Water flavoring

[orthofingers]

I drink lots of water when I'm hiking but my wife just doesn't seem to like the taste of plain water.
What are some of your favorite "additives" that you use to flavor the H2O. Light weight and compact size are preferable.

[jgillam]

I picked up a few of the MiO (highly concentrated) water enhancers last week. Grape and orange flavors, both were quite good, small and should be available most anywhere.

[egilbe]

Moose poop and pee are some of the most common

[saltysack]

I've been cutting back on Gatorade powder as it's too damn heavy...21 oz powder pack only lasts me about 3.5 days.....I like the Arnold palmer packs as a treat....


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[tflaris]

Nuun Flavored Tablets are nice.


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[rocketsocks]

Orange MIO

[rocketsocks]

They even make a iced tea w/Lemmon that weren't to bad either.

[Greenlight]

Coffee


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[Maineiac64]

I like endurolytes or nunn tablets while hiking and mio at camping spot.

[Tipi Walter]

Nuun Flavored Tablets are nice.


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Like the Nuun fizz tablets in all non-caffeine flavors. They turn mountain spring water into ginger ale . . . with some fizz. And make for great thirst quenchers in the heat.

[Deacon]

I'm going to try the GU 0.7 ounce packets for 20 oz. of water. Sugar content isn't terrible at 9 grams for the packet. It is a good electrolyte replacement.

[MuddyWaters]

We have sqwincher kwik stix at work for hot weather

light and compact (sugar free)
just enough taste for 1 L instead of the 20 oz on label
just enough variety to keep things satisfy

So, I bring 4 per day..=0.4 oz per day

I dont want overwhelming taste, just a little , then I drink much more
especially if its off tasting water
Got some really sulfurous water in NM once...couldnt drink it regardless

[saltysack]

What nuun flavors taste good?


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[BuckeyeBill]

I carry a 2L platypus in my pack that stays cooler than bottles in pockets. I have a 16oz bottle in a cozy for coffee every morning and have good old fashion Tang to mix in my cup during meals. I load up on Gatorade and Rock-star energy drinks while in towns. I don't like mixing stuff with my water in a hydro-bladder as it only increases the times in the field I need to pull it and wash it.

[Dogwood]

100% Organic Matcha Green Tea Powder. Sometimes mixed with powdered coconut water with my two favorites being Navitas Organics and Coco Hydro Pineapple.

I also like mixing the Navitas Organics Maqui powder with coconut water powder.

Truly, I'm looking forward to include Navitas Organics Essential powdered mixes into on and off trail water. We'll see what Navitas Organics exact nutritional profile is for the Essential line. If it's similar to the high quality as the rest of their products I've tried or currently use it should be a winner for the trail. If I'm taking a powder on trail to add to water I like more than it being mainly based on sugar especially unnaturally derived and added sugar, a flavoring, or simply protein powdered mix supplement. I really like a mix of very high quality Organic minimally refined easy to understand ingredients that provide probiotics, greens, enzymes, a wide spectrum of nutrient dense superfoods and antioxidants, as well as protein. http://www.navitasorganics.com/superfood-essential-blends. http://www.navitasorganics.com/superfood-essential-blends..,that is also great tasting.

I am currently enjoying a somewhat like but not exact mix made by Amazing Grass. https://www.amazinggrass.com/proteinsuperfood/

I've been enjoying Navitas Organics on and off trail for more than 6 yrs. I am not directly sponsored by them but as disclosure I do have a wholesale connection. Maybe, in a sense that is being sponsored. Either way, I surely appreciate the spectrum of nutritional benefits on trail of high quality Navitas Organics products.

Heather "Anish" Anderson I believe is now being sponsored by Navitas Organics. I did not know until seeing this Heather also bagged the AZT FKT for both women and men. Here's what she says: http://www.navitasorganics.com/insider-heather

[TX Aggie]

Chia seeds


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[Trailweaver]

Tang - even though advertised as a breakfast drink, is just as refreshing any time of day. And I also take lemonade powder drink mix sweetened with Splenda artificial sweetener - just mix the Lemonade powder & Splenda together well, & then you can spoon out however much you want to mix up when you stop for a break.

[DuneElliot]

I have use the Crystal Light single-serve packets before that are available at Walmart and probably most other grocery stores. Some taste better than others.

[ranger2012]

My go to while on trail is kool aid singles.

https://www.amazon.com/Kool-Aid-Singles-12-Count-Packets-6-6-Ounce/dp/B001FA1MN8

[Bronk]

Gatorade powder.

[BrianLe]

Agree about gatorade powder being heavy. And bulky. I don't need the additives, get lots of nutrients from my food; my issue is that I tend to dehydrate, so want something to encourage me to drink more.

On long distance trips, it's not just about "what's best", but also about "what's available". In that context, crystal light singles or other brand or generic equivalents that can be found in a grocery store. Some are okay with the newer small plastic squeeze bottles, but I'd rather have the little packets --- I think lighter overall.
Generally I carry more than I need out of a town with a store that offers them, as a lot of times when I can at least minimally resupply food I can't resupply the drink powder, i.e., in gas station mini-marts and the like.

[Jayne]

Lots of gatorade powder, I use man. I use 6-8 oz per day and it's part of my meal plan (It's basically just sugar with some electrolytes added in, exactly what I need for hiking.)

[saltysack]

Lots of gatorade powder, I use man. I use 6-8 oz per day and it's part of my meal plan (It's basically just sugar with some electrolytes added in, exactly what I need for hiking.)

Id rather have 6-8oz of snickers for the cal and sugar....[emoji51]


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[Farr Away]

I drop an herbal peppermint tea bag or two in a liter bottle. I refill the bottle as needed throughout the day without adding any more tea. In the evening, I remove the tea bags and start with new the next day. Obviously, you could use whatever kind or flavor of tea you like, or that's available. Most tea bags are very light.

On trail, I use a hydration bladder (only water, no tea or anything). Having the drinking tube right there, I drink a lot more than I would otherwise.

-FA

[moldy]

My water bottles that I carry are 2 or 3 20oz coke bottles. My drink of preference is Mal-mart brand orange individual drink mix(kool aid style) I will chug 4 bottles a day.

[Turk6177]

I have used everything from individual kool aid packets, to gatorade powder, to the walmart store brand individual flavor packets. I have seen some people using the Mio but haven't tried it myself.

[storminstovesystems]

We use this in the UKhttps://www.amazon.co.uk/Robinsons-Squashd-Multipack-Flavour-3x66ml/dp/B00K1KWF3E

[rocketsocks]

The thing I like about Mio is it's ease of use

[ranger2012]

I liked Mio until I had one leak in my food bag. Red everywhere.

