Should You Drink Electrolytes While Fasting?
Intermittent fasting is a lifestyle for many people, especially those looking to improve their physical performance, regulate their blood pressure, and balance their blood sugar. Fasting is also done for health, religious, and weight loss purposes, and most fasting regimens allow water intake as part of the diet.
However, electrolyte deficiency is a common side effect of fasting, particularly for those new to the lifestyle. As the body aims to balance electrolyte levels, it may cause a sudden increase or decrease in blood pressure, and may cause you to feel extra tired, get muscle cramps, or out of breath. It is important to maintain electrolyte balance when fasting.
What are the Essential Minerals Needed?
Your body needs electrolytes, even when you're not fasting or exercising often. As you go about your day, your body is constantly losing the essential electrolytes, like sodium, potassium, and magnesium. Electrolyte supplementation is a good way to maintain a balance within your body, and is often recommended during fasting.
Why Drink Electrolytes Water (Fasting)?
Electrolytes are essential minerals that contribute to healthy bodily functions, and help prevent muscle cramps. When you fast, your body is using up stored sugar and energy to maintain muscle function, and keep your body going. You tend to lose electrolytes while fasting, especially if you supplement fasting with strenuous exercise.
While there are electrolyte supplements available to replenish the lost electrolytes in your body, they tend to break fasts. Water enhancers may also add electrolytes to their formulas, but they often contain unnecessary ingredients like sugar and artificial flavorings that can cause a spike in blood sugar, and break your intermittent fasting.
Drinking electrolyte water when fasting is a hydrating way to ensure you keep up your electrolyte intake while you fast. Not only does electrolyte water help with fluid balance in the body, it replenishes the lost minerals that may come from intermittent fasting and exercise.
By drinking electrolyte water, you can prevent severe electrolyte disturbances while maintaining your fast. Electrolyte water is also sugar-free and calorie-free, so it won't cause a spike in blood sugar, and it won't shock your body with a sudden rush in caloric intake.
There are electrolyte waters that have added minerals to them, but there are also natural drinking water brands that have natural minerals in them that help in increasing electrolyte intake. The type of water you choose when fasting is important, as you need to maintain healthy mineral levels in your body.
What are the Best Electrolyte Drinks for Fasting?
#1 My Own Water Electrolyte Enhanced Water
My Own Water has a purified and crisp-tasting electrolyte enhanced water that is sure to prevent electrolyte imbalance by replenishing the lost minerals in the body without breaking your intermittent fasting.
Minerals like potassium chloride, trace amounts of sodium, magnesium, and more are added into the water. Customers can also coordinate with My Own Water for customized enhanced water, adding the right amount of electrolytes according to their specifications. This way, you can control your mineral intake, choose to forego sodium supplementation, or include other essential electrolytes.
#2 My Own Water Natural Spring Water
For the natural route, My Own Water also offers spring water, which has naturally-occurring minerals in it that help with electrolyte balance just as well as enhanced waters, but without the use of electrolyte supplements.
The water is sourced from Mt. Palomar, CA, and contains natural traces of sodium, calcium, and other minerals that prevent electrolyte imbalance during intermittent fasting. Natural spring water helps to maintain fluid balance as well, and is naturally-filtered to give you the best-tasting drink!
#3 Essentia Bottled Water
Essentia is known for two things: its alkalinity, and its electrolyte content. At a pH level of 9.5, Essentia is one of the most highly-alkaline bottled waters in the market, and is ionized to provide an optimal blend of electrolytes. If you're losing electrolytes often due to exercise, then Essentia is a good brand to replenish lost minerals.
#4 Core Hydration
Like Essentia, Core Hydration is known for their electrolyte content, and is geared towards those who tend to lead active lifestyles, as well as those who exercise to maintain balanced body weight. Both an alkaline water and an electrolyte water, Core Hydration offers a refreshing way to balance your electrolytes while fasting!
#5 Propel
Intermittent fasting does not allow flavored or sugary drinks during a fast, and while Propel is backed by the Gatorade Sports Science Institute, it does not contain any sugars. The drink comes in 11 different flavors, and is a keto-friendly drink that does not contain too much sodium, so you can consume electrolytes while fasting without stressing your kidneys!
