I read a lot of articles and peoples blogs, this info is good info…I just thought I’d pass it on!
This is written by Dreamshaping…a friend from another site.
By understanding what happens when you drink, you can make your own judgment calls as to whether or not alcohol should be included in your workout and muscle-building (dieting) plan. Yes, muscle building…Remember muscle speeds your metabolism!
Alcohol and growth hormones
One major issue with the consumption of alcohol has to do with its effects on the release of growth hormone. Growth hormone is the substance in the body that plays a very large role when it comes to building muscle, stimulating other cell growth and development, and promoting optimal bone growth. When this hormone is low, you aren’t going to get the same amount of muscle development as you would when it’s at an optimal level.
Growth hormone is predominately secreted during the early sleeping hours of the night and because alcohol tends to disrupt the natural sleep rhythms that occur, it will decrease the amount of growth hormone released. This decrease can be up to as much as 70%, so it will really short-circuit the progress you are able to make.
Alcohol and recovery (Alcohol is a TOXIN to the body)
Another area that alcohol affects when it comes to muscle building is your ability to recover. Since alcohol is a toxin to the body, energy is going to have to be expended in order to remove it from the system and to recover from any negative effects it has had on the tissues.
Since this takes time and energy reserves, you won’t have as much energy in store to recover from your workouts, therefore you will not be as fresh when you return for your next gym session.
Alcohol and muscles don’t usually get along, so consume with care:)
Alcohol and dehydration
Dehydration is another issue you have to watch out for if you choose to drink alcohol while trying to build muscle and work out. Since alcohol acts as a diuretic in the body, unless you are sure to replace the extra fluid with water or another non-alcoholic beverage that doesn’t contain caffeine, your natural water balance will be disrupted.
Dehydration has a number of negative effects on the body, from inducing feelings of fatigue to causing low physical performance, making you feel hungrier (which is especially problematic while dieting), and disrupting the ability of the muscle cells to produce ATP — which is your primary source of muscular energy.
Alcohol and glycogen synthesis
Aside from ATP, the next source for muscular work is stored muscle glycogen. Unfortunately, though, when you consume alcoholic beverages, alcohol synthesis will take precedence over glycogen synthesis, resulting in decreased stores in the muscle cells.
When you go to do your next workout, your body will have less energy to run on, causing fatigue to set in early. (NOTE: this is the perfect setting for injury and another reason to avoid alcohol)
When your workouts are ended prematurely , you won’t derive as many benefits in terms of increases in strength since the necessary overloading stimulus (which is partly defined through volume of weights lifted) will not be increased.
Alcohol and aerobic ability
Even when it comes to aerobic activities, alcohol affects performance.
In this scenario, alcohol can cause an increase in blood pressure throughout the body and a corresponding increase in heart rate.
Since your heart will already be working at an increased rate during aerobic activities, the additional stress from the alcohol will only amplify the heart rate and make the exercise feel harder than it should.
I know what you are thinking…NO drinking alcohol is not good stress on the heart! So increasing your heart rate through drinking isn’t the same as hitting the treadmill.
Alcohol and body fat
Finally, the last issue surrounding alcohol consumption is that it contains calories, and these do add up quickly. At seven calories per gram, after three or four drinks, these calories would equal a good-sized meal. Unless you are going to cut down on food intake in order to make room for these calories (which is rare, as usually you’ll actually find yourself snacking on high-calorie items such as nuts, pizza, wings or nachos), fat gain will result.
So, next time you’re contemplating whether or not you should have that drink, keep these factors in mind. Definitely, alcohol and muscle building are not a good pair, as stated by all the above points!
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