A Potentially Weighty Matter
Craft beer is a fantastic hobby/interest/obsession but it can be tough at times to keep our fitness and weight in control while enjoying all the great beers that we do. Let’s face it, quality beer is a calorie bomb! A nice 22oz bomber of an Imperial Stout, like the Oak Aged Yeti I just reviewed, comes in at a hefty 480 calories+. If you drink the whole bottle over the course of an evening like I did, it counts for a lot in the typical daily calorie intake. For me, being about 6 foot 1 and weighing 165-170 my “target” calories are about 2300/day to maintain my weight. Tossing the “Yeti” into the mix accounts for 20% of my daily calories!
Even drinking just 1 nice craft beer every other day, like a Sierra Nevada Torpedo, can add on an extra 200 calories each time (or 700/week) which can add up to 10 extra pounds a year, all things being equal. That’s a lot of extra weight! I know of at least one craft beer lover who has had to stop drinking good beer because of weight gain issues.
How I Keep Things In Balance
I don’t want to have to give up this great hobby, and I know most of you don’t either. That’s why (at least partly) I workout as much as I do. The main reason I ride my bike, walk, stretch, and do other exercise is so that I can be fairly competitive and complete centuries and other longer cycling events. But, in addition to the fitness I gain, burning all those calories riding my bike allows me to drink great beer, in moderation, without having to worry as much about my weight.
I thought there might be some interest in the craft beer community on tips, tricks, and strategies on how to gain fitness and fire up the metabolic furnaces to burn more calories. So, I made this short video with an intro (along with some quick tips) to what I have been thinking about:
The Bottom Line
If there is enough interest, I am willing to commit to helping people develop and implement a fitness program that might help in keeping everything in balance. I have been into exercise/aerobic conditioning for nearly 30 years and have some experience in putting together training programs for myself and others.
Disclaimer: I am not a doctor or sports professional, just a beer lover who knows a little about fitness. Always check with your Dr before starting any fitness or weight loss program!
If you are interested in some more information/tips/etc. let me know in the comments. If enough of you show interest I can do some more videos on setting up a training plan, monitoring your diet, etc. I could also set up some forums so people could provide support, feedback, etc. in a community of beer lovers. I have even considered offering more personalized service (help building a training plan, etc.) for a very small fee if people request it. There’s a ton of possibilities! In the meantime I have set up a “store” through Amazon where you can look at some items that I have found useful in my fitness program.
So, what do you all think?…………….
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Enjoy your videos and would love to see the fitness thing work. Great Idea!! Cheers Tom-Founder Evolution Craft Brewing Co. in Delmar, De.
Hi Tom,
Glad you like the videos! I’m having a lot of fun putting them together, that’s for sure! As far as the fitness thing goes, I’ve had some response, but not as much as I thought. I’ll probably do another video or two on the subject and see if there is more response. I spend 5-10 hours a week working out so for me, fitness is a regular part of my life. It definitely allows me to drink great beer without having to worry about my weight. I checked out your site and it looks like you guys are making some good beers. I’d love to try them! Happy brewing and thanks for the kind words!
Mark
This is an awesome idea. I am 25 and at 5’6 I weigh around 130 pounds. I love my craft beers and with my body size I have to work out at least 3 days a week to keep myself in check. I generally run 30 mins and then do circuit strength training for about 30 minutes. I’m looking into mixing it up this spring with mtn biking.
Sounds like you are very active! That’s key for staying healthy plus being able to enjoy good food and drink. If you’re running 30 minutes 3x/week plus circuit training you are burning a fair amount of calories. Mtn biking will add even more. Keep it up!
Forgot to add my question. I have a Gary Fisher Wahoo Hardtail mtn bike. Any suggestions for a road bike? I would be willing to spend $300-500 bucks. I’m not sure if you are familiar with bikes for people of my frame, but any help would be appreciated.
You can get a decent road bike for that, especially if you buy a used one or last years model. I would suggest visiting some local bike shops and telling them what you are looking for. Don’t go to the big box stores! You want a bike with quality components. The frame will probably be Aluminum and the component set should be a basic Shimano set up. The bike shop can help you get fitted properly (which is the most important part). Some brands to look for might be Specialized, Felt, Trek & Giant. If you have a Performance bike shop in your area visit them as well.
Good luck!
Thanks for the video and I’m glad I stumbled across this site. There’s a good set of tools I’ve used to track calories/exercise on LiveStrong: http://www.livestrong.com/tools/ They have a good database of most foods and even a few craft beers!
Best
Hi Jon-Eric,
Thanks for reading/commenting. I’m glad you found the site! I have checked out the Livestrong stuff and it’s pretty good but right now, I’m really liking Sparkpeople.com It’s free and they have a lot of foods in the database plus a fairly large community. There are other online calorie counters, etc. as well so it shouldn’t be hard to find one that fits.
Keep watching and reading. Take care.