Alcohol and Athletic Performance
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Alcohol and Athletic Performance |
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Some adult athletes drink large quantities of alcohol, believing that as long as they exercise enough, alcohol isn't harmful. Others avoid alcohol entirely, believing that any amount of alcohol is detrimental to athletic performance and health. The prudent position is probably somewhere between these extremes.
Its true that drinking too much the night before exercise can harm performance. Even if athletes don't experience traditional hangover symptoms such as headache and nausea, they'll probably be dehydrated. Alcohol, like caffeine, is a diuretic, which causes increased urination and water loss. The dehydrating effects of alcohol can increase the risk of developing heat illnesses during exercise in warm weather.
To burn up a single ounce of pure alcohol (the amount found in two drinks) the body requires 8 ounces of water. Athletes can partly counteract the dehydrating effect of alcohol by drinking at least 8 ounces of water for every two drinks. A drink is equal to 12 ounces of beer, 4 ounces of wine, or 1 and 1/2 ounces of 80 proof liquor. Each of these provides a half ounce of pure alcohol.
Within an hour of drinking, alcohol is absorbed from the small intestine into the bloodstream and distributed within the water compartment of cells. Alcohol is metabolized by the liver, which treats alcohol as a poison that must be eliminated. The body can only get rid of about a half ounce of alcohol per hour -- the equivalent of one drink.
Body size and composition determine the amount of body water and how the body reacts to alcohol. A large, lean athlete has a higher percentage of body water than a small athlete or than a large athlete with more body fat. This means that smaller and fatter athletes experience the effects of alcohol at a lower dose compared to larger and leaner individuals.
Unlike carbohydrates, consuming alcohol before or during exercise won't give athletes an energy boost. The muscles aren't able to utilize alcohol directly for energy because it must first be metabolized by the liver. Alcohol is a poor energy source because it doesn't contribute to the formation of muscle glycogen -- the preferred fuel for most sports.
While the liver is busy processing alcohol, it decreases it's output of glucose, which can cause low blood glucose (hypoglycemia) and premature fatigue. Drinking alcohol may also contribute to hypothermia (dangerously low body temperature) during workouts in cold weather.
Some endurance athletes think they can carbohydrate load by drinking large quantities of beer. Beer has the most carbohydrate of any alcoholic drink, yet 12 ounces only provides 50 calories of carbohydrate -- enough to run a half mile. This amount also raises the blood alcohol level to 0.02 in a 150 lb. athlete. To obtain enough carbohydrate to run 2.5 miles, an athlete would have to drink 5 beers. This would raise the blood alcohol level of a 150 pound athlete to 0.10, which would cause the athlete to be legally intoxicated.
So what's the "bottom line" on alcohol consumption for adult athletes? Moderate drinking, defined as one to three drinks, the night before or after exercise isn't likely to harm performance or health. The upper limit depends on the individual, since sensitivity to alcohol varies considerably. While three drinks may be fine for one person, one or two drinks may be too much for another.
Excessive drinking (over three drinks daily) is harmful to health and alcohol is the most abused drug in the U.S. Half of all traffic deaths and a third of all traffic injuries are alcohol related. Alcohol is also a significant factor in home, industrial, and recreational accidents. And, long term, excessive alcohol use leads to a myriad of serious health problems, including liver damage, high blood pressure, stroke, and abnormalities of the heart, brain, muscles, and esophagus.
Ellen Coleman,
RD, MA, MPH
ellen@cruciblefitness.com
