Last year, I lost 40 pounds in 9 months and went from barely running 1 mile to easily running 13 and benching 125 pounds. I did all of this while partying and binge drinking 2-3 times a week. Outside of alcohol, my eating was completely clean - lots of veggies and lean protein.

I had five pounds left to lose, and decided I needed to quit drinking to do it. I gave up drinking and slowly GAINED weight.

Every piece of nutritional advice I've seen says you can't lose weight while drinking alcohol. How I did it in the first place is a mystery. What's even more of a mystery is how I gained pounds once I stopped drinking. I'm now wondering if swearing off alcohol was a mistake? I believe it mitigated cravings and really decreased my apetite... Also, the fun I had while drinking really helped kept me on track during the week I think. Anybody else experience anything else like this? Could I start going out again without gaining weight, or even while losing weight?

I have a food for fitness book, and it doesn't say you shouldn't not drink but drink in moderation. For women it's 14 units per week. Here's some other points it says:
- Have at least 2 alcohol free days per week.
- Pace your drinking - alternate low calorie soft drinks with alcoholic drinks, or mix dry white wine with sparkling water to make your drink last longer.
- Keep a tally.
- Don't nibble salty snacks with drinks.
- Extend your alcoholic drink with water.
- Do not feel obliged to drink by friends.
- Do not drink on an empty stomach as this speeds alcohol absorption.

It also says:
Did you know? Cutting down - but not giving up - on your alcohol intake can help you lose unwanted body fat. One glass of wine is equivalent to 95kcal so if you reduce your intake by seven glasses of wine per week, you'll save 2660 kcal a month, that's nearly 1 lb of body fat!

So in my opinion, because you were exercising SO much alcohol was pumping more calories in you - and when you're exercising more you need to eat more to compensate. So now you've cut it out you're not eating enough, so you're gaining.

I hope this helps!

I've read the same thing too, that alcohol is all empty calories but on the days the I do drink (maybe twice a week) I definately see a bigger drop on the scale the morning after.
Yes yes I know that alcohol dehydrates you so it might just be water weight but I drink a lot of green tea and coffee most days of the week which also dehydrate because of the caffeine.

If you really think cutting alcohol from your diet caused you to gain weight, then I don't see anything wrong with it incorporating it back into your diet. maybe we are the exceptions in which alcohol don't seem to make us gain weight.

Count me in your club. I drank, and continue to do so, alcohol throughout my weight loss journey. I've found that, unlike others, alcohol, decreases my appetite. I have to remind myself to eat while drinking. I usually try to limit myself to 2 drinks, maybe 3, at one time though. And yes, the scale usually is down the next morning. Maybe it's the type of alcohol?

I have experienced the same thing. Ultimately, weight loss can be attributed to calories in vs. calories out, if you are burning off the calories that the alcohol contains or drinking alcohol within an acceptable calorie range, you'll still see a loss (can you tell I'm a calorie counter... )

Weight loss is about accepting a new lifestyle, and if part of your lifestyle is going out for a few drinks with friends, or whatever, you shouldn't have to give that up!

I'll admit that I do love to weigh myself after a night of alcohol indulgence though, I always see a scale drop, it usually doesn't last though.

I am so excited to read everyone is dropping weight while drinking. That has been the toughest lifestyle change for me so far... I work early mornings, so once Friday happy hour hits, it's game on for the weekend!

I think if you're smart about it, such as drinking light beers, liquor w/diet pop to save some calories, you should be ok. Right?

I also heard people tend to gain weight while getting drunk because they tend to eat the fried bar food that comes along with it. I think 2am McDonald's runs kind of helped me to get to where I am now. Eek.

Did I mention I was going through a lifestyle change?

Before my 2nd son I lost 50lbs in less then 5 months by eating healthy, working out, and I also went out and drank twice a week. But I didn't "snack" or eat fast food at all when I did and I also only drank things like vodka and diet cranberry juice. I have 3 kids now and don't go out or drink hardly ever and man I'm telling you its definitely NOT coming off as fast as before lol! BUT I'm also older and have had 3 kids haha bodies are weird.
GOOD LUCK!!!

Wow yeah I'm surprised me and OP aren't the only ones who have experienced this "phenomenon"
I was expecting people to quote me and point out why I was wrong. Yeah I think a couple of drinks a week definately does not do any harm. I'm a shots of vodka kind of girl, no beer or mixed drinks, and yeah if I go over board on them and get too tipsy I do end up craving and thinking I'm hungry which I know is just my loopy brain. Everything in moderation do on that note lets not be afraid of happy hour

I also see a loss on the scale the morning after a night out drinking. But I'm pretty sure it's because alcohol dehydrates your body, so the weightloss you see is mostly just water

Right. I was going to say the loss on the scale in the morning is dehydration.

I don't think that there's anything wrong with drinking while trying to lose weight, or that it would hinder you. When it comes down to it, weight loss is calories in vs calories out. If you account for your drinking and can avoid late night pizza runs (or even account for that) there's no reason that you need to cut out alcohol completely.

Also, you'll find as you lose weight it takes less of the stuff to get to your happy place