Alcohol and Recovery

Even small amounts of alcohol can interfere with recovery by disrupting sleep, slowing down muscle repair, and increasing inflammation. Here’s what happens:

• Muscle Recovery Slows Down
  Alcohol interferes with muscle protein synthesis (MPS) which is the process your body uses to repair and grow muscle after training. It increases cortisol, a hormone that can break down muscle tissue. It also lowers testosterone, reducing your body's ability to build muscle.

• Sleep Gets Disrupted
  Alcohol disrupts the second half of your night. As your body breaks down alcohol into acetaldehyde, a toxic byproduct, you start to feel drowsy. Once acetaldehyde is cleared, there's a rebound effect that increases brain activity and restlessness. Then your body ramps up glutamate production, which causes a spike in alertness as the alcohol wears off and leads to the lighter, more fragmented sleep.

• More Inflammation
  Alcohol increases levels of inflammatory markers and suppresses your immune response. Post workout inflammation is natural and necessary for muscle repair but adding alcohol to the mix can prolong soreness and slow healing.

• Dehydration & Nutrient Loss
  Since alcohol is a diuretic, it increases urine output and leads to fluid loss. This not only causes dehydration but also reduces electrolyte levels especially magnesium, potassium, and zinc, which are important for muscle function and recovery. It also makes DOMS (delayed-onset muscle soreness) feel worse.

Does this mean you can never drink if you're serious about improving your fitness? Not at all but if you’re trying to make progress in the gym and drinking often, you may be working against yourself.

Need some accountability? Schedule a consult:

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