8 oz serving	Calories (grams)	Carbohydrate (grams | % concentration)	Sodium (mg)	Potassium (mg)	Carbo Source
All Sport	70	19 | 8	55	?	high-fructose corn syrup
Bud Light	70	4	?	?	?
Carbolight	65	17	?	?	?
Coca-Cola	93	25	?	?	?
Cytomax by Cytosport	40	10 | 7	40	150	maltodextrin, cornstarch, fructose, dextrose, lactate
Endura	62	16	?	?	?
Exceed	70	17	?	?	?
Gatorade	50	14	?	?	?
Hydra Fuel	70	17	?	?	?
Isostar	70	16	?	?	?
MetRx ORS	75	19	?	?	?
Mountain Dew	110	31	?	?	?
Orange juice	120	29	?	?	?
Pepsi-Cola	100	27	?	?	?
Perform	60	16	?	?	?
Performance Optimiser System 3	50	13	?	?	?
PowerAde	70	19	?	?	?
PowerSurge	80	20	?	?	?
PR Solution	60	15	?	?	?
Quick Disk	70	17	?	?	?
Race Day	63	15	?	?	?
Revenge by Champion Nutrition	50	10	?	?	?
Skim milk	90	13	?	?	?
Snapple Lemon Tea	100	25	?	?	?
Snapple Lemonade	100	26	?	?	?
Sprite	93	25	?	?	?
Surge	114	30	?	?	?
Ultima	16	4	?	?	maltodextrin, stevia
Ultra Fuel	200	50 | 20	28	?	glucose polymers, fructose
XLR8	62	15 | 7	50	45	glucose, fructose, maltose, triose, glucose polymers

Note: Based on manufacturers' information. Amounts indicated per recommended serving.

Most "exercise" drinks on the market are carbohydrate heavy, with some other ingredients added for performance or marketing enhancement. The carbos maintain optimal blood sugar levels and prevent glycogen depletion. The absence fat, protein and fiber in drinks helps rapid digestion/absorption so carbos can be rapidly and efficiently transported to the muscles.

Depending on the brand, the carbos may contain maltodextrin or simple carbohydrate (as brown rice sugar).

Maltodextrin, a glucose polymer, is a chain of glucose molecules of short to medium length. It more expensive to produce, and created by taking starch (long chains of glucose molecules) and chemically breaking it by hydrolysis into shorter chains of glucose. Glucose polymers are sized in-between a small glucose molecule (a simple carbohydrate) and a large starch molecule (a complex carbohydrate). Maltodextrin has a lower osmolality than glucose. Molecules of maltodextrin are larger than glucose', so drink with malodextrin will have a few large particles compared to a drink with glucose. The number of particles determines how much water it will hold. The more molecules of smaller sized glucose in the drink, the more water will be pulled into the intestine than the malodextrin-based drink. Makers on malodrxtrin-based drinks claim that since their products don't pull as much water into the intestine, it is absorbed faster into the bloodstream.

Brown rice syrup contains both complex and simple carbohydrates.

Another component often found in the drinks are electrolytes. Usually sodium, potassium, and chloride can be added to help combat electrolyte imbalances in the body (due to the long exercise in the high temperatures and/or high sweating rate). Electrolytes are ions (electrically charged molecules) that are present in all of the body fluids. They maintain the body's chemistry and allow the body to perform all its essential to life functions. As the body cools itself via sweat evaporation process, it secretes primarily water and electrolytes. As minor electrolyte imbalance occurs, there are symptoms of fatigue, exhaustion, and mild mental confusion.

Some drinks may also contain branched chain amino acids (BCAA). During the endurance exercise, as muscle glycogen becomes depleted, it has been suggested that muscles turn to amino acids as fuel for exercise. The resulting lower blood level of BCAA had been hypothesized to increase the sensation of fatigue. Contrary research indicates that the ingestion of BCAA does not enhance performance, probably due to the negligible muscle usage of BCAA.

Caffeine is a stimulant of the central nervous system, which also helps to release free fatty acids from body fat stores into the blood to provide fuel for muscles. This, as some believe, spares the limited supply of muscle glucogen. It seems to be a performance enhancer, as many athletes after ingesting caffeine feel less fatigue while performing at higher levels of work. The known diuretic effect of caffeine is unlikely to cause significant dehydration due to the obvious simultaneous hydration protocol.

Antioxidant vitamins C and E help the body deal with the natural oxidative stress of metabolism. As exercise increases oxidative stress, antioxidants may provide long-term benefits.

Acid Buffers can help to neutralize blood PH (acidity). As a result of exercise, there is a buildup of lactic acid and blood becomes slightly acidic. Some believe that acidic blood is inducing muscle fatigue.

Herbs are considered by some to be a marketing ploy, they had made inroads to the drinks' formulations by claims of being energy enhancing and anti-inflammatory. Whether they are helpful or performance enhancing, chamomile, ginseng, cola nut, and others can be found among the ingredients.

RECOVERY DRINKS	calories	carbo	protein	fat	vitamins	minerals	other
Metabolol Endurance by Champion Nutrition	133	16 g	9 g	3 g	550% RDI vitamin E	?	?
Boost	240	40 g	10 g	4 g	?	?	?
Met-RX	130	12 g	19 g	1 g	?	?	?
GatorPro	360	58 g	16 g	7 g	?	?	?
Endurox R4	280	53 g	14 g	15 cal	C, E	calcium, magnesium, sodium	l-arginine, glutamine, BCAA, ciwujia

It's a proven scientific fact that a post-exercise (or recovery) nutrition has an immediate and a significant impact on athletic performance. Recovery nutrition allows athlete to replenish body's fuel and fluid stores, heal muscle tears and maintain body's immune function.

Main elements of any proper recovery protocol are carbohydrates, protein, fluids, sodium and potassium. Carbohydrates stored mainly in the muscles (as glycogen) and it is the body's prime fuel. After activities lasting more than 90 minutes, glycogen stores are get partially depleted; after longer efforts - muscle glycogen volumes can became dangerously low. If there is a need to continue training/racing next day, when energy stores must be replenished. Research indicates that for the first two hours after exercise the muscles are especially ready with the enzymes used to build glycogen, so this time period ("glycogen window") is the most effective time to consume carbos.

Additional research indicates the a proper proportion of protein with carbos (1 to 4) after exercise improves recovery and increases the rate of glycogen building compared to consuming carbos alone. Seems that protein is used for muscle fiber repairs (microtears), as the damaged fibers require amino acids to make muscle proteins.

Rehydration is one of the more obvious recovery strategies as exercise produces significant body fluids loss.

Sweat results not only in loss of body fluids but in loss of certain minerals. These electrolytes help body function and be in balance. Two main electrolytes found in sweat are sodium and potassium.