These Sports Drinks Will Keep You Hydrated Throughout Your Workout

After an intense workout, your body loses more than sweat. It also loses electrolytes and essential minerals like sodium, chloride, potassium, and magnesium, according to Marisa Michael, a registered dietitian and specialist in sports dietetics. “Electrolytes serve a number of purposes, such as fluid balance, muscle contraction, energy metabolism, and more,” she explains — all things that are crucial to your athletic performance.

When it comes to hydration, good ol’ H2O is usually fine if your workout is under 90 minutes. But if you’re working out for longer than that, you may need electrolytes to help you rehydrate properly. “If you try to re­hydrate with plain water, you may actually end up diluting what electrolytes are left in your blood and may cause something called hyponatremia, which refers to low sodium in your blood,” she says. And that’s a potentially fatal condition — yikes.

Luckily, there are tons of ultra-hydrating and electrolyte-replenishing sports drinks or mixes out on store shelves these days.

The Best Sports Drinks

What to Consider

Here are a few things to note when looking for the best sports drink:

• Ingredients: Look for sports drinks with carbs and electrolytes to give your body the sugar and minerals it needs to keep moving during a heavy sweat sesh. But don't be fooled — Michael warns that “any additional ingredients such as herbs, amino acids, and vitamins are just marketing ploys.”

• Flavors: Though you may think choosing between Lemon Lime and Fruit Punch is just a matter of preference, you also want to make sure they’re natural flavors. Artificial flavors, Michael shares, can add empty calories and lots of sugar (and potentially lead to stomach troubles, ugh).

Try one of the best sports drink options we carefully selected for the next time you’re ready to break a sweat.