Life is all about balance, and for me, that means having the occasional girls night out where I have one too many glasses of rosé. So, how can we continue living a healthy lifestyle when we wake up after a boozy night out craving a can of coke and a big greasy fry up?
When suffering from the night before we always think to ourselves ‘was it really all worth it’, so here are some HEALTHY alternatives that will leave you feeling fresh and hangover free without the guilt of packing your body full of bad stuff:
Hydration
Everyone will be familiar with this one but few will actually put it into practice. It is essential to hydrate your body after a heavy night out to clear out all of the toxins, I’m not talking about just a glass of water before bed or when you wake up in the morning, but a substantial amount of hydration. Working your way through a 2L bottle of water when you wake up will make a huge impact on banishing that dry mouth sicky feeling the morning after. Keeping hydrated also cleanses the mind, therefore, reducing the chance of that ghastly headache.
Bananas
Alcohol deprives your body of essential electrolytes, so to avoid the shaky hands, pack your body with potassium by having a banana with breakfast. Alternatively, if the thought of solid food makes you feel worse, make a strawberry and banana smoothie, this way you still get the potassium from the banana and sugar from the strawberries for a boost of energy.
Eggs
Definitely a winner hangover food, but do you know about the health benefits of eating eggs after a night out? Firstly, eggs are a great source of protein which is always good for your body, and they are rich in amino acids which help break down acetaldehyde, in other words, that evil toxin responsible for the hangover. Most people think that it’s the grease that you cook the eggs with that help cure the hangover, but in fact, it’s the egg itself, so there we have it, a guilt free omelette!
Sweat it out
That thought is sickening, right? The thought of doing a workout after a night out seems pretty ridiculous, and almost impossible. But if you start your day hydrated and consume the foods I have discussed, all that’s left to do is sweat those toxins out! A good 40-minute cardio session will get a good enough sweat on to be rid of the toxins, and at the same time, you’ve done your workout for the day, killing two birds with one stone!
I personally like to keep my hangovers to a minimum to ensure that it doesn’t affect my training, but as I said, life is all about balance. So, give these a try if you haven’t already, although they may not be as exciting as Dominos or Fry Up, they will leave you feeling fresh and guilt-free.
Emma x