What makes alcoholic drinks so calorie-dense are the simple syrups and sugary drink mixes, like cranberry juice and soda. But even the calories in wine, beer, and liquor can quickly add up. Listen to this — if you have two glasses of red wine every night of the week, that tacks an extra 1,750 calories onto your diet every week. And if you change nothing else about what you're consuming, those extra calories could add up to 25 pounds of weight gain over the course of a year. Yikes!
Here are the some of the more commonly consumed alcoholic drinks ranked from highest caloric impact to lowest…
8. Beer, Pale Ale: 175 calories for 12 ounces – with lots of flavor comes lots of calories
7. Hard Apple Cider: 150 calories for 12 ounces – a slightly less caloric choice than many beers and gluten-free
6. Red Wine: 125 calories for 5 ounces – at least these calories also come with a host of health benefits
5. White Wine: 121 calories for 5 ounces
4. Whiskey: 104 calories for 1.5 ounces – however, if you pair it with Coke, that's a whole different story
3. Rosé: 100 calories for 5 ounces - just one more reason to love rosé
2. Beer, Light: 96 calories for 12 ounces
1. Champagne: 84 calories for 4 ounces - Cheers!
A few other things to take into consideration when ordering an alcoholic drink:
There's a common misconception that tonic water is the same as seltzer water, but it actually contains a lot of calories and sugar. I opt for seltzer, which is just water with bubbles, instead.
A good practice is to drink a glass of water for every drink you consume, so you don’t overdue it and to stay hydrated.
Likewise, drink plenty of water to combat a hangover. Alcohol is a diuretic, which means it pushes liquids out of the body. When dehydration occurs, the body will draw water from any available source, including the brain causing a headache. Drinking water before heading to bed can help prevent some painful hangover symptoms, as well as the next day.
Avoid fruit juices and pre-made drink mixes, like ones for margaritas, daiquiris, and pina coladas.
Lastly, to minimize the caloric impact of having a drink at dinner, skip the fat and carbs. Be careful though, eating just protein and veggies will not keep you full for long if you have a full night of drinking ahead. Have your healthy fats and carbs earlier in the day!
Calories in alcoholic beverages can add up fast and easily lead to weight gain. It’s perfectly fine to have a cocktail or two, but if you aren’t careful it could easily add hundreds of empty calories to your daily intake. Cheers!
–Coach C