BMX1945

Hi everyone I'm new here but am wondering if its advisable to train/exercise even if you drink hard every night?

Dee74

I don't think there's one right answer.

Drinking played havoc with my blood pressure - I wouldn't like to be pushing myself too hard in those circumstances.

Best answer would come from your own Doctor.

Are you looking to quit drinking?

D

uncle holmes

That's what I did. And I had good results doing that!!! I trained and exercised hard while still drinking heavily and smoking. It was hard as heck. But it lead to me finally sobering up for good as well as quitting smoking!!!

Realizing how much better exercise made me feel, how much it cleared my mind, plus with the incentive of having a better body, I realized this is going to be a lot easier if I quit drinking and smoking.

For me there was less of an incentive to sober up if I didn't exercise!!!

MissPerfumado

Depends partly on what your training / fitness goal is. I did a reasonable amount of running and went to the gym 1-2 x a week while I was actively drinking. I also drank hard EVERY night.

My goal was to get fit and get toned. That didn't really happen. I was kind of fit, but didn't look much different.

After I got sober, I shaved 14 minutes off my half-marathon time. Considering my PB up to then was just outside 2 hours, that's a huge difference. I also got truly toned. As in noticeably so. And I'm a small woman.

I wasted so much freaking effort at the gym while drinking I don't even know why I bothered to go there. Getting huge returns for what I put in fitness-wise is just one reason I'll never go back to drinking.

ScottFromWI

Maybe instead you should be asking yourself if it's advisable to drink hard ever night?

Daily binge drinking is bad for you from both a physical and psychological standpoint. Certainly exercise can be good for you, but it doesn't "offset" the damage done by binge drinking if that's what you are trying to really ask.

CRRHCC

Which do your value more, drinking or exercise? Obviously exercising with a hangover is not ideal. Values determine our behavior. I've learned that the main navigational tools in life are values and purpose. People overcome addictions out of purpose-based motivation (based on values) -- they better themselves when they recognize how their habits, violate who they were, what they want to be, where they want to go in life.

Stayingsassy

I used to drink gin and tonics to blackout, then get up and do hiit training five days a week. when I did eat it was always paleo. I had no trouble working out, but i was often nauseous, got severe leg cramps a couple times doing box jumps, and often had palpitations.

what I've found is that with alcoholic drinking there is no way to rehydrate in one day. It takes several days to hydrate back to normal, with drinking plus working out I never hydrated until at least 72 hours had passed without alcohol. I had my binges all planned out for the week. It was a bizarre lifestyle and working out while that dehydrated is extremely dangerous.

Be careful.

MissPerfumado

Yes indeed.

And I also found out later that the body processes alcohol as a priority (since it's a poison and must be flushed out by the liver) before it will convert any other fuel to energy.

Blecch. Many a morning I was literally running on fumes.

ThomPom

Same here minus the smoking habit. Put me into a more sober mindest. Even if I could only workout for some short time a day, i stayed in the gym longer do some stretching, just to grap the vibes from the sober and fit crowd.

I am sure it influences my unconscious mind.

uncle holmes

I say go for it!!! Something will eventually win out!!! If the hard drinking wins out and you quit exercising, at least you gave it a try!!!

But if you value your health and conditioning enough, look out!!! That might win out too and you'll want to give up the drinking!!!

BDTL

I was on a regular exercise program when I was drinking. I would have most likely weighed 100 lbs more than I do now without the workouts. Working out sober is a high that only those who feel it can understand the benefits. Get rid of the frigging booze and keep at the exercise and your body will reward you in a truly remarkable way.

AWOL

I'll second that BDTL. As a former marathoner and swimmer, who drank A LOT of beer, I used to have palpitations on a daily basis. I have been swimming sober for a while now, and the palpitations have gone. Equally important is that I suddenly feel I have extra capacity, more oxygen, more endurance, and less fatigue afterwards. I feel as if my physical body is reconstituting itself after decades of drinking.

SoberCAH

I was a physically fit drunk.

I was a fast runner, usually running distances of no more than 5 - 10 miles.

But I was only around 30 years old at the time (I got sober at age 31).

Now, I run longer distances, much slower of course, and i have excellent vital signs.

The important thing, though, is to get sober and then continue taking care of your body.

Sobering up also helps with you mind and soul, along with your relationships, job, financial condition, sanity, etc.

Welcome to our forum.

ozm8ey

I wouldn't if I was you. You'll end up doing what i did and black out and needing an operation from an injury.

TheSoberDude

MMMMMM...NO. Ask yourself this question. Which one is more important? Alcohol or exercise? You will NOT see substantial results with heavy drinking. Recovery will be slow, and your body will not be able to make progress. Heavy drinking is terrible for the heart. High blood pressure, high cholesterol, dehydration, and the list goes on. When you workout, you're doubling and tripling your heart rate.

Just as a healthy eating diet is essential for progress in the gym, so is what you intake into your body as fluids. Dehydration can lead to exhaustion, heat issues, and extreme fatigue.

Just my opinion...and I'm no medical expert..just a dude that works out 6 days a week, obstacle racer, and I'm a recovering alcoholic. Been there and done that.

Stayingsassy

Agreed.

Mostly wanted to say: obstacle racing is fun! Need to do another spartan!

uncle holmes

I can see what you're saying and respect your opinion. My way of looking at it though is BMX said he drinks hard every night. So lets say he quits exercising. This will enable him to continue drinking hard every night.

He very well could black out and get injured or injure someone else if he's drinking hard every night even if he quits exercising. We all know drinking hard every night and exercising is going to be real hard. But it's possible that he might want to give up the drinking if he also wants to exercise.

Anything to interrupt the vicious cycle of alcoholism is worth it to me, even if you have to roll the dice sometimes!!!

FBL

I'd advise quitting drinking.