing enough exercise ...


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  • Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 5,671 ✭✭✭BraziliaNZ


    corkcomp wrote: »
    yeah id sort of agree with most of that .. ive never found alcohol to cause too much weight gain, as long as diet is good. i have a feeling if i consumed the same calories in food that it might cause weight gain, dunno really .. a lot of people who think they have "beer bellies" are simply taking in too many calories from food and not doing enough exercise ...

    yeah like if a pint of guinness is 250 cals or whatever, I'd be consuming maybe 5500 cals from beer alone over the weekend, not including food.

    What's up with that?


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 1,885 ✭✭✭Getwellsoon


    yeah I also agree, when I was on a diet I never counted calories from drink because I'd only drink once or twice a week. I think if you drink more often that is where the problems start to show, i.e. a beer belly! It is definitely down to eating sensibly rather than drink, but be aware that when you are drunk you are more likely to feel hungry and want to eat something to soak up the alcohol... and it's usually a chipper that's nearest when these cravings kick in! So make a healthy choice when you're out, if possible, like a veggie kebab, or something veggie and not fried from the chinese. Or eat a nice filling healthy meal before you drink! The drink itself though, in moderation, should not do you any harm if you drink sensibly and not too many high calorie mixers / glasses of sweeter stuff like wine!


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 32,386 ✭✭✭✭rubadub


    I made long post here about it.

    http://boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=57902740&postcount=10

    In short, my personal best/recommended would aged rum with diet 7up. And as mentioned most people have chipper bellies, not beer bellies.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 24 red barron


    vodka contain no carbs and no calories...... the problem then is what to mix it with. if you chose diet coke or sprite zero you are effectively taking no calories carbs proteins just pure alcohol.

    the best way to drink and lose weight. just look at the amount of girls who drink vodka and zero sprite


  • Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 5,671 ✭✭✭BraziliaNZ


    red barron wrote: »
    vodka contain no carbs and no calories

    you wanna back that up?


  • Posts: 53,068 ✭✭✭✭ [Deleted User]


    When on my sugar free diets I would always go with Vodka & Diet 7up/coke, but my old personal trainer (damier maher) told me that Red Wine is the (as he put it) 'least worst'. He would never actually say that any alcoholic drink is ok mind you!


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 32,386 ✭✭✭✭rubadub


    my old personal trainer (damier maher) told me that Red Wine is the (as he put it) 'least worst'.
    But "least worst" in what respects? there are a phenomenal amount of myths surrounding alcohol, some have been touched upon in this thread. There is no doubt about it though, the lowest calories per unit alcohol is unsweetened spirits it is just scientific fact, as they contain no other nutritional properties, your wine & beer will have some proteins and carbs in them, distilling separates the alcohol from these leftover substances from the brewing process.

    The trainer might have had other things in mind, e.g. health benefits from low amounts of red wine, the tendency not to mix it with sugary mixers etc. I never drink spirits in pubs since they are a bloody rip off!


  • Posts: 53,068 ✭✭✭✭ [Deleted User]


    rubadub wrote: »
    But "least worst" in what respects? there are a phenomenal amount of myths surrounding alcohol, some have been touched upon in this thread. There is no doubt about it though, the lowest calories per unit alcohol is unsweetened spirits it is just scientific fact, as they contain no other nutritional properties, your wine & beer will have some proteins and carbs in them, distilling separates the alcohol from these leftover substances from the brewing process.

    The trainer might have had other things in mind, e.g. health benefits from low amounts of red wine, the tendency not to mix it with sugary mixers etc. I never drink spirits in pubs since they are a bloody rip off!

    Well he was a carbaphobe and reckoned that if you had to drink, red wine was the best for losing/watching your weight. I would agree with you though, vodka and diet mixers are the the way to go. That's what I would drink when on a diet.


  • Users Awaiting Email Confirmation Posts: 5,620 ✭✭✭El_Dangeroso


    Completely based on personal experience I lose faster with only clean spirits, but I've lost while drinking wine too. I know some people who don't lose weight when they drink wine too so it may be a case of 'your mileage may vary'.


  • Posts: 53,068 ✭✭✭✭ [Deleted User]


    Completely based on personal experience I lose faster with only clean spirits, but I've lost while drinking wine too. I know some people who don't lose weight when they drink wine too so it may be a case of 'your mileage may vary'.

