,

Homemade Electrolyte Drink (With Flavor Options)

Katie Wells Avatar

Reading Time: 5 minutes

This post contains affiliate links.

Read my affiliate policy.

homemade electrolyte drink
Wellness Mama » Blog » Recipes » Homemade Electrolyte Drink (With Flavor Options)

Drinking enough pure clean water is one of the most important things we can do for overall health. In most cases, water alone is wonderful. When there’s hot weather or we’re exercising and sweating though we lose minerals through our sweat. A homemade electrolyte drink can help replenish minerals and remedy electrolyte imbalances.

Do We Really Need Electrolytes?

You may have heard that our bodies are 80% water, but they’re actually 80% salt water.

Plain water doesn’t have high levels of electrolytes. And our body loses a lot of minerals during exercise and hot weather. Adding electrolytes and minerals helps with rehydration after times of high-intensity exercise or lots of sweating. They’re also useful during times of illness if someone has vomiting or diarrhea to maintain fluid balance.

We need electrolytes to maintain healthy blood pressure, for our nervous system, and to prevent muscle cramps. They help move waste through the body and are overall necessary for every function! In a perfect world, we wouldn’t need supplements but electrolyte water and drinks can be very helpful for some.

My Cautionary Tale

This post could also be titled “How to avoid a big hospital charge for IV fluids while on vacation.” Hopefully, you can learn from my mistake on this one.

Years ago I went on vacation and spent days on the beach snorkeling, sailing, and scuba diving.

Normally, if I’m out in the sun I have my own homemade electrolyte drink with me, but this time I’d forgotten some of the ingredients. I figured I would just drink enough water, which worked fine until I had wine for dinner that night, coffee the next morning, and not enough water.

At that point, I noticed I was getting a headache. I started drinking water but the headache got worse and I also started having a rapid pulse, dizziness, and nausea. Even after drinking lots of water I still had dehydration and heat exhaustion symptoms.

This resulted in a trip to the international hospital to get fluids. After the most painful IV of my life with a 12-gauge needle, the fluids were in and I started to feel better!

After several hours of sitting in a hospital getting hydrated with IVs, I couldn’t help but think how much easier, cheaper, and less painful things would have been if I’d remembered my DIY electrolyte drink.

Why Not Regular Sports Electrolyte Drinks?

So why not just drink one of the many store-bought electrolyte drinks available (Gatorade, Powerade, etc.) these days?

Regular sports drinks contain lots of glucose, artificial flavors and colors, and not much nourishment.

I’m all for rehydrating, but are the preservatives, mystery flavors, and artificial dyes really necessary? I know from experience that these ingredients typically make me feel terrible and just aren’t worth it. Now when I need something more than water to hydrate I make my own version.

Natural Sports Electrolyte Drink Recipe

Coconut water is one of the simplest sports drink alternatives and can be used as is. It’s similar in structure to the fluid used in IV rehydration. For this reason, there are rumors it was used during the Pacific War as an IV electrolyte replacement. It makes a pretty good natural electrolyte drink on its own or with a splash of lime juice.

Coconut water is a great source of potassium and sodium and I even used it during labor. The only downside to coconut water is the price. If you want an inexpensive (yet still healthy and tasty) alternative, this recipe is the next best thing.

Homemade Electrolyte Drink Recipe

You can make this recipe in a variety of ways, but the ratios are the most important part. The base is any healthy liquid of choice and some good options are:

To turn the basic liquid into a sports drink, add some or all of these ingredients:

  • Salt – A high-quality salt adds sodium and other essential minerals. Table salt is pure sodium chloride and doesn’t have trace minerals, but Himalayan or sea salt are great options.
  • Calcium and Magnesium – Adding calcium magnesium powder helps replenish minerals.
  • Juice – Optional but adds sweetness and natural sugars if needed during exertion. Orange juice, lime juice, and fresh lemon juice are some of our favorites and add vitamin C and potassium.
  • Natural Flavors – Add natural flavors like fresh ginger, fresh herbs, or even natural-flavored stevia extracts

This recipe is naturally gluten-free and can easily be made low-carb by omitting the added juice.

Want to Buy it?

Looking for a quick way to have electrolytes on hand, especially during travel? These are my favorite no-junk electrolyte powder drinks.

