A new way to fuel your workout
If you're looking for a natural way to fuel your next workout session, you've come to the right place! It might be obvious, but tea can make a great sports drink. Stay away from artificially flavored and colored premade sports drinks that easily cost $2+ a bottle and instead, make this all natural, fully customizable fruity sports drink at home in just minutes that'll cost you just cents per serving. Strawberry Guava fruit tisane makes the perfect base for a sports drink. It has a natural sweetness and almost tastes like Kool-Aid on its own without any additives, and when combined with a pinch of salt and some sugar, it tastes just as good, if not better, than the sports drinks you can buy at the grocery store. You can be sure that you're getting your water intake in, and it transforms that plain glass of water into a wonderful tasting iced tea along with extra antioxidants and nutrients.
What are the main ingredients in sports drinks?
Sports drinks should have three main components:
- Fluid (water)
- Electrolytes (salt)
- Carbohydrates (sugar)
Making your own sports drink at home is great because everyone's body is different, and depending on your workout you can adjust the recipe to meet your needs accordingly. For example, if you're doing a longer, more vigorous workout, you might need more sugar in your drink to meet your carbohydrate needs. The general rule of thumb is to aim for about 30-60 grams of carbohydrates, 300-1000 mg of sodium, and 20-35 mg of potassium per 8oz cup of fluid.
Use this general guide to start and scale according to your needs:
- Less than an hour of exercise: 30g carbs and 300-500mg sodium/hr
- 1-2.5 hours: up to 60g/hr and 500-800mg sodium/hr
- More than 2.5 hours: 60g and up/hr and 500-1000mg sodium/hr
It can sound complicated - but follow the general recipe above for a base and adjust based on the following factors.
Important Factors
Activity Level and Duration
Adding less sugar can be sufficient enough for a short cardio workout, but if you plan on a longer or more intense workout, you'll want to make sure you have enough sugar to keep up with your carbohydrate needs.
Sweat
If you know you sweat a lot, you can add more salt to your sports drink to help replenish the sodium that's lost in sweat.
Environment
Besides the intensity of your workout, the environment which you're working out can affect how much sweat you produce. Going for a run outside on a hot day? Make sure you have enough electrolytes in your drink to replenish the extra sweat you'll be producing.
Are sports drinks good for dehydration?
Sports drinks contain a specific amount of sugar and electrolytes which intend to allow for quick hydration and absorption. They're created especially for athletes in order to prevent dehydration, though sports drinks also have a tendency to be associated with helping during times of sickness to help your body with hydration. Sports drinks can be a great way to help combat dehydration, though they should be consumed in moderation due to the high levels of sugar and sodium. If you're looking for a great everyday drink for hydration, regular water and iced tea are great options.
Do sports drinks have caffeine?
Believe it or not, the majority of sports drinks don't contain caffeine. Instead, sports drinks use carbohydrates (aka sugar) to provide an immediate source of energy. In addition, they also have electrolytes such as sodium and potassium to replenish the body when we sweat. Sports drinks are different from energy drinks, as energy drinks do contain caffeine and have about 3x the amount of carbohydates than a typical sports drink.
Fruit Tisanes
We used Strawberry Guava fruit tisane for this sports drink, but you can use any tea that you see fit! We highly recommend using a Fruit tisane, as they make a great naturally fruity base - plus, there's no added sugars. The calories and sugar content for fruit tisanes are zero per serving, so it gives you clean base to start with that already has some natural sweetness and flavor. You can also experiment with different herbal tea blends and even other types of tea to find some delicious sports drinks flavors you won't be able to get anywhere else.
"I have to say this tea is by far the best strawberry blend I have ever tried, the addition of guava is an absolute treat...a MUST TRY 😊"
Fruit Tisane Sports Drink
- Servings: 6
- Yield: 6 8oz servings
What You Need
- The Conflicted Iced Tea Brewer or large 32oz wide mouth mason jar with paper tea bags
- 5 tbsp fruit tisane (we used Strawberry Guava)
- 32 oz-46 oz filtered water (depending on what vessel you use to steep your tea)
- 1/2 tsp pink Himalayan salt
- 1/4 cup sugar
Instructions
STEP 1
Add 5 tbsp of any fruit tisane (we used Strawberry Guava) into your infuser/tea bag.
STEP 2
Heat up 24 oz of filtered water to 212 degrees Fahrenheit. Pour over tea infuser/tea bag.
STEP 3
Let steep for 10 minutes, then remove infuser/tea bag.
STEP 4
Add 1/2 tsp salt and mix until dissolved.
STEP 5
Add in 1/4 cup of sugar and mix until combined.
STEP 6
Top off your hot tea concentrate with cold, filtered water or ice cubes.
STEP 7
Serve over ice and enjoy!
Make it sugar free!
If you prefer a sugar free sports drink, you can still easily make your own sports drink at home using the recipe above. Instead of using sugar, opt for a natural sweetener like Stevia.