There comes a time in every man’s life when he must come to terms with his belly. He could be young or old, but the flab will fold over the belt line eventually.
Unless you’re a craft beer devotee, in which case this is already a reality, because, let’s face it, beer really isn’t very good for you. OK, maybe it is in moderation, what with the sense of well-being, courage and heightened creativity, but moderation is not a word most craft beer enthusiasts take very seriously.
Which is why the vast majority of craft beer enthusiasts are grappling with beer bellies that are on a spectrum somewhere between of “just budding” to “gastronomically out of control.” Take a look around next time you’re in a brewery tasting room. Potbellies aplenty.
This isn’t all because of the beer itself, of course, and has much to do with the behaviour and decisions that are made whilst in the grips of beer intoxication. And it doesn’t have to be this way, people!
Since I’m but a lowly beer-drinker myself, with a poor grasp of nutrition and fitness realities, I’ve asked Westender’s nutrition columnist Patty Javier Gomez R.H.N. to help me help you, the devoted craft beer enthusiast, not be so fat.
Eat properly.
No shit, right? But, Patty says belly fat is associated with a number of things, including inflammation in the body, which can be caused by refined carbs (bread, chips, crackers, or anything that comes in a box or bag, really), sugars or sweetened drinks.
“Our inhibitions are lowered when we drink alcohol in general, so when we mix drinking and eating we don’t tend to make the healthiest choices or we binge.”
Either that, or we’re ignorant of what the healthy choices actually are. Not everyone’s aware that those twisty cheese-and-bread things are actually really quite terrible, nutritionally speaking.
Patty says we crave fat when we’re drinking, so it’s important that we eat good fats, since they play a role in increasing metabolism. Eat salmon, avocado, seeds, nuts. Coconut oil is good. These can help reduce cravings for bad fat, like all those McDonald’s cheeseburgers after a particularly vigorous Friday night on the town. OK, Wednesday night. You know what I mean.
Also, avoid eating salty snacks, because they make you want to drink more, which you might think is actually a good thing (pretzels + beer = heaven). But it’s not.
Exercise regularly.
Ugh, not this again. Because literally the last thing you want to do with a Saturday morning…OK, Thursday morning hangover is jog around the neighbourhood for half an hour.
But anaerobic cardio – running, sprinting, swimming – is an effective way to shed the pounds, since it uses short bursts of energy that burns calories in a shorter amount of time.
Or get a dog. They’re active and force you to be active as well…unless you’re a deadbeat dog owner who never walks the dog, in which case you’re beyond reproach anyway, tubby.
Deal with your stress.
“Stress weight tends to accumulate in your belly area,” Patty says, “so if you are using beers to wind down and are not actually dealing with the core of your stress you will accumulate that beer belly a lot faster.”
You hear that? DO NOT drink to unwind. Unwind first. And then drink.
But only in moderation
There’s that word again. Consider it a sacred word, for maintaining a healthy balance in life. Right now, let’s forget the multitude of health issues that excessive drinking can cause. All you need to know is that our livers burn the alcohol when we drink, as opposed to fat, which is why the craft beer devotee tends to be a bit softer around the abdominal area than he/she might be comfortable with. So remember…moderation.
Of course the other solution is abstinence, but that’s not very realistic, now is it?
