I am often asked whether it is necessary to stop drinking in order to take control of someone’s weight – especially if the person is trying to lose weight or has been struggling to maintain their ideal weight. And a surprising number of the people I speak to are consuming a glass or two (or more) of wine most evenings.
Whilst I am a firm believer in the “little bit of what you fancy does you good” mentality, it is important to think about the implications of this level of alcohol intake – here are a few points that you may not have considered.
- Alcohol is generally very calorific – a bottle of wine will usually contain around 500 to 600 calories so having even a half a bottle of wine a day on top of a balanced diet could mean you put on a couple of pounds a month (3,500 EXCESS calories equals about a pound of weight gain for many people)
- There is little nutritional value to wine (sugar, alcohol and some trace elements) so you need to be extra vigilant in getting your daily balance of vitamins, minerals, and other core nutrients for your body to function effectively if you are consuming these “empty” calories
- It is hard to fit wine into a balanced daily diet if you are hoping to control weight without the nutritional balance suffering as you will need to significantly cut down on calories elsewhere – ie from your food
- Alcohol can make you less restrained and so if you are dieting you may be more inclined to eat things that you would not otherwise have wanted
- If you regularly consume excessive amounts of alcohol, you will probably gain weight and also may be setting yourself up for future health problems
- The number of alcohol-related deaths is still on the increase in the UK – the graph below shows alcohol related deaths in the UK from 1991 to 2006 and is taken from the National Statistics website
You may want to look at the reasons why you are drinking alcohol, if it is more than an occasional thing for you. Is it simply a way of relaxing when you get home from work or when the children go to bed ? If so, you could try something else such as yoga, going for a walk, meditation or something creative – try the links on the sidebar for some great meditation and yoga downloads that you can try for free!
Are you required to entertain clients as part of your business? If so, you could always try coming up with more original and interesting ways of entertaining them. I had a tee-total friend who took his clients and their children out to choose and cut down their own tree rather than taking them to the pub for a(nother) Christmas lunch – not only was it more fun and involved their families, but his event really stood out amidst all the other pub lunches during the “party season”!!
Is there something that you are trying to block out or cover up by drinking? If this is the case, you may consider seeking professional advice or counselling to get to the bottom of the underlying issue. If you are in doubt, consult your GP or other healthcare professional.
If you do want to reduce the amount of alcohol you consume, you firstly need to get into the right frame of mind – and if you are serious about it, then there are some simple things you can so to help yourself, including:
- Drink a large glass of water before you have any alcohol, this will stop you drinking more than you need due to thirst. If you are having more than one glass of wine, drink another large glass of water in between!
- Alternate alcoholic drinks with soft drinks or just drink spritzers!!
- Offer to be the designated driver so you have to limit yourself to one glass or less!
- Try not to drink too quickly!
If you would like help with controlling your weight whilst following a balanced nutritional programme that not only feeds your body but also helps to cleanse and detoxify it with naturally derived herbal products, you can contact me for a consultation or browse our online catalogue at…
