Evolytes VS Evolytes Plus: When, How and Why Use Each One of Them

In this article, we are going to talk about a supplement that has been specially designed for endurance sports. It is available in two different versions: Evolytes and Evolytes Plus+

What is Evolytes

Evolytes is an exclusive multivitamin formula designed by HSN in order to meet the electrolyte requirements of athletes during physical exercise.

Evolytes has a brother, Evolytes Plus+, which has been designed for those who want some extra support to increase the intensity of their workouts.

Triathlon

What is the function of Electrolytes?

Electrolytes are substances that are present in our blood, in the internal environment that surrounds the cells.

Osmolality

One of the most interesting functions of electrolytes is to maintain the osmolality of the body.

The osmolality is the amount of electrolytes in a specific liquid weight inside the body. But why is this important?

Because we need to preserve the balance of the osmolality so that the fluids will flow freely in and out of the cells. This will mean that the pressure of the electrolytes is on point and we are properly hydrated.

How do we lose electrolytes?

However, the electrolytes can be affected if we suddenly lose more than usual. When does this happen?

When we do exercise, our sweat eliminates electrolytes, breaking the balance of our organism. Consequently, it alters our osmolality and the water content from the cells. In other words, we become dehydrated.

Low intracellular osmolality vs High intracellular osmolality

Figure I. Effects of taking a hypertonic (left), isotonic (center) or hypotonic drink (right). (González-Hernández, 2010).

And no… Drinking water is not going to fix the problem. In fact, it make things worse since it dilutes the internal environment even further. If we do not provide electrolytes too it will cause a bigger imbalance. Actually, this is the typical situation that triggers muscle cramps related to physical exercise, also known as hypotonic dehydration.

Figure II. Runners drinking mineral water during a marathon, one of the most frequent hydration mistakes of an athlete.

Do we drink enough water?

Depending on the sport discipline, we will lose more or less sweat and drink more or less water. However, except for a few exceptions, the studies show that athletes become dehydrated between a 0.26 and 3.5% during workouts and competitions.

Is that a lot or not?

A dehydration of a 2% can hinder our performance up to a 10%.

Being properly hydrated starts to look more important now, right?

In fact, a dehydration close to a 5-7% can be extremely dangerous since it increases the chances of suffering lethal arrhythmia, rhabdomyolysis and acute renal failure, tissue necrosis and lung collapse.

First of all, the first piece of advice we are going to give you is supported by the American College of Sports Nutrition:

Other prestigious entities (such as the ISSN) have backed up this statement. Therefore, the biggest experts in the world agree on this.

Evolytes is born from this need

In HSN, we work with nutritionists, experts with degrees in science of the physical activity and sports, food technicians, athletes and trainers who are directly in contact with the needs of our customers.

Before anything, we thought we would investigate what does an athlete exactly need while doing exercise and becoming dehydrated. Evolytes was born from this quest, a mineral complex to recharge your electrolytes while sweating and to preserve the water-electrolyte balance during the whole activity.

Comparative Chart Evolytes VS Sweat VS Evolytes Plus+

Therefore, we have come up with an electrolyte product specially designed for athletes.

Forget about formulas adapted to clinical scenarios or insufficient doses because minerals taste like minerals.

Which one should I choose?

In the R+D+i from HSN we had the following conversation:

Ultra Trail Running

I am taking it easy

If you want a supplement to simply recharge the electrolytes that you lose, Evolytes is definitely the best choice.

It provides the amount of mineral salts that your body needs to recover all the electrolytes lost through the sweat. Moreover, it will allow you to have a good balance in the organism so that you will enjoy your workouts. Because that moment is for you and you want to treat yourself.

Figure III. Evolytes.

Today, I am going crazy!

If you woke up feeling motivated and you have some sets, a timed race, or a vertical kilometer competition, or whatever… You are definitely going to make the most of it!

We have created Evolytes Plus+ specially for you, a more punchy version of our Evolytes, since we have also included 100mg of natural caffeine.

Why 100mg?

Because we know that a small dose of around 1.5mg/kg (~100mg) is effective when it comes to increasing the performance during aerobic exercise. In fact, it will reduce the perceived exertion and help you get ready for the workout.

Time until completion of a race with a specific distance. Without caffeine (blue) or with 100mg of Caffeine (orange)

Figure IV. Time spent to complete a cycling maximum test (Talanian and Spriet, 2016).

Why more? You do not need it, 100mg of caffeine in 500ml of water is more than enough to benefit from the energizing effects of this stimulant.

Take your drink in small sips and enjoy the energizing effect until the end of the workout or competition.

Figure V. Evolytes Plus+

Flow Chart to find out which one is best for you

Bibliography

1. González-Hernández (2010). Principios de Bioquímica clínica y patología molecular. 1ed Editorial Elsevier.
2. Kerksick, C. M., Wilborn, C. D., Roberts, M. D., Smith-Ryan, A., Kleiner, S. M., Jäger, R., … Kreider, R. B. (2018). ISSN exercise & sports nutrition review update: Research & recommendations. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 15(1), 38.
3. Maughan, R. J., & Noakes, T. D. (1991). Fluid Replacement and Exercise Stress: A Brief Review of Studies on Fluid Replacement and Some Guidelines for the Athlete. Sports Medicine, 12(1), 16–31.
4. Saltin B & Costill DL. (1988). Fluids and electrolyte balance during prolonged exercise. pp. 150-158. In: Exercise, nutrition and metabolism. Horton ES, Tenjung RL (eds). New York: Macmillan.
5. Sawka, M. N., Burke, L. M., Eichner, E. R., Maughan, R. J., Montain, S. J., & Stachenfeld, N. S. (2007). Exercise and fluid replacement. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 39(2), 377–390.
6. Talanian, J. L., & Spriet, L. L. (2016). Low and moderate doses of caffeine late in exercise improve performance in trained cyclists. Applied Physiology, Nutrition and Metabolism, 41(8), 850–855.

Related Entries

• To learn more about the Importance of Hydration, click here.
• We tell you everything about Electrolyte and Mineral Drinks in this article.
• Hyponatremia occurs due to a drop in sodium… keep reading.