Alcohol and lifting

[ALPHR]

Is small amounts of alcohol bad for people who are trying to put on muscle, is it bad for bulking or cutting, what is the general rule for alcohol and lifting?

[Azyth]

Is small amounts of alcohol bad for people who are trying to put on muscle, is it bad for bulking or cutting, what is the general rule for alcohol and lifting?

Alcohol dehydrates you. Alcohol is simple sugar (one beer has the same amount of sugar as a soft drink). So if you drink alcohol, you can still build a lot of muscle, but you'll have to drink more water and you'll have to cut some extra fat because of it. Other than that, it won't matter. (unless you get drunk, hangover is gonna destroy your motivation...)

[Rohan93]

Alcohol lowers testosterone

[graffiti36]

Alcohol dehydrates you. Alcohol is simple sugar (one beer has the same amount of sugar as a soft drink). So if you drink alcohol, you can still build a lot of muscle, but you'll have to drink more water and you'll have to cut some extra fat because of it. Other than that, it won't matter. (unless you get drunk, hangover is gonna destroy your motivation...)

NO
Im sure you can come up with better articles but here are some to give you the general idea about alcohol
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/drobson11.htm
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/drobson194.htm

[motiva8]

Personally i keep it to a minimum cause of how it makes me so unmotivated when hungover which obv in turn affects my workout. The excess calories, loss of certain nutrients & dehydrating factors as pointed out may have to be watched.

I would be surprised though if small alcohol intake for the average recreational lifter played a significant effect on hindering progress. It seems the general rule is that ~3 bottles of beers is not the end of the world & allows you if you want to have a social drink.

[JasonDB]

[Nexxus]

fit alcohol into your macros, don't train when hungover/drunk

...
profit

[TonyNail]

Alcohol lowers testosterone

Have you read the studies that say this? The reason I am asking is people don't seem to realize the dosage of alcohol used in the studies. One study had men consume 220 grams of alcohol everyday for 4 weeks. 220 grams of alcohol is about 16 drinks! 16 drinks is well beyond a normal intake of alcohol. I grew up with alcoholics who didn't drink anywhere near that much.
On another note, the alcohol lowers protein synthesis is related more to alcohol's dehydrating effect.

[rand18m]

Is small amounts of alcohol bad for people who are trying to put on muscle, is it bad for bulking or cutting, what is the general rule for alcohol and lifting?

Alcohol in moderate amounts has shown to be a healthy addition to ones diet. There certainly appears to be benefits to moderate intake.

As far as skeletal muscle hypertrophy goes, I suggest you don't drink to inebriation on your workout days. In other words if you want a drink or two after a workout I see no issue unless it interferes with your calorie intake. Also for obvious reasons don't drink to inebriation on days before you workout because working out with a hangover, well that shouldn't have to be explained.

So moderate intake is fine, if you are going to drink too much, don't do so on a day you workout and don't workout hungover. Other than that an occasional good time with friends is fine imo.