Find out if it is possible to use alcohol in the process of losing weight as an active substance to accelerate metabolism. Every culture on the planet has a tradition of drinking alcoholic beverages. With their help, people relax and try to free themselves from the burden of problems and worries. Today, the alcoholic beverage industry is generating huge profits for companies, and they have resorted to various marketing moves to sell their products even more actively.
Alcohol can be consumed in safe doses without health risks. For men, this weekly rate is 200 milliliters of ethanol, and for women - 130 milliliters. If these limits are not exceeded, then alcohol will be neutralized, and will not pose a danger. But if they are exceeded, then alcohol will complicate weight loss and negatively affect the work of all body systems.
If you intend to lose weight, gain muscle mass, or simply keep your body in good shape, then the best solution is to stop drinking alcohol. Today we will talk in detail about the relationship between alcohol and weight loss.
Drinking alcohol while losing weight
It is believed that one serving of alcoholic beverages contains about 20 grams of ethanol. Of course, this is a generalized meaning and the alcohol content may differ from one beverage to another. Let's say a light beer contains less ethanol than a regular beer. The calorie content of one gram of alcohol is equal to seven calories. However, due to the strong thermogenic effect, the real energy value is lower at 5.5 calories.
Thus, when you drink a glass of beer, your body receives over 100 calories from ethanol and about 60 from the carbohydrates contained in the drink. In total, a glass of beer supplies about 160 calories to the body. The situation is even more serious with mixed drinks (for example, liqueurs), which, in addition to ethanol, contain high-calorie ingredients. Uda only on the basis of the energy value indicator of ethanol-containing drinks can we talk about the negative effect of alcohol on weight loss.
The negative effects of alcohol
- Dehydration. This is a very serious negative effect of alcohol consumption. Everyone knows that muscle tissue contains about 75 percent fluid. If water leaves the tissues, then your muscles will begin to shrink. It is also important to remember that you need to drink more water when exercising intensively. If the body becomes dehydrated, then all processes slow down, including the reduction of body fat. Nutritionists advise those people who have not stopped drinking alcohol to drink each portion of alcohol with twice as much water. In addition, you should also drink at least one liter of water before going to bed.
- Fat gain. When it comes to the relationship between alcohol and weight loss, it is necessary to remember about the ability of alcoholic beverages to increase subcutaneous fat deposits. Although alcohol is a carbohydrate, it cannot be converted to glucose, as we know, in which case carbohydrates are converted to fat. It is this transformation that occurs with alcohol. At the same time, they will not forget that after drinking alcohol, the body does not actively burn fats. Any alcoholic drink contributes to the accumulation of not only subcutaneous, but also internal fat. Visceral fat should be present in the body, but in certain quantities. When its concentration increases, then the performance of all internal organs decreases sharply. As a result, the risks of developing various diseases increase.
- The rate of testosterone secretion decreases. If alcohol is present in the body, then the rate of production of the male hormone drops sharply, and the concentration of estrogen increases. You know that testosterone is the main hormone that regulates the growth of muscle tissue. It also helps to increase the rate of recovery of the body and increases the anabolic background. Estrogens, in turn, contribute to the accumulation of fat mass.
- Micronutrient deficiency. Drinking alcohol leads to an increased consumption of vitamin C, A and group B. Also, the concentration of such important minerals as calcium, phosphorus and zinc decreases in the body. All of these substances directly affect the growth of muscles and protect them from catabolism. If you are sure that you are going to take alcohol, then you should first consume one portion of the vitamin and mineral supplement.
- Concentration of glucose. Alcohol lowers blood glucose levels, resulting in hunger. This is very unpleasant for anyone who is overweight, as it can lose control of themselves and eat a lot of food. It has long been proven that men who drink alcohol for dinner then consume about 50 percent more food. As you can see, alcohol and weight loss are closely interconnected and this connection always has a negative connotation.
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