Cinco de Diet

Drinking and dieting are two things that do NOT go together.

So on this Cinco de Mayo, a holiday dedicated to Mexicans and Margaritas, I bring to you a new holiday called “Cinco de Diet.” Today, I am celebrating the 5th pound lost on my diet, instead of the beloved rita. If you know me, you know that I do LOVE  a good strawberry margarita (who doesn’t), but since I have lost 5 pounds, there is no reason to gain one back! It’s Thursday. I’m not in school anymore. And I have to go to work tomorrow. I’m not going to admit that I’m growing up and becoming any more mature than I was last year – because I’m not – but the reason I am not going to drink tonight is because I must work out and stick to my diet!

For those of you who are not on a diet – or are on a diet (aren’t we all?) and are going out for drinks anyway, here are some Cinco de Diet drink specials brought to you by a little Google searching and street smarts.

*RITA RAGE*

Here are some different Skinny Margarita recipes for the rita obsessed & Cinco de Mayo lovers who are on diets! Margaritas that you get at restaurants and bars are usually 500 – 1000+ calories… There is no need for that when you can make one yourself for WAY less than half the calories – aka under 200 calories (what a nice snack!). I found these on Health.com:

The Frosty Blended Rita

Limes, salt, Mexican limóns, tequila, Cointreau, superfine sugar, ice = 179 calories!

Bethenny’s Skinny Girl Margs

This ones my fave…

2 oz of Clear Premium Tequila, Tiny splash of Orange Liquor, & the juice of 4 fresh lime wedges = 100 calories! (and you don’t even need to make these at home… they sell them by the bottle!) Thank you Bethenny!

Strawberry Margarita (my favorite!)

Strawberries, crushed ice, tequila, limes, sugar, Cointreau= 198 calories (and 3 grams of fiber!)

Here are some other low cal drinks!

Vodka & Diet Lime Soda (Fresca, Diet Sierra Mist, Sprite Zero, etc)

This badass drink is UNDER 100 calories. For those of you who love vodka, I’m sure this is a staple in your diet anyway… but those of you who don’t (aka me – I had a bad experience with vodka in college), just don’t make your drinks so strong… The mixer you’re using has no calories, so it doesn’t really matter how many drinks you make – it will all amount to the same number of calories. Also, the drunker you get, the better your drink will taste. Maybe you’ll be drinking straight vodka by the end of the night… and why not? It has the same number of calories but comes without the diet soda that may bloat you. What’s not to love?

Gin and Tonic

1 oz of gin and 3 oz of tonic has only 103 calories in it. I am not a fan of gin, but like I said once you’re drunk, you will drink anything… and this low calorie drink might not be a bad end-of-the-night choice. If you are a fan of gin, drink a few of these at the start of your night! Just remember, if you have 4 drinks, that’s 412 calories… AKA don’t snack during the day!

Pina Colada Cooler

While a regular Pina Colada from let’s say Fridays or Chilis has almost half a day’s worth of calories in it (gross), I found this recipe on fitnessmagazine.com for the Pina Colada Cooler. You might have to do some shopping for the ingredients – but it’s definitely worth it compared to ordering a fruity high-calorie cocktail at an overpriced restaurant! Here is the recipe:

1 1/2 ounces coconut-flavored rum; 3 ounces pineapple juice; 4 ounces sparkling water; 1 tablespoon of Coco Lopez Cream of Coconut Lite

All you have to do is pour those 4 ingredients over ice and stir! And it amounts to 165 calories! Not bad.

You can even triple the recipe and make a “Pina Colada Cooler Bucket” for bigger parties. Mmm, I love me some Captain Morgans rum! Low calorie goodness.

Champagne

A 4 oz glass of champagne is only 85 calories. Champagne is a celebratory drink – so don’t fret when it’s being poured at your best friend’s bday or New Years celebration… Just factor it in to your day’s cals. Honestly, 85 is not so bad… and it tastes good!

Mimosa Light

So I just told you  that champagne has 85 calories in 4 oz… So why not add some OJ to the equation! You will need 2 oz of Minute Maid Light Orange Juice & the juice of half a medium sized orange. Pour the juice of the orange over a glass of ice… then add the OJ & the champagne. You will then have a 120 calorie healthy morning mimosa! YUM.

And here are some low cal mixers:

Diet soda: 0 calories

Orange juice (6 oz): 84 calories

Cranberry juice cocktail (8 oz): 136 calories

Light orange juice (8 oz): 50 calories

Light cranberry juice (8 oz): 40 calories

Light lemonade (8 oz): 5 calories

Coffee, tea: 0 calories

Baja Bob’s sugar-free margarita or sweet ‘n’ sour mix: 0 calories

Lemon or lime juice (1/2 oz): 10 calories

*In honor of Cinco de Mayo – please not the zero calorie margarita mix :)*

Happy drinking!