Go Out. Have Fun. Look Great.

Little changes, not large sacrifices, can have a big impact on your body composition.

Once again, the time has come for the masses to make resolutions they’ll inevitably be unable to keep. Sure that sounds pessimistic, but it’s the truth. There’s a reason 92% of New Year’s resolutions fail, and that a whopping 80% of them fail before January 20th.

But for many people, the problem is their goals are simply unrealistic. For instance, if we told the 1R community, “If you want to lose weight and get cut up, limit your drinks to single digits every week” our comments section would literally explode. Life is to be lived, and that tweak probably isn’t happening. But, there are many changes you can make that will have a drastic impact on the way you look, while not completely giving up your vice of choice.

Below are five tips to help you stay strong and look better in 2012, without making the sacrifices that’ll cause you to give up by the third Saturday in January.

1. Perform Low-Intensity Cardio Before Going Out

We’re big fans of HIIT over low-intensity cardio at 1R, but slow jogs do have a place in one’s training program, especially if you’re going out later that night. A recent study showed that low intensity cardio improves insulin resistance meaning that if you’re going to drink, this type of cardio may reduce the negative side effects (read: avoiding that beer belly). We’re not saying to run a marathon beforehand, but 20-30 min of light training will work wonders.

2. Don’t Drink Post-Lift

If there’s one way to totally ruin your workout, it’s drinking immediately afterwards. We know you’re going to go out, but if you can avoid firing beers off your face within 6 hours of finishing your workout, do it. As Bonesaw touched on in his article on alcohol and athletic performance, alcohol inhibits protein synthesis making it difficult for you to properly recover and add lean muscle mass if you drink post-lift. Try it once and watch how much sorer you are the next day. Yeah… not good.

3. If You’re Going to Drink, Drink Wisely

As Carolyn pointed out in her article on calories in beer and hard alcohol, not all drinks are created equal. Beer and hard alcohol may have similar calorie counts, but the chasers and mixers make or break you. Stay away from the juice, keep the liquid clear, and hold off on the tonic, and you’ll, calorically, be in a much better place. Plus, without all of the sugar (or the energy drinks) you’ll feel a helluva lot better in the morning.

4. Limit the Late Night Eating

You do know that the late night pizza and hot pockets aren’t actually doing anything for your hangover right? Because they’re not. They are however adding L-B’s straight to your midsection as the alcohol/fat/carb combo is the fastest way to turn that six pack of yours into a full keg. If you must eat late night, lay off the carbs and keep it clean. And no, chicken parm subs and buffalo wings don’t fit into the eating clean category.

5. Protein Shake Before Bed

If you want to stay strong and stay cut, you want to avoid catabolism (state in which your muscle tissue breaks down) as frequently as possible. Alcohol makes your body extremely catabolic, and the best way to fight this evil beast is with a pre-bed protein shake. We’d actually recommend a blended shake like Syntha-6 or Elite Fusion 7 post binge-sesh but your standard whey or casein shake is always going to put you in a better place.

We’re certainly not trying to place limits on your social life in 2012, but if followed, the tips above will help you look great and retain muscle mass, even when making dubious late night decisions. Have a very happy new year 1R, and make this year the year you’re not a part of the 92% club.