Christmas drinkies

Just like having a workout and drinking the post workout shake, christmas parties and alcohol goes hand in hand. No matter if its the family gathering or end of your christmas do, that glass (or 2 or more) of wine beer or other spirit seems to magically land in your hand whenever you enter the party. Ofcourse you accept as you don't want to appear rude or lacking the christmas spirit. But it is that 'spirit' that could land you that extra 5kg over christmas - which is about the average most people gain over the festive period!

So what could be the source of the extra weight gain?

Assuming your eating plan is pretty good over christmas and you're keeping a reasonable cardio and weight training regime over the silly season, the main ingredients that could possibly cause you to gain weight is alcohol - particularly if you're consuming too much of it.

With seven calories per gram and a single unit of alcohol weighing 8g, alcohol is one of the greatest hidden sources of calories in our diets. For example, that tiny splash of vodka in the bottom of the glass contains 56 calories before you even think of adding a mixer, while a pint of beer weighs in at 175 calories, a 440ml can of premium lager at 260, and a 175ml glass of red wine (the standard pub measurement) at 115 calories.

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Even if you stick within the recommended maximum alcohol intake (14 units per week for women and 21 a week for men), you could be adding 800 to 1200 liquid calories to your calorie intake! And they aren’t calories you can simply ‘burn off.’

Why is this? It’s because alcohol cannot be used directly by the muscles, and instead travels straight into the bloodstream, from where it has to be metabolised before the body can make use of more preferable fuel sources, such as carbohydrate or fat. Fat-burning and protein synthesis are lowered by as much as 20% while the body is digesting and metabolising alcohol.

It takes roughly an hour for each unit of alcohol to be metabolised. Consume it too regularly and research shows that alcohol will suppress fat oxidation and promote fat storage – the exact opposite of what you want! And – even worse – this excess fat tends to accumulate around the waist, thereby creating the proverbial beer belly.

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It’s not just the drinks themselves that could be expanding your waistline, but the lifestyle habits that tend to go with them. A study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that a single pre-lunch wine or beer can result in an increased calorie intake over the next 24 hours! Researchers don’t know whether this is due to an increase in appetite or a decrease in willpower and inhibitions, or a combination of the two. But most of us are familiar with that ‘Oh, what the hell!’ feeling after a few drinks, and have found ourselves chomping down chips or that greasy kebab to help ‘mop up’ the excess booze!

Drinking and exercise
The other way booze might be affecting your body is by hampering your workouts. If you exercise the morning after a drinking session, you may experience a higher perception of effort, palpitations and a lower exercise capacity – so you probably won’t end up working as hard or as long as you normally would. (Also, you shouldn’t force yourself to exercise with a hangover as a punishment to yourself anyway. You are best off resting and drinking plenty of water or isotonic drinks until you feel better.) Equally, it’s not wise to drink straight after a heavy training session, as alcohol has been shown to interfere with muscle repair and recovery.

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Don't be a party pooper
Of course, you don't have to be a total party pooper and not touch a drop of alcohol at all at your christmas do. With some planning and will power it’s quite possible to drink moderately and remain fit and healthy over the festive period.

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But if you are watching your weight, or attempting to lose body fat, it’s worth keeping a drink diary to see how many glasses of wine did pass your lips at the various functions you go to each day and week. Ideally you should give yourself a 2 glass limit as this won't interfere with your calorie too much. You can make that second glass go further by having a half/half with soda water.
However, if you're not a wine drinker but spirits are your thing..and worse alcopops!! The only thing I can say is DON'T!! Alcopops are calorie laden, sure they taste nice but you'd have to do at least 2 hours cardio to get rid of one bottle. Instead, have the worse of 2 evils and drink some Gin and Tonic (light tonic) or Vodka Tonic as these are lesser in calories.

Have fun! The focus of Christmas related events are enjoyment, celebration and connecting with friends and family. Its ok to have a few drinkies at the events you go to but don't deprive yourself and end up at the other end of the scale and be a drunken mess! Remember, anything is okay if it is consumed in moderation. It's not the treats that do the damage but the healthy lifestyle habits that are neglected.

Happy Celebrating!
Lisa

Christmas drinkies

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