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Alcohol Abuse
Big Bertie
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I know some runners who don't touch a drop, others that just drink a bit, then stop a few weeks before a big race, and one bloke who finished 3rd in the Nottingham Half who'd been on the beers and curry the night before!
What effect does it have? Obvioulsy not talking about the immediate effects, but the dehydration, calorific intake etc.
For example, would a couple of pints a week before a big race have any effect?
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Comments
It could be argued that a couple of pints the night before a big race will relax you and give a good night sleep. Providing you drink a bit more water to combat the diuretic effects of the alcohol you should be OK. With that in mind 3.9% beer is probably a better than 5.5% as it needs less water to combat.
With regard to general levels of drinking, obviously govt limits are probably worth taking as a guideline, though I've never seen any research that validates those recommendations. Same as the rule of thumb regarding "5 a day" probably concocted by some civil servant based on the health of his pet hamster.
More seriously, too much alcohol is harmful as is not enough fruit and veg....but how much?
Alcohol contains carbs, which if your exercising can be converted to energy, should be enough to keep your weight down and the exercise will strengthen your heart and CV system which should stave off some of best documented health problems.
But.........how much exercise you do you need to counteract the effects of alcoholic excess on the liver
My general conclusion from all of this is that if you drink within recommended government limits it wouldn't have any significant effect on your running performance.
Cheers!
It seems a lot of people make a big thing of not drinking anything in the weeks prior to a race, but surely a bit in moderation (and not on the morning of the race!) wouldn't have any negative effect.
I think the key word is moderation.
Right, whose round..??
Doesn't effect the conclusions of my previous post, but i thought you might like to know iin case you're out on a bender tonight.
Hic!
As Tom said - none whatsoever. I also agree with Tom's post in general. However, I also feel that (as with all things to do with running), age has an effect here. For example, over 10 years ago I ran a decent half mara (i.e. not that much slower than expected), the day after a dinner at friends where plenty of wine was flowing. Nowadays (I'm now 56), smaller quantity and I struggle on a training run ! Must also add, in 1995 (age 41) did Reims Marathon - Sat'y 1 glass of champagne on tour of Epernay champers place, then 1 bottle of beer and 1 glass of red in evening - ran 4th quickest mara (from 22 completed). Probably nicely relaxed.
In the meantime, as the great Richard Thompson says - "If you see a box of pine, with a name that looks like mine, just say I drowned in a barrel of wine . . . . ."