[Dogwood]

Agree about gatorade powder being heavy. And bulky. I don't need the additives, get lots of nutrients from my food; my issue is that I tend to dehydrate, so want something to encourage me to drink more.
...Some are okay with the newer small plastic squeeze bottles, but I'd rather have the little packets --- I think lighter overall...


Lots of gatorade powder, I use man. I use 6-8 oz per day and it's part of my meal plan (It's basically just sugar with some electrolytes added in, exactly what I need for hiking.)

Two excellent observations. YES, darn heavy in context of what's received especially if you become habituated to artificially flavored artificial sugar water. The most abundant ingredient(s) in both Crystal Light and Gatorade Powders is sugar at 83-85% sugar calories. TANG is 41% sugar. Kool Aid is basically colored sugar. *by caloric content %

Hydrating 4-10 L of H20 per 8 hrs of hiking accustomed to drinks having to be sweetened one can easily be hauling in excess of 10 oz of powder each day. Some will say I don't use that much. It's still a slippery sugary sweetened slope because: 1) its' scientifically engineered in by processed food industry scientists to exploit the human palette's "bliss point", you're intentionally pleasure driven through opioid receptors, dopamine, and endorphins to achieve this known bliss point, you become ADDICTED by having cravings intentionally triggered until this bliss point is achieved, so much for a war on addictive drugs(compounds)? 2) drinking sweetened water, whether it's heavily sweetened or not, accustoms one to further desiring/drinking/eating what's sweet. BAD! Because then unsweetened water that should be consumed for hydration can be bypassed missing out on proper hydration levels which I thought was the goal of drinking water in the first place? *This can have the opposite effect of being encouraged to drink more H20. This is observed repeatedly on trail and off. So many are observed who drink sugar laden powder mixes and liquid sugary drinks that don't consume enough water to properly hydrate or do so only by carrying much sugary powders while being sugar addicted.

Think about this in terms of food wt. If the average food wt/day hauled by hikers is 1.5 - 2 lbs(24-32 ozs) adding 10 ozs to this increases the food wt hauled by 30-40+ %.... LARGELY FOR SWEETNESS SAKE. Don't U.S. citizen already consume enough sugar? Now we bring our sugar addictions to hikes at the expenses of added wt and lower(NOT HIGHER!) nutrition? Aren't we already consuming enough sugar laden foods in many trail foods? And, isn't it easy enough to obtain real nutrients and electrolytes, sodium etc AND FLAVOR from REAL WHOLE foods?

https://www.eatthismuch.com/food/view/gatorade-mix,3211/ Do the math.

Interesting how flavoring is intentionally linked by so many to sweetness. HOW HAS THAT HAPPENED?
https://www.theblot.com/what-bliss-point-besides-reason-addicted-doritos-7716219
http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2015/12/16/459981099/how-the-food-industry-helps-engineer-our-cravings
http://www.wellingtonresearch.com/whats-your-bliss-point/

YES, it's a conspiracy!

One can have flavored water with zero sugar, zero artificial sugar, and zero artificial ingredients. HOW? Make a tea as FarAway suggested. A good one for the trail is steeping a chunk of fresh ginger root, fresh bit of lemon, and turmeric(fresh rhizome or powder) in a water bottle using the same over the course of many water bottle fillings; add a bit of sweetness in the form of maybe a honey packet or packet of REAL sugar. We do it in Hawaii EASILY by offering delicious cucumber, lemon, or orange water with a touch of Himalayan or Sea salt added. How hard is it to find cucumber, small lemon, small orange, and some sea salt... especially during summer? Adding some freshly foraged raspberries, strawberries, thimble berries, huckleberries, blueberries is really all it takes to favor water and provide some nutrients WITHOUT having to haul a sugary powder. And , now were not having our bliss points unnaturally triggered that we become addicted to sugar laden powder mixes AND we understand what the heck we are consuming. Don't let the processed food industry "scientists" take over your ability to know what you're consuming.

[cneill13]

It may sound nasty but I love this flavor drink mix when out on the trail. The packets are tiny and the taste is just like the watermelon candy.

https://www.amazon.com/Jolly-Rancher-Singles-Drink-Watermelon/dp/B00K4OZZAC/ref=sr_1_7_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1492802587&sr=8-7&keywords=jolly+rancher+drink+mix

Carl

[Jayne]

Two excellent observations. YES, darn heavy in context of what's received especially if you become habituated to artificially flavored artificial sugar water. The most abundant ingredient(s) in both Crystal Light and Gatorade Powders is sugar at 83-85% sugar calories. TANG is 41% sugar. Kool Aid is basically colored sugar. *by caloric content %

Hydrating 4-10 L of H20 per 8 hrs of hiking accustomed to drinks having to be sweetened one can easily be hauling in excess of 10 oz of powder each day. Some will say I don't use that much. It's still a slippery sugary sweetened slope because: 1) its' scientifically engineered in by processed food industry scientists to exploit the human palette's "bliss point", you're intentionally pleasure driven through opioid receptors, dopamine, and endorphins to achieve this known bliss point, you become ADDICTED by having cravings intentionally triggered until this bliss point is achieved, so much for a war on addictive drugs(compounds)? 2) drinking sweetened water, whether it's heavily sweetened or not, accustoms one to further desiring/drinking/eating what's sweet. BAD! Because then unsweetened water that should be consumed for hydration can be bypassed missing out on proper hydration levels which I thought was the goal of drinking water in the first place? *This can have the opposite effect of being encouraged to drink more H20. This is observed repeatedly on trail and off. So many are observed who drink sugar laden powder mixes and liquid sugary drinks that don't consume enough water to properly hydrate or do so only by carrying much sugary powders while being sugar addicted.

Think about this in terms of food wt. If the average food wt/day hauled by hikers is 1.5 - 2 lbs(24-32 ozs) adding 10 ozs to this increases the food wt hauled by 30-40+ %.... LARGELY FOR SWEETNESS SAKE. Don't U.S. citizen already consume enough sugar? Now we bring our sugar addictions to hikes at the expenses of added wt and lower(NOT HIGHER!) nutrition? Aren't we already consuming enough sugar laden foods in many trail foods? And, isn't it easy enough to obtain real nutrients and electrolytes, sodium etc AND FLAVOR from REAL WHOLE foods?

https://www.eatthismuch.com/food/view/gatorade-mix,3211/ Do the math.

Interesting how flavoring is intentionally linked by so many to sweetness. HOW HAS THAT HAPPENED?
https://www.theblot.com/what-bliss-point-besides-reason-addicted-doritos-7716219
http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2015/12/16/459981099/how-the-food-industry-helps-engineer-our-cravings
http://www.wellingtonresearch.com/whats-your-bliss-point/

YES, it's a conspiracy!

