I used to drink Red Bull by 40oz to knock out a ton of work or use as a pre-workout when I needed to – I still do – but I used to too.
That was until, someone once mentioned to me “do you need to drink all that or do you just want to drink something that’s good to taste?”
Ouch.
I was guzzling random crap just because I wanted to make my taste buds happy.
I like Red Bull, but I love beverages. I drink something almost all the time – it doesn’t matter what it is – if I like something – I like it A LOT.
So I needed something that I could drink without it adding tons of calories or sugar throughout the day that I didn’t need.
Electrolyte Drink Ingredient Comparison
Table of Contents
I grew up drinking Gatorade. Blue & Orange. Not sure the flavor – it was the color that mattered. If you were a kid in the 90s – you understand.
When I got pulled into the paleo and keto world, I started realizing how much junk was in our sports drinks. Then, when I learned more and more about fasting, I started dealing with cramps, and athletic performance issues moving into hours 18-36 hours in. Traditional drink didn’t cut it and even if I wasn’t fasting – I wanted to move to something cleaner.
LMNT Electrolytes vs. Standard Sports Drink
Most standard sports drinks have tons of sugar. They know it too. That’s why gatorade has been trying to come out with their lower sugar drinks. Even then, they’re still filled with color additives and a whole bunch of junk that you simply don’t need.
For example:
Average Gatorade Blue 20oz
270mg of sodium. 34g of sugar.
WATER, SUGAR, DEXTROSE, CITRIC ACID, NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR, SALT, SODIUM CITRATE, MONOPOTASSIUM PHOSPHATE, MODIFIED FOOD STARCH, GLYCEROL ESTER OF ROSIN, BLUE 1
Average Powerade Blue 20z
250mg of sodium. 34g of sugar.
WATER HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP LESS THAN 0.5% OF: CITRIC ACIDELECTROLYTES (SALTMAGNESIUM AND CALCIUM CHLORIDESMONO-POTASSIUM PHOSPHATE)NATURAL FLAVORS MODIFIED FOOD STARCH CALCIUM DISODIUM EDTA (TO PROTECT COLOR) MCTSAIBVITAMINS B3B6B12 (NIACINAMIDEPYRIDOXINE HYDROCHLORIDECYANOCOBALAMIN)BLUE 1.
If you want to avoid anything you can’t pronounce, this list looks much better.
LMNT
- 1000mg Sodium
- 200mg Potassium
- 60mg Magnesium
- Stevia
- Natural Flavors
- No artificial Ingredients
If you want to avoid ingredients and random stuff you can’t pronounce, it’s a pretty straightforward decision.
But Don’t You Need Carbohydrates?
This is actually the most common question I get in relation to LMNT – and the answer is…yes…sometimes.
LMNT was founded by Robb Wolf + the guys behind Keto Gains. I’ll spoil it for you right now and tell you that they’re low-carb/keto focused. It’s taken off in those communities, because it solved a very specific problem around the keto flu.
But, other athletes have taken notice.
Everyone from Tim Ferriss to Lance Armstrong and trainers for NBA & NFL teams have come on board.
Here’s the thing – just because you need carbohydrates – doesn’t mean you need them thrown into a bunch of crap in an electrolyte drink
Because – even if you need carbohydrates you can 1) get them from other sources
Carbs are not the enemy. Sugar however, is not a . Also – for more hydration drink s- if you’re drinking them throughout the day, you
If you have 3 servings of standard drinks – you’d be consuming 100g of sugar / day!
That’s just a ton of sugar that you don’t need to be consuming and carbohydrates. If you’re deep into an ultra marathon – sure. If you’re just banging out productive work on your computer – probably not.
You’re better off consuming electrolytes when you need them and carbohydrates you need them. Take what you need for the proper situation.
The LMNT Flavors (Ranked)
I’ve gone through and unofficially and unscientifically ranked the LMNT flavors in order of deliciousness.
Raspberry
Easily my go-to flavor. Really, really good.
Citrus
My usual move is to mix these with a raspberry for a raspberry/lime mix.
Orange
I have one of these for every few that I have of the others. It’s not nearly as strong and when I’m on my second drink of the day – it’s nice to have something that isn’t so intense.
Chocolate
Mix with chocolate
Mango Chili
Great for margaritas.
Unflavored
If you stay away from natural sweeteners or are on the AIP or similar restrictive diet, this is your go to. I prefer flavors, but tons of people use this as their mainstay.
Lemon Habanero
To be honest, I’m not a spice guy and this is – although this has a bunch of fanatics (weirdos).
How to Try LMNT
If you want to try LMNT out, I’d highly suggest the variety pack. You get a mix of all the flavors and it’s pretty cheap. It’s a good way to figure out which you like the best and then go back and grab a bunch more.
Disclaimer: I liked LMNT so much that I became an investor and advisor to the company. I literally put my money where my mouth is. It’s that damn good. It’s trusted by pro athletes, NBA and NFL teams. They’re not wrong. Try it.
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