34. You choose lighter-colored beer over dark to save on calories

THE RESULT: Not much of the calorie savings you covet.

THE FIX: Color doesn’t tell the whole tale. Guinness Stout looks dark and heavy but has about the same calories as Bud Light. What can compound the confusion is a lack of consistent labeling. A Bud Light label lists calories but not alcohol (4.2% compared to a regular Bud’s 5%), while a12-ounce bottle of specialty ale may state its alcohol content (a walloping 8%) but not reveal calories. Confused? So were we. If the label doesn’t list calories, look to the alcohol percentages to guide you instead. As a general rule, more alcohol means more calories. To keep your number in check (and keep things simple), heed the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which recommend the alcohol equivalent of up to one beer a day for women (two for men), defined as 12 ounces of regular beer with 5% alcohol by volume (ABV).