Over eating while under the influence.
This is not a temperance blog! I occasionally enjoy a glass of wine with my dinner. But, I will nurse one glass all night! Remember this though, alcohol can be extremely hazardous to your weight loss. One of the worst effects that alcohol has on weight loss is that it’s all sugar. And your body will more readily metabolize those drinks or glasses of wine first, rather than body fat or other foods.
As in the case of people that I see with alcohol abuse problems, one cannot have the fifth or sixth drink or seventh drink and maybe lose the entire weekend, unless that person has had the first drink. It is not news to anyone reading this blog, that alcohol impairs judgment. Period – no exceptions. Would you really want to fly on an airliner with a pilot that had been drinking? How about having a surgeon operate on you that’s been drinking as well? Of course not.
What does this have to do with overeating? The word is inhibition. For those that are serious about losing weight, the lowering of inhibitions is disastrous. When some one’s inhibitions are affected, they are either unaware or do not believe they are lowered or non existent!!! For example – a person with a weight problem goes to a restaurant to have dinner with friends. At that point the overweight person is in control, but just barely. He or she knows what food that they should order to eat. But… The waiter arrives with the drinks, now keep in mind, we are not talking about getting drunk. By the time that the drink is half gone, so are the inhibitions as well. After the second drink is started, what’s left of good judgment is history. The person rationalizes that “these drinks won’t hurt” or “this meal won’t matter” or “I’ve had a rough day” or “this is my birthday” or “I’ll really get back on my diet tomorrow!” Are these reasons or excuses? Why sabotage yourself once again?
It is a proven fact that alcohol and weekends can be destructive when trying to lose weight. You have been “good” all week and have cut back 600 calories. Do you realize that you can destroy that deficit and then some in a Friday night? If you decide it’s is more important to lose excess fat and keep it off, rather than drinking for awhile, you will give yourself a large advantage. It is easy enough to lose track of what and how much you are eating if you’ve had nothing to drink. Chapter seven of my book deals with absent minded eating. It points out that one always needs to be aware of what and how much they are eating.
Here’s something to remember – one glass of wine a day = one pound a month, one vodka tonic a day = three pounds a month and one martini a day = close to nine pounds a month! We are not talking about giving up that glass of wine to enjoy with a meal forever, but a tool to help you to jump start your weight loss program!
Bob Crow has a private practice in Atlanta, Georgia. Contact Bob at 404.277.1827 if you desire to lose weight and keep it off forever!