Greetings, Primals!
This week, I want to revisit something that changed my life forever — quitting alcohol. For years, I drank most days, and during that time, I was at my heaviest weight and my lowest mentally. But just over 3 years ago on 3/28/22, I quit drinking, and everything shifted. My health, mindset, and energy completely transformed.
In today’s issue:
Why alcohol is not aligned with a primal lifestyle
How alcohol impacts testosterone and metabolism
The stress loop alcohol keeps you trapped in
What it means to live primally and break free from these modern traps
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WEEKLY DEEP DIVE
When we talk about living primally, we’re talking about honoring our biology — eating, moving, thinking, and living in ways that align with how Homo sapiens evolved to thrive. And alcohol? It’s not primal.
Here’s what happens when you drink:
Toxicity: Alcohol is converted into acetaldehyde, a highly toxic compound. Your liver works hard to process and dispose of it, but when you drink too much too fast, your liver can’t keep up. Acetaldehyde enters your bloodstream, reaches your cells, and causes dysfunction — this is what makes you feel intoxicated.
But beyond just making you feel drunk, acetaldehyde is a reactive molecule that generates oxidative stress inside your cells, damaging cellular structures, promoting inflammation, and impairing normal cellular function. Over time, this constant stress contributes to accelerated aging, poor recovery, and chronic disease.
Alcohol suppresses neural activity overall, which is what causes sedation, drowsiness, and ultimately unconsciousness at high doses. This was a typical evening in 2020. Baby monitors, empty glass of scotch, and my nervous system overwhelmed by alcohols sedating effects.
Metabolic disruption: Alcohol can’t be stored in the body. It must be burned for energy first — before carbohydrates or fat — so every drink you consume delays fat-burning and promotes fat storage. When I learned this information it made giving up alcohol easier for me!
If fat loss is your goal, removing alcohol is one of the most impactful steps you can take to up regulate your metabolism and unlock your body’s ability to efficiently burn stored fat for energy. Simply put, alcohol creates yet another layer of energy you must metabolize before you can reach your stored body fat! I want my body to prioritize stored body fat for fuel efficiently so alcohol has to go.
Alcohol cannot be stored in the body and therefore it must be oxidized for fuel immediately.
Testosterone suppression: Alcohol triggers a cortisol response — the stress hormone that keeps us in a “fight or flight” state. Chronic drinking keeps cortisol elevated, which raises blood sugar, increases insulin activity, and elevates blood pressure. In this stressed state, your body deprioritizes testosterone production. Why? Because testosterone is an anabolic hormone — it tells the body to build, grow, and repair. But if your body is stressed, survival takes precedence over growth.
For men, drinking alcohol keeps your body in a stressed, inflamed state that literally powers down your testes, reducing testosterone production and undermining your ability to build muscle, burn fat, and thrive physically.
"Our ancestors didn’t drink cocktails… they stayed sharp, strong, and testosterone-fueled."
The Primal Takeaway
Our ancestors lived in high-pressure environments where life and death could hang in the balance daily! Their bodies and minds had to be sharp, clear, and strong. There was no room for the intoxication and metabolic burden alcohol brings. That’s the mindset we should carry today! If we want to thrive, feel our best, and show up fully for ourselves and our families, alcohol has no place!
Alcohol keeps your testosterone low, keeps you metabolically stressed, and keeps your body storing energy rather than burning it efficiently. Three years ago, I stopped drinking and it changed my life and my family’s life experience. I feel better, think clearer, i’m available for my family, and I perform at a level I never could while drinking.
With Gratitude,
Will Winston, PHC
“Our results always match our choices. Therefore choose to Keep It Primal!”
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See you next week,
Will Winston
Certified Primal Health Coach
References
Setshedi, M., Wands, J. R., & de la Monte, S. M. (2010). Acetaldehyde adducts in alcoholic liver disease. Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity, 3(3), 178–185.
Suter, P. M. (2005). Alcohol, nutrition and health maintenance: Selected aspects. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society, 64(1), 81–88.
Emanuele, M. A., & Emanuele, N. V. (1998). Alcohol's effects on male reproduction. Alcohol Health & Research World, 22(3), 195–201.
