The coming weekend officially kicks off the holiday drinking season, and you Badasses had best beware! Because the end result can be scary on that scale.
It starts with the Halloween parties, where a certain minimum amount of alcohol-induced bravery is required to go out in public in that costume. Then comes Thanksgiving and office parties, then Christmas and Hannukah and New Year's. At every party, there's drinking...which equals extra calories and less willpower against those fatty appetizers.
Before you know it, your pants are tighter and you're wishing you had been a little less welcoming of the Buttery Nipples (a personal 21st birthday favorite, as I recall....ugh). The best way to prevent the Holiday Alcohol Gain, or HAG, as I like to call it, is with knowledge. Knowledge is power, and HAG is no place to be.
If you know what's in those cocktails, wine glasses and shot glasses, you can budget and balance your calories accordingly. Remember the Bethenny mantras: You can have it all, just not all at once and Your eating is like a bank account that you must balance. So if you're drinking a few, don't eat cheeseburgers and fries the day before and keep meals light the day after.
So here's the skinny and the not-so-skinny on those drinks. Memorize the best and the worst choices, and choose accordingly. Drink the White Russian if you want it; just balance the rest of your eating and exercise accordingly.
Best Bets
- Michelob Ultra, or any light beer: 75-90 calories per bottle
- Vodka soda with lime: 75 calories per drink
- Wine: 100 calories per 4 ounce glass
- Rum and diet coke: About 80 calories
- Shot of rum or brandy: 80-100 calories
Not So Best Bets
- Guinness: 210 calories per pint
- Spiked egg nog: 400-425 calories per cup
- Buttery nipple: About 130 calories for 1.5 ounces (a big shot)
- Chocolate martini: 440 calories for 6 ounces
- Irish car bomb: 250 calories
- Margarita: 450 calories for 8 ounces
- White Russian: 270 calories for 3.5 ounces
Coming Friday: Got 15 minutes? Use them wisely!
