There are a plethora of options for DIY hydrating beverages. Feel confident in experimenting to find your favorite beverage by considering a template recipe. Begin by choosing your base fluid for the beverage; options include water, coconut water, herbal tea, or juice. Dependent on the duration of your exercise, you may consider a base fluid that is naturally higher in potassium like coconut water or a juice like orange or grapefruit juice. Secondly, you’ll want to add a high quality salt for sodium chloride replenishment. If your base fluid is not naturally high in sugar, you should add a natural sugar to your beverage, agave, honey, or maple syrup are good options. For a longer endurance event you can also add a magnesium-calcium powder to replenish these electrolytes that are also lost (although to a lesser extent when compared to potassium, sodium, and chloride) in the sweat. Additional ingredients may be added to enhance flavor as desired.
Remember, the ideal fluid replacement beverage is one that tastes good and does not cause stomach upset. Artificial sugars are not recommended because they can cause stomach discomfort and lead to decreased fluid volume intake. Rather than waiting until a day of a competition to try a new fluid, use a trial and error approach during training until you find a hydrator that works best for you.
Here are a few recipe options to try to begin:
Orange Lemon
Ingredients:
3 cups water
1 cups 100% orange juice
½ cup lemon juice
1 ½ tablespoons honey
¼ teaspoon sea salt
Directions:
Mix all ingredients together, blend if needed to dissolve honey and/or reach desired consistency.
Cucumber Lime Coconut
Ingredients:
1 cucumber
4 limes, peeled
3 cups coconut water
¼ cup agave syrup
¼ teaspoon sea salt
Fresh mint leaves to taste (optional)
Directions:
Juice the limes and cucumber, mix with coconut water, agave, and sea salt; blend if needed to reach desired consistency. Add fresh mint.
Watermelon Coconut
Ingredients:
½ mini watermelon, juiced
2 cups coconut water
¼ teaspoon sea salt
Directions:
Mix all ingredients together
Herbal Coconut
Ingredients:
3 cups herbal tea
1 cup coconut water
3 tablespoons maple syrup
¼ teaspoon sea salt
Directions:
Mix all ingredients together, blend if needed for desired consistency.
Ruby
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups 100% grapefruit juice
2 1/2 cups water
2 teaspoons agave syrup
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
Directions: Mix all ingredients together, blend if needed for desired consistency.