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Wellness Behind the Bar with Angela Dugan Rest, intuitive eating, and hydration are all practices that are encouraged for day-to-day life. However, for those behind the stick, finding time for even one of these tasks is difficult. The long hours and chaotic schedules can take a toll on the body and mind—the two most important things to take care of. Working bartenders face different challenges compared to others. A basic night of sleep can be compromised when working 70-hour weeks. Craft cocktail mixologist and wellness advocate Angela Dugan strives to live a healthy, balanced lifestyle. Brain fog, to Dugan, is a sign of overworking. “Our brains need the most resources, which means they will give us the first signs that something is out of balance in our life.” Everyone has unique ways of dealing with their struggles, but Dugan shares her tips for navigating the bartending lifestyle.
1 High-intensity jobs can lead to a disrupted rhythm system for our bodies. Bartending as a profession can be very damaging to our sleep pattern and continually disrupt our internal clocks. Dugan believes that one of the most critical aspects of health is having rhythm in our lives. Finding time during the day to do the same thing will help reestablish a predictable internal clock. “Our bodies will be able to respond to this rhythm by firing up certain hormones, stress responses or
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2 our parasympathetic nervous system to fight stress, improve our immune system and create more of homeostasis for health.” Try to follow a fixed schedule. Even if you work late hours and sleep late, try to go to bed and wake up at the same time each night. Expose yourself to sunlight as soon as you wake up to get your circadian clock ticking. Try to do the same activities at the same time every day to clue in your rhythm schedule.
Hydration is important in general, but for staying focused, it’s critical. When working a long shift, prepare and plan for water consumption. It’s easy to forget this basic need when your busy mixing cocktails and tending to guests. “Don’t like water? Add citrus or herbs to it to change the flavor. Proper hydration is probably the most fundamental and easiest way we can improve our health.” Keeping a reusable water bottle with you behind the bar can help you drink more water. Set a reminder app to drink one glass of water per hour during your shift.
3 Maintaining a healthy diet can be key to staying healthy behind the bar. Food is information our bodies need, and when not receiving the proper nutrients, it can lead to long-term health conditions. Dugan finds fats to be critical to nourishing the brain and providing sustainable energy. “We need to ask ourselves, are we nourishing our body and setting ourselves up for health for tomorrow, or are we stealing from our tomorrow by consuming depleting and inflammatory foods?”
