Alcohol is loaded with calories, cut back if you want to lose weight

THERE’S absolutely no hiding place for alcohol if you want to get fit or lose weight. Some will say that a little bit of everything in moderation can be enjoyed while upholding a healthy lifestyle. And while this is true of most luxuries, when it comes to alcohol consumption, caution is advised. If you’re starting out on an exercise plan in 2019 and you enjoy an occasional drink, it might be worthwhile ditching the tot in place of a trot for a few months.

Even in small amounts, alcohol has detrimental effects on our metabolism. Consumption of alcohol reduces blood sugar levels and spikes appetite and food cravings far in excess of what is the norm without alcohol consumption. Many people will use the carrot of a night out and a few drinks as a treat for losing weight, but very often this leads to a relapse. In recent times there’s been a fixation on ‘calorie counting’ alcoholic drinks and while this helps to some extent in curbing excess, the long and the short of it is that drinking is like walking through a calorific minefield.

If you’re serious about losing weight in 2019, then you’ve got to seriously consider avoiding alcohol. This isn’t always easy in a country such as ours where seemingly every second social event takes place in the company of booze. Alcohol adds vast amounts of weight gain in the waist area, it leads to lethargy and disinterest in activity, while it contains no nutritional benefits. Moreover, if you’re currently over weight and looking to shed the pounds, alcohol increases hypertension and is not a stimulant you need when starting out on an exercise plan as you want an increased heartrate to be solely down to exercise. Ditch the booze if you really want to shift weight. It’s as simple as that.