6. Alcohol
Perhaps unsurprisingly, drinking alcohol after exercise really isn’t a good idea! Alcohol is a diuretic, which means that it promotes water loss by making us pee more.
When we’ve put ourselves through a sweaty, intense workout, we’ve already lost a lot of fluid through sweating. Therefore, drinking alcohol is only going to make us more dehydrated. Prolonged dehydration can also make us drowsy and lethargic, not great for the next exercise session.
Also, wines, beers and cocktails are very calorific, which rather defeats the point of exercise! As an aside, alcohol is also a depressant. When we exercise, we often get a buzz afterwards, due to the release of our feel-good happy hormones. So don’t dilute these feelings with alcohol, ride on the natural high and rehydrate with a pint of water instead!
Summary:
Alcohol has a dehydrating and depressing effect on the body and mind, as well as being packed with calories. Save it for the weekend and sip on water to rehydrate.