    Well my dad lost a ton of weight when he changed to red wine - but that was from guinness so that's a big change.

    When I did weight watchers, the leader used to drill it into us that a bottle of wine was only 7 points and if we did the core plan and kept all of our 21 treat points for the weekend we could have 3 bottles of wine a week - responsible eh!!!!


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 40,536 ✭✭✭✭Mellor


    red barron wrote: »
    vodka contain no carbs and no calories......
    This post clearly shows the dangers of believe what you read on the internet.

    Yes vodka has no carbs, and no fat, and also no protein.


    Does this mean no calories. Of course not.
    Alcohol also contains calories. It actual contains more per gram than carbs (although less than fat)


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,991 ✭✭✭metamorphosis


    Red barron - some bottles of smirnoff vodka have some calorie and nutritional info on the back. Take a look and see how many calories it actually has! You will be shocked considering you think it's calorie free!!


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,461 ✭✭✭--Kaiser--


    Whiskey and Water


  • Users Awaiting Email Confirmation Posts: 5,620 ✭✭✭El_Dangeroso


    --Kaiser-- wrote: »
    Whiskey and Water

    Aw hell yeah!


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,798 ✭✭✭gerrycollins


    in WW any spirit is 1.5 points it depends on the mixer. Any diet mixer is 0 points, low sugar red bull is 3(?), and anything else just aint worth it.

    Any larger,cider or stout is between 4 and 6 points per pint

    any larger shandy made with diet 7up is 3 points per pint,best choice by volume here personally

    Light beers not to be confused with lite beers.

    Light beers include Bud light,Bulmers Light are 1.5 points per 33cl btls.

    lite beers are just light on your stomach like Coors.

    A full bottle of wine is somthing in the region of 12 points ie 2 points per glass 6 glasses per bottle.

    the is WW wine but dunno taste as I'm not personally wine drinker.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,991 ✭✭✭metamorphosis


    Aw hell yeah!

    EEK! Ye made my stomach churn!

    Whiskey is evil. I once tried vodka and soda water ... not a hugh fan either. Spirits are not my firend in general.

    OP a spirit with soda water/diet mixer is the best when trying to keep the weight down and diet mixers speed up alchohol absorption so less drink to have same effects as you might get downing several more beers etc.

    For me it guiness all the way.


  • Users Awaiting Email Confirmation Posts: 5,620 ✭✭✭El_Dangeroso


    ULstudent wrote: »
    EEK! Ye made my stomach churn!

    Whiskey is evil..

    Oi! It's not called Uisce Beatha for nuthin! ;)


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 32,386 ✭✭✭✭rubadub


    Well my dad lost a ton of weight when he changed to red wine - but that was from guinness so that's a big change.
    Guinness is fairly dry, many sweeter red wines would have more calories per unit alcohol. Some people drink to get drunk, some drink in fixed "numbers", i.e. will have 8 "drinks", even though a 35.5ml shot of 37.5ml spirits has the same alcohol as about half a pint. It can be like people eating "airy" bars like malteasers, aero, wispa, they are low in calories simply since they are low in portion size.

    I would guess guinness is around about the same calories as most red wines (per unit alcohol), but you may tend to drink less, and that may be the reason he lost weight. Go for dry wines if you want less calories
    --Kaiser-- wrote: »
    Whiskey and Water
    Be careful as some whiskies contain sugar, as do other spirits.
    in WW any spirit is 1.5 points it depends on the mixer.
    It would depend on the strength, also I am not sure if you are talking about irish 35.5ml measures, or UK 25ml measures. The rounding of points can cause confusion, if a beer is 1.2 then it is listed as 1, if it is 1.3 it is listed as 1.5, so 10 bottles is really 12 or 13 points, but when rounding it is 10 or 15 points. So always multiply up to your actual amounts before calculating.


  • Users Awaiting Email Confirmation Posts: 5,620 ✭✭✭El_Dangeroso


    rubadub wrote: »
    Be careful as some whiskies contain sugar, as do other spirits.

    Yeah but only bourbon and american whiskeys, they don't deserve to be called whiskeys the heathens! Scotch and Irish have trace sugars if any.


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,183 ✭✭✭dioltas


    rubadub wrote: »
    Be careful as some whiskies contain sugar, as do other spirits.

    Really? Is jameson ok? What about smirnoff vodka?
    Southern comfort is really sweet imo so I wouldn't be surprised. What about Captain Morgans?


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