How To Eat At A Sports Pub Without Ruining Your Sleep Later That Night
What you eat and drink in the evening have a profound effect on how well you sleep. If you look at advice about what to avoid and what to have, you'll see that pretty much everything seems to be prohibited — even water — if you want that good night's sleep. That doesn't bode well for your evening out at the sports pub, but you can still have a good time and good food there while not totally preventing yourself from resting well afterward.
Front-Load the Fatty Foods
Chances are you'll be spending a few hours at the pub, either watching a game or just generally hanging out. That means you'll likely have food, right? If so, try to have the fattier and spicier foods such as pizza and wings earlier on. That gives your body more time to digest them and reduce the chances of bloating or other effects that could make for a substantially less restful night. You can still eat as the evening goes on, but reduce the amount and aim for lighter fare if you must eat shortly before leaving. Think of it this way: You want to give your body a solid couple of hours at least with no food before bed. Time your meal and pub snacks with that break as a goal.
Taper off the Alcohol
This is sound advice anytime you're at a bar or pub, but especially if you're going to be in a situation in which you might drink more than usual. Taper off as the evening goes on. That gives your body a chance to process the drinks and sober up (still, please call a cab or rideshare service instead of driving yourself). You also reduce the chances of becoming dehydrated from the alcohol, and your sleep patterns have a better chance of normalizing. Limit the alcohol you drink in the first place, too; at a pub, you can start getting more club soda, regular soda, and other nonalcoholic drinks as the evening goes on.
Avoid the Post-Pub Sugar Crawl
There's something to be said for topping off an evening out with a stop at a diner for some dessert. You may want to skip this, as nice as it sounds. Not only does the dessert increase the fat amounts you're having at the end of your evening, but it messes with your energy levels in a way that can make sleep difficult.
You can still have a great time at your local sports pub and get some tasty food and drinks — you just need to time what and when you eat or drink to ensure your body isn't still struggling with it when you try to sleep.
