OK – let’s assume that the average sports drink costs £1.

Now that I’m nearing the final 5 weeks of the From Square One series, I’m pretty much in the gym every day, twice a day. So, you could say that I have a pretty good insight into people’s gym habits.

Something that I have noticed recently is that there are more people drinking sports drinks. There’s this one guy in particular who trains every weekday, and I always see him carrying a bottle of Gatorade – that’s at least a £20 a month!

This got me thinking; would it be possible to make a home-made isotonic sports drink which not only tastes as good as what you can buy in the supermarket, but is just as (if not more) effective?

Find out after the jump.

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Sports drinks, such as Gatorade, Powerade and Lucozade, are designed to rehydrate an individual after training. When we sweat, our body loses electrolytes (sodium, magnesium and potassium) which can consequently hinder the recovery process. Therefore, refuelling with a sports drink has an array of benefits.  Generally speaking, sports drinks are available in three concentrations:

Isotonic sports drinks contain similar concentrations of salt and sugar as in the human body.

Hypertonic sports drinks contain a higher concentration of salt and sugar than the human body.

Hypotonic sports drinks contain a lower concentration of salt and sugar than the human body.

For this concoction, we will be making an isotonic sports drink. So, without further ado, here’s what you need:

Ingredients

400ml of Water

100ml of Squash (no added sugar, flavour of your choice)

10g of L-glutamine powder

5g of BCAA powder

A pinch of Electrolyte powder (essential salts)

You will also need: a 500ml sports/water bottle, as well as a funnel (depending on the size of bottle’s mouth)

Preparation Method

1. In a sports/water bottle, dilute 100ml of squash in 400ml of water.

2. Next, using a funnel, carefully add 10g’s of L-glutamine powder, together with the BCAA and electrolyte powder.

3. Replace the bottle cap, shake, and enjoy!

The L-glutamine and BCAA powders are optional, but nonetheless will help further aid recovery. As for the electrolyte powder, this can be bought online and is really cheap! Furthermore, a 1 litre bottle of squash retails for around the same price as a bottle of Gatorade, Powerade or Lucozade, but with 10 times as many servings!

All in all, this is a cost-effective alternative to what you will currently find on the market. Not to mention that it’s virtually sugar free!