Sports drinks are very popular and are marketed very heavily right now. They are also very expensive especially if you are to drink 8 oz for every 15-30 minutes of work out time. So here is a little mixology 101 on making your own sports drinks.

Have you ever read the label of a sports drink? Heck you don’t even need to read the label to know that they are filled with high fructose corn syrup, artificial flavors and colors. After all I don’t know of any food that is naturally bright electric green or blue.

The main purpose that sports drinks fill is the need to replenish electrolytes, sodium and carbs. However, I can do without all the artificial colors and flavors and calories. Actually I don’t even care for the taste of sports drinks but they have been proven to help replenish what the body has lost.

In an effort to find healthier alternatives to sports drinks I found a few recipes to make your own sports drink at home.

Just for a reference an 8oz serving of Gatorade has:

14 grams Carbohydrate
110 mg Sodium
30mg Potassium
50 calories

Make It at Home Sports Drink

• 1⁄4 cup sugar
• 1⁄4 tsp salt
• 1⁄4 cup water
• 1⁄4 cup orange juice (not concentrate) or a combination of 100% fruit juices
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 3 & 1⁄2 cups cold water

To make: Dissolve the sugar and salt in the water. Add the juices and the remaining water; chill.

Makes 4-8oz servings.

Per 8-oz serving: 50 calories; 12 g carbohydrate; 110 mg sodium

High Potassium Sports Drink.

• 10 tbs. sugar (5/8 cups or 120 grams)
• .75 tsp Morton Lite salt (4.2 grams)
• 1 package of unsweetened Kool-aid mix for flavor
• Water to make 2 liters

To make: Dissolve the sugar and salt in the water. Add the Kool-aide and chill.

Makes 8-8oz servings.

Per 8-oz serving: 53 calories; 14.2 g carbohydrate; 103 mg Sodium; 121 mg Potassium

Powdered Sports Drink

• 9 tablespoons table sugar
• 3/8 teaspoon table salt
• 1 packet unsweetened Kool-Aid or other drink mix.

To make: Mix all ingredients together dry. Portion 1/3 of the mixture into each of three ziplock bags.

To reconstitute, add contents of 1 bag to a 20-oz. sports bottle. Fill halfway with water, mix, and fill with water, mix again.

Makes 3-20oz servings.

Sugar Free Sports Drink

Personally I am all about saving my calories for my meals.  I am working out in Spokane WA to lose weight and burn calories not consume more of them in my drinks so I found this sugar free sports drink recipe on about.com.

• 1 cup (8 oz) water (not carbonated)
• 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
• small pinch of salt
• Flavoring and sweetener to taste (Crystal Light, Kool-aid with artificial sweetener, or sugar free flavored syrups)

To make: Mix all ingredients and chill.

Makes 1 serving.

So there you have it, Mixology 101: Make your own sports drinks. Experiment and have fun. Find a concoction that you like and drink up.

For additional health and fitness tips talk to Zach Hunt, personal trainer and owner of Physzique Personal Fitness in Liberty Lake, WA. He can help you fulfill your fitness goals.

We all ingest salt every day, whether we realize it or not. Various organizations, including the USDA, AHA, and Cooking Light magazine, recommend less than 2,300 milligrams sodium daily (the amount in one teaspoon of table salt) for healthy people. Most Americans consume closer to 4,000 milligrams a day. Salt is in nearly every single processed food on the market today. Bread, catsup, candy, even soft drinks. And then we put more on when we eat those already salted foods. However, the more we use, the more our palates desire. Let’s take a more detailed look at this not so great Spokane super supplement.

“Sodium has benefits, like helping to maintain the body’s right balance of fluids,” says cardiologist Richard Katz, MD, director of the cardiology division of George Washington University. “But ingesting too much salt is a prime cause of increased blood pressure. Higher blood pressure is a major cause of heart attacks and strokes, both of which can be reduced by minimizing salt intake.” Even among healthy adults there is usually room for improvement in the blood pressure department. “If blood pressure is 125/70, it’s better at 120/70,” Katz says. (The American Heart Association [AHA] notes that low blood pressure is relative for each person and is a concern when it drops suddenly. Your doctor can help you reach a blood pressure goal that best enhances your health.)
“Only a quarter of sodium intake actually comes from salting our food,” says AHA President Dan Jones, MD. “More than 75 percent of sodium in our diets comes from processed foods.” Salt is a natural preservative and it enhances flavor, so it’s no surprise that salt and other forms of sodium are included in packaged foods.

What do I need to to do change my salt intake and balance my Spokane super supplements?

The first step to keep sodium under control is to make smart choices at your Spokane grocery store. Choose sodium-free, low-sodium, or no-salt-added convenience foods. Always read the label! Reading the Nutrition Facts Panel is an easy way to gauge the amount of sodium present in a food. If an item contains more than 20 percent Daily Value (DV) of a nutrient, a serving of that food is considered to contain a high amount of that nutrient, according to the FDA; five percent DV of a nutrient is deemed low. For sodium, 20 percent DV equals 460 milligrams; five percent DV sodium is just 115 milligrams.

Lower-fat or fat-free products can be higher in sodium than their full-fat counterparts: An ounce of full-fat sharp cheddar cheese has less sodium than one ounce of fat-free cheddar. When fat, a major vehicle for flavor, is removed, other ingredients like sodium may be added to compensate. Still, if you’re trying to limit saturated fat in your diet by enjoying low- and fat-free foods, the trade-off may be worth it if you limit sodium in other areas.

• -Disodium guanylate (flavor enhancer)

• -Disodium inosinate (flavor enhancer)

• -Sodium alginate (thickener)

• -Sodium benzoate (preservative)

• -Sodium bicarbonate (texture enhancer)

• -Sodium citrate (pH influencer)

• -Sodium hydroxide (pH influencer)

Exercise can help keep your body balanced both inside and outand great Spokane super supplements can help. When you sweat, you secrete the salts in your body. However, if you work out hard or play hard for more than an hour, you should drink an electrolyte replacing sports drink because you can actually lose too much salt while working out for long periods of time. To get the best exercise and body of your life, contact Zach Hunt with Physzique personal fitness!