Wasted Workouts
Happy Memorial Day! I hope you are having a safe & relaxing day.
When I think of celebrating Memorial Day, lots of great things come to mind…time spent with friends & family, delicious grilled food, and basking in the sun. And maybe enjoying an alcoholic beverage.
Many athletes are curious if drinking beer, wine, or hard liquor can affect their performance. Here’s some of the questions I’ve been asked:
Is it OK to have a drink?
What impact can drinking alcohol have?
How can I drink responsibly?
First of all, I think all foods/beverages can fit into a healthy nutrition plan in moderation. A balanced diet can include fruit, kale salad, burgers, and a sangria. I support having a healthy balance between your social life & your athletic goals.
However, drinking alcohol does affect your athletic performance. So you need to be smart about when and how much you drink. Keeping your athletic goals in mind, consider these consequences of alcohol consumption.
Enjoying a Pina Colada in Puerto Rico, the birthplace of the drink.
Causes Dehydration
Alcohol acts as a diuretic and can interfere with rehydration, putting athletes at risk for dehydration, heat illness, and muscle cramping. Rehydration from one alcoholic drink requires consumption of twice as much water.
Hurts Performance
Alcohol decreases athletic performance for up to 3 days after you consume it: faster fatigue, decreased lactate threshold, slower reaction time, decreased hand-eye coordination, decreased endurance, and decreased strength.
Increases Fat
Regular alcohol consumption can lead to weight gain. Alcohol has low nutritional value and the calories consumed from alcohol can lead to excess body fat and less lean muscle. In addition, alcohol can be an appetite stimulant.
Disrupts Sleep & Harms Muscle Growth
Alcohol can interfere with sleep patterns. In addition to causing fatigue, disrupted sleep causes hormonal suppression which impairs muscle growth and performance.
Increases Risk of Nutrient Deficiencies
Absorption, utilization, and excretion of vitamins and minerals are affected by alcohol (particularly vitamin B1, vitamin B12, folic acid, and zinc).
Increases Risk of Injury
Alcohol increases risk of illness and injury. The rate of injury among drinkers is more than double that among non-drinkers. Alcohol depresses immune function and contributes to delayed injury healing.
So what does this mean?
Here are my recommendations for athletes:
If you do choose to drink, have 1 drink per day or less (1 drink = 12 oz beer, 5 oz wine, 1.5 oz 80 proof liquor). Be sure to be drinking water & eating some nutritious food along with your drink.
Re-hydrate and re-fuel post-exercise before considering consuming alcohol. After workouts, your body needs food & fluids (non-alcoholic!) to repair muscles and replenish energy stores in your muscles.
Keep your performance goals in mind when choosing whether or not to drink. Avoid drinking on the days leading up to competitions.
Hi, I’m Anna!
Welcome to the Nutrition with Anna blog! Sharing recipes, sports nutrition tips, & inspiration to eat foods that fuel your lifestyle and athletic goals without rules or restrictions.