Dieting presents many complications if you are not fully committed to changing your lifestyle. Many people are more than willing to pick the parts of the diet that they are comfortable with, only to hang onto the bad habits that got them there in the first place.

Alcohol can play in important role in your diet more than just the added calories or carbohydrates:

• Alcohol creates an acidic environment in your body. The kidneys have a hard time ridding your body of the waste and create problems in cellular function. You wont get the most out of your body since it is concentrating on other functions that can be alleviated. If you smoke when you drink, it just adds more acid forming ash into the process.
• Sleep patterns are affected by alcohol. Your body is not properly rested after a night of intoxicated sleep. Hangovers are the proof you need. If you are dieting, your body will need to work overtime. Alcohol doesnt help the situation, and actually makes it worse.
• Munchies. Most of us eat more when we drink. Our bodies become hungry because they need to balance out the consumption. Fruit just really doesnt go that well with beer. How many late night pizzas have you had? They are tasty, but no good for your weight loss plan.
• Alcohol impairs your judgment so you really dont care about your diet. Youll regret it in the morning, but you are just concerned about right now. Eat, drink, and be merry, and least for tonight.
• Dehydration. Cotton mouth is the least of your problems. Muscle stiffness and lack of thought process might be more of a hindrance throughout the day.

Of course, it is acceptable to have a couple of social cocktails every now and then. But you need to close the gap on the separation of what you know you should do and what you want to do. Thats where dedication and motivation come into play. Get the most from your efforts by focusing them in the right place and sticking to your well-thought-out plan.

You do need to reward yourself for all of your good efforts, but dont pick something that will reverse all the hard dieting goals youve met. Moderation is the key in losing weight, and alcohol is no different.

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// posted by Melissa @ 3:52 AM