kingston 

Beer is also a common gateway drug to chicken wings, mozzarella sticks, jalepeno poppers and other calorie dense bar food.

noglider 

I've found that I can change my diet if I don't try to do anything drastic. Cut back, don't cut out. If you really want to cut something out, do it gradually. At this point, my diet is pretty good. I eat mostly fresh whole foods and barely any alcohol at all, around one beer or wine per week. As I cut back on things I enjoy, the cravings go down. This is what works for me and may not work for others.

KDTX

This makes sense as a single Martini or Gin on the rocks, etc. is probably going to "take the edge off your day" a little quicker than the 3-4 beers. (Hence only having one or possibly two).

Damn...the craft beer which I enjoy and is hugely popular right now is about 175 calories per 12oz for an IPA. This is versus 60-75 calories for a Vodka or Gin on the rocks or Martini.

It was also mentioned to do away with the beer during dinner. Good point!

KDTX

This is a good statement, seems logical and doable!

canklecat

Discovering good local craft beer has cut way back on my beer drinking. I'm pickier now. Pretty much the only time I can drink a cheap beer like Busch, Lone Star or Miller is with Mexican food, BBQ or pizza. Otherwise I'd rather skip the beer completely.

Best thing the nearest grocery store could do was eliminate its craft beer selection several months ago. That meant a 20 mile round trip bike ride to the next nearest store with a good selection of craft beers.

Worst thing the nearest grocery store did recently was to start carrying New Belgium beers besides Fat Tire. I dislike Fat Tire -- tastes like leather marinated in steak sauce. But Voodoo Ranger and Citradelic are delicious, both very similar to some of the best local craft beers. So now I buy a 12 pack and try to make it last a couple of weeks, just sipping one a night.

I'd bet most of my empty calories still come from eating carbs when I'm not burning 'em off with a bike ride. But until my weight climbs back closer to 165 I don't worry about it.

FBinNY 

I tend to do a decent job managing my weight within a band of 20 pounds or so. When it begins to creep up I tighten up slightly, usually only cutting out (or back) on one thing ie. nightly ice cream, or shift to a more careful lunch.

My key to not feeling like I'm dieting is to use what I call the satisfaction index. Meaning the amount of any food (in calories or volume) that it takes to feel satisfied. That's the logic behind good hard liquors vs. beer.

But even with beers, I doubt anyone would tend to drink as much Guinness Stout as Bud Light. IMO most of the major brews are designed not to satisfy, the intent being that you finish off a six pack at one sitting.

I apply the same rules to all foods, finding that stronger flavored foods tend to satisfy sooner, ie. nobody eats cheeses like Roquefort or very sharp Cheddars in the same qualtity as they would a mild Swiss or Cheddar.

So, while most people dieting give up things they really like, I do the exact opposite, eating ONLY what I really like, and giving up stuff I don't care about. What I cut back on mostly are the high carb snacks, such as potato chips, and when I do eat them I make sure to buy smaller bags, because I've learned that I'll eat an entire bag and stop regardless of size.

So, don't give up those craft beers, just determine to on a limit, say 2 at a time, 3 times a week, and stay away from the potato chips, onion rings and fries when drinking them, unless you're going to call that dinner, which is what I'll do from time to time.

If you work it right you won't feel your giving up anything at all, just trading stuff off and managing it more carefully. When thinking about a snack or the extra beer, ask yourself do you really want it, and what you'd have to do to offset it. In short ask yourself if it's

Seattle Forrest

There's a lot of wisdom in FBinNY's post directly above. I found myself nodding my head several times. He gives a perfect example of what I mean by "everything in moderation ... including moderation."

noglider 

Right. Now that I eat more high quality foods, I don't like the lower quality stuff as much. I only eat fries a few times a year, when they're homemade, like when I make them myself. Crappy frozen fries from a restaurant aren't worth it to me.

