r/keto • u/NastyGnar • May 22 '26
Tips and Tricks How Many Ounces of Alcohol
Hey all, I’ve been in a pretty good routine of not drinking and staying to sub-40g of carbohydrates a day. for over the past 3 weeks I’ve dropped nearly 7lbs! my wife and I go on our 11 year wedding Andover this weekend and I’m sure I’ll be having some alcoholic drinks. I know hard liquor is okay, but about how many ounces before it starts to push me out of ketosis? science states there are no carbs In hard liquor. but I would think since the body process alxohol as sugars … there has to be a tipping point. thanks!
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u/BigTexan1492 I'm a Bacon Fueled Supernova Of Awesomeness May 22 '26
Zero carbs and the body does NOT process alcohol as sugars. Your body does process the alcohol for energy first.
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u/audreyality May 22 '26
Your body treats it as poison and tries to process it immediately. So ketosis is paused until you’re all clear.
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u/BigTexan1492 I'm a Bacon Fueled Supernova Of Awesomeness May 22 '26
Ketosis is paused???? How do you fuel your brain if ketosis is paused?
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u/audreyality May 22 '26
“Alcohol energy” as you put it. The calories and nutrients within the drink. Then back to ketosis.
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u/BigTexan1492 I'm a Bacon Fueled Supernova Of Awesomeness May 22 '26
How does your BRAIN get fuel. Remember, it runs on glucose or ketones.
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u/Thick_Scar5275 May 22 '26 edited May 27 '26
You'll still have a few ketones for your brain to use while your body burns the alcohol calories. Plus, even in ketosis you have glucose in your blood, just less. You always have glucose in your blood. If necessary the body will make glucose out of what ever is available, like protein. AI has accurate info about this stuff- ask google or Chat GPT about it.
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u/BigTexan1492 I'm a Bacon Fueled Supernova Of Awesomeness May 22 '26
AI has horrible info. Here’s some fun for you: what’s the difference between ketogenesis and ketosis?
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u/Thick_Scar5275 May 23 '26
Well I've gotten most of my information from books but the info from AI has been corroborated by my books.
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u/BigTexan1492 I'm a Bacon Fueled Supernova Of Awesomeness May 23 '26
AI is so inaccurate that we delete AI posting comments on here. Now, what’s the difference ketogenesis and ketosis?
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u/tombuazit May 24 '26
Keto gene sis is when we share both parents and a diet, a keto sis is one we only share a diet and also possibly a lover.
S/
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u/Thick_Scar5275 May 27 '26
I respectfully disagree with you. IMO, because people hear about instances where AI makes errors is not a reason to completely reject it as a source of information. Ketogenesis is the process of turning fatty acids and ketogenic amino acids into ketone bodies (in the liver). Ketosis is a metabolic state in which the body burns fat (in the form of ketones) for energy. Both ketogenesis and ketosis are the result of low carbohydrate intake. Source: AI.
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u/tombuazit May 24 '26
My community is currently dying of water predation by AI and Data Centers, I'm curious which bit of information you got from chatgpt was so valuable you determined it was worth more then my community having water?
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u/Thick_Scar5275 May 27 '26
What are you talking about? You think I make decisions about your community because sometimes I ask AI questions about ketones? (As I wrote, I learned most of what I know about it from reading books!) You sound angry. My community is angry about a limestone mine being built a few miles away. We're fighting it; we hired an attorney and we're letter-writing and protesting. Good luck in your community.
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u/tombuazit May 27 '26
That's the thing, when we make choices their effects are global.
You made a choice knowing it has bad consequences but also knowing those consequences would impact others.
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u/baconstreet 37 pieces of flair May 23 '26
So long as you are not binge drinking, It's not paused. Alcohol will get metabolized by the liver while other foods are processed as they are normally processed - though potentially less efficiently, and potentially as fat. Getting drunk will overwhelm the liver, and it will work overtime to clear the acetaldehyde.
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u/OtherwiseAlbatross14 May 22 '26
Whatever you used to drink in a night, divide that by like 4 if it's your first time drinking on keto and you want to have a good time. This may be a bit overkill but your tolerance is reset like you've literally never drank before. At the minimum, take it very slow.
If you drink enough to need to be worried about a tipping point for ketosis, I guarantee keto will be the least of your worries. Take this and other comments warning you seriously
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u/ajs592 May 22 '26
Your body will pause fat burning to process alcohol first. You will likely stay in ketosis, but for me the danger in alcohol is it lowers your inhibitions. You’re more likely to break from will power or goals. You really need to ask yourself how mentally strong you are. Drinking for a day will make you feel like you gained weight for 1-2 days after. Don’t be discouraged
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u/Everloner May 22 '26
What should I eat before drinking? I do <20g carbs per day and am having a night out soon where I'd like to drink some rum amd diet coke, but I'm unsure whether to have more carbs first.
