Can cocktails be healthy? They may not compete nutritionally with a superfood salad, but these five (relatively) healthy cocktails will quench your thirst without wrecking your diet plan.
Finding a healthy cocktail to complete your day is a bit of an oxymoron, but there is no question that you deserve a little downtime after the workouts and work days are complete. I mean… you’ve probably got a few brain cells you weren’t using anyway.* 😉
*I hate to be a buzzkill, but I have to be responsible and remind everyone that there’s a line. There are serious health issues associated with heavy drinking and long-term alcoholism. Be smart.
Let’s be real. After a long day, I want to enjoy a beverage without a worry about the number of calories it contains. Online you can find the mathematical formula for converting the alcoholic content of your preferred poison into the number of calories it contains. This probably doesn’t require a Ph.D., but it had me flummoxed. My brain is tired these days!
My suggestion? Just look it up. Many drinks (schnapps, triple sec, etc.) contain added sugar, while wine contains natural sugars. This is further complicated by alcohol content. The higher the drink’s proof, the more your waistline will feel it the next day.
According to Delish, you might want to avoid Everclear (190 proof; 285 calories per shot… not to mention the epic hunch punch hangover), Schnapps (30 proof, 195 calories per shot), Triple Sec (60 proof; 225 calories per shot), Cream De Menthe (72 proof; 187 calories per shot). Remember, a full grown man should aim at an average of about 625 calories per meal, so two shots of Everclear and a glass of wine (~125 calories) is a third of the calories you might need in a day.
In contrast, straight-to-the-point booze is a better option. A shot of 80 proof whiskey (my personal favorite) has 64 calories in it, relatively the same amount of calories in a shot of gin or vodka, although they have less alcohol (40 proof).
However, other health considerations come into play when you consider a current rash or recipes that have come around combining alcohol with grilled pineapple, whey, blended cucumbers, or raw beet juice.
I did some googling and found a few of interesting options:
- You could do worse than a Mint Julep, according Greatist. Simply “muddle together 12 fresh mint leaves and 1 tablespoon of simple syrup. Pour in one shot of Kentucky bourbon and 2 shots of seltzer water.” Of course, you must serve in a pewter cup over the requisite crushed ice.
- How about trying a Vitality Vodka Lemonade? It starts with a juicer, blending together one cucumber, two celery stalks and one head of romaine lettuce. It includes detoxifying lemon juice, “one small piece of fresh ginger and two green apples. Then, add vodka to taste.”
- Here’s an interesting one from Liquor.com. The drink, with Russian roots is called the Napitok Bogov. It includes gin, yogurt or kefir, lemon, lime and honey. The name is said to mean “drink of the gods,” which is a name borrowed from a kefir and honey recipe that has long been called the “food of the gods.”
- Another Liquor.com concoction is called the Old Glory. More of a traditional American drink name, but the ingredients are far from traditional. The blazing magenta-colored drink includes Del Maguey Vida mezcal, raw beet juice, lime, agave and a “barspoon” of Greek yogurt, which rounds off the taste to provide “a smooth, tart edge.”
- Health offers recipes for five drinks under 220 calories, including this alternate version of a Cuban Mojito cocktail, which can contain up to 250 calories if made the old fashioned way. This trimmer version (150 calories in this one) includes one cup of ice, six lime wedges, 1 ½ T of lime juice, 2 T of “torn fresh mint leaves,” a dash of honey, 2 ounces of rum, 4 ounces of club soda. Sounds worthy of a try, no?
Bottom line, each drink calorically represents another a little more exercise, but don’t obsess over it. What’s the point of being healthy if you can’t live a little, right? Especially with the holidays upon us!
For more info on incorporating balance into your diet, check out this post on macros – complete with a free macro calculator!
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If you do happen to ever indulge – I have a few tried and true (not that I would know… *cough cough*) hangover cures for you. 😉
What’s your favorite “healthy” drink? Vegas argues that a Bloody Mary is basically a salad.
Would you drink a cocktail that contains yogurt? I might draw the line there…
This may be one of my most favorite posts!…and that meme with the banana is killing me 🙂 I work HARD and then I reward myself with a beverage or two. It also does wonders for my anxiety. Thanks for the caloric tips and drink ideas, just in time for halloween…
Maybe stick to the banana pre-run though. HAHA!
I do not think I would try an alcoholic beverage that has yogurt in it. Yogurt needs to stick in smoothies not cocktails. Even though that banana has more calories, it is more nutritious. All calories are not treated equal, but that cocktail still sounds tasty, and it is very low in calories than other cocktails that you could have.
I’m right there with you! I don’t even know how people drink White Russians!
And yes… the graphic was meant to be a bit tongue-in-cheek. 😉
Ha ha love the banana and vodka meme! Happy Monday
I saved the list of cocktails I tried in CO. They were amazing! YOu’d love! I will send the list. But that vitality Lemonade is calling my name. 😉
Yes, please send me a list!!! Those Colorado people know how to make a cocktail! I’m always in heaven when I visit Heather and Kirk.
Oh, I love me some cocktails! My current healthy go-tos are bourbon on the rocks with stevia or splenda or a vodka soda with fresh lemon juice squeezed in!
Bourbon with stevia?! I’ve never thought of that!!! Trying tonight. 😉
YES I needed this post! I hate when I’m torn between going out/enjoying some drinks and staying in/being healthy. These are awesome ideas and tips – I def want to try that vodka lemonade one!
I’m glad it helped! I love vodka + lemon-anything. It’s so refreshing!
See how healthy I am drinking straight alcohol!
I’d follow your diet! 😉
I*’d like to try all of these at least once and that vodka lemonade multiple times.
This is why we’re friends.
I am pretty boring always either wine or vodka/soda with a lime.
This post was so well done! So entertaining. Unfortunately I do not drink, really at all except for some occasional wine so I don’t even have a favorite but I would not want one with yogurt!!
Thank you! And it’s okay… I’ll drink yours. 😉
I agree with Vegas, a Bloody Mary is basically a salad. Anything that’s served with raw celery is a salad…
Hmmm a drink with yoghurt… It’s not a combo I would have put together but I defintely would try it. If I want a drink but feel I need to make it a bit more “healthy” I just go for a vodka and soda with some fresh lime or lemon. Simple yet effective.
I love when she gets a Bloody that comes with all sorts of garnishments – bacon, shrimp, random veggies. As per usual, Americans go over-the-top!
I might need those hangover cures for my big birthday coming up!
It’s almost time!!! Drink a LOT of water. 😉
Holy crap, I did not know that Everclear is so calorically heavy! But then again, I have not drank a sip of it since college.. and yes, I can certainly attest that it does make for a mean hangover! That skinny mojito sounds like something I could get behind…and PS – Get ready to drink some cava in Barcelona!
I’m not sure why anyone would touch Everclear after college… it hurt back then, I can’t imagine that hangover at 34!
SO EXCITED for the cava. 🙂
I think my nose stayed wrinkled at most of those LOL!
Ha! Sometimes it’s surprising what come of odd-sounding combos! 😉