Lose Stomach Fat In Your 50s: Can You Drink Alcohol And Still Control Weight?

     Many of us like to have a social drink - a beer over the BBQ, wine with a dinner, after-work drinks with good friends. These activities are often part of our lifestyle and have become important ways we socialize. They are things we may have been doing for many years and, by the time we enter our 50s, they can be such a part of us they can be hard to change.

It seems very uncivilized if we cannot enjoy our favourite drink when we are trying to lose weight. In fact, there is no reason why we cannot still have a drink but we just cannot do it as often as we might like. The main villain in the drink is the alcohol, which contains calories. This means we have to treat alcohol in the same way as we treat the rest of our diet. We simply have to limit our calorie intake if we want to lose stomach fat.

Food and Drink

As we know food and drink go together. Often when we drink socially there is food on hand and the more we drink the easier it is to forget our good intentions. We are more relaxed and we not only eat more but also often drink more. This means we are getting more calories not only from the alcohol but also from the food. If we do this occasionally there is no harm done, but if we do it regularly we will continue to grow our stomach fat.

The Drinks To Avoid

Because the calories are in the alcohol it makes sense to limit drinks that have a high alcohol content. Most wines have a higher alcohol content than beers but beer is high in carbohydrates so both the alcohol and the carbohydrates are working against you. Dry wines have less sugar so red wine and dry white wines usually do not have as many calories. Sweet wines like port and sherry are high in sugar but generally we only drink small amounts. Whisky is low in carbohydrates but it still contributes to your calorie intake because of the alcohol.

You Can Still Enjoy A Drink

You do not have to give up alcohol entirely if you want to control weight but you do have to limit the amount you drink. This is no different to the way we deal with the rest of our diet. It simply becomes a matter of choices. We have to choose what food or drink we will give up or cut down on to help us lose stomach fat. If you enjoy a glass of wine with a meal there is no reason to change that but you do need to be aware you are taking in extra calories. Maybe this means having one glass only or having it less frequently.

Sometimes we can ask too much of ourselves. It is hard enough having to watch our diet all the time without having to give up everything we enjoy. We can control weight and still enjoy a drink in moderation. In fact, many health professionals agree there are health benefits in having a small amount of alcohol on a regular basis - and it does make life more pleasant.

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