Alcohol

I love me some wine. Wine is probably my favorite adult beverage. Portland is a great city for wine tasting, which is a fun spring/summer activity! In fact, last year for our anniversary we went to Hood River for wine tasting. Mmmm.

I've never been a big beer fan, but I've warmed up to it and find that I like it a lot, too. For my 30th birthday last month, my boyfriend and I went to the Deschutes Brewery in Bend, Oregon. Good beer!

That brings me to my point. Alcohol is yummy. But it converts to sugar in your body. Basically, you're just drinking empty calories that make you fat. It's a bummer, I know. For two years while I was losing my weight, I refrained from drinking alcohol as much as I could. Honestly, I didn't miss it either. If you're watching your calories, eliminating alcohol is a good first step.

Top 5 worst drinks:
1. Margarita in a pint glass (2 oz. tequila, 2 oz. margarita/sour mix, 1 oz. triple sec, lime juice, 1 tsp. sugar) - 550 calories
2. Mudslide (1.5 oz. coffee liqueur, 1.5 oz. Irish cream, 1.5 oz. vodka) - 417 calories
3. Long Island Ice Tea (1 oz. vodka, gin, rum, tequila, and triple sec, 2 oz. sour mix, splash of cola) - 380 calories
4. White Russian (1.5 oz. vodka, 1.5 oz. coffee liqueur, 1.5 oz. cream) - 320 calories
5. Piña Colada (1.5 oz. rum, 1.5 oz. coconut cream, 3 oz. pineapple juice) - 293 calories

Top 5 best drinks:
1. Rum and Diet Coke (1 oz. rum) - 65 calories
Tip: Use diet sodas as mixers, such as gin and diet tonic, diet 7Up and Seagrams 7, diet ginger ale and Jack Daniels, and so on.
2. Vodka and Soda (1 oz. vodka) - 65 calories
3. White Wine Spritzer (4 oz. white wine topped with club soda) - 80 calories

I've been under the weather for the last month or so, so I stopped drinking alcohol. Counting my calories, I realized just how much I've been saving by not drinking! I was shocked. I've been able to eat out, eat things I love, and still come in under my daily allowance for calories! Why? I haven't been drinking my calories! This is not to say I'll never drink again. But it's something everyone should be conscious of if calorie counting.