"It was a dark and stormy night..."
On 1 March 2014 I was pulled over for DUI by Washington State patrol. My BAC was .07(still under the legal limit) but I was stated by the officer to have been driving erratically (dash cam seemed to show otherwise). Despite compelling evidence to disprove, I was sentenced this week for Negligent Driving with 24 months of monitored probation. A sobering reminder that you can never be too careful in the eyes of the law. It's a punch to the gut but I leave better off than if it had been a DUI charge.
Frankly, I am just happy this is over! it's has been costly, both financially and emotionally, and I cannot fathom ever wanting to go through this process again. Between my athletic injuries, legal woes, and work issues this year has proven to be a test of attrition. Having one less thing to worry about is a Godsend.
My drinking, an evolving story
There are aspects of my past I wish I could do over. It took earlier legal issues and standing in front of judges to curb my "bad boy" tendencies and alcohol use. Doing the responsible thing hasn't always been my main obligation but it is certainly something I strive for today.
Beyond the legal and unsavory aspects of that mischief I like to also focus on how it affected my health. I'm not naturally a healthy person: I suffer from a long history of ENT infections, mixed IBD, asthma, and a true diagnosis of ADD (I was a test bunny for the first generation of Ritalin). Diet of course has tremendous effects on these things and I successfully manage many of my long-standing issues through diet and lifestyle changes. Alcohol definitely affects those things and having made a conscious decision throughout even my 20s to reduce my alcohol consumption has paid dividends in my athletic performance.
But don't take my word for it...
Don't think it makes a difference? Lets consider all of the pro athletes that shun alcohol during their entire season or just for the weeks leading up to an evident. They lose weight, maintain more muscle, sleep better, and their body recovers faster. Bradley Wiggins, Lance Armstrong, Darcy Africa, Brendan Frazier, Matt Tegankamp...seriously, I could go on for a few more paragraphs.
As a cruel reminder to our mortality, athletes are struck with the knowledge that while we live longer than sedentary folk we also encounter certain aspects of aging far earlier. "Soft tissue" diseases, those involving organ and glandular tissues, strike those folks that aren't athletic much earlier and harder. In contrast "hard tissue" diseases, those affecting bone, ligament, and muscle, are more common in athletic folk. It's a very sobering display of the gross cell turnover and regeneration cycles that ultimately lead to our smoldering deaths. By keeping those processes in check with good diet and lifestyle habits we can ultimately live a life free of both those "soft" and "hard" tissue damages!
Biochemically, alcohol is a poison (excluding flavonoids and polyphenols from this discussion). Don't believe me? Ask your liver. If we were to take a sponge (your liver) and coat it in a thin layer of melted Crisco (alcohol) it probably wouldn't do it's job very well. It would take time and natural enzyme reactions to clear all that hydrogenated crap (alcohol) off your sponge (liver). The liver cannot be asked to perform at it's best for training, utilizing energy substrates and keeping muscle protein catabolism in check, if it's constantly covered in Crisco. Our joints suffer untold consequences due to the inflammation and altered homeostasis from alcohol consumption. Mucles are less supple, and our fascia become 'crunchy'. Simply put, the less we drink the more we can get out of food, fuels, and training.
Bringing this full circle
Before I was called into the court room for my sentencing I was thinking about the liver and all it's wonderful enzymatic processes (seriously). I realized how much of an impact alcohol had had on my recent months as well as in my adolescent years. Furthermore, I pondered how much performance is to be gained from curbing my already very tame alcohol intake. It was before those doors opened that I made a promise to myself to focus on redeeming the second half of this year.
So cheers to chapters behind us, what lies before us, and our potential. I raise my glass (of water) high.
disclaimer: no sponges were harmed in the writing of this post.
