blue192

I cannot even remember the last time I had a drink. I know I have not been to a pub since pre coivd days so sometime before 2020...

Sorcerer

Much respect to drinkers who ride and exercise as well. Obviously the exercise is a good thing for body and mind.
There are at two effects of alcoholic beverage consumption that I want to describe which are not good.

One is weight gain. When I stopped drinking I lost 10 pounds in a month. I just kept up my usual volume of riding. The reduction in weight, was a perceptible improvement iny riding. I felt lighter.

The other factor is that alcoholic beverages are carcinogenic. The classification is on par with substances like asbestos and tobacco.

Another anecdotal experience I have is that I had a hunch that I was indulging in alcohol in order to escape confronting personal psychological issues while simultaneously hiding from those issues while being a victim of addiction. Well this might not have been exactly true, I felt a great sense of liberation when I quit drinking, and it gave me a refreshed outlook. I also spent less money and saved some time. Instead of drinking I enjoyed longer rides or got some things done around the house etc.

​Another thing that has been slow to emerge is that I look back upon my drinking life and remembering drunken episodes in a more objective manner than I was able to while I was drinking. I'm still reliving these things. I remember the good times, bad, and in between. Most of it was great partying. Fond memories.

When I was in college I took a couple of semesters studying Old Norse. Being half Finnish I let myself identify with the heroes in the Sagas. Being half Finnish I am familiar with the Finnish association with alcohol abuse. (Note Finn's aren't directly related to the Old Norse tradition, however the physical Scandinavian proximity is relevant.)

The heroics and tragedies in Old Norse often feature drinking contests and contests of physical strength, often simultaneously, as well as feuds and revenge motivations.

As a youth I simply took these stories as models for emulation. Combine that with a fascination for naval traditions, and I was on my way to various inebriated experiences.

​​​​​​At this point looking back it's rather amusing - and I'm lucky it's just that. Other peers have had some harder landings.

To see some of the people you ride with become rotund, slow, late risers, and less energetic is eye opening. They display the effects of daily drinking. They seem content with the outcome.

I don't blame them for their behavior. Alcohol can be therapeutic. It is definitely enjoyable in the moment.

SurferRosa

siap ... But what if it's not so much that cycling has a drinking problem, but that drinking has a cycling problem?

SpeedyBlueBiker

I always thought I was just a drinker with a cycling/running problem. On On!

Attilio

It's been a long time that the quiet voices about the harms of alcohol have become a chorus shout. Especially the last 5 years the evidence is pretty overwhelming there is no safe dose of alcohol. Governments, many organizations are starting to get on board with this but it's kept mostly hush for the general public. But the studies that support this are numerous, come from different sources, are looked at in different ways, are surviving the top level of peer review in many world journals. For example one study of 600,000 people found having just ONE drink a day loses you about 6 months of life expectancy. This can be different for different people but wow that's a lot. I also saw other articles and studies how Alcohol has been considered a group 1 carcinogen by the Agency of Research on Cancer for over 20 years! This puts in the same category as tobacco, radiation and asbestos. You wouldn't want to be around any of those things even for a moment now would you?

When I started to see this maybe 4 years ago I quit and haven't had a drop since. One of the best decisions I made after marriage, having kids and my job/school choice. I don't miss it.

boozergut

I think the amount is too low.

A350driver

Well that number is from 2010, before the huge increases in micro-breweries around the world…oh, plus inflationary drinking pressures!

Outrider1

This is the general cycling category, no?

c0urt

for some reason the establishment insist that everything negative in our society is related to drugs or drinking, i got an assault charge for a fight, and got sent to A&A like they want me to answer all these questions about drinking and terms i know nothing about,

caloso

What were the questions?

c0urt

thankfully it has been a couple of years, and much more pressing issues have passed since then. it was arizona's domestic violence classes and such

Erzulis Boat

Thanks for the list. I have boycotted Amstel Light though. I purchased a 6 pack once, got home, and to my dismay, one bottle was empty. Completely sealed, but empty nevertheless. The mathematically deduced buzz that I was going to get from the cumulative effect of 6 beers got thrown asunder, and to add insult to injury, it was low alcohol to begin with.

I am joking of course, but the boycott stands.

wolfchild

Complete hogwash.

Attilio

https://www.cnn.com/2018/04/13/healt...ncy/index.html
It's not just the UK there a legions of other recent studies confirming this message. Very scary but the harm of alcohol starts at the first drop. If you're curious and would like to engage in productive discussion let me know would be happy to post a plethora of others.

EDIT: I see you're from Canada you may want to check out your government's new guidance as Canada was the first to come out and basically recommend ZERO is the safest starting this past January a few weeks ago

terrymorse 

Denial doesn't change the data. From Canada’s Guidance on Alcohol and Health:

SurferRosa

Sounds good. But what's the alcohol content? I try not to drink anything under 7 percent.

1989Pre

I am ten years sober, but I remember that when I drank, the first mouthful of beer would change my mental status, immediately. This is why I have no respect for riders who show up for rides with alcohol in their systems. Some paid rides actually promote drinking at rest stops.

Attilio

Thank you for taking the time. This comes for a VERY long packet about 100 pages long and I didn't feel like teasing out page 10 which contains the punchline: there is a detectable harm from alcohol based on drinks per week.

Most importantly you can see damage to health even from a drink here or there and the only dosage of alcohol where no damage is done is ZERO.

SpeedyBlueBiker

I don't doubt that someone wrote this. I just think their conclusions are utter BS. Flawed research! If this was even remotely correct everyone that went to college and was in a frat house would be dead before the age of 30.

rsbob 

OMG! I am behind 36 years X 23 times/year = 828 drunks and hangovers!! I need to get crackin! Always knew I was below average. 😪

rsbob 

Do you usually call BS on something without doing any research?
https://www.cnn.com/2018/04/13/healt...ncy/index.html
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-h...-idUSKBN1I42H6
and on and on….

rsbob 

From all the links to the studies posted, you may want to start washing your hog now.

big john

I did my part to make up for you.

terrymorse 

Tell me you don’t understand mortality risk analysis, without telling me you don’t understand mortality risk analysis.

LarrySellerz

Canada is like the worst example of a country to use their health stats