Training hard after a night out

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• u/AutoModerator·1·1 de ago. de 2026, 09:00

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  u/IsAnybodyListeningg Basically I work late nights and drink often, tonight I had 5 drinks and want to go train tomorrow. Is my progress gonna be none because of the alcohol I consumed last night?

  I know this is kind of a dumb question cause there's not a 100% scientific answer but hear me out.

  Last night I had 3 beers and then hit the gym (10min hard cardio then 40min upper body till failure) and after it I felt awesome.

  I know alcohol is gonna impact negatively but I can't quit rn. My job and relationships revolves around alcohol.

  I'm studying so I can change industries and not relate that much to excess and consumption but, do you think having 3-5 drinks the night before will cancel a good training session? Be honest

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• u/Zoenne·24·1 de ago. de 2026, 09:07

  Yes it's going to negatively impact your progress, your health and your recovery. You can still socialise without alcohol. Just get mocktails or zero/low alcohol beer. 3 to 5 alcoholic drinks per night is already into overconsumption regardless of your fitness goals.

  • u/PretendOil8923·4·1 de ago. de 2026, 09:15

    Can even just do it as an experiment for a week. Should be long enough to see the difference and you can always just go back to drinking!

• u/dizzydiplodocus·2·1 de ago. de 2026, 09:07

  It won’t ’cancel it out’ as you’re still building good habits, training intensity etc but it’s not ideal for body composition and recovery etc

• u/VonBoo·19·1 de ago. de 2026, 09:12

  Alcohol does impact athletic performance. It impacts your bodies ability to recover, build muscle and burn fat. It also can cause hormonal imbalances and create inflammation. None of this is to say a workout would be a waste of time but will be suboptimal.

• u/EastEducational5702·21·1 de ago. de 2026, 09:14

  your progress won't evaporate but you're definitely leaving gains on the table, sleep and hydration take a hit which slows recovery more than the booze itself

• u/RoboJobot·58·1 de ago. de 2026, 09:54

  If your job and relationships revolve around alcohol then you should probably sit down and have a rethink. (Speaking from experience).

  • u/aspirational-reader·9·1 de ago. de 2026, 10:56

    Second this also from experience. When I started lifting I drank 2-4 drinks every evening. I still made slow progress, but I wasted so much energy getting suboptimal sleep and recovery for years, not to mention the sugar intake and my body constantly focusing on metabolizing the alcohol. In basic terms, your body will not use regular food normally while it’s getting rid of toxins. Metabolizing the alcohol out of your system becomes its focus instead of using food for fuel and recovery. I thought my job and relationships required alcohol. When I quit some of those relationships changed, and I eventually got a new job that has better after work boundaries and a healthier work environment. But I quit drinking first, which was actually the catalyst for other positive changes in my life. I proved I could keep a promise to myself—that I had enough self respect to prioritize my own needs. To bring it back to fitness, I recover so much better and have gotten much stronger. Quitting drinking had an immediate positive impact on my fitness, and it’s also continued to improve over time. Not saying everyone has to quit drinking altogether. I know I can sound preachy about this topic, and many people in my life now do have a healthy relationship with alcohol having 1-2 drinks here and there, so I know it’s very possible to reduce intake and be healthy overall. But 3-5 drinks at one time and/or everyday is way over maximum health guidelines (2 drinks a day for men). 5 drinks a day is considered heavy drinking in terms of its impact on your body.

• u/pdperson·17·1 de ago. de 2026, 11:02

  Better than drinking and not working out.

• u/veryanxiouscreature·24·1 de ago. de 2026, 11:41

  “my job and relationships revolve around alcohol” dude that’s major cope. stop drinking like this. you’re just making excuses to keep consuming alcohol.

• u/pilo90r·6·1 de ago. de 2026, 12:16

  Can I ask how old you are? From ages 15 to probably well into my 30s, I would always make excuses because I was social, there were always things going on, my social lofe revolved around alcohol, I worked at a bar, and nights out always involved getting drunk and being hungover thr next day. You can only do it for so long. Alcohol is poison to your body. As you get older you will realize this. When youre young, you may still 'feel fine' but you will soon not. I realized I had a drinking and minor drug problem partying and quit working in that field. I am not sober and still drink on occasion but its much less. If I have a big birthday or wedding, where I know I will partake a bit more, I fully plan on being hungover the next day and clear my schedule. I just know I wont be able to work out. There is zero judgements and you should also enjoy life. But its giving late teen-early 20s energy and you will soon realize drinking and working out (or really anything like hiking, etc) do not go hand in hand.

• u/plantas-sonrientes·5·1 de ago. de 2026, 12:17

  A good start would be splitting up the drinking nights and training days. Like, drink only on weekends and lift weekdays. Or lift M/W/F and only drink W/F. There was once that I had 3 martinis the night before then went to a weightlifting class at 7am. The trainer had us do handstands against the wall, which I’d never been able to do. The upside was that I did it quite easily — inhibitions were apparently still down — but on the decline felt my core turn to jelly and I knew I was doing it unsafely and putting myself at risk of injury. (Fun but scary. And I’m way too old for fun/scary lol.) Just to say I still do consume alcohol, but not the nights before I train. I like to lift heavy and when I can’t, it pisses me off. More importantly, injuries suck.

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