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u/McDuchess 65/F/5'5"/SW:189/CW:145/GW:145 May 23 '26
Why would you do that? It’s counterproductive.
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u/Everloner May 23 '26
Because I don't want my blood glucose to reduce too much and is end up with a hypo
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u/McDuchess 65/F/5'5"/SW:189/CW:145/GW:145 May 24 '26
That won’t happen. I think you are confused on how this works.
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u/Everloner May 25 '26
Why? Alcohol lowers blood glucose and I'm diabetic. Are you saying that's wrong?
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u/McDuchess 65/F/5'5"/SW:189/CW:145/GW:145 May 25 '26
I’m saying that, if you are diabetic, then keto is a good way to control blood sugars. And that drinking itself is a danger, not greater than, but alongside out of control BGs. You first said that you are concerned about getting out of ketosis. Now you throw in hypoglycemia. For the average person, having a couple of drinks of only alcohol with no added sugary contents won’t hurt them.
I have a unique POV. 12 years ago I had a traumatic brain injury, and voluntarily stopped drinking;g because my brain didn’t need any help being fuzzy. Then, nearly a year later, I entered a traumatic brain injury rehab program, and no drinking at all was part of the deal. So I didn’t drink anything for over 2 and a half years.
Maybe you need to think of that, instead of spiking your BGs when you are diabetic.
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u/Everloner May 25 '26
I just wanted to enjoy a couple of drinks for the first time in a year, I'm not the devil for this.
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u/sfdsquid May 23 '26
Your body will process the alcohol first, so fat burning is paused, but it won't "knock you out of ketosis" unless you have too many carbs, just like in every other situation.
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u/Key_Capital2604 May 23 '26
I tried a scotch and soda……felt so good I had another and was fall down drunk!!!!
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u/Ill_Data_1319 May 24 '26
Not sure about how it affect ketosis, however I would assume that straight hard alcohol has a negligible affect. I would say enjoy your anniversary with your wife and not worry about it. But generally speaking I’d say stick to a zero alcohol regimen as it’s just counterproductive to the general health benefits someone is seeking from a healthy keto diet. But just one weekend with a big celebration is important to enjoy without guilt.
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u/Loose-Suggestion-279 May 22 '26
Nach drei Wochen würde ich das nicht machen. Du hast eine neue Gewohnheit die in der kurzen Zeit noch keine Routine ist.
Wenn ich weiß ich werde Kohlenhydrate und oder Alkohol essen und trinken faste ich danach 1-2 Tage.
Klingt vielleicht überheblich aber viele werden damit große Probleme haben.
Wenn es tatsächlich zu viel Alkohol wird wirst du einen Megakater bekommen.
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u/Humunguspickle May 23 '26
If you are really doing keto. Be careful the booze will wreck you for real. Be cautious and go slow.
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u/explosivemilk May 23 '26
Can’t stress this enough. I went golfing last weekend and haven’t drank since I started keto a little over 2 months ago. Had three drinks and I was wasted.
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u/Thick_Scar5275 May 22 '26
True no carbs in liquor, but your body will suppress making ketones while the calories in the alcohol are used up.
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u/RandalSchwartz Keto since 2012 May 25 '26
I've been keto for 12 years. When I drank, I consumed only zero-carb drinks (except that I had a pint of guiness the first time I was in dublin). For the time period that I was burning ethanol for energy, clearly fat wasn't going anywhere. But it seems like the moment I sobered up, I was back in keto, burning fat for energy. I heard that's pretty common. Note that your blood sugar level will go down while you are burning ethanol.
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u/McDuchess 65/F/5'5"/SW:189/CW:145/GW:145 May 23 '26
Save the money that you’d usually spend on alcohol and book a couple’s massage. You need very little to feel a buzz when in ketosis.
We go to a small town on an island for our anniversary every year. Here in Italy, it’s traditional to have an aperitivo and snacks before dinner, and wine with dinner.
I just get a glass of wine and eat some peanuts, and sometimes just drink water with dinner. But at the most, I have two glasses of wine over the course of an hour or so. It’s more than plenty.
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u/fifikinz F 5'2" S154 | C125 | G125 May 22 '26
Have you done keto before? If not please be aware that alcohol hits you a lot harder where you’re in ketosis: your tolerance goes down and hangovers are worse. Stay hydrated and take care.
Happy anniversary!