One can have flavored water with zero sugar, zero artificial sugar, and zero artificial ingredients. HOW? Make a tea as FarAway suggested. A good one for the trail is steeping a chunk of fresh ginger root, fresh bit of lemon, and turmeric(fresh rhizome or powder) in a water bottle using the same over the course of many water bottle fillings; add a bit of sweetness in the form of maybe a honey packet or packet of REAL sugar. We do it in Hawaii EASILY by offering delicious cucumber, lemon, or orange water with a touch of Himalayan or Sea salt added. How hard is it to find cucumber, small lemon, small orange, and some sea salt... especially during summer? Adding some freshly foraged raspberries, strawberries, thimble berries, huckleberries, blueberries is really all it takes to favor water and provide some nutrients WITHOUT having to haul a sugary powder. And , now were not having our bliss points unnaturally triggered that we become addicted to sugar laden powder mixes AND we understand what the heck we are consuming. Don't let the processed food industry "scientists" take over your ability to know what you're consuming.

While this is may be considered good advice for your typical American working behind a desk, I don't think this logic is applicable to someone engaged in long distance hiking. Hikers do not need to drink low calorie drinks, in fact I think it's quite the opposite. Why would you carry the weight of non-nutritive beverage flavorings? Your body needs sugar and electrolytes. I easily need 5-6K calories per day hiking and going severely negative will cause me to crash. 1,000 calories of Gatorade is a good thing.

[Jayne]

Also, Gatorade powder is 130 calories per 32g (or 1.1 oz) so it's in my target window of calories/oz (must be > 100 calories per oz or I'm not carrying it.)

[Huntmog]

I take 2 Gatorade packets per day as my treat for camp. Its a delicious pick me up that also helps electrolytes. I tried mio but reserve it more for work

[Dogwood]

While this is may be considered good advice for your typical American working behind a desk, I don't think this logic is applicable to someone engaged in long distance hiking. Hikers do not need to drink low calorie drinks, in fact I think it's quite the opposite. Why would you carry the weight of non-nutritive beverage flavorings? Your body needs sugar and electrolytes. I easily need 5-6K calories per day hiking and going severely negative will cause me to crash. 1,000 calories of Gatorade is a good thing.

Umm, I was not making a case for low calorie diets or foods or drink flavorings. I was making the case for nutrient dense diets, foods, and flavorings that offer more than nutritionally dismal "sugar wt calories" that are flavorful and EASY to apply to trail life.

For the umpteenth time food is not just calories even in the context of LD hiking. Calories exist within the matrix of an entire substance...hence terms like "empty calories" and "junk food flavorings and additives", OFTEN of artificial or dubious origins, passed off by marketing gurus as if they are needed by "athletes" based on "scientist's" scientific approaches - food engineers working within the processed food like substances industry - for performance and hydration." The all calories are good, all calories are equal, all food is equal, all food is - is calories, all food is assimilated the same, all food is - is nothing but energy is a fallacy promoted among members of the hiking community.

If hauling sugar wt is a significant part of trail food wt - 30+% of daily calories - making SUGAR a big part of the daily caloric load please explain to us the wider nutritional, performance, and trail wt saving benefits of this approach?

Can't we see that we can get more nutrition without appealing to sugar addictions to flavor water. Let's revisit what the topic is about --- flavoring water. This can EASILY be accomplished without appealing to sugar laden nutritionally dismal flavorings.

Umm, YES the human body needs sugar, actually glucose, and electrolytes to function but that can be obtained consuming REAL FOODS - EVEN IN THE CONTEXT OF LD HIKING. This occurs when complex carbs are broken down into glucose and electrolytes are in the food. We don't necessarily need added sugar in the diet or eat sugary foods to obtain desired glucose and electrolytes. Since many hikers already include "junk food"/food containing high sugar, fat, and salt contents on trail it's quite the norm to consume excess amounts of added sugar ALREADY on trail without the need to consume more sugar in sugar added foods or sugary flavorings.

[saltysack]

Two excellent observations. YES, darn heavy in context of what's received especially if you become habituated to artificially flavored artificial sugar water. The most abundant ingredient(s) in both Crystal Light and Gatorade Powders is sugar at 83-85% sugar calories. TANG is 41% sugar. Kool Aid is basically colored sugar. *by caloric content %

Hydrating 4-10 L of H20 per 8 hrs of hiking accustomed to drinks having to be sweetened one can easily be hauling in excess of 10 oz of powder each day. Some will say I don't use that much. It's still a slippery sugary sweetened slope because: 1) its' scientifically engineered in by processed food industry scientists to exploit the human palette's "bliss point", you're intentionally pleasure driven through opioid receptors, dopamine, and endorphins to achieve this known bliss point, you become ADDICTED by having cravings intentionally triggered until this bliss point is achieved, so much for a war on addictive drugs(compounds)? 2) drinking sweetened water, whether it's heavily sweetened or not, accustoms one to further desiring/drinking/eating what's sweet. BAD! Because then unsweetened water that should be consumed for hydration can be bypassed missing out on proper hydration levels which I thought was the goal of drinking water in the first place? *This can have the opposite effect of being encouraged to drink more H20. This is observed repeatedly on trail and off. So many are observed who drink sugar laden powder mixes and liquid sugary drinks that don't consume enough water to properly hydrate or do so only by carrying much sugary powders while being sugar addicted.

Think about this in terms of food wt. If the average food wt/day hauled by hikers is 1.5 - 2 lbs(24-32 ozs) adding 10 ozs to this increases the food wt hauled by 30-40+ %.... LARGELY FOR SWEETNESS SAKE. Don't U.S. citizen already consume enough sugar? Now we bring our sugar addictions to hikes at the expenses of added wt and lower(NOT HIGHER!) nutrition? Aren't we already consuming enough sugar laden foods in many trail foods? And, isn't it easy enough to obtain real nutrients and electrolytes, sodium etc AND FLAVOR from REAL WHOLE foods?

https://www.eatthismuch.com/food/view/gatorade-mix,3211/ Do the math.

Interesting how flavoring is intentionally linked by so many to sweetness. HOW HAS THAT HAPPENED?
https://www.theblot.com/what-bliss-point-besides-reason-addicted-doritos-7716219
http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2015/12/16/459981099/how-the-food-industry-helps-engineer-our-cravings
http://www.wellingtonresearch.com/whats-your-bliss-point/

YES, it's a conspiracy!

