How Exercise Helps Your Brain and Body Heal From Alcohol (and How to Get Started) (E285)

Listen here. The episode will automatically load in your preferred podcast listening app.

Besides not drinking, one of the simplest ways to heal the damage left behind from your drinking days is to exercise consistently. In this episode, I’ll explain how exercise helps to heal the body and brain, specific types of exercise that are beneficial, and how exercise can increase the likelihood that you’ll resist cravings and stay sober. You’ll learn 5 ways to get started if making exercise a consistent routine is difficult for you, and I’ll discuss a common trap many of us fall into: obsessing over weight loss.

What to listen to next:

E188: wellness over weight loss

E222: 6 neurotransmitters that get messed up by alcohol

E254: Why You Can’t Make Good Decisions About Your Drinking (or Anything Else)

Resources I offer:

Sober Support:

• Community & Meetings: Living a Sober Powered Life

• Weekly emails on Fridays

 Work with me:

• Sober Coaching

Courses:

• The non-negotiable mindset

• Sober milestones: what to expect when you quit drinking

• Willpower Course

Thank you for supporting this show by supporting my sponsors.

If you enjoyed this episode please consider buying me a coffee to support all the research and effort that goes into this podcast. This is a one woman show!

Listen here. The episode will automatically load in your preferred podcast listening app.

Get My Weekly Email

Enter your email to get emails from me every Friday.

First name

Email address

Let's Go!

Thank you for subscribing!

---

Cite:

Gillian Tietz. How Exercise Helps Your Brain and Body Heal From Alcohol (and How to Get Started) (E285). Sober Powered. 2025

Please respect my intellectual property and properly credit me if you share my work.

Sources

1. Patterson. et al. Exercise in the Treatment of Addiction: A Systematic Literature Review. Health & Education Behavior. 2022

2. Gordon, B. R., et al. Resistance exercise training for anxiety and worry symptoms among young adults: A randomized controlled trial. JAMA Psychiatry. 2018

3. Liu-Ambrose, T., et al. Resistance training and executive functions: A 12-month randomized controlled trial. Archives of Internal Medicine. 2010

4. Hallgren, M., Effects of acute exercise on craving, mood and anxiety in non-treatment seeking adults with alcohol use disorder: An exploratory study. Drug and Alcohol Dependence. 2021

5. Erickson. Exercise training increases size of hippocampus and improves memory. PNAS. 2011