Good Morning!

I received an email asking me about dieting and still enjoying wine. I did a little research and I am happy to share with you what I found out. In a serving of Cabernet Sauvignon you will consume about 123 calories. In the same sized glass of Chardonnay you will find about 118 calories.

What defines the calories in wine is the alcohol and sugar content, the higher the sugar level the more calories, so if you like “sweeter” wines the calories will be higher. About each bottle of wine contains around 550-600 calories per bottle (to give you some prospective, a King sized Snickers candy bar is 560 calories). Personally, it would be a tough decision to pick between drinking an entire bottle of wine or eating a King sized Snickers…though if the Snickers is coming straight out of the frig…I will go with the Snickers.

I have not always watched my intake of food or wine and 10 years ago, I weighed 267 pounds, I am 100 pounds lighter today and I try to keep it under 170 pounds ( my doctor would like me to be under 145, I hate that dude). What changed for me? I got tired of being fat and feeling unhealthy. I did not change much in my diet starting out…I just decided to move more than I ate and it was ok to let myself actually get hungry.

I started out on the exercise bike and walking on the treadmill, nothing major, just started going to the gym and doing something. I did not change my diet one bit. I have never cut back on alcohol in my life, I will say, I can go weeks without wine or margs, but if the notion strikes me, I never say no. What I did start changing in my diet after I started working out, I started making sure I was taking in 60-70 percent of my diet was made up of water based foods, veggies, fruits and red meats and cheese were put on the back burner. I have to say, many nights a week, I could eat cheese and crackers and polish off a bottle of wine…..MOOOOOOOO!

So, I learned something new today about wine, the leaner and more fit you become the less the alcohol can affect your body. Of course you can still feel the booze and you will get drunk, but if you have strong water based muscles, the alcohol is not absorbed as easily as if you have some larger amounts of body fat, the alcohol can move easily into the body fat. I did not know this, actually, I never really even thought this except I used to have a pal in college and she was tiny and she got drunk super easy so I assumed the smaller you are the quicker you get hammered.

I still have the same view of food and health, I don’t like to workout that much, but I do it and I don’t like watching what I eat. I think life is all about trying and enjoying everything when it comes to food and wine and most all of life’s experiences. I just try to move more than I eat, I have a sweet tooth so I have to watch my how often I make cookies and pies…I do not love really rich foods like fettuccine or ranch or creamy dressings, so that is a blessing. I know a lot of people really watch and obsess over their dress size, I am not too hung up on it….I figure all things in moderation and as long as I feel happy and healthy then I can smile back in the mirror everyday!

I hope you have a great start of this week!

Much WINE and love,

Tammi