Hello Dear One!

ALCOHOL!

How does this work when one is wanting to lose weight, be healthy in general, or even not ALWAYS do something simply because it’s available.

Such good questions.

Let’s start at the top shall we?

#1. ALCOHOL AND WEIGHT LOSS

Please know that you can ABSOLUTELY drink alcohol and still lose weight.

Alcohol is NEVER helpful for any aspect of positive change with the body, but it can definitely have a place in your life while not derailing your efforts.

The tricky things with drinking alcohol when you wish to lose weight are:

– extra calories
– the liver puts fat metabolism on hold while it processes the poison alcohol is and gets it out of your body
– it can make you want to eat more later in the night, or more carbs the next day depending on how much you’ve imbibed

And the truth is all these things are MANAGEABLE if you’re drinking less often than more, and making a point to not go to town food wise as well as alcohol wise (which can be easier said than done).

I encourage my fat burners to drink alcohol when they have their carb feasts (learn more about the 5 Parts of Fat Burning, and about the 5 week Fat Burning Mastery program), so that if they wish to indulge more food wise – that’s accounted for, and if they’re only drinking during their scheduled feasts it is NOT happening all the time.

#2. ALCOHOL AND HEALTH

Truth be told, alcohol is nothing more than poison that we have developed a taste for and an enjoyment of how it makes us feel.

And if it’s not obvious that the less you put poison in your body the better – IT IS.

Again, it doesn’t mean we can’t actively choose to do something fun AND marginally detrimental at times, but being strategic and deliberate about it are useful approaches as well.

If we’re clear that alcohol contains a large amount of toxins and other harmful pollutants for our body, the less we have of it AND the FASTER we get it out of our system the better.

Like smoking, alcohol affects our ENTIRE body negatively.

From helping to elevate blood pressure, increasing our risk of cancer, disrupting our digestion or causing ulcers, weakening our immune system, causing us to look bloated or puffy, prematurely aging the skin, or helping to pack on the pounds especially in our midsection – drinking can be NOTICEABLY detrimental or even life threatening.

If you’ve yet to check out and LIVE BY the blogpost Hangover Helpers, please check it out and commit it to memory and DO the steps mentioned.

You will not only FEEL radically different during and after drinking  – but you will also run less of a risk of being impacted by the harmful repercussions that come along from having a couple glasses of wine+.

If you’re going to drink be SMART about it, so that you give yourself a chance to have more fun and less harm from your choice.

#3. ALCOHOL AND FEELING ALIVE

This has been a big one for me for a LONG time.

As someone who has wrestled with addictive behavior for QUITE awhile (ahem, emotional eating = why I know about fat burning and a better approach to weight loss in the first place), I’ve been continually mystified why people drink in the first place.

I mean, if it’s considered negative to NEED a drink, and you don’t, then (knowing all we know) why would we choose to participate in such behavior??

The deal with alcohol is that is generally FAST ACTING FUN.

Alcohol affects our brain chemistry QUICKLY and typically evens us out if we’re feeling anxious, and helps us to feel less inhibited and more at ease.

Alcohol feels like a ride to me.

It’s a quick trip to an elevated state where we feel more confident, where the world seems more friendly, and where what we’re doing is generally more FUN.

Again.  Awesome.

However now that I know more about how addiction works through my own personal study AND because of all my education through The School of Womanly Arts about pleasure, truth, and feeling lit up from within it colors the automatic offering that alcohol is.

The truth is looking for something to change our state will often come with it’s own consequences AND one will NEVER experience as much JOY, LOVE, EXCITEMENT, INSPIRATION, or CONNECTION with alcohol in our system as without.

Alcohol can take us higher quickly, but it can only get us so high.

And we can never feel as high as we could WITHOUT alcohol in our system.

So there’s THAT.

And with that awareness I’m personally figuring out how I wish to navigate these waters, and here’s where I’ve currently landed.

MY APPROACH = SOME (vs ALL or none)

– I try to drink as infrequently as possible.

I look for opportunities to NOT drink.  I deliberately make some get togethers decidedly NOT involve alcohol whether that’s the plan for me and my companion, or I simply choose not to in a larger social situation.

– I don’t drink at home alone.

As sexy as having a glass of wine while making or eating dinner SOUNDS, I choose to NOT do this as it quickly makes the option of basically drinking daily NOT my reality.

– I find myself drinking more in more intimate settings and less in larger crowds.

I know that if I’m upfront about NOT drinking during plans with my friend/date ahead of time – that’s one thing, but the truth is I DO enjoy alcohol, so having it at times is nice.

Whether it’s because we’re pack animals and want to belong or have a shared experience with the only person you’re spending a period of time with – I find it far harder to NOT drink at a dinner engagement when you typically would, or would with this person – than simply having something non alcoholic in a group.

What’s also been such a win in the camp of moderation and nothing close to deprivation has been to drink about 2ish drinks and to TAKE MY TIME.

By taking my time I find I enjoy my drink more, it obviously lasts longer, I feel a more even and in control buzz from the beverage, I don’t have the sugar spike and plummet = wanting to eat again later, and in my next day I feel CLEAR where I have access to my creativity and intuition and it feels regret FREE!

– Aiming to not drink more than 2xs/week

One thing I’ve been doing is LOOKING at my week and seeing where I might be faced with alcohol and seeing how I wish to operate.

Dinner date with a girlfriend Tuesday = wine.

 

Perhaps coffee with a girlfriend Thursday night.

Big, fun brunch with a friend at his friend’s Sunday = bloody mary’s/mimosas.

NOTHING else planned yet.

But the truth is I’ve been opting out of drinking dominant activities MORE as I both don’t want that to be the main way I socialize and I’d rather figure more stimulating and authentically fun things…

AND I don’t want to LOOK or FEEL like I drink all the time.

That’s where I am.

So, perhaps alcohol is no big thing to or for you.

And that is fantastic if so.

But if you feel like it’s something that comes with socializing or certain environments AND gets in the way of how you’d ultimately wish to look, function and feel – perhaps some of these tactics might help you like they’ve helped me.