At the end of the day or post-workout, if you feel dehydrated, even after umpteen gulps of alkaline water, a coconut water, and too many cans of La Croix to count, you probably are. Summer hydration isn’t just about water, whether sparkling or still, purified or tap. Replenishing lost fluids for stamina and glowing skin is as much about supplying the electrolytes, nutrients, and adaptogens that help us power through the day. As the US beverage market – valued at 760 billion USD – is huge and very saturated, there’s no shortage of drinks promising hydration and energy while actually delivering empty calories, high sugar content, caffeine, and synthetic taste enhancers. In this summer update to the Winter Wellness Staples – The Hydration Edit, here’s a curation of summer beverages to quench thirst while delivering nutrients for optimal energy, gut health, and radiant skin.
From multi-hyphenate entrepreneur-author-podcaster-motivational speaker comes a hydrating power that’s as much of a multitasker. gloci, created by Lori Harder, packs a nutritional punch that will put anyone on a path to clean living and glowing skin. To a base of electrolyte-rich sea salt and coconut water, Harder has added skin-beautifying faves vitamin C and hyaluronic acid. Essential minerals zinc and magnesium round out this formula with immune and metabolic benefits. For gut health and head-to-toe wellness support, prickly pear fiber and a proprietary probiotic tackle gut health and supply antioxidants. 
Recommended twice daily, just mix the uber portable powder packets with water for a tasty, hydrating beverage that’s free of GMO ingredients, sugar, and synthetic colors, plus a dose of science-backed beauty. Monthly subscriptions available and recommended to keep the glow going.
For those in search of a lower calorie alternative to coconut water, maple sap is an overlooked electrolyte-rich elixir. In the spring, as maple trees soak up water from the depths of the earth’s nutrient-rich soil for summer renewal, photosynthesis creates a sap to nourish the branches and leaves. When maple trees are tapped before the liquid turns to maple syrup – a process that doesn’t harm the trees at all – maple water a plenty is the result.
Frustrated by the sugary, empty calories in most recovery drinks, a couple of triathletes discovered maple water was the best replenishment after grueling workouts and launched Drink Simple Maple Water. In addition to electrolytes, the water contains polyphenols, minerals, and antioxidants.
For fizzy water lovers in search of the same low-sugar hydration, founders Jeff & Kate recently added Sparkling Maple Waters. Free of added sweeteners and stevia, at just 40 calories per can, they satisfy and hydrate with the same delicious and refreshing maple sap as the still version. In Raspberry Lemon, Blackberry Lemon, Tart Cherry Vanilla, and Orange Cream, they almost drink themselves – stock up.
As smart sparkling beverages are all the rage, why not a next-level formulation that quenches thirst with antioxidants, adaptogenics, and mood-enhancers? DOPAJOY, the proprietary dopamine-enhancing cocktail of vitamin C, niacin, ginseng, L-taurine and L-tyrosine, and L-theanine from green tea is the raison d’etre behind Illicit Elixirs’ mult-tasking beverage collection.
Equally perfect at lunch and mid-afternoon slumps or in the evening as a cocktail mixer, the sparkling hydrators pack only 45 calories, 7 grams of sugar along with a dose of B vitamins. In Vegas Debauch-A-Berry, Late Night Fruity Call, Watermelon Lime Thirst Trap, Let’s Party Peaches, and Bella Thorne’s Naughty Behavior Citrus Flavor – don’t let the cheeky names fool you – Illicit Elixirs are hydration and wellness in a can.
Equal parts hydration and treat, Twrl Milk Tea is a low-sugar alternative to the Bobba and Milk Tea trend. As an alternative to the large, creamy drinks from the popular tea shops with lines snaking for blocks, Twirl Milk Tea’s fair-trade, nitro-infused, organic, dairy-free lattes are under 50 calories. At only 7 grams of sugar, these drinks let the expertly brewed teas do the heavy lifting. In floral and herbaceous Jasmine Pu’erh Milk Tea, the creaminess and light sweetness are uniquely refreshing on the palate and deliver thrice the polyphenols of a regularly brewed cup of green tea. Also available in Ube Milk (with mulberry leaf tea) and Hojicha Roasted Green Milk Tea for a smokey, roasted flavor profile reminiscent of chocolate milk, they keep well as quick breakfasts or afternoon pick-me-ups.
