Is Alcohol Inhibiting Your Weight Loss Goals?

Weight loss can be a real challenge…

Especially if you regularly drink alcoholic beverages.

This is because alcoholic drinks tend to be high in calories, and we tend to drink a lot of them. Many people don’t factor this in when they think about their calorie intake for the week.

Importantly, some alcoholic drinks are significantly higher in calories than others.

This article looks at how many calories are in your favorite alcoholic drinks, as well as the best choices for those watching their waistline.

A GUIDE TO THE CALORIES IN ALCOHOL

For starters, know that alcohol itself is 7 calories per gram.

This is slightly less than fat (9 calories per gram), but almost double carbs and protein (both contain 4 calories per gram).

One standard drink contains around 14 grams of alcohol. This means, on average, you’ll be consuming nearly 100 calories per alcoholic beverage… even if it’s “low carb”.

Then there are the additional calories that typically come from sugar in the drink as well. Sugar doesn’t inherently make you fat, but it is a delicious source of extra calories that very likely contributes to your weight gain.

Beer, wine and liquor can vary greatly in their calorie counts—even among similar brands and types. So we’ve made a calorie breakdown of some of the most popular drinks below:

Calories in Beer

 These beers are ranked from lowest calorie to highest, based on a serving size of 12 oz (the average size can).

Light beers typically remain under 100 calories, while other varieties can reach up to twice that amount.

• Budweiser Select: 55 calories
• Beck’s Premier Light: 64 calories
• Miller 64: 64 calories
• Michelob Ultra: 95 calories
• Busch Light: 95 calories
• Amstel Light: 95 calories
• Miller Light: 96 calories
• Coors Light: 102 calories
• Bud Light: 110 calories
• Guinness: 125 calories
• Stella Artois: 141 calories
• Beck’s Pilsner: 142 calories
• Budweiser: 145 calories
• Bass Pale Ale: 156 calories
• Anchor Steam: 158 calories
• Michelob: 158 calories
• Blue Moon Belgian White: 168 calories
• Busch Ice Pale Lager: 171 calories
• Sierra Nevada Pale Ale: 175 calories

Calories in Wine

 On average, wines of the same color and type (white, red, rose, sparkling and sweet) don’t differ much in calorie amounts.