Summer is certainly approaching with the sun out just now and that certainly means more BBQ's with the wether getting better and the lighter nights. Now although BBQ food is regarded as pretty healthy - all that protein! The booze that comes with it can often be peoples downfall. Now the science is clear- if you're serious about building a leaner, fitter and more efficient body quitting alcohol could be your biggest game changer. Alcohol has many negative effects on the body, but lets be honest it is very hard to go booze free all year round particularly when the Sun is shining. So factoring in a few coronas and lime on a hot Summers day - we can do just that and it shouldn't inhibit your results (....much). I say to my personal training clients the occasional tipple is fine and I try to teach them the best ways to drink to coincide with their goals. So try these simple swaps! 1) Ditch Lager and drink Red Wine Swap a pint for a 175 ml glass of red wine to reduce calories per drink from 200 to 120. Lager contains hops which can boost the female oestrogen hormone - oestrogen. These are linked to man boobs! Red wine on the other hand contains rhesveratrol an immune boosting antioxidant that has anti ageing properties. 2) Ditch Whisky and Cola for Vodka and Soda Dark spirits contain more hangover causing toxins than clear ones and subbing in soda for high sugar mixers slashes the calories in half to around 55. Add fresh lime for flavour but don't pretend that it counts as one of your 5 a day :-) 3) Ditch Mojito and drink Bloody Mary A Bloody Mary has 125 calories, half that of a sugar laced Mojito. Also if the tomato juice is fresh it provides vitamin C and lycopene. lycopene is an antioxidant that may reduce the risk of skin cancer. So there you have it. Some simple swaps to keep you on track with your fitness goals. Remember there are 3,500 calories in one pound of fat, so to lose just one pound reducing calories by 500 a day across 7 days will give you that 1 lbs fat loss. It sounds hard but it's easy, especially when you consider training, movement and metabolic effects of training all will help create this 500 calorie deficit. So it's pretty easy to lose fat, but not if you are making silly weekend decisions.