Drew Eckhardt 

While I used to drink 2 beers a night
1. I stopped having any the night before VO2max Mondays (usually 3x10 or 4x10 at 110% of FTP, but I still liked the alliteration) because those can cause nausea and skipping beer made them feel less bad.
2. I stopped having any before Threshold Thursdays (95% for 1:00-1:15) because I had high hopes after abstaining made VO2Max Mondays feel better. I felt fresher and kept at it.
3. I stopped having any before Not Short Saturdays (3-5 hours) and found that gave me more energy.
4. I was waking up better rested for my morning rides before sunrise those three days a week, so I skipped beer on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday night too. I also woke up better rested those days.
5. I felt two beers more Saturday night than I used to, that became one, dropped to half I didn't feel, and I now go months without having any.

I quit having any beers when driving in my 20s. A couple friends lost their licenses, two beers got me within a hair's breadth of Colorado's 0.05% Driving While Ability Impaired law, and I decided it wasn't prudent - I suspected one English pint of west coast style IPA or American strong ale would be enough to cross that limit.

Everyone accepted a simple no answer to "Do you want a beer" when I was driving, and did the same regardless of how I got to where I was socializing.

I also agree with FB about limiting oneself to better food which is more satisfying in smaller quantities.

Carbonfiberboy 

I also find alcohol bad from both a performance and weight gain standpoint. That said, I always have a craft beer and half my wife's after our Sunday group ride. I've checked, and it takes two 20 oz. beers to put me at my state's limit, .08. Beer instantly cuts the post-ride pain in my legs, plus it's a jovial celebration kind of thing. But that and wine with dinner when we have company is the only alcohol I drink. I'm thinking about switching to Coke on Sunday because every Monday morning I've gained weight even after blowing through 1K-2K calories on the ride. But so far, I haven't.

Back when I was in the Army in Germany, I once kept a tally and found that I averaged about 1 gallon of good German beer per day. But I was a kid and I worked it off.

joejack951

I'm sure you do, but pay attention to the alcohol percentage in that beer. It can vary wildly from your average American swill @ 4% to a tasty Victory Golden Monkey @ 9.5% to the absurdly alcoholic yet easy drinking Dogfish Head Raison D'Extra @ 18%: https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/64/3089/

Carbonfiberboy 

Very true. That's why I keep a breathalyzer in the glove box of my car. My wife would drive if I were over. I got that idea from a party I attended at a friend's house. She had a breathalyzer sitting on a table by the front door and sleeping facilities for those who didn't make the cut. Very good idea.

T Stew

Difference between 3 beers and none in a week is probably not going to be noticeable. There are some other effects of alcohol on the body but for just weight loss that isnt much carbs but depends. I've been big on hard ciders this year and had one with dinner last night, usually Stella Cidre or Angry Orchard Easy Apple or Stone Dry, all pretty modest calories if you have only one. Last night was Easy Apple which is only 150 calories. I'd sooner cut out an extra cookie or slice of bread/dinner roll or fried/candied food and enjoy the beverage. If you can't handle self control though, and 2 beers/week ends up being a case, well then cut out the 3 beer plan.

I think it was Dr Maffetones book on endurance training and racing that actually suggested to skip water during a meal (and 30 minutes or something like that before & after) but ok to have a nice glass of fermented and dry wine. Water actually dilutes stomach acid and hinders digestion, though seems many folks get this backwards. I don't think beer was mentioned, but as a fermented beverage I'd assume it aids in digestion too (in moderation) and the unfiltered and richer types probably have some phytonutrients and antioxidants as well.


That's interesting... I had been a fan of Raison D'Etre but seems they stopped making it some time ago. I'll have to look out for the "D'Extra" version

redlude97

No. If your stomach contents are too osmotic, your body will just draw water into the stomach to dilute it.

Carbonfiberboy 

Looking at the comments on this thread, all I can say is that my experience is quite different vis a vis weight gain. If I have 2 beers, I'll have gained a pound the next morning. Wine has a similar effect per unit alcohol. If I keep it up, I keep gaining, though not so quickly. When our bike rides ended at a Redhook brewpub, I'd have a porter. Off their website, that's 166 calories for 12 oz. or 221 for a pint pour, of which (the 16 oz.) 80 calories would be carbs and 8 protein, the other 133 then being alcohol.

