Let's Talk About Alcohol

Time for a truth bomb: if you want to get serious about your fitness, you’ll need to examine your relationship with alcohol.

Alcohol provides no benefit to the human body and can sabotage your hard work in the gym.

I understand that drinking is a personal choice with deep social and societal impacts. If you can’t eliminate it altogether (which would be recommended), you may want to consider limiting yourself to an occasional 1-2 drinks.

My intent with this post isn’t to shame anyone for enjoying alcohol. However, as a trainer who wants you to succeed with your fitness goals, I am compelled to tell you about the many problems with alcohol so you can make informed decisions.

Here are a few drawbacks that directly relate to fitness.

Alcohol hinders ATP use and production.

Adenosine triphosphate, often abbreviated as ATP, is the body’s primary source of energy. Alcohol hinders both the use and production of ATP within the body.

This means that, over time, alcohol consumption can deprive muscle cells of the energy they need to contract.

alcohol disrupts natural sleep patterns.

Restorative sleep is critical for muscle building. Alcohol negatively impacts natural sleep patterns, preventing your muscles from recovering properly.

alcohol disrupts digestion.

Alcohol is made from ethanol. Ethanol breaks down into acetaldehyde and then acetate. The body works hard to eliminate these toxic byproducts as soon as possible, so instead of processing the carbs, fats, and proteins from your last meal, it’s busy removing the alcohol from your system.

When it comes to drinking, there are a ton of negative impacts to consider. Probably too many for a single blog post. One of the first things I suggest to tired, overworked moms is to eliminate alcohol for a while to see if mood and energy improves.

Personally, I was tired of feeling sluggish, increasing my cancer risk (especially breast cancer), and acting out of character. My life improved substantially when I kicked booze for good.