So you want to be healthy and fit, but still enjoy a drink or two… or three.
I don’t blame you!
Who doesn’t love a good happy hour cocktail or poolside spritz.
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It’s no secret that alcohol doesn’t help you with fat loss but is it possible to enjoy it while still achieving your health and fitness goals?
You might be wondering…
Can I drink alcohol and still build muscle?
How do you balance alcohol and fitness?
Can I drink alcohol and be healthy?
In this post we will break down 5 steps to enjoy alcohol with balance so that you can continue to lose fat and get fit.
Here we go…
Step 1 – Determine what type of drinker you are
- Light
- Moderate
- Heavy
Take this quiz to find out, be honest with yourself.
Can you stop at one drink? Ok sure but…. Do you stop at one drink?
- 1 point for yes
- 2 points for no
How many days a week do you consume any amount of alcohol?
- 1 point for 2 days or less
- 2 points for 3-4 days
- 3 points for 5-7 days
Total drinks consumed in a week (one shot, 5 oz of wine, or a 5% beer counts as one drink)
- 1 point for less than 5
- 2 points for 6-10
- 3 points for 11+
Add up your points, if you got:
- 4 points or less – you aren’t going to derail your fitness progress much with that light amount of drinking
- 5 points or higher – see options for infusing more balance with alcohol and fitness below
Step 2 – Determine if your drink of choice could be improved calorically speaking
- If you are drinking moderately or more, you can make decisions to improve your healthy balance for fat loss by opting for lower calorie drinks. Vodka soda with lime, spiked seltzer’s, wine, champagne, or my personal favorite summertime drink: the aperol spritz.
- Check ingredients – sugar is in many mixers, so instead use fresh squeezed fruit to mix with booze, add plain seltzer or club soda. Check out this skinny yet delicious margarita (I’m known for my mean margaritas in some circles).
- Find a lighter beer instead of those heavy IPA calorie bombs. A session IPA or a light beer option such as Corona light with a lime, lagers and Pilsners tend to be lower in calories as well.
Step 3 – Create a weekly plan that will work with your lifestyle.
Try subbing a few days a week with a fun non-alcoholic drink. Your goal is to go from drinking 5-7 nights to 3-4 nights (or less) a week.
For those Non-alcoholic days:
- Beer lovers can try Hopwtr – a hoppy bubbly seltzer, great for weeknights.
- Cocktail lovers now have a multitude of options – check out this post for a list of non alcoholic drinks options.
- Wine lovers, I’m sorry to say it’s hard to make decent non-alcoholic wine
- In states with legal marijuana – you can find CBD drinks that help chill you out without changing your cognitive function.
Step 4 – if you are drinking more nights than not (4 out of 7 days a week), determine why.
Ask yourself the following:
- Why am I drinking?
- Why do I want a drink?
- Is it stress?
- What emotions are coming up that causes me to drink?
- Am I trying to mask something I don’t want to deal with?
- Is it just out of habit?
- What else could I do instead of drink?
- What hobbies could I try?
Oftentimes regular alcohol use can just be a force of habit. Other times it might be to buffer real emotions you may not want to deal with.
Either way, these habits can lead to an unhealthy relationship with alcohol. So if you want to keep a balance, you need to address what might be going on in your brain. (If you want my best tips with this, shoot me a message on IG and include “balance with alcohol”)
Step 5 – Here are a couple things you can do to try to break the habit when you feel the urge to pull out that corkscrew…
- Go on a walk
- Go on a bike ride
- Go to the gym
- Stretch on the floor while watching your favorite show
- Knock out some push ups and squats
- Take a class and learn something new
- Call a friend or loved one to catch up
- Volunteer your time in the evening for a good cause
- Start a new hobby that makes it difficult to include alcohol (rock climbing, meditating, yoga)
- Physically distance yourself from alcohol
- Keep alcohol out of sight to help keep it out of mind
The bottom line
It’s still possible to enjoy alcohol while making fitness a priority. But you need to determine which way the scale is tipping for you. (See quiz above).
Do you workout more than you drink or drink more than you workout?
If you found that you are drinking moderate to heavy based on the quiz above, try the steps above or shoot me a message on Instagram for more help @thebodybulletin. Trust me, sometimes you just need someone to point you in the right direction 🙂
Also, don’t freak out. Just because you might drink moderate to heavy now, doesn’t mean you must hard stop with the booze (unless it is affecting your life in a negative way). A great goal is to get to a place where you workout more days than you drink. But the best way to do this is with some guidance and help. If you are interested in learning more about how I can help – apply for coaching here.
Again, I’m here for you and if you would like more help finding balance with alcohol, nutrition, and fitness – head over to Instagram and shoot me a message.
xo, Shay
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Disclaimer: All opinions are my own, the information in this post is not meant to replace a medical professional.