  • LMNT – I’m a big fan of these flavored electrolyte powder that replaces vital electrolytes lost from sweating. They work amazingly on their own with just water and have different flavors like citrus, grapefruit, or watermelon.
  • Jigsaw Health Electrolyte Supreme – My favorite flavor is the Berry-licious.
homemade electrolyte drink

Homemade Electrolyte Drink Recipe

Save money and avoid artificial ingredients by making your own homemade natural sports drink recipe with electrolytes. There are endless options to make a flavor you love!
Prep Time 5 minutes
Total Time 5 minutes
Calories 70kcal
Author Katie Wells

Servings

4 cups

Ingredients

Instructions

  • Brew tea if using, or slightly warm base liquid.
  • Add sea salt and calcium magnesium powder and mix.
  • Add juice and sweetener if using and mix or shake well. A mason jar works well for this.
  • Cool and store in the refrigerator until ready to use.
  • This will last up to four days in the refrigerator, but I prefer to make it as needed.

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts
Homemade Electrolyte Drink Recipe
Amount Per Serving (1 cup)
Calories 70 Calories from Fat 5
% Daily Value*
Fat 0.5g1%
Saturated Fat 0.4g3%
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.01g
Monounsaturated Fat 0.02g
Sodium 395mg17%
Potassium 620mg18%
Carbohydrates 15g5%
Fiber 3g13%
Sugar 13g14%
Protein 2g4%
Vitamin A 1IU0%
Vitamin C 28mg34%
Calcium 77mg8%
Iron 1mg6%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Notes

  • My normal recipe includes 1 quart of tea (brewed with red raspberry leaf, alfalfa, nettle, and stevia), ¼ tsp sea salt, 1 tsp calcium magnesium powder, and ¼ cup grape or apple juice.
  • Another easy alternative is mixing vitamin C powder with water, salt, and a little juice.
  • The magnesium in this recipe is 27 mg per serving. Nutrition data was calculated using raw honey, coconut water, and grape juice. The exact nutrients will depend on which ingredients you use. 

Like this recipe? Check out my new cookbook, or get all my recipes (over 500!) in a personalized weekly meal planner here!

This article was medically reviewed by Dr. Scott Soerries, MD, Family Physician and Medical Director of SteadyMD. As always, this is not personal medical advice and we recommend that you talk with your doctor.

What’s your favorite sports drink? Ever made your own?

This homemade natural electrolyte sports drink recipe is an alternative to store-bought drinks with artificial ingredients and provides vitamins and sodium.

Sources

Become a VIP member!

Get access to my VIP newsletter with health tips, special deals, my free ebook on Seven Small Easy Habits and so much more!

Easy Habits ebook on ipad

Katie Wells Avatar

About Katie Wells

Katie Wells, CTNC, MCHC, Founder of Wellness Mama and Co-founder of Wellnesse, has a background in research, journalism, and nutrition. As a mom of six, she turned to research and took health into her own hands to find answers to her health problems. WellnessMama.com is the culmination of her thousands of hours of research and all posts are medically reviewed and verified by the Wellness Mama research team. Katie is also the author of the bestselling books The Wellness Mama Cookbook and The Wellness Mama 5-Step Lifestyle Detox.

Comments

217 responses to “Homemade Electrolyte Drink (With Flavor Options)”

  1. Nancy Avatar

    Where’s the potassium? Don’t we need K+ for the electrolytes?

  2. Katy Avatar

    Hi! New to your site but really loving it! Can’t say thank you enough! Thank you!! I just wanted to check, is this drink recipe safe to give the kids, with the adult Calm??

  3. Allaiyah Avatar

    I used unsweetened juice. Even decaff herbal teas still contain enough diuretics that will make you pee every 5 seconds.

  4. Ember Avatar

    4 stars
    I’ve read a few of your recipes (all which seem wonderful and I am eager to try) and I noticed that you often use sea salt. I’m not sure if you’ve tried it, or would be willing, but I definitely recommend trying Pink Himalayan Rock Salt instead. It tends to have a bit more benefits (with minerals and what not) than other salts. I switched to it after being diagnosed with Dysautonomia. It has help me a lot with holding more water in my body and some people I know that have also switched had improvements with their energy. I even started making my own salt tablets (after getting solid approval from my heart doctor) to make sure I get a good amount each day and my body has been better for it!

  5. Heather Avatar

    For further clarification, the exact amounts of salt and potassium I use per serving are: Sea salt, 1/4 tsp and Potassium Chloride, 1/8 tsp. This works out very close to 40% potassium, 60% sodium.

  6. Heather Avatar

    Really surprised you don’t include potassium. Having the correct sodium-potassium ratio in the body is one of the most important part of hydration; an IV will include sodium, potassium, and sugar. I have a bottle of NOW Foods Potassium Chloride powder that I always include in my electrolyte mix at about 40% potassium, 60% sodium.

