You can run for miles on the treadmill, but as soon as you shotgun that beer afterwards you pretty much wasted your gym sesh. If only there was a good enough excuse to drink following a strict workout regime that will leave you guilt-free. Turns out having some wine with your workout actually does your body good.

The European Society of Cardiology recently published a study that tracked the results of individuals who drank wine five days out of the week throughout an entire year to see if exercise created any health benefits. With every experiment, there had to be constants. The men were permitted to drink up to two-and-a-half glasses (0.3 L) and the women drank one to two (0.2 L).

The participants were divided into split-gender groups. One group would maintain a consistent routine of exercise while the other just drank.

Results from the trial revealed that the participants who maintained a workout routine of twice a week while drinking wine showed large improvements in cholesterol levels, as well as increased HDL cholesterol (the good kind) levels. While some from the group drank pinot noir and the other chardonnay-pinot, the variations between the two wines did not affect results much.

The study's head researcher, professor Milos Taborsky of the Czech Republic stated in a press release that the study was a success. It proved that a combination of moderate wine consumption and regular exercise is capable of protecting against cardiovascular disease. The group that didn't participate in the exercise, however, did not display any noticeable health benefits. Although they didn't suffer a significant amount of liver damage.

Taborsky said that the combination of the two things is essential to the success of the study. So essentially, we can't just drink and expect good things to happen.

H/T Elite Daily