Origin Nutrition just published a great article titled Water vs Electrolyte Drink. In the article nutritionist Michelle Larson goes into detail about electrolyte loss, dehydration and their effects on athletic performance. She offers some compelling facts that begin to separate fact from marketing hype.
My contention with sports drinks isn’t that they don’t have a purpose; it’s that they’re generally overconsumed and overhyped. I can’t help but think that sales figures are sports drink manufacturers’ biggest concern, but Kevin Garnett’s bellow seems to scream otherwise.
Larson astutely points out that everyone’s water / electrolyte needs are different. If you’re exercising for a relatively short time (under three hours), she recommends going with straight-up water. If you need more excitement than quality H2O or are exerting yourself for longer than three hours, she recommends some DIY sports drinks that use antioxidant and nutrient-rich whole fruit.
Here’s just one of Origin Nutrition’s recipes:
Berry-Citrus Electrolyte Drink
- 32 oz water
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 Tbsp raw apple cider vinegar (try Bragg’s)
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/8 tsp sea salt
- 1 cup mixed berries (any combination of strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, and/or raspberries), fresh or frozen
- 1 Tbsp honey
Mix all ingredients in blender. Strain. Chill until cool.
Nutrition breakdown:
calories: 151
carbohydrates: 40.2 g
sugar: 32.5 g
sodium: 606 mg
potassium: 153 mg
magnesium: 8 mg
calcium: 10 mg
Check out another electrolyte drink recipe.
When making your own sports drink, you need to pay close attention to the amount of sugar (usually sucrose or fructose) you add. When exercising at a high level, more sugar (i.e., “energy”) is not necessarily better. HIgher levels of sugar in a drink, usually above 5%, will require more water from your body to convert to blood glucose. A fast, heavy dose of sugar, from a Coca-Cola for example, can require so much water to dlilute that you inadvertently begin dehydrating your body. As Michelle Larson has pointed out, levels of sugar and electrolytes are specific to the athletes consuming them.
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Many many quality pnotis there.
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