Among the reasons not to drink too much on New Year’s Eve? The calories. Lean Plate Club blogger Sally Squires has the numbers, so you can be careful out there — or at home.
A five-ounce glass of wine has about 120 calories – not so bad, Squires said, but there’s a problem: “Most of the glasses that we’re now getting in restaurants and homes often will have twice that amount. So you may be getting 240 calories and not realizing it.”
Even hot mulled wine will run you about 100-110 calories.
(Photo by David Silverman/Getty Images)
Photo by David Silverman/Getty Images
A 2.5-ounce Bourbon and soda also has about 120 calories: “But that’s for one,” Squires said, “and how many people stop at one? So you’ve gotta watch that.”
(AP Photo/Bruce Schreiner)
AP Photo/Bruce Schreiner
A 12-ounce beer is about 150 calories. A light beer is only 90, “so if you like light beer, that’s probably a good option for you.”
(AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File)
AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File
An Irish coffee? Now you’re really getting up there: It has about 210 calories. The good news, Squires said, is that since it’s a hot drink, you probably won’t hoover it up so quickly.
(AP Photo/Eric Risberg)
AP Photo/Eric Risberg
One great way to lessen the caloric impact, Squires said, is to alternate alcoholic drinks with sparkling water. Wine spritzers are also “a great way to take that five ounces of wine and maybe spread it over two or three drinks.”
(Thinkstock)
Thinkstock
Squires’ big tip? A water bar. Set out bowls of individual fruits and flavorings such as ginger, mint, basil and others. Then everyone can mash up their own flavors and add still or sparkling water. “You get a really flavorful drink that is very low in calories. It looks good; it looks festive; it tastes great, and it’s just really fun.”
(Thinkstock)
WASHINGTON — There are all sorts of reasons not to drink too much on New Year’s Eve, or anytime really, but there’s one that people might overlook: the calories.
“We often tend to not consider what we’re drinking as calories,” Lean Plate Club™ blogger Sally Squires told WTOP, and that can lead to regrets of a different kind New Year’s morning.
It’s particularly important to keep an eye on your alcohol intake if you’re trying to keep weight off, Squires said: A gram of alcohol has about 7 calories — about twice what you’d get in a protein or a carbohydrate, and just a little less than what you’d find in pure fat. And your body is “very efficient” in turning those calories to fat.
Squires has the numbers so you can at least arm yourself with knowledge about what you’re loading up with — she also has suggestions about how to minimize the calories you’re taking in.
Rick Massimo came to WTOP, and to Washington, in 2013 after having lived in Providence, R.I., since he was a child. He's the author of "A Walking Tour of the Georgetown Set" and "I Got a Song: A History of the Newport Folk Festival."
