If you work out regularly and also enjoy drinking alcoholic beverages, you will probably be wondering whether drinking alcohol will affect your workout.
Well, the short answer is yes, it can.
Drinking alcohol before a workout, after a workout, or on a regular basis can affect your training sessions in multiple ways.
Drinking Alcohol Before Working Out
It’s never a good idea to drink alcohol before working out.
For one thing, your balance and coordination could suffer. If you’re doing something like weight training, maintaining balance and coordination is vital to avoid sustaining injuries.
So, you could put your body at risk of injury if you work out after a drink.
Also, your session will not be as productive. That is because drinking alcohol can cause fatigue. It acts as a depressant on your central nervous system, which in turn creates feelings of drowsiness and lethargy.
Therefore, your performance at the gym will suffer and it will take more effort to get through your usual routine. It’s always best to work out when your body is alcohol-free.
Drinking Alcohol After Working Out
Many people enjoy having a drink after workout sessions as a reward. But drinking alcohol after a workout makes it harder to rehydrate. Alcohol is a diuretic, so it dehydrates your body quickly. Therefore, drinking alcohol either before or after a workout is not a good idea.
If you drink alcohol after your workout session and you don’t replenish those fluids before you go to bed, you’ll be dehydrated the next day.
It’s important that you stay hydrated to help blood and oxygen circulate to your muscles and regulate healthy blood pressure.
Furthermore, drinking alcohol after a workout could impair muscle recovery. It can also have a negative effect on your overall strength, although only to a minimal degree.
You may not notice that drinking alcohol after workout sessions is affecting your performance straight away, but over time, you could notice the decline.
Drinking Alcohol Can Lead to Unwanted Weight Gain
Drinking alcohol in general isn’t great if you want to maximize your performance at the gym. While there’s nothing wrong with having the odd drink, if you drink regularly, you will notice a decrease in performance.
Drinking alcoholic beverages can also lead to unwanted weight gain over time because alcohol significantly adds to your overall calorie count. And if you start drinking regularly, it could be a sign of an addiction problem.
If you suspect you have an alcohol dependency problem, you should see a doctor to explore treatment options.
For instance, if you are based in Indiana, you could seek help at Indiana’s most trusted treatment facility: Allendale Treatment.
If you do have an addiction to alcohol, you will face many other problems besides weight gain and poor performance while working out, so make sure you seek help if you have a problem.
Regular Drinking Can Make It More Difficult to Stick to Your Workout Routine
Drinking regularly can also make it harder to stick to a workout routine.
When you wake up feeling lethargic from drinking the night before, or you have a full-blown hangover, you could easily miss workout sessions or cut them short.
Over time, your performance will suffer and you will become less fit and healthy.
Drinking Alcohol Can Affect Your Sleep
Another problem with drinking too much alcohol is that, while it may knock you out when it’s bedtime, it can deprive you of REM sleep. And your body needs deep REM sleep to fully recharge.
Therefore, without a good night’s sleep, it will be challenging to put in your best performance when working out.