If you drink alcohol after working out, it can cut in half the body’s signal to build muscle—compared to just drinking a protein shake after exercise.
Context Details
Domain
exercise_science
Population
human
Subject
Alcohol ingestion following concurrent exercise
Action
suppresses
Target
mTOR phosphorylation at Ser2448 by approximately 50% compared to protein ingestion alone
Intervention Details
Gold Standard Evidence Needed
According to GRADE and EBM methodology, here is what ideal scientific evidence would look like to definitively prove or disprove this specific claim, ordered from strongest to weakest evidence.
Evidence from Studies
Supporting (1)
Alcohol Ingestion Impairs Maximal Post-Exercise Rates of Myofibrillar Protein Synthesis following a Single Bout of Concurrent Training
The study found that drinking alcohol after a tough workout reduces a key muscle-building signal in the body compared to just drinking protein, which supports the claim that alcohol hampers muscle recovery.