One can have flavored water with zero sugar, zero artificial sugar, and zero artificial ingredients. HOW? Make a tea as FarAway suggested. A good one for the trail is steeping a chunk of fresh ginger root, fresh bit of lemon, and turmeric(fresh rhizome or powder) in a water bottle using the same over the course of many water bottle fillings; add a bit of sweetness in the form of maybe a honey packet or packet of REAL sugar. We do it in Hawaii EASILY by offering delicious cucumber, lemon, or orange water with a touch of Himalayan or Sea salt added. How hard is it to find cucumber, small lemon, small orange, and some sea salt... especially during summer? Adding some freshly foraged raspberries, strawberries, thimble berries, huckleberries, blueberries is really all it takes to favor water and provide some nutrients WITHOUT having to haul a sugary powder. And , now were not having our bliss points unnaturally triggered that we become addicted to sugar laden powder mixes AND we understand what the heck we are consuming. Don't let the processed food industry "scientists" take over your ability to know what you're consuming.

Agree but remember the acid in lemons will eat the plastic in most disposable water bottles.....although Used to do it often with my nalgenes for daily use but recently switched to a stainless hydro flask to avoid this.......probably a mute point as most of us already put boiling water in a plastic ziplock to cook.

[TX Aggie]

Two excellent observations. YES, darn heavy in context of what's received especially if you become habituated to artificially flavored artificial sugar water. The most abundant ingredient(s) in both Crystal Light and Gatorade Powders is sugar at 83-85% sugar calories. TANG is 41% sugar. Kool Aid is basically colored sugar. *by caloric content %

Hydrating 4-10 L of H20 per 8 hrs of hiking accustomed to drinks having to be sweetened one can easily be hauling in excess of 10 oz of powder each day. Some will say I don't use that much. It's still a slippery sugary sweetened slope because: 1) its' scientifically engineered in by processed food industry scientists to exploit the human palette's "bliss point", you're intentionally pleasure driven through opioid receptors, dopamine, and endorphins to achieve this known bliss point, you become ADDICTED by having cravings intentionally triggered until this bliss point is achieved, so much for a war on addictive drugs(compounds)? 2) drinking sweetened water, whether it's heavily sweetened or not, accustoms one to further desiring/drinking/eating what's sweet. BAD! Because then unsweetened water that should be consumed for hydration can be bypassed missing out on proper hydration levels which I thought was the goal of drinking water in the first place? *This can have the opposite effect of being encouraged to drink more H20. This is observed repeatedly on trail and off. So many are observed who drink sugar laden powder mixes and liquid sugary drinks that don't consume enough water to properly hydrate or do so only by carrying much sugary powders while being sugar addicted.

Think about this in terms of food wt. If the average food wt/day hauled by hikers is 1.5 - 2 lbs(24-32 ozs) adding 10 ozs to this increases the food wt hauled by 30-40+ %.... LARGELY FOR SWEETNESS SAKE. Don't U.S. citizen already consume enough sugar? Now we bring our sugar addictions to hikes at the expenses of added wt and lower(NOT HIGHER!) nutrition? Aren't we already consuming enough sugar laden foods in many trail foods? And, isn't it easy enough to obtain real nutrients and electrolytes, sodium etc AND FLAVOR from REAL WHOLE foods?

https://www.eatthismuch.com/food/view/gatorade-mix,3211/ Do the math.

Interesting how flavoring is intentionally linked by so many to sweetness. HOW HAS THAT HAPPENED?
https://www.theblot.com/what-bliss-point-besides-reason-addicted-doritos-7716219
http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2015/12/16/459981099/how-the-food-industry-helps-engineer-our-cravings
http://www.wellingtonresearch.com/whats-your-bliss-point/

YES, it's a conspiracy!

One can have flavored water with zero sugar, zero artificial sugar, and zero artificial ingredients. HOW? Make a tea as FarAway suggested. A good one for the trail is steeping a chunk of fresh ginger root, fresh bit of lemon, and turmeric(fresh rhizome or powder) in a water bottle using the same over the course of many water bottle fillings; add a bit of sweetness in the form of maybe a honey packet or packet of REAL sugar. We do it in Hawaii EASILY by offering delicious cucumber, lemon, or orange water with a touch of Himalayan or Sea salt added. How hard is it to find cucumber, small lemon, small orange, and some sea salt... especially during summer? Adding some freshly foraged raspberries, strawberries, thimble berries, huckleberries, blueberries is really all it takes to favor water and provide some nutrients WITHOUT having to haul a sugary powder. And , now were not having our bliss points unnaturally triggered that we become addicted to sugar laden powder mixes AND we understand what the heck we are consuming. Don't let the processed food industry "scientists" take over your ability to know what you're consuming.


While this is may be considered good advice for your typical American working behind a desk, I don't think this logic is applicable to someone engaged in long distance hiking. Hikers do not need to drink low calorie drinks, in fact I think it's quite the opposite. Why would you carry the weight of non-nutritive beverage flavorings? Your body needs sugar and electrolytes. I easily need 5-6K calories per day hiking and going severely negative will cause me to crash. 1,000 calories of Gatorade is a good thing.

Actually, what he's saying has even MORE relevance with long-distance hikers. The body runs much more efficiently on fats than carbohydrates. I know that runs counter to what the Government has been saying the past 50 years, but it's no coincidence that as the American diet has become more carb heavy, we've become more obese.

Speaking directly to long-distance hiking and nutrition, the latest studies show what true nutritionists have known for a long time: fit bodies burn fat better. Period.

https://www.outsideonline.com/2125031/what-happens-your-body-thru-hike

Not only does your body burn fat better, eating fatty foods like nuts and chia helps with satiety.

As for Gatorade and tang:
Ask any military vet that spent time out in Iraq or Afghanistan how good that stuff is long term under high metabolic stress levels. Again, it's no accident that those who drank large amounts (more than 16 oz/day) were much more prone to kidney stones.

If you're ounce counting, the calorie density of fats vs carbs alone should have you carrying less carbs, especially simple carbs like sugar water.

If you need the sweetness, try honey. It has benefits above adding sweetness to the drink.


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[Dogwood]

Also, Gatorade powder is 130 calories per 32g (or 1.1 oz) so it's in my target window of calories/oz (must be > 100 calories per oz or I'm not carrying it.)

Umm, don't know what you're reading. Orange or lemon lime flavored gatorade powder is about 110 cal/oz(28 gram) ratio. Gatorade powder has no fat!

Consider a carb gram contains 4 cals. 28 grams is an oz. 28 gm/oz x 4 cals/gm = 112 calories/oz ratio for Gatorade powder. As said, Gatorade powder calories are sugar calories. Gatorade calories is sugar calories. These drink mixes I've named, despite the marketing hoopla, are constructed around sugar consumption.

