This browser does not support the Video element.
When the sun comes out the boozy parties on the beach in the back yard begin! And with alcohol consumption comes added unwanted calories. Here to share some of her tips on how to drink "light" this summer is owner of Clean & Lean Fitness, Carisa Rasmussen.
Great ways to create delicious drinks that are more natural and/or lower calories. Use real fruit, veggies, and fresh herbs not just for garnish, but to flavor your drinks. Use stevia or honey in place of sugar. You won't be able to stir the honey into a cold drink so make sure you make a simple syrup with it first.
Honey simple syrup
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup water
Heat on medium heat, stir until the honey is completely dissolved, store in fridge
Infusing vodka is a great way to get a lot of flavor without adding a ton of calories with syrups, sweeteners and additives. Prairie Vodka has some really grew videos and recipes for making your own infused vodka's, I really enjoyed watching and learning, and I shared one the concepts on Fox. Here's a link, http://prairievodka.com/recipes/#4
Things to try
When looking for lower calorie options don't hesitate to ask your local liquer store. I love Surdyks because they are MN owned and they have tons of knowledgeable people working there. I got all off my product and some really great information from them for this segment. There website is http://surdyks.com
Of course the biggest trick is to have one drink and either nurse it all night, or go between a drink and a water. By drinking water between drinks, you'll get fuller quicker, and not want as much and you'll likely wake up without a hangover.
Clear liquor will have less calories naturally than dark colored liquor.
Wine in general is a pretty safe choice. Most people aren't going to do wine shots, so you're more likely to drink them slowly. Also, the average serving of wine contains between 80 to 110 calories per serving. The dryer the wine, the less calories they will contain. The lowest calorie wines will typically be chardonnay's, sauvignon blanc and dry champaign or dry sparkling wine.
Drinks to avoid
When you think of things to avoid when going out with friends, it's the sodas, mixers and syrups that really get people in calorie counting trouble. Also, the trendy chocolate, or flavored sugar rims are adding plenty of unnecessary calories to your drink.
Keep in mind that the higher the percentage of alcohol (the proof), the higher the percentage of calories per OZ the alcohol will host. Flavored liquors, such as Kahlua, schnapps, Malibu rum or Baileys, contain significantly more calories than your standard proof liquor.
You could compare eating a Big Mac at 563 calories, if you have two drinks it would be like adding a 510 calorie large fry to your order. But I would imagine that you're also going to actually eat dinner, do you would need to add those calories on top of your drink calories.
Drinks You want to avoid
Up to 780 Calories - 7 oz - Long Island Iced Tea Up to 740 Calories - 8.5 Oz Margaritas and their cousin drink the daiquiri Up to 644 Calories - 6 oz - Pina Colada Up to 620 Calories - 9 oz - Mai Tai Up to 594 Calories - 12.5 oz - Mudslide Up to 525 Calories - 7 oz - Grasshopper Martini Up to 425 Calories - 5 oz - White Russian