{"id":584,"date":"2010-08-06T07:15:56","date_gmt":"2010-08-06T14:15:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/leanmeanvirilemachine.com\/?p=584"},"modified":"2010-08-06T07:03:38","modified_gmt":"2010-08-06T14:03:38","slug":"healthy-alcoholic-drinks-how-to-have-fun-without-getting-a-beer-belly","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/theguycancook.com\/blog\/2010\/08\/06\/healthy-alcoholic-drinks-how-to-have-fun-without-getting-a-beer-belly\/","title":{"rendered":"Healthy Alcoholic Drinks: How to Have Fun Without Getting a Beer Belly"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"healthy<\/a>Yeah, we all want to look sexier, more powerful, increase energy levels, and live longer. But when we guys TRY to get our health together in pursuit of these goals, a few common roadblocks keep turning up. One of these obstacles is cutting back on the booze.<\/p>\n

As luck would have it, you can lose fat, build muscle, AND get your drink on, if you know how to do it correctly – go easy on the sauce and stick with healthy alcoholic drinks.<\/p>\n

The Benefits and Hazards of Booze<\/strong><\/p>\n

Research has found that moderate consumption of alcohol is beneficial to your health. It increases insulin sensitivity and raises HDL (good) cholesterol, amongst many other perks.<\/p>\n

Of course, you can go too far with drinking. Calling your ex at three in the morning is bad enough, but when you get into a bar fight or start driving on the wrong side of the freeway, you are putting yourself in a tight spot.<\/p>\n

So remember this one rule: Have a couple drinks, but keep it classy. (Okay, okay. Cut loose every now and then. Just don’t do anything that will put you or someone else in danger.)<\/p>\n

Sugar: A Terrible Drinking Buddy<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you rarely drink, it probably doesn’t matter what you have when you do. But for those of us who like to indulge a bit more, there is one villain that we need to be ever-vigilant of: sugar.<\/p>\n

Once upon a time, men liked their drinks stiff. These days, we think the mark of a good drink is when you can’t taste the alcohol. Unfortunately, in order to do this, bartenders must load the drink up with sugar and syrups to mask it.<\/p>\n

Sugar and other refined carbohydrates lead to chronically elevated insulin, which in turn causes your body to store fat away 24\/7. I shouldn’t need to tell you that this is a very BAD thing. In order to enjoy healthy alcoholic drinks, we need to cowboy up and take all the girly, fruity stuff out of it.<\/p>\n

In other words, drink what James Bond would drink, not the stars of Sex in the City.<\/p>\n

The Basics<\/strong><\/p>\n

So, if the biggest thing we need to worry about is the mixers, it stands to reason that the straight stuff should be best. Here’s some good choices:<\/p>\n