Guest post by John Quodomine
Balanced Hydration
I received Nutriforce’s Balanced Hydration as part of a prize package for coming in second in the Superfit DC CrossFit competition recently. Normally I wouldn’t buy a hydration supplement as I tend to drink enough water throughout the day to stay hydrated. However, after receiving this one for free, it made me reconsider.
Taste: 8/10
Flavor: Citrus
The product is sweetened with stevia, so there’s no calories from sugar. However, it almost tasted like I was drinking liquified lemon-lime skittles, so it may be a little sweet for some people. I wouldn’t say it’s the absolute best damn thing I’ve ever tried, but in the realm of supplements, it has a great flavor. I was originally a little skeptical since I’ve also tried Nutriforce Pre-workout and Aminos (both fruit punch) and they were terrible, but NutriForce really did a good job with this one. Considering the shallow nutrient profile, it shouldn’t be difficult to make a hydration supplement taste good, though.
Nutrient Profile
This supplement contains 4% DV sodium, 6%DV potassium, a bit of calcium, 13%DV magnesium, and their “glycogenic hydration blend” which consists of glycine and sustamine. Of course, I don’t really take DV’s (daily values) too seriously since I tend to be more active than the general population. But it’s certainly more electrolytes than I would be getting by just drinking plain water. Unfortunately, I’m new to the hydration supplements so I can’t really comment on what additives might make it better or whatnot.
Price:
10/10?
Again, I’m new to these types of things, but you can get 35 servings for about $10 on Muscle & Strength, which is way cheaper than 35 servings of let’s say, Gatorade or something.
Quality
I’m not going to give a rating here, but this product certainly seems to do a lot better than just plain water. I’ve been landscaping for the summer and I could go through a gallon of water over a 10 hour day, only use the bathroom once, and it would still be a mild-dark yellow. Using this lately while drinking the same amount of water has resulted in a much clearer stream. On the other hand, the weather has gotten a bit cooler lately so I’m not sweating as much either. In short, I would at least recommend it for people with active jobs or who exercise a lot. During exercise you lose water and electrolytes through sweat. The added electrolytes should help you process water more efficiently and keep you hydrated.
Personally, I would consider actually buying this when I run out of my current supply. I’d likely only use it for the hot summer days or competition days, though.
Strong Figure Conditioning Workout for Tuesday, 10/14/14
For Time: 50-40-30-20-10
- Thrusters
- Sit-ups
You can do thrusters with a barbell, two dumbbells/kettlebells, or one dumbbell/kettlebell. If you don’t have equipment, sub one squat and one push-up for every thruster.
