Why work drinking culture is fading

“The most critical period for recovery is within a one-hour period after exercise, so you should definitely avoid drinking within this window and focus on replenishing electrolytes, rehydrating, and fueling correctly,” Mayer says. While a post-gym drink might seem tempting, it may hinder muscle recovery and growth. Discover how to balance fitness goals with social drinking for optimal health.

Should you drink beer after a workout?

In some industries, post-shift pints to unwind are par for the course; in others, drinking is woven into the fabric of the work itself, with client relationships built over boozy lunches and dinners. And yet, while the pandemic destabilised workplace social culture as we knew it, alcohol didn’t disappear. In many cases, especially early in the pandemic, pub happy hours simply moved to Zoom.

• Even better, though, is to have beer with food or another non-alcoholic beverage, says Wynne.
• Our beer registers at less than 10ppm gluten using the most advanced batch testing available.
• If you plan to drink alcohol and want to reduce potential symptoms, practice moderation, he says.
• Just keep in mind that the research on drinking beer as a workout recovery is still super limited.
• American Addiction Centers (AAC) is committed to delivering original, truthful, accurate, unbiased, and medically current information.

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What’s more, alcohol is dehydrating, which is the opposite of what you want immediately following a workout, says registered dietitian Cassie Bjork, RD. Dehydration will only make it harder for you to recover from your training session, leading to a longer recovery time and fewer fitness gains. Proponents argue that beer provides carbs and electrolytes, both of which tend to get depleted during long or intense exercise sessions. Others argue that the social aspect of hitting the bar with friends for a celebratory beer after a grueling run or workout may be a great way to encourage regular exercise. For example, after an average workout, you might require between 25 and 40 grams of carbs. But after going on an endurance run Alcoholics Anonymous over a long distance, you might need as much as 80 grams.

If you drink, play it safe

• In her free time, Gabrielle can be found coaching CrossFit, reviewing pleasure products, hiking with her border collie, or recording episodes of the podcast she co-hosts called Bad In Bed.
• It can help you practice moderation and remind you to space out your drinks.
• This is because alcohol slows the natural recovery process from your workout session by elevating your cortisol levels, decreasing your testosterone levels, and inhibiting protein synthesis (1).
• It’s always so great for the spirit to grab some brews and meet up with some buddies and catch the game, a concert, or shoot the breeze after a bike ride.
• This may be why 14% of respondents admitted that, on at least one occasion, they’ve acted inappropriately during afterwork drinks.

This is easy to do if you are at an event where you order or mix your own drinks. But even if you are at a happy hour where your co-workers are taking turns ordering each other drinks, you can just speak to the bartender soon after you walk in to make sure that they deliver a non-alcoholic option to you in each round. As such, the widespread status quo that holds that employees need to show up to alcohol-fueled events to prove their loyalty or team spirit, or to get in on vital networking, merits serious critique and change. But until it shifts, experts have developed a number of useful guidelines for both drinkers and non-drinkers navigating these events.

Why a Post-Workout Beer Could be Bad For You

According to science, this is everything that happens to your body when you drink one beer — or one too many — every night. “Research shows that alcohol can impact the rate beers after work of protein synthesis—which is basically the process by which your muscles grow and repair—so really, the longer you can go without it, the better,” she says. On the other hand, if you’re doing high-intensity or exhaustive exercise, then you may need to eat a small carb-and-protein-rich snack right away to help jump-start your recovery and tide you over until you can get in a full meal. Great options that are portable and easy to digest after a tough workout include a yogurt with a banana, a single-serving bottle of a protein drink or a scrambled egg wrapped in a tortilla. Alcohol itself has more calories than carbs or protein per gram.

• When juggling work commitments and family responsibilities, it makes sense that many people consider capping off a trip to the gym with an alcoholic beverage.
• You should also skip other types of alcoholic beverages, including wine, liquor, and cocktails.
• It may even calm your nerves, or be the liquid courage you need.
• Throughout the past few years, for instance, large companies including Salesforce, Uber and Jet made moves to reduce or completely ban alcohol in the workplace.

Consuming just one alcoholic drink a day with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like Advil, Aleve or aspirin can increase your risk of gastrointestinal bleeding by 37%, according to the NIAAA. But drinking water or other hydrating beverages during a night out is still a good idea, he says. It can help you practice moderation and remind you to space out your drinks. Enjoyed responsibly, beer can be a very suitable after-exercise drink.

The downsides of drinking beer after a workout

Alcohol is the most widely misused substance, and frequent drinking can lead to dependence or addiction. For the best results — especially when it comes to muscle growth — avoid alcohol and refuel with plenty of protein and carbs. One study found that even when alcohol is consumed with protein after exercise, MPS is reduced by up to 37%. This affects recovery, muscle growth, and adaptation to exercise, especially after resistance training and high intensity interval training (3). Moderate alcohol consumption reduces the rate of muscle protein synthesis (MPS) following strenuous exercise (3). Physiologically, it’s not helpful to drink after a workout if you’re attempting to achieve fitness gains, especially if you enjoy a post-workout alcoholic beverage regularly.

The waves/urges will become smaller and you will become stronger, and in time the waves become even smaller and further apart and far more manageable to deal with. Statistics from our Daybreak mobile app shows that nearly half of our members drink after work. A new study finds some potential benefits of knocking back an ice-cold, low-ABV brew after endurance sports. If you’re nursing an injury, Brodell says alcohol could also be detrimental. In fact, exercise has been shown to help decrease the urge to drink (2).