Should you drink alcohol before skydiving? To put it simply, no. Although it is perfectly normal to worry about falling to the ground from an altitude of 14,000 feet, please refrain from downing a few beers or throwing back a couple shots of whiskey to calm your nerves. You probably won't be feeling very well after the 120 mph free fall if you have a nasty hangover or a stomach full of alcohol.
If your skydiving instructor suspects that you have been drinking you will not be permitted to skydive. Instructors are not allowed to take customers on skydives while they are intoxicated due to violating safety standards.
You may be surprised to hear this, but only around 2% of first-time skydivers actually get sick during their jump. If you would like to be one of the non-vomiting 98% of skydivers, you should say no to alcohol the night before.
Although skydive-related barfing is not very common, did you know that alcohol can almost always be pinned as the culprit of your spewing? If becoming a barf machine 14,000 feet in the sky is something that you are worried about, you can read our article on how to avoid puking here.
Three reasons why you might lose your stomach contents in the sky are:
Not only is alcohol itself one of the main reasons why you may barf, but it also contributes to the two former reasons. Alcohol is a diuretic, so it can definitely lead to dehydration, which is a recipe for disaster if you plan on skydiving.
Additionally, alcohol is known to worsen the effects of motion sickness. Think you're safe because you only drank the night before and not the day of your skydive? Think again. When vomiting occurs up in the sky, the most probable culprit is that nasty hangover you experience after a night of drinking.
Alcohol consumption may increase your risk of experiencing motion sickness, which plays a major role in whether or not you end up vomiting. Although the free fall portion of a skydive does not often make people sick, the airplane ride and parachute ride can cause motion sickness for some individuals.
Stomach reasons aside, skydiving while under the influence of alcohol can interfere with your ability to fully enjoy such an amazing activity. For most people, skydiving is a once in a lifetime experience. Why risk blurred vision, motion sickness, or clouded memory of something so breathtaking?
There are many things that you should avoid doing before your jump. Drinking alcohol is, of course, one of those things. Whether it's showing up with a hangover or showing up intoxicated, alcohol is something you should steer clear of before your big day. If you don't want to end your skydive by landing with puke-spattered clothing and hair, don't drink!
With that being said, you should also avoid skipping meals if you're experiencing that perfectly normal pre-jump anxiety. Although it may seem smarter to skydive with an empty stomach, doing this may actually increase your chances of becoming a barf bomb up in the sky.
The best thing you can do for your body to prepare for your big jump is to get a restful night of sleep, stay hydrated, and eat a light meal before your skydive. Do not let any anxiety about your jump cause you to skip meals before your big day.