Looking for a low-cal cocktail?

I love a good cocktail, beer or glass of wine, but I don't love the calories. We all know those calories go directly to your waistline. Well, sort of. When you ingest alcohol, your body metabolizes and burns that before any other calories you ingest. So, say you're out having a cheeseburger and a beer. Your body would metabolize those alcohol calories before the cheeseburger ones, thus causing your body to store those delicious cheeseburger calories as fat. Which is bad.

Just how many calories are in your favorite bev? A 12 oz. crappy, mass-market, fizzy, yellow beer (you know what I'm talking about) is about 145 calories. A yummy Red Hook IPA is more like 188 calories per 12 oz. What about wine? A Cab Sauv is about 90 calories per 4 oz. pour. The general rule of thumb there is the drier the wine, the fewer the calories. And the cocktail? The higher the proof of the liquor, the more calories you'll have in your cocktail. An 80 proof liquor contains 97 calories per 1.5 oz while a 100 proof liquor has about 124. Consider, also, the mixer (e.g. juice or tonic water). One of my favorite cocktails, the Gin & Tonic is about 200 calories (1.5 oz alcohol and 8 oz. tonic water). I usually use less tonic water, but still. A Margarita's calorie content could be as much as 500 calories. Holy Margarita, Batman!

How can one enjoy their favorite drink without too much damage? I, for one, have decided to switch to lower calorie beverages. My new favorite low-cal cocktail is the Vodka & Soda. Club soda has no calories (though there is sodium, obviously, so beware). The calorie content of that cocktail is a mere 97 calories if you use 80 proof vodka. I love those with a wedge of lemon and/or lime. Another handy tip: Watch your snacking while drinking. Remember, it's those extra calories in drinking and snacking that make you gain weight, so choose wisely.


Sources: http://www.askmen.com/sports/foodcourt_150/150_eating_well.html
http://www.elle.com/Beauty/Health-Fitness/Alcohol-and-Calories-Does-Drinking-Cause-Weight-Gain
Check your favorite beer here: http://www.beer100.com/beercalories.htm.