Whether you’re playing soccer at the park or competing in an Ironman triathlon, you need to replace the fluid you sweat out. If you don’t then your body won’t function at its best. Even a 2-3% drop in body weight due to dehydration can lead to fatigue and lactic-acid build-up. That can translate into a 7% drop in your performance. If you think that’s no big deal, consider this: on average, the difference between the finishing time of the winner in the Tour de France and the last place rider’s time is roughly 5%. In an Ironman triathlon, 7% adds around 40 minutes to an elite amateur’s time. We thought that would get your attention.
However, the body needs more than plain water to rehydrate. It also needs to restore the electrolytes, sodium and potassium, that it loses through sweat. In addition to these key electrolytes, and to make rehydration even more effective,
GU Electrolyte Brew packs a light dose of easily-digestible carbohydrates and a light flavor that keeps your taste buds craving more. That’s all it contains because that’s all you really need. Anything more would just slow you down.
Electrolytes: Necessary for Optimum Hydration and Muscle Function
There are two major electrolytes in the body: sodium and potassium. You lose them because the body works with its own perfect ratio of water-to-electrolytes 1, 2. So when your body turns on the sweat glands in an effort to cool you down, it also expels excess electrolytes to keep that ratio in balance. Conversely, when you drink fluid, you also need to add a proportionate amount of electrolytes back in 2, 3. The addition of electrolytes enables your body to keep that new fluid around instead of dumping it in order to restore the water-to-electrolyte balance. These electrolytes also facilitate the neuromuscular system’s ability to work effectively so that your muscles keep doing what your brain tells them to do.
The mix of maltodextrin and fructose found in
GU Electrolyte Brew serves a dual role: it supplies working muscles with easily available fuel, and it speeds up the rehydration process by stimulating the absorption of both electrolytes and fluid in the stomach2, 4. 66% of the blend is maltodextrin, a corn-based complex carbohydrate that the body digests faster than simple sugar. The other 33% is comprised of fructose, the principle sugar found in fruit. Research shows that this 2:1 ratio of complex to simple carbohydrates will improve endurance performance by increasing the rates of exogenous carbohydrate absorption.
GU Electrolyte Brew uses fructose because the stomach absorbs it in tandem alongside maltodextrin and provides your muscles with as much fresh energy as possible. Fructose also adds just the right amount of sweetness and palatability. Studies have shown that we become highly sensitive to taste after extensive exercise. As a result, what tasted good at the beginning of exercise will, two-plus hours later, taste sickly sweet and become unpalatable.
GU Electrolyte Brew, on the other hand, tastes perfect, which means you’ll continue to drink it and keep yourself hydrated.
