Alcohol can be a part of a healthy lifestyle. Seriously, it can. You may hear a lot of fitness experts or fitness influencers that swear off alcohol. There is nothing wrong with that, just like there isn’t anything really wrong with enjoying alcohol too. The difference between drinking alcohol in a healthy way and just drinking alcohol to catch the buzz, is when drinking alcohol becomes not so healthy and typically the way health and fitness influencers say to not partake in.
Cutting out alcohol entirely is great for working on resetting your system by putting it through a cleanse. This is a way to get your system back to understanding itself and understanding what your body wants. Because we all know that after a night of heavy drinking the last thing you want to reach for is a green juice… your body wants something greasy, high in calorie and full of those unhealthy, yet super delicious fats that really just leave you feeling better in some ways but worse in other ways too.
Also, when people think about the negative effects of alcohol they really think about the liver first and foremost but really there is much more damage that can be done than just damage to the liver. Excessive alcohol actually impacts numerous other organs of the body including your gut health and I bet you may be surprised by this one, but it affects your teeth health too!
Although we really do need to be mindful about the effects that alcohol has on the body, it doesn’t mean you need to stop drinking altogether. It’s really a matter of learning how to drink more consciously and here are some ways to do just that.
5 tips for conscious drinking during the holidays:
- Eat a well-balanced meal before you partake in drinking. Make sure that it is full of protein and fiber. You can even skip the carbs in your meal and count them in your drink instead.
- Don’t keep changing up your drinks. This is where things can get a little messy in your insides. Stick to wine or stick to cocktails or stick to beer–no bouncing around.
- Pay attention to what you are ordering as a drink and pick quality over anything else. This eliminates premixes that are high in sugar and cheap spirits. You can always ask the bartender about which drink is less sweet or even ask them to remove some of the sweetness. Heck, even ask the bartender to make you something that has no added sugar in it.
- You don’t need to drink at every party. A glass of water these days can look just as fancy as a cocktail, especially if you order some sparkling water… some people may not even notice a difference.
- For every drink, you have, have 1 glass of water and then drink lots of water before bed.