[Jayne]

Agreed, no fat, it's basically just powdered sugar with some flavoring and electrolyte supplements. What do you think is in fruit, or honey? Simple sugars aren't "bad" they're just fuel. Not a lot of vitamins but it's got potassium and sodium, which you need to replace if you're sweating a lot. There's a reason that professional athletes and endurance athletes drink sports drinks - the sugar is easily converted into glycogen so that your muscles can use it. Fat is not. It is calorie dense, but the body has to convert it into lipids and various glycerides in the intestines.

I don't personally advocate high glycemic index foods for general consumption - I try to avoid simple sugars at home and at work for a large number or reasons. On the trail or an endurance event is something completely different; gatorade powder allows me to hike longer and avoid dehydration and electrolyte imbalances (nasty things those.) If you want to do something different go for it! That's what works for me and it's my recommendation. YMMV.

[Puddlefish]

Propel... is the nastiest substance on earth. Avoid.

[Second Half]

39119

Lemon crystals. I buy them in bulk on Amazon and they're amazingly cheap.

https://www.amazon.com/True-Citrus/b/ref=bl_dp_s_web_7244453011?ie=UTF8&node=7244453011&field-lbr_brands_browse-bin=True+Citrus

[Dogwood]

Some good info in your last two posts TXAggie and Jayne.

To say "simple sugars aren't bad they're just fuel" totally ignores what I've repeatedly been saying on this thread. AGAIN taking sugar out of it's WHOLE FOOD MATRIX highly refining it causes problems nutritionally and in the human body. The LONG LIST of health problems associated with HIGH SUGAR and artificial sweetener consumption, which is rampant in the western diet, is WELL DOCUMENTED! Sugar and artificial sweeteners can be toxic not just in the sense of the individual substances but in the sheer amount they are consumed. *These problems don't all simply go away because we're consuming 4000-6000 cals/daily while exercising! Massive over consumption of sweet food like substances is a HUGE health problem for the U. S. public! For example, refined sugars alone have a pro-inflammatory response that opens the doors to so many health problems such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, digestive disorders, etc. Some would go so far to label refined sugar as an anti-nutrient because they way it reacts in the body.

Using simple sugars as fuel outside of the WHOLE FOOD MATRIX EASILY results in an assortment of health and nutritional issues.

Water can be flavored just as easily without having to habitually succumb to making it sweet. Several examples have been given. Interestingly flavoring water by diluting with a ginger turmeric tea, only very moderately sweetening if wanting a bit of sweetness, has the reverse effects of having anti-inflammatory properties, which might be appreciated by the pain pill and anti -inflammatory(NSAID, Ibuprofen, etc) abusers ON TRAIL, aids digestion, which MANY consuming a western diet have issue with, stimulates the immune system, which again can be appreciated in the context of LD hiking, improves blood circulation, again possibly appreciated on trail, and can have other potential trail benefits. It can be made EASILY yourself into a darn tasty drink or buy in ready to go tea bags. http://www.healthyandnaturalworld.com/how-to-make-anti-inflammatory-turmeric-ginger-tea/ PLUS all the ingredients if making yourself can be added to foods.

Since someone else brought up fruit I will note two things about it that sometime get lost in all this. The sugar/sweetness in fruit - fructose - is in a REAL WHOLE FOOD MATRIX accompanied by fiber that mediates the sugar assimilation hence blood sugar spikes and of course has the natural nutrients in it. Nothing needs to be added. Nothing has been "engineered" by the highly processed packaged highly refined food industry "scientists." Food hasn't been turned into food like laboratory products that have additives, artificial ingredients, etc in it. This is the way Nature, the Creator, or whatever has intelligently evolutionary designed it over millennia. This is what I mean by nutrients, including calories, within the whole food matrix. Consuming the sugar in fruit when eating the whole fruit and nothing but the fruit(no fruit cups packed in sugary syrups) for an otherwise healthy individual in "reasonable" amounts is much less of an issue than when the simple sugars are concentrated taken out of their WHOLE FOOD MATRIX as what happens turning an apple into massively sweet and sugary apple juice or turning grapes into grape juice OR WITH THESE SUGARY AND ARTIFICIALLY SWEETENER CONTAINING DRINK MIXES BASED ON SUGAR/SWEETNESS CONSUMPTION.

What I'm saying is the more processed the food is often the worse it is nutritionally. So much so that sometimes the "engineers" will put nutrients back in by fortifying the substances touting nutritional aspects. OFTEN packaged powder drink flavorings are over and over engineered around HIGH sugar or sweetness(through artificial sweeteners) content and consumption. WHY? WHY is it that so many think of flavoring water by only adding sugar or artificial sweeteners to it? Could it be because that's what they're habituated to to UNNATURAL DEGREES and intentionally triggered to crave by the "engineers" so they get addicted and buy more product NOT because the substances are "nutritious?"

I'd like to address and discuss more of the content of your posts but I don't want to get too far off the topic.

[Venchka]

39119

Lemon crystals. I buy them in bulk on Amazon and they're amazingly cheap.

https://www.amazon.com/True-Citrus/b/ref=bl_dp_s_web_7244453011?ie=UTF8&node=7244453011&field-lbr_brands_browse-bin=True+Citrus

Lime crystals as well.
Been around since forever. Supermarkets. Amazon not required.
Wayne


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[Dogwood]

Sweet bacon flavored water available in smoked or maple versions sweetened with sucalose(Splenda) and acesulfame k? UMM, sounds delicious with a poop tart, hooey bun, or fried pork rinds.

[colorado_rob]

Just plain old bulk-powder Gatorade, the ~100 cal/oz weight goes right into the other food/calorie daily allotment, so I'm not seeing this big "weight penalty" talked about below, though is does bring down the overall calorie/ounce average slightly.

Those electrolytes are extremely important. I mix mine roughly half strength compared to pre-mixed stuff. Maybe 1-2 ounces a day is all I use, mixed with maybe half of my day's drinking water. I sometimes carry those sugar-free flavorings when I can't get Gatorade powder, but those truly are a weight penalty. Crystal light ain't too bad. My wife likes and carries Tang.

There are a few flavors of Nuun tablets I like, the others taste like medicine... my problem is I can never remember which flavors I like!

[Second Half]

Lime crystals as well.
Been around since forever. Supermarkets. Amazon not required.
Wayne


Yup the lime are great too. Haven't tried the orange or grapefruit but I imagine they're of equal quality.

Yes they're in supermarkets but it's a couple bucks for a box of 7 packs. The 500-pack bulk box on Amazon is $23.00. Orders of magnitude cheaper.

Just make sure you get the crystals only. The "lemonades" and such with artificial sweeteners are terrible.

