I have several clients in my tribe who enjoy macro tracking. They have healthy and balanced food relationships so tracking macros for body change or to get ready for an athletic event is just another tool e use together to ensure their success.
And the question I get ALL THE TIME is about how to track ALCOHOL consumption. Be sure to share this post and FLAG it so you can come back to it every time you want to track yo’ booze!
Here’s what we know for sure: Fat, protein, and carbs are the three macronutrients essential to sustaining life. I coach my ladies to think of alcohol like the fourth macro nutrient (non essential to life of course).
“By itself, alcohol is not a carb, fat, or protein—there are about 7 calories per 1g of alcohol, so from an energy perspective, it’s between fat (at 9 cal/g) and protein and carbs (both 4 cal/g),” (Rachele Pojednic, Ph.D., assistant professor of nutrition at Simmons College in Boston)
Are you confused yet?
You can count alcohol as either a carb, a fat or a combo of both (carb and fat). No matter what you decide, you’re going to have to break out the calculator.
Let’s use wine: 5oz of red wine has 121 calories.
To count that wine against your carb load: There’s 1g of carbohydrate per 4 calories, which means that a 121-calorie glass of wine will add 30g of carbs to your count (121 calories divided by 4g/cal =30g of carbs).
Alternatively, with 1g of fat per 9 calories, that same 121-calorie glass of wine could add 13g of fat instead (121 calories divided by 9g/cal = 13g of fat).
If you want to track as both carb and fat, that same 121-calorie glass of wine would be 61 calories / 4g/cal carbs = 15g of carbs and 61 calories / 9g/fat = 7g of fat. So you would count this glass of wine as 15 grams of carbs AND 7 grams of fat.
Have any questions about booze macro math? Hit me up in the DMS and I will help you track what you want to drink!
