Booze and Training

[silentbob]

I spent two weeks over Christmas drinking 10-12 pints of Guiness every other night. My diet was attrocious. When I returned to the gym after 4 weeks off, I was lifting the same if not more than when I left.

I don't drink regularly though, and not to excess (Christmas was a one off - visiting family in Northern Ireland, where they all drink like fish!). I'm thinking that a few beers here and there aren't going to screw up your training.

[Dada]

I don't drink at all anymore but when I was younger I used to drink a lot. It was never a problem as far as strength training went unless I had a particularly bad night and missed a workout due to a hangover or something. But the main thing that was bad about it was diet went out the window with excess calories from alcohol and even worse from late night eating of junk. So if I was trying to gain weight and bulk up it was usually fine until I wanted to get lean, then I had to cut back on drinking. But now I am older and I don't think I could drink like I used to and still train hard anymore without feeling like shit.

[nburge]

I'm never too sure what to make of posts on booze and training, or booze and getting fat etc etc. My personal opinion (gained from anecdotal evidence, reading around the subject wherever possible and a degree in Biochemistry) is that alcohol in itself is not a problem. You can't (as popularly believed) use alcohol directly as a fuel, and it costs the body energy to rid it from the liver, and subsequently the kidneys. The problem mainly (as other posters mention) is that you become lethargic the day after a session, whilst hungover, and you become hungry (due to the fact alcohol lowers blood sugar - you're using this energy to break down the alcohol) so you tend to scoff junk food. It doesn't do your hormones much good either, which adds to the beer belly effect.

I drink far too much, and have done for years. I'm now 29 and experience the same "much worse hangovers" that other older drinkers post, and indeed I used to be able to drink for a weekend when 18 and not feel the difference the following week. I don't think that's because my body is worse at processing it though, the bare fact is I'd be hammered on 8 pints of lager at 18, whereas now I sit in the pub on a saturday watching the sport and drink twice that. No surprise I'm feeling much worse afterwards. When I try to go on weight training programmes like this I naturally look more at what I eat, and drink, so tend to cut down on the booze (I get up early to train, and hate getting up early with a hangover) and I think that's natural. Undoubtedly drinking will make sticking to something like this harder, but I don't think a drink with your mates once in a while will set you back to square one. If you can control it, do so, if not then steer clear of the grog.

Hope this helps - probably just expands what others have said before, but I wanted to add my two cents worth.

[muadib]

Here's the deal:
Alcohol is a solvent. It increases 'cell wall permeability' thus allows more shit to move in and out of your cells. this is not good. If your cells walls are less rigid and the water in them (inter-cellular fluid) moves in and out with it's wastes, nutrients and whatever else you will not be as strong. your muscle cells won't be as rigid. simple. There is as much alcohol in the middle of your eyeball as there is in your big toe.

I like to drink as well, one way to make sure your recovery is faster is to drink one water after every alcoholic drink. all effects of a hangover are dehydration related, headache, nausea etc. (unless you have been drinking jager, or energy boozes, they are full of a bunch of other shit) I don't care about your anecdotes about what gives vs. what doesn't give a hangover. Dehydration is the bottom line. Drink water to recover. drink water before, drink water after and drink water while drinking alcohol. (beer doesn't count as water boys )

[Weezie]

Well, I'm not too glued up in this area but I do remember friends and coaches saying that...
The fitter you are the easier it is to get drunk, so I'm guessing you are just getting fitter and so your tolerance for alcohol is just dropping with it too...
I suppose those are general comments, so if you are fit and you do constantly drink quite a bit, I guess you can screw up your liver and then have a higher tolerance level for alcohol

[Qball2436]

Im a weekend warrior now and i drink bombay gin. I play i pay just gotta work twice as hard