One of the most tempting ways in which college bodybuilders can stray from their workout routine and healthy diet is by drinking. Most people go into college saying that they aren't going to drink, but few people survive those four or five years completely sober, especially if your 21st birthday hits during the school year. Try not to fall into this trap-drinking large quantities of alcohol will not only cause you to gain weight, but it will make it harder for you to build muscle mass. You don't have to sacrifice your fun times, but make sure you act responsibly and more times than not you should trade in your beer for a bottle of water.



The time and hard work it takes to conquer the cafeteria at school will be for nothing if you drink excessively every weekend. You might as well pile up a plate with fried foods. Beer has almost no nutritional value, but contains many calories, even if you are drinking light beer. Shots are the same way-just one can contain over 100 calories and one mixed drink may have as many as over 1000! Drinking is totally out of the question if you have an endomorphic body and are already trying to lose weight. It doesn't matter how healthy you eat during the day if you drink all those calories at night. To top it off, because of how beer and other types of alcohol affect the body, your metabolism slows down significantly. That's how you pack on the pounds and get a beer belly.

Drinking also messes up your schedule. If you come home drunk, chances are you'll be hungover the next day and unable to train. That's fine if it's a rest day, but you'll probably stay in bed much longer too and may feel nauseous, both of which will cause you to miss meals. From drinking the night before, you will already be dehydrated and lacking key nutrients, so missing the first meals of the day will make you feel even worse and make your next training session even more difficult.

There are many other adverse effects of alcohol on your body if you are weight training. It lowers testosterone, which is a key player in the amount of muscle mass you build. When you are drunk, your inhibitions are also lowered, causing you to make decisions you wouldn't normally make, such as smoking or ordering from a fast food restaurant. Drinking every once in awhile, especially for special occasions, is OK, but the majority of the time, limit yourself to a few drinks or volunteer to be the designated driver to prevent yourself from falling behind on your workout plan.