When asked during an interview what her thoughts were on Booze and Weight Gain; Kris Scibetta Owner and Personal Trainer of Train Your Body Fitness, LLC had this to say: When alcohol enters your body, it triggers a cascade of evil reactions. Booze will cause you to eat more, and even worse store more calories as fat. Kris says she gives her clients this plan so they can still drink and keep weight gain in check.
According to the research Kris has done she will be the first to tell you that your first drink will start a rush of feel-good endorphins in your brain. At the same time it also sparks cravings. The neurocircuitry for the pleasure you get from alcohol and food overlaps. Now you are battling cravings, shortly after that first sip, the alcohol in your brain slows activity in your rational prefrontal cortex. Your logic and willpower plummet and you cannot say no to snacks (junk food). Even worse if you sip more than one drink per hour, your liver cannot metabolize the alcohol fast enough to keep up; this leaves more booze and junk food cravings to take over your brain. You know that give me more, I want more feeling here comes the weight gain. This in turn leads to you being too irrational to resist those appetizers, your body starts telling you I am hungry. Now for the truth – you are not hungry it is the alcohol talking. You see alcohol lowers the level of hormones that help you retain water, making you dehydrated. The thirst you feel is actually registering as hunger. Not hunger at all it is dehydration – two words – DRINK WATER.
Did you know that metabolizing alcohol takes precedence over digesting food that means you burn alcohol faster than the food-based calories?
As your night of fun winds down, the weighty side effects keep adding up. Drinking causes a spike in blood sugar that prompts your pancreas to pump out extra insulin. And insulin makes you store more fat. The insulin lowers your blood-sugar levels, causing more hunger and a hankering for a big hangover brunch the next day. It is no wonder you feel bloated.
How about a slim action plan?
Eat protein pronto. Order a healthy appetizer like chicken. The lean protein will help you feel full and resist cravings for caloric snacks. As you wait for your cocktail hydrate your system by downing two glasses of water. Then between drinks drink a glass of water. You will stay hydrated and feel less hungry.
Don’t eat mindlessly. Even if it means snacking on bar nuts. High protein snacks slow alcohol absorption. Keep your consumption for the evening to a handful or two. You’ll take in around 200 calories of good fat and protein far better than an 800-calorie binge after a blood sugar crash.
Play the one-hour rule. If you are going to imbibe more than one drink nurse each one for an hour. This lets your body process the alcohol before it overpowers your brain. Plus this gives your liver time to metabolize the booze, your body can move on to burning off other calories.
What if you are asking if drinking beer will give you a beer belly? No matter what type of alcohol you’re drinking if your intake puts you into calorie overload you’ll gain weight.
Is there ways to cut down your drink calories?
Yes, Instead of a frozen margarita, which is more than 500 calories ask for one on the rocks. Frozen drinks tend to be up to three times the size of their regular counterparts. Slushy cocktails tend to be loaded with additional sugar. You will be surprised you will save 250 calories per drink.
Skip the Long Island Ice Tea 350 calories or more and include five different kinds of alcohol in favor or a whisky sour. The more varieties of liquor in your drink the higher your calorie intake, so opt for just one type. A whisky sour has similar flavors at a fraction of the caloric cost. You just saved 140 calories per drink.
Let’s talk sugar drinks.
Instead of a berry mojito order mashed strawberries combined with mint, white run and club soda. It is a great stand in for a mojito with way less sugar. Also request that the bartender substitute hunks of real fruit muddled in your glass. Instead of syrup for any fruit drink. That just saved you 70 calories per drink.
Wine drinkers think your safe?
Think again. In place of a glass of Pinot Grigio, go for a DIY wine spritzer a smaller pour of Pinot plus a splash of hydrating club soda. It is more filling and it will take longer to drink. You just saved 60 calories per drink.
Kris Scibetta Owner and Personal Trainer of Train Your Body Fitness LLC feels that keeping her clients informed helps them make informed decisions that hold them accountable for their own actions. If Kris’ clients know the consequences of having alcohol then they will know what to expect and how much harder they will need to train with her during their next training session.
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