Going low-carb has opened my eyes to the sugar content in everything that I eat … and drink. I used to love Dr Pepper with a shot of vanilla from Sonic, until I learned that Dr Pepper has 27 grams of sugar per cup (and I drank at least 32 oz in each sitting). My other favorite summertime beverage used to be sweet tea. Taking a local favorite as an example, McAlister’s Deli’s sweet tea, I found multiple estimates ranging from 60-77g sugar (!!) per drink. That’s more carbs than I now eat in TWO DAYS.

Those two all-around favorites aside, what about refreshing adult beverages? Needless to say, margaritas are chock-full of sugar … oddly enough, not because of the tequila! It’s all in the mixer. Grain liquors such as tequila, rum, vodka and bourbon/whiskey actually have negligible carbs! I can’t explain how it happens, but somewhere along the distillation process, the carbs go bye-bye! There are also some great tasting, low-cal mixers out there, such as Baja Bob’s sugar-free margarita mix.

Regular beer is also out the wazoo with carbs. When you consider that even the lightest beer on the market (last time I checked, it was Michelob Ultra and/or Miller Lite) still has 2.5-3 g carbs per serving, mixed drinks are actually a better option for low-carbers. Besides, who wouldn’t rather have a rum & diet instead of a watery light beer?  😉