Beer: Bane of Bodybuilding

One of the top 3 questions I get asked as a fitness coach. “How do I get big?”. The answer takes more than a few articles or 15 minute chat. But the following is definitely something simple that can jump start the road to getting huge.
    Years ago before I was serious about getting bigger, I noticed one of my gym buddies (who was HUGE) always avoiding going out, getting hammered on the weekends. It didn’t make sense then, but now it’s simple. Alcohol is something that needs to be avoided, if you’re serious about being successful in the gym.

Nutrition
    Alcoholic beverages and beers have almost no nutritional value. In a sport where nutrition is the toughest battle to win, bodybuilders should just avoid it. Plain and simple.
    If one were to go out on a Friday night and have, let’s say, 9 beers. The total nutritional value would be around,
1200 Cals, 90g carbs, 0g protein, 0g fat
   
     Wait...what? 1200 cals? On a 200+pound bulking man that’s around 35% their caloric intake. Why waste that much of a diet, even if it’s once a week. The majority of calories come from alcohol, which macronutrient wise, is just dumb to consume.
Alcohol is also guaranteed to dehydrate you. This is how a hangover occurs. The issue? Dehydration will slow your metabolism -being as little as 5% dehydrated can slow it down- which again is horrible for protein digestion and any weight cutting cycles.
The other downfall to this dehydration? The day at the gym sucks. You’re workouts aren’t as intense or focused. This usually leads to the hung over arm days which aren’t necessary.
It is possible to over-hydrate, but it’s rare and hard to do. So drink that water up.

     Cost
Again, let’s say one goes out and drink 9 beer. They buy a half case and drink 3+ at a club. Depending where you live, the cost will vary but we can easily assume they’ll be spending.
$10 on half case of beer, $4-5 per beer at club, $10 to get into club and $15 on garbage food munchies at the end of the night.
   That’s $50+ just for one night. That’s a reasonable night, I’ve heard of people spending $100-$200 per night. OUTSTANDING. Here’s a list of things you could buy in one month if you didn’t do go out (assuming one night per week),

-3, 5 lbs tubs of whey protein
-A monthly supplement stack
-6 month gym membership
-Your own personal training sessions or nutrition plan
-A really cheap (but brand new car) payment

    A car. If you make the right choice, you could be up a car. And way more progress with your body. No brainer.  I’ve had people want training and weight loss, but they wouldn’t give up going out on the weekends. These are the people who get crappy results and whose attitude at the gym is also half-assed. The question is, how bad do you want it? I’ve laid out reasons that make the decision easy. So go ahead, thank me.

Email me with any questions or comments.
Ty Pritchard
CanFit Pro Personal Training Specilist
tylerrpritchard@gmail.com