Thirsty Thursday
I get it – it’s been a long week. You’re psyched to get the weekend started and the happy hour menu is overflowing with appealing options – Pomegranate Margarita, Lemongrass Mohito or a nice cold Magic Hat #9. I try to enjoy the night without calorie counting, but still take into consideration how quickly drinks add up to avoid unraveling my hard work (don’t worry, this isn’t a mini D.A.R.E class on substance abuse).
As if the drinks weren’t bad enough, alcohol lowers blood sugar levels – this sends signals to the brain that you’re hungry (GREAT, I don’t think anyone needs anymore reminders to eat) – hence the 2am food stop for pizza and fries. Making matters worse, a small portion of the alcohol you consume is converted into fat (just wait, this get’s better). The liver turns the rest into acetate which is released into the bloodstream, replacing fat as a source of fuel (i.e. the body stops burning fat and is forced to store the excessive/unburned amount – read as: BEER GUT).
Picking the lesser of the two evils, I go for either gin, wine or light beer (actually a better choice than most of the heavily sugared cocktails out there). To avoid the massive amounts of sugar and calories packed in tonic or juice mixers, I combine gin with club soda.
average calories/drink:
- Beer (regular): 150
- Beer (light): 110
- Lager: 180
- 1 ounce of gin/rum/vodka/whisky/tequila: 65 (keep in mind there are 2-5 oz in one regular mixed drink plus whatever mixers are included)
- Red Wine: 70
- White Wine: 65-75
- Champagne: 126
- Martini: up to 800 including syrups and 2-5 oz of liquor
- Margarita: average of 400/regular margarita - add more if it’s a speciality cocktail
- Gin/Tonic: 171
