Reasons not to go cycling if you have a hangover

A positive action compensates for a negative action. It's the logic we follow on many occasions, for example when after a night of beers -or stronger stuff- we find ourselves hungover and want to take the shortest path: go out for a bike ride to replenish the body and burn off the excesses of the previous day. However, contrary to what it may seem, the reality is that doing so is not, at all, a good idea. We explain why in this article. 

Why it's not a good idea to exercise when hungover

Guillermo Rodríguez, sports doctor at the Avanfi Institute, has elaborated on the advisability of exercising while hungover in a report published by the newspaper El País. The medical professional warns that under these conditions "our muscles are not well recovered, which increases the risk of injury. 

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This adds -the doctor assures- to the acidosis caused by alcohol, which combined with the production of lactic acid typical of sports practice multiplies, again, the risk of muscle problems. 

Finally, Guillermo Rodríguez cites a third factor that makes exercising while hungover an unnecessary risk: alcohol causes a significant metabolic alteration in our body's glucose, which again increases the risk of injury. 

But the risk of injury is not the only reason that should lead us to flee from the bicycle when we are hungover as if it were the plague. Dr. Rodríguez assures that "the cardiovascular risk also multiplies". And it is that the lack of rest will make us start sports practice with a heart rate much higher than we usually have at rest. 

So, when you're hungover try to avoid exercising, at least at a high demand. If for any reason you decide to ignore this and go out for a ride, because the urge can get the better of you, try to hydrate very well, dress warmly and not exceed 70% of our maximum heart rate during exercise.