So beats me, but there it is. For me, alcoholic beverages = weight gain. Plus, I'll have noticeably slower legs or less endurance the next day after drinking alcohol. Thus for me, the rule of "no alcohol" while in training makes a lot of sense.

wphamilton

My trick is when I first want one, put it off until after I've done something else that I have planned. Maybe I'll want it then, maybe not - make that procrastination thing work for me. I once had a six-pack in the fridge for six months like that, but I'm not that extreme these days.

KDTX

I like this train of thought. I do think there are quite a few "middle of the road" food items that I can do away with and not miss them.

I do think I can apply some of these tips throughout the week to reduce the volume while still be able to enjoy a beer ot two.

I am trying to get all of this mentally set-up now, so when I roll into my diet and training program, I have a workable plan.

One thought I have been toying with is giving myself a weekly calorie limit of alcoholic beverages. I haven't seen anything like that mentioned here. I feel this would create a mindset of "hey, I am allowed to have that, just one or two though". It would also free up some options and not limit the diet to just say vodka and gin. I'm thinking 500 calories/ week for starters and seeing how that goes. I'm thinking those beverages would be a little more carefully chosen as well. Thoughts?...

wolfchild

The main reason why I cut out regular beer drinking was because it seems to promote fat gain. I think the reason it promotes fat gain is not just because of calories in beer but because majority of beers contain hops and they are highly estrogenic.

FBinNY 

There's no one answer except that no diet will succeed long term if you feel deprived. So the trick is to find the little things that make it work for you. I've done well using the satisfaction index, along with some awareness of having to make cuts here and there. But you have to take all the suggestions here and elsewhere and craft something that works for you, which may be very different.

kingston 

I lost about 50 pounds with an app called calorific where everything you eat is either red (bad), yellow (ok) or green (good). The game is to consume less than 10% of your calories from red and more than 50% of your calories from green. It's not super-precise, but that's not really the point. Since alcohol is red, one normal drink would use up nearly all my red calories for the day. Years later I no longer use the app, but I'm still in the habit of mentally accounting for my daily red calories and would still rather spend them on other bad stuff. You could just as easily spend your red calories on alcohol as a cookie.

Seattle Forrest

I think it's worth a try. There are universals to this like calories in have to be less than calories out, that works for everyone no matter who you are. But how to accomplish that is really individual, what works for one person can be madness to the next guy. That sounds pretty reasonable, for what it's worth.

Weigh yourself (once a day, once a week, it doesn't matter) regularly, in the morning, nekkid, and watch the trend over time. Adjust as necessary.

merlinextraligh

is there any difference between Coors NA and Coors?

OldTryGuy

Honestly, as far as taste, it's been so long since I had a reg. Coor's and my taste buds have change, so ********** I'd suggest a try. Used to drink O'Doul's NA for a long time then tried Coor's and made the switch.

Carbonfiberboy 

Way back, when I was in the Army at a small outstation in Germany, our EM club manager changed. He inventoried stock and saw no American beer, only German, which he thought unpatriotic. So he ordered cases of various brands (this was in 1997) through Army supply. No one drank them. Finally he piled all the American cases in the middle of the floor and put a FREE sign on them. I tried one and found it tasted the way I imagined horse piss might taste. No one drank them, even for free. Yeah, soldiers who wouldn't drink free beer! I don't know what happened to those cases but eventually they disappeared.

So that's my take on the whole American light beer thing. Water's simply better tasting and better for you.

bobwysiwyg

While in Vietnam, Amercan beer, in steel cans back then, arrived rusty as all get out. Off compound and in Saigon we preferred Biere Larue. It was bottled and warm so it was poured over ice and was still better than the beer back at our compound.

These days I much prefer craft beers for both flavor and the opportunity to check out new brews.