Can beer have a place in your weight-loss plan? Here are some tips to have the best of both worlds

Katherine Isacks, MPS, RDN Registered Dietitian

Are you a beer enthusiast looking to lose weight? Read this post to learn more about calories in beer and how it can impact your weight-loss plan.

Can beer and weight loss go together?

These days, we have a wide variety of beer options, especially with all the craft microbrews available. There are endless beer varieties with unique tastes, bodies, and colors, which is great for beer lovers. However, it's important to know that beer can contribute a lot of calories, making it challenging for those trying to manage their weight.

Unfortunately, it's difficult to determine which beers are high or low in calories because regulators do not require calorie information to appear on beer, wine, or liquor containers. Some brewers voluntarily provide this information on their websites, especially if they are marketing a lower calorie or carb content, but many do not. Additionally, calorie trackers often include big-name commercial beers instead of microbrews. Continue reading to see how MyNetDiary and some extra nutrition knowledge can help you enjoy beer while still making progress toward weight loss.

Making sense of carbs and alcohol

Although beer-making starts with carbs (e.g., cereal grains, most commonly barley), much of the carb content converts to alcohol when fermented with yeast. By weight and volume, beer is primarily water. Although most of the calories in beer come from alcohol, unfermented carbs and a small amount of protein also contribute to the total calories. The alcohol content is expressed as a percentage of alcohol by volume (% ABV). All else being equal, the higher the ABV, the higher the calories. Ultimately, beer brewing and the resulting ABV and carb content will all determine caloric content.

Calorie tracking – log the right beer

When logging a brand-name beer with MyNetDiary, be especially careful to pick the correct food item for calorie-content accuracy. There might be multiple versions for the same brand. For example, “Budweiser” or “Bud” comes in regular and light versions. If you drink regular Bud, log “Budweiser regular beer 5% ABV.” If you drink Bud Light, log “Budweiser Light beer.” The difference in calories is pretty significant. The regular contains about 40% more calories than the light version.

In the case of microbrews, you might not find your favorite beer in any food database. This is more common when a brewery does not voluntarily post nutrition information on its website. Since regulations do not require alcohol containers to indicate any calorie or nutrition data, it can be tricky to find this information. If you want to enter a custom food item for a particular type of beer, contact the brewing company to request its carb and calorie information. If that information is unavailable, log the staple food item “Beer regular 5% ABV” or “Beer 7.7% ABV” - whichever %ABV is closest to your beer.

RealBeer.com has nutrient and calorie information for select beers on their webpage, “Calories, carbs and alcohol.”

Tip: If you want to track alcohol grams, upgrade to Premium membership.

Can you drink beer and still lose weight?

Yes, but it is harder to create a caloric deficit if you drink every day. If you are trying to lose weight, here are ways to reduce calories and still enjoy a cold one from time to time:

Drink light or low % ABV beer.
Reduce your portion size. Use a smaller glass or choose a 12-ounce can instead of a 16-ounce bottle.
Drink less frequently, such as only on weekends.
If cutting carbs, choose lower-carb beers, like Michelob Ultra, Budweiser Select 55, and Corona Premier.

Does beer give you a big belly?

In the past, experts held that the excess calorie intake from beer and genetics caused midsection weight gain, a.k.a. the beer belly. Studies challenging this thought explore how heavy alcohol intake may profoundly influence metabolism, resulting in increased waist size and central body fat and elevated blood sugar, blood pressure, and cholesterol levels. In addition, other studies show that heavy alcohol intake can increase fat storage. Is beer affecting your waistline? Try a beer-free holiday and see if your waist size shrinks.

Moderate drinking is defined as 1-2 drinks per day for men and up to one drink for women. One drink of beer is 12 fluid ounces of 5% ABV beer.