Whacky Wednesday: Zero Calorie Energy Drink
Ok, now this is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard… a zero calorie energy drink. Seriously? The only people that will fall victim to this gimmick is likely the average “health conscience” consumer who are somewhat clueless to what actual energy and food really is. Gatorade has a low calorie sport drink, but PowerAde is trying to one up them with a zero calorie beverage. They are taking the angle of carbohydrates as a source of fuel, and are claiming athletes don’t want, “wasted calories.”
Carbohydrates alone won’t continue fueling your body for long without essential calories. Simply put, calories translate to energy, but so do carbohydrates, right? So what is wrong with a zero calorie drink that has zero calories? Well, can you think of a high carbohydrate food without any calories? One medjool date alone contains 66 calories and is packed full of carbs (18 grams). To put it simply, PowerAde zero is highly unnatural.
Just look at the standard list of ingredients: water, high fructose corn syrup, salt, potassium citrate, phenylalanine, sucralose, sodium citrate, malic acid, vitamin B6, vitamin B2, etc. Notice any natural ingredients in that list, other than water and salt? I sure don’t. Nothing in this beverage is natural, other than the water. This beverage is the last thing I would want to consume during or after exercise.
So what does make up a good energy drink? There are very few beverages on the market I would consider a good energy drink, but you can create your own, highly nutritious energy drink that packs a punch. Below is a recipe based of Brendan Brazier’s spots drink from his book, The Thrive Diet.
Homemade Energy Drink
- 2 cups of water
- juice of one lemon
- juice of 1/2 lime
- 4 medjool dates
- 2 TBSP of agave nectar (optional)
- 2 tsp of coconut oil (optional)
- pinch of sea salt
Directions: Place all ingredients into a blender and blend until mixture is drinkable
I have used the above recipe to help provide energy during half marathons and long bike rides. Combined with my shot blok recipe, the pack quite the punch. Not only is it 100% all-natural, it’s highly nutritious and good for you. Since discovering this wonderful recipe, I have always made my own energy drink. The taste is great too, it has plenty of carbohydrates, salt and coconut oil – to help replenish electrolytes, and CALORIES, to help provide you with lasting energy.
Also, on a side note. We are still raising funds for Adventure Naturals on Kickstarter, and we still need your help. We are currently close to 40% funding and have just over 30 days left to meet our $5,000 goal. So, help us bring our 100% organic, raw, vegan, gluten free, energy bars and seasoned nuts to market. Please consider donating at the $35 level or greater, but anything you can give is greatly appreciated and needed.
Interesting article. I am happy I found it.Its nice to read something interesting I cannot find RSS channel
Uhhh, dude, there is no “high fructose corn syrup” in powerade zero. It’s zero sugar, zero carbs, zero calories. Just so ya know. And what’s a spots drink? I just don’t want you to sound like an idiot, since your page comes up top 10 on Google.
Ian, thanks for pointing out the typo, got it fixed. As for the ingredients, I honestly can’t remember where I got the info, but I just looked it up again, and you are right… This is what I found.
Water, citric acid, mineral salts (sodium chloride, magnesium chloride, calcium chloride, potassium phosphate), natural berry flavouring with other natural flavourings, acidity regulator (E332), sweeteners (sucralose, acesulfame K), colour (E133).
Not near as bad as their other drinks.
The main issue that no one seems to be talking about is that a zero calorie energy drink is a flat-out contradiction. Ask yourself, what is the definition of a calorie? Even if weren’t sure, you probably suspected the truth: its a measure of energy content. Zero calorie means zero energy.
Thus low sugar/low carb energy drinks are not actually sources of energy, and thus can only claim to be catalysts (stimulants is probably the correct term) that make you feel ‘energized’. This particular one does not seem to even have any of the common stimulants (caffeine being the usual suspect), so it looks like a complete marketing con-trick. Sports drinks may rehydrate and replace salts, which are good things, but they should be branded sports drinks, not energy drinks, methinks!
This article and most of these comments are just dumb (other than Ian’s). It is not marketed as an energy drink. On the bottle it specifically says SPORTS drink, you can even see that in the picture above (right below the R in ZERO). It is marketed for re-hydration, not energy. Article/comments fail.