Alternative To Lucozade (and other standard sports drinks)??

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IS there a more natural sports type of drink we could benefit from? Is it as easy as mixing in glucose powder from the chemists, in water?

Hi there,

Apologies to the "sports people" on hp, but isn't water enough or as you say above mixing in the glucose. I have a friend who does marathons and he eats a very healthy diet and traines sensibly. He does well on a very healthy diet, very little processed food, caffeine, alcohol and lots of water. Just out of curiosity do marathon runners need a sports drink?

Love & blessings,

Rachel

sports drinks contain not just carbohydrates in varying rastios but usually about 8%, they also contain electrolytes, in some cases caffeine.
the problem with endurance athletes is the depletion of body salts and minerals through the process of sweating to maintain body temperature.
rehydrating with water replaces the fluid in the body but does nothing to replace the other elements lost in sweating. in extreme cases it can be fatal, you sometimes hear of people dying during or after a marathon, this is because the bodies"salts" have been depleted and when rehydrating with water you further dilute the remaining salts to a level where organ failure can occur, those of you who have seen the ambulance service around marathon routes treating people with saline drips is to counter the effects of dehydration.
as a rule of thumb, every 20 mins you require approx 250mls fluid replacement, if you use isotonic sports drinks it can delay fatigue by up to 30%, using carbs for energy source causes heat so the body needs fluid to offset this process, usually the body needs 3 times the amount of fluid as carbs.
if you do partake in sports drink consumption you will notice that they become prgressively un palatable, this is due to the fact they become less isotonic as you lose salts and minerals thru' sweating. if this occurs you need to dilute sports drink until it becomes palateble again.
you can offset the effects by using either electrolyte beans, jellybeans specifically designed for endurance athletes sold in running shops etc, or mixing the powders from the chemist that you take after sickness/diahorrea bouts, with water.
caffeine can help with energy production from carbohydrates. there are other comanies than lucozade, ie gatorade, hi five, and others available from health food shops etc
regards
Gaz
proprietry sports drinks are isotonic, ie the fliuds are in the same ratio as the bodies natural fluids.

Hi

I recommend my athletic clients a sports drink called EmPact - at the moment a lot of clients are using it for their training ready for the London Marathon and noticing really good results.

Katie

sports drinks contain not just
caffeine can help with energy production from carbohydrates. Gaz
proprietry sports drinks are isotonic, ie the fliuds are in the same ratio as the bodies natural fluids.

infact, TRADITIONALLY, caffeine was thought to help increase lipolysis (FAT breakdown for energy) but this has since been disproven. It has a proven ergogenic effect for endurance events but the evidence is mixed for strength and multiple sprint type activities. It is thought to work by maintaining the release of calcium in muscle fibre cells, by reducing the amount of pottassium lost (both required for muscle contraction), by reducing RPE (rating of perceived exertion) and possibly reducing the effects of central fatigue through its effects on the sympathetic nervous system; also by increasing motivation to train (through acting as an antagonist to adenosine receptors in the brain) and through increasing reacting times. However, athletes shouldn't become overly dependant on caffeine as withdrawal after taking large amounts (use of large amounts is typical when used as an ergogenic aid) leads to withdrawal symptoms. I did a literature review on caffeine as part of my sports nutrition module at uni. loads of stuff out there on it. one of the few effective ergogenic aids (well for endurance activities anyway)# note only half of the creatine studies show that it is effective and the majority of the more recent studies (better designs) show it is ineffective#. Interestingly, what i found was that caffeine, although potentially a diuretic at rest, is not when used during exercise (the effect on adrenaline levels seems to negate this action somehow).
isotonic drinks are suitable for most people, most of the time, but there are times when differing concentrations may be more suitable:-

1) weight category sports- these athletes often are on calorie controlled diets. consuming large amounts of isotonic sports drinks results in a calorific intake that has a large percentage of its calories from just sugar. athltes are humans like the rest of us and so have basic nutitional requirements, thus the few calories they are permitted are better used for proper nutritious food rather than what is just a source of the macronutrient carbohydrate and nothing else (no fibre, micornutirents, protein or lipids). therefore, weaker solutions are more appropriate (hypotonic).

2) heavy sweaters or those exercising in very hot/ humid conditions may also opt for a hypotonic drink, as the need for water is far more important (you'll fatigue quicker due to dehdration than muscle glycogen depletion or hypoglycaemia) and the carb content may serve to displace water in the drink to such an extent that dehydration still heavily impacts on performance.

3) conversely, stronger (hypertonic) solutions can be used when exercising in cool environments when sweating rates are much lower and so a higher carb intake can be ingested, since the effect of the carbs slowing the rate of gastric emptying will not be drastic and the extra carbs usefull to delay fatigue.

very good point made about the need for electrolytes, hyponaetremia not only affects performance but can result in death (example of the man during the 2006 london marathon springs to mind).

all the best,

alex.

Hi I was interested in the sports drink called EmPact, could you give me details on it and where I could find it.
Many thanks Lynda

there's a drink called Gusto , a herbal organic energy drink.
That's popular when you can find it. Or Purdies which is along the same lines.

They are both fab and popular , organic , they dont come from companies that exploit others like GSK do - owners of Lucozade.

there's a drink called Gusto , a herbal organic energy drink.
That's popular when you can find it. Or Purdies which is along the same lines.

They are both fab and popular , organic , they dont come from companies that exploit others like GSK do - owners of Lucozade.

i not sure what composition Gusto has but i would strongly reccomend aginst the use of Purdeys before and during exercise for two reasons. (a) it is far too concentrated (it is hypertonic). any fluid ingested above a concentration of 8% has a hypertonic osmolality. the osmalality of the sports drink will affect the rate at which fluid leaves the GI tract (osmolality in this context relates to the concentration of the drink in relation to the glucose concentration of bodily fluids). if it is too concentrated the fluid leaves the GI tract too slowly and infact these drinks result in temporary dehydration as fluids are drawn into the GI tract as a means to dilute the overly concentrated fluid and therefore establish homeostasis. (b) Purdeys is carbonated. carbonated drinks should be avoided fpr several reasons: the feeling of bloatedness often experienced as a result is distracting, the gas in the stomach results in a false feeling of fullness and so insuficient levels of fluid are ingested, they delay gastric emptying.

instead, mix 40-80 grams of glucose powder to a litre of water to give a 4-8% (isotonic range) sports drink. the same results can be achieved by simply making up any average fruit squash with 4-5 parts water. add a pinch of salt each too.

alex.

For a mountain bike ride of 3-5 hours I find that apple juice diluted 50% with water and a teaspoon of potassium chloride (~5g) per litre does fine - if you compare the contents it's also remarkably similar to {insert brand name of fave sports drink here}

I reckon that unless you're an elite class athlete you may as well use a home brew 'sports drink' and take a bottle of chocolate milk as a 'recovery drink'..........

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