Make your own sports drink

It is important to restore electrolytes and carbohydrates that your body desires after a good workout. But the same branded drinks like Gatorade and PowerAde are bound to get boring and expensive when had on a daily basis. Registered Dietician Naomi Dsouza suggests some recipes of sports drinks you can make on your own

It is not very difficult to procreate your own sports drink. If made smartly, what you whip up can provide the same benefits as its commercial counterpart.

A balanced exercise drink should contain
• Electrolytes for balancing solutes lost while sweating.
• Basic carbohydrates for energy (Approximately 7 % concentration of carbohydrates is ideally required to increase water absorbed in the body).
• The ability to retain water in the body.
• Sodium from salt, 1 to 2 g per liter fluid
• A pleasant flavour so that you feel like consuming it (flavor added should not interrupt the carbohydrate level of 7 %)

Option 1
Scott Sykes, an advance personal trainer (Human University Eastern London) has his own mix he thinks is as close to a sports drink. He suggests, adding the juice of 2 limes to 1 liter of water and 4 sachets of splenda. Turn the bottle upside down and inside out to have your own readymade drink. A zero calorie sweetener like splenda is suitable for people with diabetes.

Option 2
Take 1 cup of orange juice (100ml) and add 900 ml water to it. Add 5 tablespoons of sugar and 1 tsp of salt to replace the lost electrolytes. Diluting the orange juice reduces the calorie count so that the calories are largely supplied only by sugar.

Option 3
Take 2 caffeine free (green) tea bags and dip them in 450ml of boiling water. Stir in 2 table spoons of sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of salt with 2 tablespoons of lemon juice. Chill this mix. The antioxidants present in this concoction stimulate the flushing of toxins in the body.

Option 4
Fuse 3 tablespoons of corn syrup in 750ml water to rehydrate your body. This works wonderfully well on a mild exercise day.

You can carry one of these in your sipper every day. Not only will you save money, you will also rid yourself of the boredom of having to sip on the same drink every day.