The Drinks That Can Ruin Your Workout: Alcohol and Caffeine

Let me start out by saying that I have many detractors regarding this topic. Coffee and wine drinkers hate this argument and fight tooth and nail to protect their use. Here's how I feel about both.

First off, caffeine and alcohol are both considered (by many experts) slow poisons that over time can cause many health issues down the line. Both form an acidic environment in the body which can lead to heart disease, inflammation, arthritis, diabetes and major digestive issues.

Both wreak havoc on your blood sugar and how it's regulated. Caffeine taxes the adrenal glands which are responsible for regulating your hormones. It puts the body into a fight or flight mode (all the time) which can cause longterm ill-health effects and difficulty with weight loss. It also stimulates our central nervous system which can affect perception, moods and behavior. Although it does increase the "feel-good" neurotransmitter dopamine when we drink it, over time you need more and more caffeine for the desired effect.

Dropping these two "toxins" will help you find your natural energy without a dependence on anything outside of food to get energy or relax. Removing both will help you to have deeper and more restful sleep.

When we drink alcohol we rarely go into REM sleep, which means our bodies don't get the healing recovery rest that we need. Over time, it also depletes serotonin in our bodies, which can then cause depression, mood swings and other issues related to low serotonin. Drinking also affects our neurotransmitters in our brain, thinking patterns, memory and hormone regulation. Not to mention what it does to the liver...I think you probably know that already!

 

 

 

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Comments

[karmachow]

01:18 PM on 08/19/2011

Amen Tony!! Being healthy is all about a choice. we only have one body and it's so important for us to take care of it! People look at this as deprivation, or not having fun, but I see it as a positive choice for a life of longevity, energy & health! thanks for sharing! www.karmachow.com

[robert horwitz]

11:02 AM on 08/16/2011

Well Tony what I really want to know is how healthy do I want to be when I die? Possibly also to the point. How healthy should I be when I die? These two questions have always plagued me. I have lived quite a long time and I have made some healthy living concessions. As a few examples are I no longer consider the Sara Lee Cheese Cake and Cheap Vodka diet as a possible alternative for loosing weight. I have given up on my thinking that walking the Links on Tiger Woods PGA Tour Golf Tour on my computer is really good exercise. When I wake up in the middle of the night I think twice before I smoke a cigarette. I usually smoke it but I do think twice about it. Thinking about this also has the added benefit of keeping my mind agile. Tony the thing is when I finally kick the bucket though it would be nice do I really care whether the folks who attend my funeral comment, Jeez he was so healthy? I just don't understand how this happened.

[akerchen]

07:46 PM on 08/12/2011

Unfortunately modern medicine seeks first to find the “bug” that creates an illness and then look for some type of “magic bullet” to take it out. Dr. Glen Chapman has some good information on athletic performance and energy and how to increase it naturally: http://naturalvitalitysports.com/2010/04/athletic-performance-and-energy-how-to-increase-it-naturally/

[royalty5000]

05:02 PM on 08/12/2011

I need coffee and booze. PERIOD>

[baileywick]

01:56 PM on 08/13/2011

Thank you for your perspective.

[norroderi2]

02:50 PM on 08/12/2011

LIES,LIES,LIES,LIES, I HAVE BEEN DRINGING COFFEE SINCE I WAS FOUR(4) YEARS IN TH. WITH MY GRANDFATHER AND HE ALWAYS LACED IT WITH A LITTLE CORN "LIKKER" THAT THE FAMILY MADE. MY FATHER'S FAMILY ALSO PUT A LITTLE RUM IN IT FOR ME. I HAVE ALWAYS DRANK IT BLACK AND STRONG AND PREFER KONA BY CHOICE. I HAVE HELD MANY SEMINARS & TASTINGS ON THE VALUE OF COFFEES FROM AROUND THE WORLD.ON MY "SAND PAIL LIST" ,I'M LOOKING TO TASTE THE SUMUTRA KOFFE LUAC(SP) FORM THE BUCKET LIST FILM.
IF YOU HAVE INROADS TO SOME CONTACT ME. BETTER FOR YOU THAN ASPIRIN.P.S. I'M 71 AND KICKING...HIGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[baileywick]

01:55 PM on 08/13/2011

Relax.

[proudHB]

02:38 PM on 08/12/2011

Right on Tony. I used to have headaches & migraines every now and then like pretty much everybody else but after quitting caffeine about 10 years ago it simply ceased (and no matter if I stay up 24 hours straight.) I know coffee tastes real good (hell I used to drink it a lot,) but doesn't translate to it being healthy.

[David Hyre]

12:56 AM on 08/12/2011

No love for coffee. The caffeine tabs are what do it for me and my exercise frequency and workouts.

[Jeff Lagemann]

09:21 PM on 08/11/2011

Tony love your work, but dude you are off the reservation with this. All of the research that I have ever seen shows that these things in moderation are actually good for you

[karmachow]

02:18 PM on 08/19/2011

Jeff, I personally have experience with both of these things wrecking my health and feel so much better without them in my life. in the longterm, they are just not good for us! no one knows the damage they are doing in the immediate, not to mention what coffee does to the endocrine system! all of my clients that go off coffee live a happier life because they find their own natural energy and sleep much better! Just my opinion...

[IMOPINIONH8D]

09:51 PM on 08/21/2011

I'm a 49 year old male I drink a quart of coffee in the morning at work, then 2 quarts of water before quitting time. Maybe another quart or so once I get home then I have 2 beers either a dark import or quality micro-brew. Have plenty of energy and sleep good.

[dmgoss]

06:59 PM on 08/25/2011

Notice he used the word "moderation", which assumes one doesn't use the substance abusively.

[SW84]

10:07 AM on 08/11/2011

"Caffeine taxes the adrenal glands which are responsible for regulating your hormones. It puts the body into a fight or flight mode (all the time) which can cause longterm ill-health effects and difficulty with weight loss."

although actual research shows that things like caffeine, ephedrine, green tea etc aid in weight loss not hinder it

[rightwingextremist8]

09:05 PM on 08/11/2011

Might want to dive deeper into that research bud. Current research (peer reviewed research, not joe.com research) shows that caffeine consumption causes the body to release excess cortisol which is a major contributor to excess abdomen fat. We in this country consume more caffeine than any other country and take a look at their waist lines. Look around buddy, caffeine consumption does not aid weight loss.

[firelord5000]

10:53 PM on 08/11/2011

Disagree. Caffeine in moderation is wonderful for the body, I usually go 8 weeks on it and 4 weeks off it, and I have been sitting at 8-10% BF range for solid 2 years, and yes I have done p90x / Insanity and various hybrids in between for years. I see where Tony is coming from, but I respectfully disagree regarding coffee as long as its done in moderation,

[David Hyre]

12:48 AM on 08/12/2011

That is in a "Vacuum" and would involve people who are not exercising, otherwise they could not get consistent results. Caffeine supports more frequent exercise at a higher level of intensity. So what you are saying has absolutely nothing to do with people who do intense regular physical exercise.

[Ophi]

07:37 PM on 08/12/2011

This is a common misnomer based on the fact that caffeine acts as an appetite suppressant. What's lost in that is the fact that, while the caffeine is telling the brain "we've been fed", the body recognizes that it has not, thus inducing a stress response akin to starvation, meaning the body begins to store as many calories as possible.