  7. Shannon Sparrow Avatar
    Shannon Sparrow

    I just wanted to point out that you would never want to use the same ratio of stevia to sugar. If using powdered stevia you would only want to use a tiny sprinkle. And green tea is not going to help hydrate you at all as the caffeine is a diuretic and will actually dehydrate you.

  8. Torri Avatar

    5 stars
    Found this after googling, “sugar-free” or “stevia-sweetened” sports drinks. I was all ready to be carried away to some quick-mix powder offering on Amazon but this page came up in the results! I’m soooo excited to try this! Totally fits in my plan (Keto) and I can control and already have the ingredients! Thinking I may use a base of Green Tea (even flavored) for the caffeine, but make enough for my week of workouts. Thank you for the recipe and glad you were able to turn your vacay lemon into [hydrating] lemonade!!

  9. Dahuud Aliskandarus Avatar
    Dahuud Aliskandarus

    You don’t have potassium included in your recipe. Unless you make your drink with coconut water, the potassium levels will be probably too low with the other base liquids. You just include add-ons for the calcium, magnesium and sodium. Except for this important detail, your recipe is good.

  10. Mitchell Avatar

    FYI, the gut uses Sodium-Glucose cotransporters to absorb the sodium in the salt you’re adding. If you use an artificial sweetener, you’re not getting the benefits of an electrolyte drink

  11. Lisa Thompson Avatar
    Lisa Thompson

    I love the idea of making this!
    Your recipe with raspberry leaf, alfalfa, Stevie leaf and nettle…how much of each do you use? I know that nettle can help allergies right? I’m thinking this recipe can have a dual function for my 7-year old son and husband. Thank you!

  12. Jessica Avatar

    Please do not use a tea with caffeine in it if you are seriously lacking electrolytes as the caffeine will just dehydrate you, this includes all green and black teas. Please stick to coconut water or doctor up regular water, not caffeinated beverages.
    FYI from a Holistic Nutritionist.

  13. Laura Avatar

    Thank you so much for all you do. This is such vital information. I found out I have Adrenal Fatigue, my morning blood pressure readings range from 75/55-and for the past few weeks, mostly around 80/45.
    I took Fosinopril over 5 years and lost about 60% of my hair. I no longer take any meds at all.
    My recipe for a Homemade Electrolyte veggie liquid is:
    4-5 stalks of celery with leaves (leaves are an herb)
    2 tomatoes
    2 large cucumbers
    4 juiced lemons
    1 carrot
    Salt and pepper
    Use a Vitamix blender to process. It has shaved my life. I thought I was actually going to die because my blood pressure would go so low. My doctor was of no help and I researched it on the internet & found my answer from Critical Health News.
    Thanks so much and take care.

  14. Cynthia Tucker Avatar
    Cynthia Tucker

    2 stars
    It was hard to overlook all the errors in this article. First, you are not given minerals in your IV, and only one type of IV is isotonic, that is .9 NS. IF you needed electrolytes, (like potassium) replacement, you got hypertonic IV’s. Second, they don’t make a 12G IV needle that would be used in your arm for a regular IV. The largest is 16 G. This is really not a mixture that would do much good in anyone in the heat, because it is lacking the correct combinations. Electrolytes lost in high concentrations through sweat include sodium and chloride, while electrolytes lost in low concentrations include potassium, magnesium and calcium. You can purchase really great premixed powders that are sugar free like Electro Mix by Emergen-C and Ultima Replenisher.

    Please try to verify your info with a medical professional before posting.

    1. Katie - Wellness Mama Avatar

      I will update the post to reflect some of this, but to clarify, I wasn’t in the US and they did in face use a 12 gauge needle, because I asked after they did it and they showed me the packaging. So , I did verify with the medical professional that actually inserted the needle before posting.

  15. Rebecca Avatar
    Rebecca

    This is wonderful I definitely want to to try this! What would recommend for a 2 year old who is sick with a sore throat and not wanting to drink much? I hate giving him Pedialyte because it’s mainly sugar and he isn’t used to the sweetness anyway. He usually drinks a few gulps then drinks some water. Any Pedialyte substitutions?

  16. Betty Avatar

    @Cecilia. It would seem to me that a little bit of salt would be necessary in any electrolyte mixture. Why this left out the salt is anybody’s guess.

  17. Terry Avatar

    Elsewhere in your blog, you mention calcium to not be used as a supplement, or am I wrong? Thanks.

4.12 from 94 votes (61 ratings without comment)

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating