Is Alcohol Affecting Your Gym Progress?

The short answer, Yes. Does this mean that you should cut out alcohol from your diet completely? Maybe, but is it realistic? When it comes to getting healthy this year, simply cutting back on your consumption of alcohol could go a long way in reaching your fitness goals. Of course, it all depends on where you are starting from.

Sticking to your nutrition plan is hard enough, but when alcohol is involved, our inhibitions are taken away. Meaning, not only are you adding empty calories, but you are likely adding extremely dense calories in the form of pizza or other delicacies! And let’s say you are excellent at sticking to your nutrition goals even after a few drinks. That means you should be good, right? Well, not exactly. Excessive drinking or binge-drinking, has been shown to block the body’s ability to absorb protein and additional nutrients. Which in turn will affect your overall recovery from all the hard work you are putting in at the gym.

There is some good news. It has been found in studies on athletes that approximately 0.5 grams per Kg of body weight of alcohol is the least detrimental to exercise and recovery. This comes out to about 1 drink per day for women and up to 2 drinks per day for men. A low amount of consumption has also been shown to:

• Increase HDL levels (the good cholesterol),
• Reduce stress, and
• Reduce insulin resistance.

Ultimately, as with most things, moderation is the key to sticking to your fitness goals this year. Small changes in your daily or weekly consumption habits, depending on where you are starting in your fitness journey, could make big changes.