does drinking beer affect your muscle growth

[pimpin t]

i drink on the weekends and i am wondering if it effect me in the gym as far as seeing results in muscle growth?

[doggzj]

Yes, it destroys your test levels. One heavy night of drinking can take upwards of a week for your test levels to rebound.

You can't have your cake and eat it too.

[jminis]

Dogg is right, beer really kills your natty test levels. I only drink 1-2 times a month now and I have never looked better.

[glenihan]

beyond destroying test levels, alcohol is also very catabolic ... so not only does it lower your test levels which inhibits you from gaining mass, it also destroys some of what you already have

[LakeMountD]

"The possibility that previously described effects of ethyl alcohol on peripheral endocrine glands might be mediated via pituitary prompted this investigation on the effects of ethanol on anterior pituitary secretion. Nine healthy male subjects were given beverage containing ethanol (1.5 g/kg) or beverage alone per os in a randomized cross-over study and plasma ACTH, FSH, GH, LH and TSH were measured by specific radioimmunoassays up to 15 h and the urinary levels of adrenaline and noradrenaline by fluorometry. A combined LRF and TRF test was also carried out in similar series of experiments. During the whole experiment there were no significant differences in the plasma levels of ACTH, FSH and TSH or in the urinary levels of adrenaline and noradrenaline between ethanol treated and control subjects. Plasma FSH, LH and TSH responses to LRF and TRF stimulation were also similar in alcohol treated and control subjects. Plasma ACTH values were high (113-270 pg/ml) both in control and ethanol experiment suggesting that the subjects experienced apprehension toward the experiment. Plasma GH level exhibited a non-sleep related burst in the late evening (from 0.4 ng/ml at 6 p.m. to 3.1 ng/ml at 10 p.m., p less than 0.01). This increase was not seen after alcohol ingestion (p less than 0.01). Plasma LH levels were significantly lower after 6 and 13 h in alcohol treated subjects than in controls (65 vs. 106 ng/ml, p less than 0.01 and 74 vs. 121 ng/ml, p less than 0.05 respectively). Because ethanol had no effect on the resting level of plasma GH or on the LH response to LRF, WE SUggest that ethanol exerts these effects on a suprapituitary site."


"FAT STORAGE

Alcohol has seven calories per gram. Fat has nine calories per gram. Alcohol is stored much like fat in the body. Also, alcohol deaminates (destroys) amino acids and stores them as fat. Alcohol consumption, therefore, increases fat storage and adversely effects body composition (increase % body fat). Powerful energy pathways (like glycolysis) are impaired and large amounts of lactic acid are produced, this results in decreased energy, decreased muscle recovery, and increased muscle soreness. Also, alcohol is usually consumed in addition to the person’s normal food intake. Since alcohol has seven calories per gram these extra calories can add up really fast increasing the persons bodyweight and percent body fat.."

"Urbano-Marquez and colleagues determined that alcohol appears to be a muscle toxin that exerts a dose-related effect on both skeletal and cardiac muscle. As total lifetime alcohol consumption increases, muscular strength decreases proportionately."

"Recent investigations, however, have revealed that endocrine problems also can be present in alcoholic men with essentially healthy livers (Van Thiel 1983b). Failure of the reproductive function in men often is manifested as decreased sperm production, testicular atrophy, and loss of secondary sex characteristics (Van Thiel et al. 1982). Steroid hormone tests have demonstrated that these alcohol-induced induced disorders occur in the presence of decreased circulating testosterone levels. Mendelson and colleagues (1978) demonstrated that a dose-dependent decrease in plasma testosterone levels occurred in male alcoholics who self-administered alcohol over a 10-day period. However, abstinent men, evaluated as controls in the study, experienced no significant changes in plasma testosterone levels."

[Zebinator]

Man, reading this makes me not want to drink ever again. It's hard enough putting muscle on to just piss it away on one crazy night. I knew it was bad for you but didn't realize it was this bad. DAM! I guess I'll just have a couple of glasses of wine a month with my wife.