Disclaimer: I received NOW® Sports Effer-Hydrate and NOW® Sports Effer-Energy hydration tablets to review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review, find, and write race reviews!
Greetings and salutations! I’m coming to you live from snowy Virginia (we FINALLY got a real snow day!). I just finished up a 50 mile week (woo hoo!) in preparation for the Blue Ridge Marathon and I’m only a little sore and tired. I’ll take that as a win.
In this cold weather, we often think about the fact that running will be much different than during the swampy times of summer. It’s definitely different to some extent. Dressing ourselves becomes quite challenging. One layer too many and we’re heading to sweat city. One body part not covered enough and the run becomes miserable. Some things aren’t really different at all, though we think it is. Somehow, hydration becomes less of a priority at times. WRONG.
I’ve tried my share of products and there are a number of hydration tablet options out there, but I was given the opportunity to try NOW® Sports Effer-Hydrate and NOW® Sports Effer-Energy out. I’d used NOW®’s BCAAs before and was very impressed, so I figured I couldn’t go wrong with these.
I was provided with all 4 flavors that are currently available: Lemon-Lime, Mixed Berry, Orange-Strawberry, and Tropical Punch (caffeinated). I thought this was a nice variety to choose from.
These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent disease.
Lemon-Lime – An old standby. I’ve never had a lemon-lime I didn’t like and this one fit right in. If you know what you want, you can’t go wrong with old reliable lemon-lime.
Mixed Berry – I REALLY liked this one. One especially good thing about it was that I thought it was good at a variety of dilutions. With hydration tabs, sometimes you have to find that sweet spot where it isn’t overwhelming but also not too diluted. I think mixed berry would be good for anything from 10oz to 20oz or even more.
Orange-Strawberry – This one was not for me. I got too much orange and not enough strawberry. Maybe I’d prefer Strawberry-Orange? Of course, just because I don’t like it doesn’t mean YOU won’t. You probably like pickles and most know how I feel about those.
Tropical Punch – Flavor. Yummy. Caffeine kick. Kicking. This one was definitely a keeper. If something tastes good AND gives me the power to lift a truck (or at least feel like I can…isn’t caffeine magical?), I’m in.
Overall, I’ve been satisfied with NOW® Sports Effer-Hydrate and NOW® Sports Effer-Energy to help my recovery during the long grind of marathon training. It’s good to have options and variety is the spice of life. If you’re interested in giving them a shot yourself, the link and coupon code are below!
Offer valid 1/1/21 through 11:59 PM Central Standard Time 3/21/21. Offer valid only on products found at https://www.nowfoods.com/sports-nutrition/sports-nutrition-all-products. Prices are as shown. Some exclusions may apply. Must use coupon code NOWSPORTS20 in the Promotion Code field at checkout. While supplies last at nowfoods.com. This offer does not apply to applicable taxes or shipping and handling. Offer cannot be used on previous purchases. NOW Health Group, Inc has the right to end any promotion at any time.
If you’d like to know what some of the other amazing BibRave Pros had to say, check these out!
Run, Eat, Ralph 
I was not a fan of Orange Strawberry either. Mixed berry was good!
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