Hangover? What hangover
I went out with my wife and some friends last night for the much needed relaxation. I forget that one needs to not worry about the seriousness of life every now and then and go have some fun (and make a fool of yourself on the dance floor). So having just read Mark's Daily Apple (sidebar: one of my new favorite websites and topics - going Primal) on hangovers, we decided to put some of the tactics to the test.
Here's my drink tally: 2 vodka lemonades, 4 Jack and Cokes, 3 shots, and a beer within about a four hour period. Post-college, this is usually enough to make the next morning unpleasant. However, this morning wasn't much different than a regular weekday, with the only abberation being a doubling of my usual morning constitutional . No headache, no cotton-mouth, no nausea, no diarrhea.
So what did I do differently? I did my best to follow the recommendations and here's how I did.
Order a water with every drink. At first, we were sitting on a corner couch with a table, so it was easy to have the server bring two drinks. When it was time to cut a rug, holding one drink in your hand is nearly impossible, so two is out of the question. So when you go to the bar, order your drink and a water and slam the water. This also keeps you from downing your drink too fast too.
The goal is to drink to feeling loose, not drunk. Getting plastered wasn't even that fun back in the day (okay, maybe just a little) but now you're older, have responsibilities and you definitely don't want to be 'that guy'. Dial it back a little and have a good, memorable time. It only takes a little liquid courage to have a good time. Plus, it's cheaper.
Next, eat before, during and after you go out. The late night run to Burger King for a couple Whopper Jrs. is the best night cap.
Before I went to bed, I drank a couple glasses of water and took ~800mgs of ibuprofen (that one was an older brother tip, which may or may not be good for your stomach lining or kidneys (acetaminophen is bad on the liver and hangover), but since this is a rare occurrence, I'm not too worried). I only got a few hours of sleep, but I kept rehydrating when I awoke. Then we made some fried eggs and toast, some coffee and a nice long walk. Couldn't have felt better by 10am.
If I can find some prickly pear juice, I'll let you know how that works. But until then, play it smart and you'll greatly reduce the chance of a bad morning.
Here's my drink tally: 2 vodka lemonades, 4 Jack and Cokes, 3 shots, and a beer within about a four hour period. Post-college, this is usually enough to make the next morning unpleasant. However, this morning wasn't much different than a regular weekday, with the only abberation being a doubling of my usual morning constitutional . No headache, no cotton-mouth, no nausea, no diarrhea.
So what did I do differently? I did my best to follow the recommendations and here's how I did.
Order a water with every drink. At first, we were sitting on a corner couch with a table, so it was easy to have the server bring two drinks. When it was time to cut a rug, holding one drink in your hand is nearly impossible, so two is out of the question. So when you go to the bar, order your drink and a water and slam the water. This also keeps you from downing your drink too fast too.
The goal is to drink to feeling loose, not drunk. Getting plastered wasn't even that fun back in the day (okay, maybe just a little) but now you're older, have responsibilities and you definitely don't want to be 'that guy'. Dial it back a little and have a good, memorable time. It only takes a little liquid courage to have a good time. Plus, it's cheaper.
Next, eat before, during and after you go out. The late night run to Burger King for a couple Whopper Jrs. is the best night cap.
Before I went to bed, I drank a couple glasses of water and took ~800mgs of ibuprofen (that one was an older brother tip, which may or may not be good for your stomach lining or kidneys (acetaminophen is bad on the liver and hangover), but since this is a rare occurrence, I'm not too worried). I only got a few hours of sleep, but I kept rehydrating when I awoke. Then we made some fried eggs and toast, some coffee and a nice long walk. Couldn't have felt better by 10am.
If I can find some prickly pear juice, I'll let you know how that works. But until then, play it smart and you'll greatly reduce the chance of a bad morning.
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