Why the post ride brew is a bad idea.

Not a big drinker but during spring boot camp in Majorca last year it was the only way to get to sleep.

Big climbs, big decents, big adrenaline. Hitting the bar in the evening to review the days events over a couple of drinks took the edge off and allowed us to chill out.

Obviously not a great thing to do on a permanent basis but no point all work and no play.

I used to be coached by a very well known coach who used to swear on gargling with whiskey (or brandy) after hard efforts in the cold.. he also used to slap you round the back of the head if you spat out said whiskey (or brandy)... Funnily enough it seems to work... Also remember being in the break on a very cold snowy shitty race up in the Pyrenees and being handed a bottle of hot chocolate with cherry brandy.. worked a treat

A small amount of wine or beer is good for you... there are a number of studies that show it. 21pints followed by a bottle of vodka isnt a good idea.

As with other people on this thread I also find it funny how someone who has just discovered cycling is trying to teach his granny how to suck eggs. FFS, I have been racing probably aslong as Samuel has been alive (and I can still manage 5,7w/kg)

My consultant told me after my heart attack that alcohol is good for the heart as long as it's in moderation. Little and often. That will do for me.

I can't be arsed with amateur cyclists who give it all the 'my body is a temple, I'll do 1000 Km's and return home to water and a slice of melon' bull. I can fully understand why someone who makes their living from cycling would take it uber seriously, but personally, I just do it for shits and giggles, a couple of beers after a ride, and a wind down with the 'posse' is all good.

Quote:

Samuel Bennett is originally from Santa Barbara, CA where he spent 7 years in graduate school (University of California, Santa Barbara) and authored several peer-reviewed academic papers. Before graduate school, Samuel spent his time surfing California, Hawaii and Mexico. Samuel and his wife are raising three small children in the Colorado Rockies. He is now the upper school science teacher at the Vail Ski and Snowboard Academy, the academic partner of Ski Club Vail.

Surf and ski bum discovers cycling, knows more about it than everyone else. Yawn.

A post-ride beer certainly works better than a preride or in-ride one for me (I find it goes warm and flat in my bottle - or worse I spill some!)

"Are beers really worth a 11 percent decline in performance?"
Yes

So have I got this right?

Some clown you've never heard of creates a cheap & nasty webpage with 5 reasons you shouldn't eat [insert chosen product] after a bike ride so you just believe it?

I never realised brainwashing stupid people was that easy.

Beer does not cause dehydration, that is a myth. Wine and spirits will. Due to it's volume beer will supply more fluid than it causes you to expel. It is also readily available carb and bitter particularly is a source of B vitamins. Bitter shandy even better.

I'm abstaining from the evil alcohol during January and I have to say that three weeks in, I am noticing a marked improvement in both my perceived physical fitness (need to do a controlled test to clarify) and especially in my recovery (muscle soreness) from training.

I have to be honest with you... this utterly, utterly breaks my heart.

Whats really annoying is that I've not lost any weight... which was the real driver for stopping.

One of the scary habits I now realise that I had got into, was finishing a hard session on the turbo of an evening, coming in from the shed and sitting down with a glass of red... Just after these turbo sessions have been the only time I have really missed it.

I can feel Anquetil spinning in the grave at the thought of cyclist's everywhere ditching beer/wine/champers/pastis. FFS, it's supposed to be fun. I've won a few elite races both still pissed/hungover, and I know a fair few who enjoy a nice pint afterwards.

As the Spanish say: "no engine, no go..."

Not to pick holes in this but it doesn't say when the decreases happen (immediately/long-term or the day after) and in fact some of the English is awfully unclear.

Alcohol is not very healthy, but the claims are not really contextualised and do not provide a deeper understanding.

The article seems a little simplistic (but that I guess that's half the point of '5 Reasons Why...' lists), and doesn't make any explicit mention of quantities. The list generally feels a little 'cobbled together' in my happy opinion (//.\\)

In fact, the whole website just seems like the product of some chap in America with a fondness for self-proclamation and 'Top 5 Lists'. His bio page (http://samuelwbennett.com/index.html) basically says, 'Hey, I plan of becoming the best cyclist ever! How? Because I am AWESOME!!!'.

It's a very 'quick-to-judge' summary I've made, but at least it stuck it out beyond the lurid green 'get fast' banner.

Much easier to just ride more... cutting out the beer is just cruel.

It's a good hour before I can stomach a beer after a ride. On the few occasions that I've gone to a pub on the ride I can't even drink a half! I now just have water or maybe a sugary fizzy drink.

I get the feeling that people like Samuel Bennett staying out of pubs and not drinking is probably for the benefit of us all.

depends if you're riding for fun or riding for "results" doesn't it?

Christ on a bike.... I thought this was about tea for a moment!

Glad the cuppa is still safe...

Phew.