[Greenlight]

Agree about gatorade powder being heavy. And bulky. I don't need the additives, get lots of nutrients from my food; my issue is that I tend to dehydrate, so want something to encourage me to drink more.

On long distance trips, it's not just about "what's best", but also about "what's available". In that context, crystal light singles or other brand or generic equivalents that can be found in a grocery store. Some are okay with the newer small plastic squeeze bottles, but I'd rather have the little packets --- I think lighter overall.
Generally I carry more than I need out of a town with a store that offers them, as a lot of times when I can at least minimally resupply food I can't resupply the drink powder, i.e., in gas station mini-marts and the like.

I never get bored of water.


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[Dogwood]

Just plain old bulk-powder Gatorade, the ~100 cal/oz weight goes right into the other food/calorie daily allotment, so I'm not seeing this big "weight penalty" talked about below, though is does bring down the overall calorie/ounce average slightly...

It is a wt penalty in context of the wt for the lack of nutrients it provides. It's a huge wt penalty in context of habitually adding a sugar or artificial sweetener based flavoring consuming 4-10+ oz sugar/artificial sweetener based powders daily. This has been previously noted. It penalizes our palettes to crave and addict to sugar and sweetness to an even higher degree than natural evolution. Consumers are being exploited. How much nutritionally dismal food wt does this wt have to be before it's seen as a penalty especially in context of all the hemming and hawing and ultra anal-izing attempting to decrease a miniscule amount of gear wt recognizing it as a wt penalty? Note what an increasing number of the most advanced UL LD hikers and some of the FKTers in various backpacking communities are consuming! An increasing number are saving consumable wt by electing to consume a more nutrient dense diet beyond just narrowly looking at cal/oz ratios. Anyone concerned with health and performance able to navigate the dung heap of food industry marketing are aware of the impact of diet so one doesn't have to be an advanced ULer or FKTer to acknowledge this and make changes to their trail consumption.

AGAIN food is more than calories. Food is about nutrients...a wide spectrum of nutrients... OFTEN HAVING VERY DIFFERENT RESULTS WHEN CONSUMED SYNERGISTICALLY "NATURALLY" WITHIN CONTEXT OF THEIR WHOLE FOOD MATRIX! In context were talking about a flavoring, a flavoring that is mainly nutritionally denatured refined sugar or artificial sweeteners. And, even though there are added electrolytes which are hyped to get us to think we need these from a so called convenient "scientifically based" powder they can be obtained in other ways quite easily in the foods we eat on trail or other ways that are perhaps less wt WHILE PROVIDING ADDITIONAL HEALTH BENEFITS.

In short, I'm saying there are better, perhaps more convenient wt saving GREATER nutritional profile health beneficial ways to flavor water deliciously then simply adding some sugar, artificial ingredients, and hyped electrolytes that are what these many powders consists.

[Dogwood]

I never get bored of water.


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WHY? Maybe, because you're not addicted or accustomed to craving sweetness in all you drink or eat?

I'm with you Greenlight. Nothing so refreshing as clean nothing added water fresh from a cool spring or mountain stream. Look forward to it every time my feet take to a hike. How beautiful and wise Nature - the Creator, whatever, is.

[colorado_rob]

It is a wt penalty in context of the wt for the lack of nutrients it provides. It's a huge wt penalty in context of habitually adding a sugar or artificial sweetener based flavoring consuming 4-10+ oz sugar/artificial sweetener based powders daily. This has been previously noted. It penalizes our palettes to crave and addict to sugar and sweetness to an even higher degree than natural evolution. Consumers are being exploited. How much nutritionally dismal food wt does this wt have to be before it's seen as a penalty especially in context of all the hemming and hawing and ultra anal-izing attempting to decrease a miniscule amount of gear wt recognizing it as a wt penalty? Note what an increasing number of the most advanced UL LD hikers and some of the FKTers in various backpacking communities are consuming! An increasing number are saving consumable wt by electing to consume a more nutrient dense diet beyond just narrowly looking at cal/oz ratios. Anyone concerned with health and performance able to navigate the dung heap of food industry marketing are aware of the impact of diet so one doesn't have to be an advanced ULer or FKTer to acknowledge this and make changes to their trail consumption.

AGAIN food is more than calories. Food is about nutrients...a wide spectrum of nutrients... OFTEN HAVING VERY DIFFERENT RESULTS WHEN CONSUMED SYNERGISTICALLY "NATURALLY" WITHIN CONTEXT OF THEIR WHOLE FOOD MATRIX! In context were talking about a flavoring, a flavoring that is mainly nutritionally denatured refined sugar or artificial sweeteners. And, even though there are added electrolytes which are hyped to get us to think we need these from a so called convenient "scientifically based" powder they can be obtained in other ways quite easily in the foods we eat on trail or other ways that are perhaps less wt WHILE PROVIDING ADDITIONAL HEALTH BENEFITS.

In short, I'm saying there are better, perhaps more convenient wt saving GREATER nutritional profile health beneficial ways to flavor water deliciously then simply adding some sugar, artificial ingredients, and hyped electrolytes that are what these many powders consists.We recently noted that we do agree on a lot of things, but on this nutrition-Nazi thing, we differ! I do concur that proper nutrition is very important in life and on the trail, and you certainly know a lot about it, but the point you and others miss is that pure sugar as part of your daily life ON THE TRAIL* is just fine, and in fact highly desired. As a certain modest percentage of your calories, that is. If taken gradually throughout the day that is, to avoid spike and crashes. And again, those electrolytes are critical. Gatorade (and lots of other similar "sport drinks") is a very smart mix of simple sugars and electrolytes for consumption during exercise.

So DW, ramble on! I won't give you grief, but I will express my valid and measured opinions.

Edit: * while actually hiking

[Cheyou]

I never get bored of water.


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Yes I to have somehow survived all these years in just water. Even in the USMC, working construction .

Thom

[Dogwood]

Yes I to have somehow survived all these years in just water. Even in the USMC, working construction .

Thom

No, you can't. You were just lucky. You need sugary/sweet water "sports drinks" powder with electrolytes which is a fancy "sports science" sounding name for component ions EASILY obtained in a healthy natural diet. While we do indeed need electrolytes we DO NOT NEED an electrolyte drink mix to properly hydrate and increase performance....even in the context of long hrs of LD hiking.

If asked of 100 random people to name three or four electrolytes I'll assert less than 25 can.

The two main electrolytes lost through sweating are Na+ and Cl- which are obtained in table salt dissolved in water. It's not like "salt" isn't more than adequately abundant in common trail foods. Heck a common burger and fries typically have these electrolytes in ready abundance so that's how easy it is to find these electrolytes in COMMON food but fit for the trail.

