Each person is the smith of his own happiness: someone chooses a healthy lifestyle and active leisure, someone noisy companies, bars and discos, and someone prefers spiritual development to physical.
Motivation
Modern society is overwhelmed by the harmful effects of industrial waste, poor ecology and stressful situations. A natural reaction of the body to this kind of pressure will be the desire to relax and restore strength. So, when gathering as a team, people most often find an outlet in alcohol, which they consider a panacea for fatigue, and alone or in small groups prefer a more useful pastime - playing sports. However, often they do not mind drinking alcohol after sports, considering it an excellent relaxing remedy.
The effect of alcohol on the body
Alcohol affects the body as follows:
- The reaction rate slows down and coordination worsens, which is a prerequisite in sports requiring extreme concentration. Professional climbers and cyclists try to comply with the “dry law” during sports training.
- Sleep rhythms are disrupted, which are extremely important for the restoration of the body. Combining sports and alcohol before bedtime, the athlete’s muscles will not recover after a workout, and the fibers will simply collapse.
- Endurance, an important part of the life of bodybuilders, cyclists, skiers, swimmers and other athletes, is falling. This reduces all the efforts made during the training to nothing. Alcohol inhibits the production of glycogen, due to which the body cannot work at full strength and achieve maximum results. In addition, a feeling of weakness after alcohol will also not contribute to maximum concentration in training.
- The water balance is disturbed and dehydration occurs. Since alcohol (ethanol) is a toxic substance, the body actively uses the kidneys to excrete it - its main filter, which, with increased excretion of fluid, leads to dehydration and thickening of the blood, accompanied by blood clots and the absence of muscle growth, which also need water.
- The process of accumulation of body fat is enhanced. Alcohol contains about 700 calories per 100 g, and at the same time there are no proteins and carbohydrates necessary to maintain the body's vital functions. That is, the body receives only calories that turn into fat without the ability to overtake them into muscle mass. Therefore, if you are on a diet for drying and try to engage in enhanced aerobic and cardio modes, alcohol will break your aspirations.
- The hormonal background is broken. Due to the content of estrogen-like substances in many alcoholic beverages, the level of the male hormone testosterone decreases, and the female hormone estrogen rises, so the masculine trapezoid forms can not resist, turning into a likeness of a female figure with massive hips, stomach and chest.
Considering the effect of alcohol on the body, we can say that sports and drinking are two incompatible concepts.
Novice athletes are often interested in senior colleagues about the effects of alcohol on the athlete’s body, receiving opposite answers, and different points of view regarding this issue are formed.
Alcohol and sports: myths and reality
Among the main myths prevalent in society, stand out:
- A bottle of beer after exercise will relax the body and not cause harm. Any alcohol, even containing a small amount of alcohol, helps to increase fat mass, and when it enters the body, it blocks the synthesis of amino acids, removes glucose and disrupts blood circulation, which complicates the process of muscle regeneration. Alcohol after sports will negate the entire training process.
- Alcohol helps build muscle. Thanks to testosterone, the male hormone, it is possible to build muscle and acquire relief, and the estrogen contained in alcohol blocks male hormones, inhibiting muscle growth and taking moisture away from them to remove alcohol from the body.
- It’s impossible to recover from alcohol. The high calorific value of alcohol without associated proteins and carbohydrates is perceived by the body as a portion of fat deposited on the body. In addition, the metabolic process is weakened and all vitamins and nutrients are not absorbed, disrupting the synthesis of calories and contributing to the collection of fat mass.
- Alcohol is already contained in the body, which means that an excess of it will not harm. In a healthy human body there are indeed alcohol-like substances, which, however, do not exceed 20-30 ml. Having added another 100-200 ml of alcohol, a person drives a liver into stress, which, instead of producing amino acids, will be cleared of the toxin.
Is exercise after alcohol acceptable?
Many athletes neglect the effects of alcohol on the body. In principle, alcohol and sports can, although undesirable, be combined: to remove 100 ml of alcohol from the body of an adult male weighing about 75 kg, it will take one and a half to two hours. For a full restoration of functions - at least 4-6 hours, after which you can go in for sports, but you will not achieve great results, since there will be a feeling of weakness, nausea and dizziness. The only thing you can do is aerobic exercise, which increases perspiration, as a result of which alcohol is eliminated. However, it should not be exhausting and long: half an hour on a stationary bike or walking on a treadmill will be enough.
If the amount of drink was much larger, it is better to refrain from training for 2 days, allowing the body to remove toxins and rehabilitate.
Is alcohol acceptable after exercise?
If you are professionally or just seriously involved in sports, you need to know that protein, which is not present in alcohol, helps to restore and grow muscle. That is, drinking alcohol after sports, you reduce the few hours spent in the hall to zero. Blood circulation is disturbed, glucose is excreted from the body and estrogens arrive at the same time, and so you will not achieve the effect you were counting on.
Advice
Body detoxification tips for people combining sports and alcohol:
- Postpone training after taking alcohol for 2 days, anyway, it will not bring the desired results.
- After sports, alcohol cannot be taken, muscles cannot be regenerated, therefore it is better to refuse to take alcohol at night or after training.
- You can drink alcohol with a large amount of liquid, restoring the body's water balance.
- It is necessary to have a good breakfast, suppressing the catabolic effect of alcohol.
Conclusion on the compatibility of sports and alcohol
For people who are seriously involved in sports and enjoy the training process itself, alcohol as a means to relieve stress is simply not needed. For those who want to relax after a hard day's work, and then go to classes, doctors strongly do not recommend drinking alcohol, but if this happens, wait a while and do not overload the body. After sports, drinking alcohol is not recommended for anyone. Instant pleasure will spoil the results of your efforts and will not bring any benefit.
Be athletic and healthy!