Exercising the Day After Drinking Alcohol

• Working out the day after drinking supports long-term health and consistency. Even a light workout helps maintain routine, preventing missed days from snowballing into longer breaks.
• Exercise can counteract some of alcohol’s negative effects, improving mood and energy. Since alcohol can leave you feeling sluggish and down, working out helps to restore mental clarity, reduce stress, and boost overall well-being.
• A mindful approach to post-drinking exercise is key. Hydration, proper fueling, and listening to your body are crucial to ensuring a safe and effective workout.

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Since ZBiotics launched in 2019, we’ve been asking our happiest customers the same question. What is it about ZBiotics that keeps them coming back?

We’ve noticed something interesting in their responses.

Over 90% of the time they say it's about what ZBiotics Pre-Alcohol empowers them to do the next day. And more often than not, that means getting up and moving.

Maybe it’s a regular workout class, a morning yoga session on the beach, or a favorite run through the park. Whatever form it takes, people consistently tell us that they feel their best the day after drinking when they don’t have to forgo their normal workout routine.

There is a reason this feedback is so consistent, because it’s true.

But what makes working out the morning after a night out so rewarding? And how can you do it responsibly? Let’s dive in.

Why working out the day after drinking can be great for you

It helps you stick to the routines that build long-term health

It's easy to tell yourself to skip the morning workout after a few drinks the night before, but if there’s one area where consistency is key, it’s exercise. Working out is a long-term habit that’s built over time. While it’s difficult to build the habit, it’s all too easy to lose.

Taking a quick break may not sound like a big deal, but if you’re the type of person who relies on strict consistency to maintain your routine, even one missed day can snowball into a week or month away from exercise.

In that situation, even a quick workout the day after drinking can help preserve momentum. This momentum is critical to the long-term health benefits we know to be true of exercise: fewer chronic diseases, enhanced cognitive function, reduced stress, and more (Warburton, Nicol, Bredin, 2006).

It boosts your mood, which you particularly need after drinking

Exercise isn't just about physical strength or long-term health. It also plays a pivotal role in our mental health and emotional well-being. Individual bouts of exercise enhance our mood, decrease our stress, and even improve our executive function (Basso, Suzuki, 2017; Liao, Shonkoff, Dunton, 2015).

And alcohol, despite its initial euphoric effects, is a depressant—one that can leave you feeling down, groggy, and sluggish the next day (Costardi, Nampo, Silva, Ribeiro, Stella, Malheiros, 2015). Exercise can provide a much-needed mood and energy boost to counterbalance the emotional effects of alcohol, helping alleviate the “blues” that often come after a night of drinking.

It helps you reset and feel good about yourself

The biochemical effects of alcohol are strong. So even if you have a great night out—one filled with laughter, friends, family, and responsible drinking—you might be left feeling mentally drained the next day. Exercise provides a solution, acting as a reset button and allowing us to regain control and reaffirm our commitment to living a balanced, healthy life.

By choosing to work out, we send a positive message to ourselves. We’re saying, "Yes, I had a drink last night, but I also value my health and put in the work to maintain it.” This self-affirming action can significantly boost our self-esteem and contribute to a healthier self-image. It's a reminder that our identities are not defined by a single action or decision, but by the overall effort we put into leading a healthy life.

This might sound like we’re veering into health psychology. But there is a growing body of research pointing to the positive effects of exercise on anxiety, stress, and depression (Mikkelsen, Stojanovska, Polenakovic, Bosevski, Apostolopoulos, 2017).

Tips for working out the day after drinking

If you decide to work out the day after you drink, there are a few things to keep in mind:

Don’t exercise if you’re still intoxicated

Make sure your body has had sufficient time to recuperate and eliminate as much alcohol from your system as possible before you work out. If you’re feeling particularly bad or if you still feel intoxicated, skip the workout altogether. You need more time to recover, and exercising in that physical state can be dangerous (El-Sayed, Ali, 2005).

Stay hydrated and fueled

Depending on how your evening went, you might have been drinking less water or eating less food than you normally would before a workout. On top of that, alcohol is a diuretic, which means it causes your body to lose more fluids than normal—often leading to mild dehydration the next day. If that’s the case, make sure you hydrate and fuel up before starting in the morning. Replenishing lost fluids and nutrients is key to feeling steady and safe during your workout.

Go slow, end early, and take the win

Remember the benefits we’re seeking: sticking to our routines, boosting our mood, and reinforcing our self-esteem. None of these require a super strenuous, high-intensity workout the next day. Even a light bout of exercise is enough to check all these boxes. Listen to your body. If you feel like you’re getting close to overdoing it, stop. You’ve already done what you came to do. Take the win and go enjoy the rest of your day. But if the workout is feeling good, then feel free to go for it!

Balancing alcohol and a healthy lifestyle

When enjoyed responsibly, alcohol is often part of life’s memorable moments—like a champagne toast at a wedding or a cold beer at a sports game. But we also recognize that alcohol isn’t great for our bodies and minds.

Living in today’s world means acknowledging both truths, and ZBiotics customers do this better than anyone. They’re some of the most self-aware, well-balanced people we’ve met—people who understand that enjoying alcohol and living a healthy life aren’t mutually exclusive. But they also know it doesn’t just happen on its own.

It takes intention. And they know that getting up and moving the next day makes a difference.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. The information contained herein is not a substitute for and should never be relied upon for professional medical advice.