Drink and Lose Weight – Part 1: Alcohol, Weight Gain, and Your Hormones

One thing that I’ve learned over the past couple of years is that changing your body – whether it be losing weight, burning fat or building muscle – doesn’t always need to involve super crazy deprivation.  There are many, far better approaches out there that are a whole hell of a lot more effective.  In fact, when it comes client compliance, convincing people to make small (but noticeable) changes to their diet and lifestyle is a whole lot more effective than trying to do a complete food and drink overhaul right from the get go.

I’ve also experienced this myself: I don’t get super lean by holing myself in the basement, working out 24/7, and making it a point to buy donuts just so I can tease myself and then throw them in the garbage (think Ben Stiller’s character from the movie Dodgeball).  Ok, ok, I’m lying…I’m just like that guy – only minus the seventies handlebar mustache and the tight spandex pants. They’re lycra, people!

All joking aside, it’s true that people can get a little obsessed.  And sure, being ultra strict can work.  I’m just not crazy about using that approach for myself or with my clients.  Yes, certain people like it.  And it works for them.

At the same time, others can get even better results by doing what they enjoy doing (eating and drinking) but maintaining balance and incorporating a little discipline into their lifestyle (hitting the gym a few times per week, etc.).

So what does this all have to do with drinking, or specifically, drinking and losing weight?  It has quite a lot, actually.  But we’ll get to that in a second…

First though I want you to think about all the alcohol that you enjoy.  I’m going to assume if you’re reading this post that you consume alcoholic beverages at least occasionally.  Do you drink a few beers a week, maybe 1 or 2 per day?  Maybe you grab a cocktail after work a couple times a week?  Or, perhaps you’re in college and you get downright hammered a few nights a week on variety of different types of hard stuff – but still want to look good.  It doesn’t matter what your habits are when it comes to drinking, the point is that if you drink – and you do it regularly – you probably do it for a reason.  Like, hmmm, let’s see, you enjoy it?

I guess we have more in common than I thought…

Ok, yeah I’ll admit it, I don’t mind a few drinks every now and then.  As much as I can abstain from booze indefinitely when I want to (yeah I’m sure of this). I don’t really prefer to.  I’d rather have the freedom of enjoying a beer or two when I’m out with a buddy without having to wonder if it’s going to detrimentally affect my health or my physique.  And here’s the thing: you can drink and still be healthy and even make changes to your body, like losing weight.  (yeah, I’m sure of this too).  It just takes a little know-how and a little planning.  You’re in luck though, cuz today, I’ve got you covered on both ends.

Booze Ain’t So Bad (well, not really)

So, why did I ask you above to think about all the alcohol you consume?  It wasn’t really because I wanted to see if you use your fingers to count (although I’m sure some resort to it when drunk).  And it wasn’t because I want you to get thirsty visualizing a cold frothy beer and run off to the fridge.  Whoops, too late…

In all seriousness, it was simply because you do need to have an idea of how much you drink, and what types of alcohol you drink. When it comes to trying to drink and still lose weight (or otherwise shape your body) these little details are crucial.  So yeah, it might take a little ‘rithmetic, but I’m telling you that you can drink right?? Let me just clarify something though: I never said this was going to be about drinking to lose weight. If you’re looking for some fad alcohol-only diet where you only down beers and bellinis exclusively, you won’t find it here.  Obviously drinking copious amounts of booze all the time is bad for you.  I’m not a big fan of chain smoking for heart health either, if you were wondering.   Yeah, the whole “have your cake and eat it too” deal doesn’t really apply to smokers.  Only the alcoholics get a free pass at the moment.  Sorry to disappoint.

All joking aside, this post is about learning how to maintain or even improve your body all while still kicking back and sipping the stuff you love (or fist pumping in the club – I don’t discriminate).  While this is obviously a very relevant topic for a lot of people – and I am being pretty light hearted – I am not advocating getting drunk all the time.  Obviously drinking large amounts of alcohol is bad for you in a LOT of ways.  That’s not what this is about.  Instead, my objective here is to impart to you fine readers a little know how (or perhaps “drop some knowledge” -we’ll have to wait and see) about how to get great results without kicking the hootch, if it happens to be something that you enjoy.

It’s incredibly hard for people who want to make big changes with their body to just drop all of their “bad” habits on command and eat like a monk (or drink like a monk, in this case).  Making huge drastic changes to your lifestyle regarding your eating and drinking isn’t always the most efficient route to that goal of a sexy body (even though it may seem like it).  This method can work for some folks but very often I find that people respond better when they’re given more freedom and flexibility in regard to their choices.  That’s why if you can do something and get away with it (even if it doesn’t help you directly), it might just be worth it.  Peace of mind, and enjoyment of life are pretty damn important and can mean the difference between stellar results and stagnation in the long run.  And to be totally honest with you, booze just really ain’t that bad for you health (in moderation, of course).  In fact, a lot of studies show more benefits than drawbacks to moderate alcohol consumption.  Surprising to some, but true…

Let me give you the lowdown on alcohol and how it affects your body.

Alcohol, Weight Gain, and Hormones

Alcohol and Weight Gain

First off, let me just start this section off by saying alcohol does not contribute to fat storage by itself to any great degree.  In other words, alcohol does not make you fat.

What?!?!

Yep.  You heard right.

