No loss this week, but I’m close to a new low — what will it take to cross that 60 pounds down mark before the end of the year?

I know the simple answer: diligence. We are leaving town today, to celebrate Christmas with family before we come home to our own, and that means my normal low on Saturday is out of the question. I’m simply not going to pack a scale to bring with me on a trip!

But I have more that I need to do. Lately, I’ve been learning some hard lessons about my changing body; my brain still thinks it can do things it used to do, but my body chemistry is proving me wrong. Normally, I’m a fast learner, but I’ve been slacking, lately.

Confession: I have become a cheap drunk.

Hopefully, you’re laughing at this. I know I have, despite some degree of embarrassment and a whole lot of good-natured kidding. I suppose, on the good side, I might save some money in the long run, if I can get tipsy on less liquor. Right? Perhaps this is really a cost-saving maneuver, considering New Year’s Eve is just around the corner!

Scientifically speaking, I suspect I know why this has become the case; I’m eating a lot less, I’m very strict during the week — so when I have a drink on the weekend, it metabolizes quicker than it used to. My doctor and I also recently discussed the likelihood that I have become insulin resistant ; as a result, my body doesn’t properly metabolize carbs. This is one of the main reasons I’ve chosen a low carb eating regimen, as it assists with such conditions.

Chemically speaking, the body uses fuel in a certain hierarchy. Most commonly, the body prefers to burn carbs (sugar, starches) first, and then fat. The basic idea behind a low carb diet is to limit carbs enough so that the body switches to burning fat as its primary source of fuel. This, I know — I’m hardly a newcomer to low carb diets.

But there’s one fuel that the body will burn faster, if it’s present: and we know what it is, don’t we? That’s right: alcohol is a form of carbohydrate. So if my body is chugging along, happily burning fat, and then I give it a glass of whiskey, my chemical engine is going to sputter and shift right over into alcohol-burning mode. And, might I add — with gusto.

Without getting too much more into the science behind fat storage, I have been limiting my carb intake on a more drastic level over recent months, and adjusting my daily proportions of fat-protein-carbohydrate. While being a wickedly cheap drunk is a downside to choosing to enjoy alcohol, because the rate at which it affects me is much quicker (and therefore not as easy to control as it once was), it is also a good sign. It’s a sign that my body is doing what I want it to do — that I’m on the right track.

Except, of course, there’s that lesson to learn: there’s obviously more adjusting I need to do, particularly at times when I plan on enjoying a few more carbs at a meal, along with an adult beverage. (Or two.)

Merry Christmas to my friends! I’ll raise a glass in your honor; and I promise to drink it slowly. 😉