K+ is another main electrolyte easy to replace with trail foods such as dried apricots, bananas, cheese, many greens(spinach, Swiss chard, kale, etc), beans, fish, coconut(chips are delish and naturally sweet with no added sugar containing other common main electrolytes lost in sweat with a high cal/oz ratio - all why it was recommended as a powder mix, if that's your approach, to add to drinking water on trail), various easy to carry small vegetables.

I can go on and on mentioning COMMON trail food high in often a wide spectrum of electrolytes with Mg++, Ca++, HCO3-, HPO4-, trace copper, zinc, etc so this marketed 'ade" hype that we need a sports drink is VERY MUCH NOT TRUE! Obtaining a huge amount of electrolytes can be had easily in more than adequate amounts for LD hikers in trail ready foods

And while we're replenishing electrolytes in REAL FOOD we're getting a host of other nutritional benefits. No absolute need for an electrolyte sports drink!

[Dogwood]

Here's another approach to add flavor to water/while drinking water that is so simple. One excellent approach to feeling satiated and being regularly energized without bonking is grazing while backpacking...that is consuming small amounts of food, perhaps a small handful or so at a time. It's easy enough to sip plain clean refreshing water, which is what our bodies truly prefer, as we're grazing. This solves the flavoring desires of water while also addressing maintaining nutritional needs, energy, and satiation. The electrolytes can be in the food! WOW, how uncomplicated it can be drinking water with some flavor from the food.

[Leo L.]

I've never done hikes longer than a few weeks in one piece, so my experience is a bit limited.

I always prefer pure water, and enjoy it the most. In the Alps where I'm living we have, what is called "the best water in the world".
But in the desert where I do most of my longer hikes many times the only water available is of medium to poor quality only, its smelly and "salty". Salty means not only NaCl, but various other salts too.
Its hard to force down enough of this poor quality water to stay hydrated properly.

What I've learned from the locals is, to put some herbs into the drinking bottle, to give the water a nice smell, by this overriding the poor taste. The herbs that fit best for this purpose are Chamomile, Mint and Wormwood (there are more, but don't know the English names of them).
When hiking in the desert mountains, you pass through various vegetation zones throughout the day, so you might find an ever changing mix of those herbs.

Applying this trick helps me a lot, but still I get bored or even disgusted by poor water at times. For this reason I carry a few small envelopes of simple kids sherbet, that I fill my drinking bottle with to help me to gulp down water in great amounts.

I would never carry sherbet or any other stuff to flavor my drinking water for a whole hike.
Regarding Electrolytes, I'm with Dogwood here. Its all in the food anyway (and you may add a few beers when in town). Basically I never got the idea behind all this "Sports Drinks" and such, other than somebody is trying to make money with.

[Dogwood]

On trails like the AT and in National Parks in umpteen hiker boxes one of the most commonly discarded items found are powdered drink mixes like Crystal Light, Gatorade, Kool-aid, etc. I'll assert this is done by hikers, largely thru-hikers, who realize the excess wt these powders entail are not worth it as they find other ways to get their electrolytes, LIKE THROUGH CONSUMPTION OF FOOD, which offers the potential for much more nutritional benefits, and ween themselves off always desiring sweetness in liquids.

[KDogg]

We used the small packs of no-sugar flavoring quite often. One thing to keep in mind though is that most of the water on the trail tastes much better than any municipal water you will drink. She may like it after all.

[Maineiac64]

So Dogwood, are you saying that sugar and artificial sweeteners are not good even on the trail?

[DownEaster]

It may sound nasty but I love this flavor drink mix when out on the trail. The packets are tiny and the taste is just like the watermelon candy.

https://www.amazon.com/Jolly-Rancher-Singles-Drink-Watermelon/dp/B00K4OZZAC/ref=sr_1_7_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1492802587&sr=8-7&keywords=jolly+rancher+drink+mix

Carl
Perhaps the flavor additive makes a bigger difference than I thought, but I tried their green apple flavor and found it to be disgusting. The taste isn't very much like apple, and the aspartame left a sickly sweet aftertaste.

[Dogwood]

So Dogwood, are you saying that sugar and artificial sweeteners are not good even on the trail?

Sugar is a broad term. As previously stated we need sugar but in the form of glucose and glycogen which our bodies typically already readily obtain when carbohydrates in food are broken down which can be accessed as we regularly graze as backpackers. It's important to have good gut health(probiotics is the recommended start), enzyme containing food, and not allowing to get into such a depleted energy state in the first place(which can be achieved through pre activity and continued grazing). More glucose is converted from sugars of varying types already typically rampantly abundant in common trail foods. With a reasonably "natural" backpacking diet and health we don't need to consume foods with added sugar, sugary food like products, or sweet flavorings for water to obtain energy, electrolytes, glucose, or glycogen given this context.

I'm not opening up the pandora's box of artificial sweeteners controversy. I've already veered into the deep end of the OP.

[imscotty]

39119

Lemon crystals. I buy them in bulk on Amazon and they're amazingly cheap.

https://www.amazon.com/True-Citrus/b/ref=bl_dp_s_web_7244453011?ie=UTF8&node=7244453011&field-lbr_brands_browse-bin=True+Citrus

Here, here. This is what I use. Lime and Grapefruit are good too. Each packet is like one slice of lemon. I add two or three packets per liter of water. I love a touch of sour in my water on the trail.

[MtDoraDave]

WHY? Maybe, because you're not addicted or accustomed to craving sweetness in all you drink or eat?

I'm with you Greenlight. Nothing so refreshing as clean nothing added water fresh from a cool spring or mountain stream. Look forward to it every time my feet take to a hike. How beautiful and wise Nature - the Creator, whatever, is.

I'm with both of you. After drinking "city water" which has a chlorine taste, I love drinking fresh mountain spring water.

But the OP's wife does not. Some people don't like plain water. To each their own. HYOH. Unfortunately I don't have much to add except that the lightweight flavor enhancers or powdered drink mixes likely have artificial sweeteners in them. The heavy ones probably have real sugar. If this is important to the OP's wife, choose accordingly. If not, go by flavor... and since she's the picky eater (drinker in this case) why are WE trying to determine what she should drink? Have her experiment now - off the trail - to see what she likes and doesn't like; having her be mindful of the weight and bulk of the items she tries.

[kestral]

I like the true lemon mostly added into bland foods. I usually drink plain spring water and love it, however I have found that Tazo brand "wild sweet orange" flavor is really a treat on occasion in my water bottle and smells / tastes yummy as a hot tea. They are single serving packed ( not loose tea) so very easy on trail. Whatever works for you. Try a little of everything on trail and bring swapable stuff to exchange with others for variety.