I know, I know, this is the opposite of everything you’ve ever heard, or at least everything you’ve always thought.  Let me hit you with a little review about how nutrients are burned (or stored) after an average meal.  This will help my whole “alcohol not being the devil” stance make more sense.

Here’s how it works:

1. You eat carbs and protein.  These foods don’t really contribute to fat storage to a great degree by themselves.  Instead, they slow down fat BURNING because insulin is elevated after their consumption.

2. Now that fat burning (aka fat oxidation) is suppressed, dietary fat is stored in fat cells.  This can come from consuming fat by itself, but also from consuming excess carbs that ultimately get stored (as fat).  Protein is less likely to ever be stored as fat.

3. After the meal, typically a few hours pass until you eat again.  During this interim, insulin drops and fatty acids are released into the bloodstream (often the fat that was stored from your last meal).  This process normally repeats itself continually throughout the day as you eat.  Whether you lose weight is, generally speaking, a matter of energy balance – i.e. are you consuming more total calories than you burn, less, or are you in caloric “equilibrium”?

Ok, so not that difficult right?  Now, things can change a bit when you throw alcohol into the mix.  (remember that alcohol does not cause measurably fat gain by itself, but you’ll get that in a second)

Using the above info as the template, when you consume alcohol, it gets metabolized immediately.  This means that it slows down fat burning as well as carbohydrate and protein burning (or synthesis).  So, basically, everything else is slowed down temporarily while alcohol is burned.

Add in here extra calories from alcohol as well as the fact that it causes other stuff to be slowed down****

Probably the main reason that alcohol is burned first when you consume a variety of different foods is that the by-product of alcohol is acetate, which is toxic.  Basically, the body wants to get rid of it fast.

Nothing too mind bending here, right?

Well here’s where it gets interesting. This by product of alcohol, acetate, is a lousy instigator of fat storage.  Metabolically speaking, there is no easy way for the body to make fat out of alcohol (acetate).  In other words, alcohol does not cause any significant fat storage BY ITSELF.  Do I hear an echo?

One way to think about alcohol that may make sense to a lot of people is this: alcohol is very similar to carbs in that it slows down fat burning which ALLOWS the fats that you eat to be stored as, yep – you guessed it – FAT.  One little known fact though is that while carbs can be converted to fat relatively easily once glycogen stores are satisfied, alcohol is rarely converted to fat in the same way.

Alcohol and your Hormones

Many guys and girls who work out have probably heard that alcohol supposedly screws up your hormones.  The general consensus among these people is that alcohol negatively effects testosterone levels in men (and women) via it’s estrogen-elevating properties. While this might seem like a male-only problem the truth is that anytime male or female sex hormones are disturbed, negative results are seen whether you are a man or a woman.  Note: in the case of alcohol consumption the concern for women in regard to elevated estrogen levels is just as significant as it would be in men even though women are supposed to have a lot of estrogen.  As always, enough is great, but too much is still bad.

But everything I just said in the paragraph above is irrelevant.

Why?

Because alcohol doesn’t screw up your hormones! Well, at least not to the degree that people think…

Heres’ the deal:

Alcohol intake does lower testosterone.  Yep, some of what you hear is partially true.  What isn’t true is the degree to which people say testosterone is lowered from alcohol consumption.  Most people think even drinking a little bit causes your testosterone to plummet and your estrogen to rise, making you fat and weak whether you are a man or a woman.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

The fact is that alcohol causes very slight decreases in testosterone and other sex hormones in both genders.  One of the best studies on this showed that when people consumed three beers a day for three weeks their testosterone decreased by a measly 6.8% for the men and o% (yes that’s a zero) for the women.  Again this is not a small amount of alcohol we’re talking about and the study was completed over the course of three weeks.

So do you really think that a few drinks a couple times a week is actually going to hurt you??

If so, then think again.

For alcohol to lower testosterone significantly, you’d need to drink like a fish.  According to one study, downing ten beers will lower testosterone by 23% for almost a day following your debauchery.  Again, this is a very large amount.  We’re talking about drinking enough beer to potentially put you in the hospital.  So yeah, that would lower your test levels.  Of course, so would a knockout by Mike Tyson.  Kind of the same thing, folks.

What about when you drink alcohol?  Does that change the impact that it has on your testosterone levels?

Not really.  In fact, some times may be better than others and you may experience almost no decrease in your levels.  For instance, one study showed that consuming 70-80g of alcohol (equivalent to 6-7 beers) right after a workout had no effect on testosterone levels whatsoever.  Simultaneously, the “stress” hormone cortisol increased only slightly from this post-workout lush session.

So basically, the evidence is slightly mixed with some studies showing a measurable decrease in testosterone levels from drinking copious amounts of booze and some showing almost no effect from “downing mad shots” (or whatever you like to call it).

What has most likely occurred over the past few years is that the fitness industry has specifically picked the studies that show alcohol as a culprit in hormone destruction and used them to demonize booze.  The  mainstream public has simply swallowed without question these beliefs.  Feeling nauseous, anyone?

This is the end of Part 1 of the Drink and Lose Weight series. Click HERE for Drink and Lose Weight – Part 2: Alcohol, Training, Metabolism, and Health. Stay tuned for Part 3, where we’ll show you how to drink and still look great — whether that means losing weight, burning fat, or building muscle!