Which workout drinks are fuel-tastic and which are nothing more than an aftertaste?
This spring our offices were flooded with cases of pre-workout energy drinks claiming to speed recovery and boost performance. Ever the skeptics, we filled our BPA-free water bottles, guzzled, and hit the gym an hour later to check out the results. Then we confabbed with the experts. Here’s the liquid lowdown.
THE GULP: CherryPharm
($20 for 8, cherrypharm.com)
THE CLAIM: Cherries reduce pain and promote recovery.
PROS: Studies show that the antioxidants in cherries reduce inflammation to help muscles heal more quickly.
CONS: With 28 grams of sugar, the carb and calorie count is almost the same as what’s in a can of Coke.
GRADE: B
THE GULP: eBoost
($11.50 for 10 tablets, eboost.com)
THE CLAIM: Boosts energy, supports the immune system, and enhances recovery with B12, green tea extract, and potassium.
PROS: No more lugging liquids to the gym! Just drop a tablet into eight ounces of water. Orangey and fizzy, it provided a shot in the arm for an AM exerciser thanks to the caffeine.
CONS: Artificial sweeteners made our experts cringe. Us too. We prefer au naturel. That said, we did smoke our lunges.
GRADE: B-
THE GULP: ReddRox
($2 each, reddrox.com)
THE CLAIM: Rooibos, a plant popular in tea form, revs your performance.
PROS: The journal of the American Botanical Council reports that rooibos may help replenish the electrolytes you sweat out. And after a 30-minute jog, we banged out a few sets of sprints.
CONS: It errs on the side of bland.
GRADE: B+
THE GULP: Function Alternative Energy ($1.80 each, functiondrinks.com)
THE CLAIM: Green tea extract boosts metabolism, while guarana and yerba maté up endurance.
PROS: There’s evidence that the herbs also curb appetite, and the caffeine gave us a jumpstart.
CONS: “The doses are too small to be effective,” says pharmaceutical chemist Shane Ellison.
GRADE: C+