[evyck da fleet]

Well I start off with Gatorade bottles so the first liter is flavored. I'll also carry crystal light singlets though it depends on the duration of the hike. For a day hike water is fine but if I'm going to be out for a week or more I'm going to want variety, hence the singlets.

[Tipi Walter]

What nuun flavors taste good?


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Missed your question. My fave is watermelon flavor, maybe grape too.

[saltysack]

Missed your question. My fave is watermelon flavor, maybe grape too.

Thx I'll give them a shot


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[Greenlight]

WHY? Maybe, because you're not addicted or accustomed to craving sweetness in all you drink or eat?

I'm with you Greenlight. Nothing so refreshing as clean nothing added water fresh from a cool spring or mountain stream. Look forward to it every time my feet take to a hike. How beautiful and wise Nature - the Creator, whatever, is.

[emoji106]


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[TX Aggie]

No, you can't. You were just lucky. You need sugary/sweet water "sports drinks" powder with electrolytes which is a fancy "sports science" sounding name for component ions EASILY obtained in a healthy natural diet. While we do indeed need electrolytes we DO NOT NEED an electrolyte drink mix to properly hydrate and increase performance....even in the context of long hrs of LD hiking.

If asked of 100 random people to name three or four electrolytes I'll assert less than 25 can.

The two main electrolytes lost through sweating are Na+ and Cl- which are obtained in table salt dissolved in water. It's not like "salt" isn't more than adequately abundant in common trail foods. Heck a common burger and fries typically have these electrolytes in ready abundance so that's how easy it is to find these electrolytes in COMMON food but fit for the trail.

K+ is another main electrolyte easy to replace with trail foods such as dried apricots, bananas, cheese, many greens(spinach, Swiss chard, kale, etc), beans, fish, coconut(chips are delish and naturally sweet with no added sugar containing other common main electrolytes lost in sweat with a high cal/oz ratio - all why it was recommended as a powder mix, if that's your approach, to add to drinking water on trail), various easy to carry small vegetables.

I can go on and on mentioning COMMON trail food high in often a wide spectrum of electrolytes with Mg++, Ca++, HCO3-, HPO4-, trace copper, zinc, etc so this marketed 'ade" hype that we need a sports drink is VERY MUCH NOT TRUE! Obtaining a huge amount of electrolytes can be had easily in more than adequate amounts for LD hikers in trail ready foods

And while we're replenishing electrolytes in REAL FOOD we're getting a host of other nutritional benefits. No absolute need for an electrolyte sports drink!

With all due respect, Dogwood....yes you can, and no he wasn't.

You will RARELY find any military drink any "sugary" water while in the field. I get your point about micronutrients, but the food served to military in the field (MRE's, container rations, etc) is heavily laden with salt and other micro's. You don't need them just from water, and you don't need them throughout the entire course of the day.

If the water flavorings were really that big of an issue, please tell me how the early AT hikers and western expansionist settlers ever made it through the trail without the modern miracles of properly balanced sugar waters.

I'm not trying to attack you, but you make some initial valid points, and then go on such a monologue that even someone who finds this subject interesting (like me) just gives up reading after the third paragraph.


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[Another Kevin]

I can go on and on mentioning COMMON trail food high in often a wide spectrum of electrolytes with Mg++, Ca++, HCO3-, HPO4-, trace copper, zinc, etc so this marketed 'ade" hype that we need a sports drink is VERY MUCH NOT TRUE! Obtaining a huge amount of electrolytes can be had easily in more than adequate amounts for LD hikers in trail ready foods

And while we're replenishing electrolytes in REAL FOOD we're getting a host of other nutritional benefits. No absolute need for an electrolyte sports drink!

You're right, of course, and wrong as well, of course.

I mostly practice what you're advising, but sometimes carry a small amount of a powdered sports drink that has the right Na/K ratio, nearly the right salt/sugar ratio (it's a little too far on the sweet side). Many times, I wind up carrying it home. But it's handy for oral rehydration therapy - even obsessive handwashers like me sometimes get the stomach bug - or to get fast relief from a bonk (either dehydration or low blood sugar). It may not be quite as good for the purpose as a dedicated ORT mixture, but that's really single-purpose, and probably not worth the parasitic weight.

And I don't even like the stuff all that much. I don't drink soda at home, either.

Although I'm not nearly as impatient with you as I am with the sodium nazis. On the trail, if you have a metabolism at all like mine, Na is your friend. I think there have been days that I've washed more salt out of my T-shirt than the FDA wants to allow me to consume in a week. (Maybe not quite literally, but I don't eat a lot or prepackaged food, even on the trail, and I do seem to run short of Na+ from time to time if I don't make it a point to include more than I'd enjoy having in town.)

[Dogwood]

TX Aggie, I was being facetious in my opening paragraph which you recently quoted. Tongue in cheek.;)

[TX Aggie]

TX Aggie, I was being facetious in my opening paragraph which you recently quoted. Tongue in cheek.;)

Missed that. Caught it after I reread it.

You've got some good info, I think you just get too much in the weeds with it.


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[Francis Sawyer]

My favorite water enhancer is Jack Daniels . I don't know from electrolytes but it's got a way of relaxing you after a long day in the woods

[imscotty]

My favorite water enhancer is Jack Daniels . I don't know from electrolytes but it's got a way of relaxing you after a long day in the woods

"I'll have a water and Jack, hold the water." Any other way is a sin. I like mine 'neat.'

[BuckeyeBill]

"I'll have a water and Jack, hold the water." Any other way is a sin. I like mine 'neat.'

That reminded me of when I went to McD's and tried to order two double hamburgers. The guy working said they didn't have that on the menu. I then told him give me two double cheeseburgers hold the cheese. I got up to the window and the manager apologized and said he would program a double hamburger into the computer. He then gave me my order for free. I tried to pay, but he insisted.

[DownEaster]

I'd say freeze the water and flavor it with 20 oz. of Dr. Pepper, if we're venturing into the less practical flavor options.

[Night Train]

I use Tailwind from time to time on my section hikes.

[Traveler]

Identification of electrolytes: A device that provides light without requiring fire or batteries to generate. :D

[nascarmikeb]

WHY? Maybe, because you're not addicted or accustomed to craving sweetness in all you drink or eat?

I'm with you Greenlight. Nothing so refreshing as clean nothing added water fresh from a cool spring or mountain stream. Look forward to it every time my feet take to a hike. How beautiful and wise Nature - the Creator, whatever, is.
Exactly, I look forward to the wonderful, natural, clean SPRING water. Of course, I only section hike, may would look at it differently if I was a LD hiker

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