Confession …I had a food frenzy after a few late night drinks
Even nutritionists get into trouble. For some reason, I get really hungry after drinking alcohol (even if I just had a meal). I used to dial for Chinese food at midnight or grab a slice 
of pizza on my way home from meeting up with my friends. In my 20’s, my friends and I would often go to all night diners and order greasy burgers and fries.
Well, I have grown up since then, have fewer crazy nights and have toned down my drinking … a lot. In any case, I had a little setback last night. Before going out, I bought a half chicken with a baked potato (it came with a jumbo peice of cornbread) from Dallas BBQ. My goal was to weigh and measure the food so I could calculate the calories and post it on my blog. Once I had calculcated out the calories, I was going to portion out 3 meals.
So here is what the meal contained:
BBQ chicken (white meat, I took off skin, 14 oz) = 630 calories
large baked potato (14 oz) = 300 calories
cornbread (7 oz) = 700 calories
Total calories = 1630!!!
So I got home at 11:30 pm after having 3 (large) glasses of wine. All willpower to watch what I eat went out the window. I felt famished. Before I knew it, I had consumed the whole 1600 calorie dinner! So much for portioning out 3 meals.
Morale of the story, alcohol can have a negative effect on your willpower to watch what you eat. While some people report no increased hunger after drinking, others reports feeling famished. Your best bet is to have a little snack waiting for you for when you get home. Something with carbs might be a good idea to absorb some of the alcohol.
Try to keep this light snack to 150 calories or less. Suggestions include:
Instant oatmeal, small bowl of cereal with nonfat milk, banana, microwave light popcorn, yogurt, 100 calorie pack of high fiber crackers.
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April 28th, 2007 at 11:49 pm
I find that alcohol stimulates your appetite and lets down your defenses! I used to try to match every drink I had with a large glass of water - making myself less likely to drink too much (too much bloat and fluid) and less room for food. Its best to limit yourself to your specific limit (mine is now one or two at the most)and leave it as that!
April 29th, 2007 at 9:42 pm
I totally agree!!
May 13th, 2007 at 1:43 pm
I experience the same problem when I drink alcohol - my willpower goes out the window…For me, unfortunately, the best method to deal with this is to not drink at all. Of course, that’s easier said than done because it’s really hard to be at a party or in a bar and only drink soda when everyone around you is drinking wine or cocktails and having fun…Maybe you have some suggestions for how to stay strong in these situations, Martha.
August 15th, 2007 at 7:18 pm
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