(Disclosure: I received free products to facilitate this review. Also, this post contains affiliate links.)
Have you ever tried drinking pickle juice? For years, I have heard of people saving the brine of jarred pickles and yes, drink it. Oh, it is not just a pregnant woman’s craving. In fact, I recently found out that many athletes have been consuming this briny beverage for years.
For this post though, I will not talking about that liquid inside a jar of pickles. I will be introducing you to a product from The Pickle Juice Sports Company.
What exactly is Pickle Juice?
It is a sports beverage made with filtered water, vinegar, salt, natural dill flavor, potassium, vitamin C, zinc and vitamin E. This concoction is meant to help keep the body well hydrated before, during and after a workout, especially during intense exercise.
While there are plenty of sports drinks in the market, Pickle Juice is different because it is free of natural or artificial sweeteners, colors and caffeine. It also contains 10 times more electrolytes and is proven to prevent muscle cramps and fatigue.
Pickle Juice is also classified as a food product. This means that it complies with the regulations mandated by the FDA (US Food and Drug Administration) and is subject to random inspections for both the products and manufacturing facility. Nutritional supplements on the other hand are not subject to the strict federal guidelines.
Plus, all the products of the Pickle Juice company has a 100% Natural Seal. This means that they use all natural ingredients in their formula. It is non carbonated, gluten free, contains no protein allergens, no artificial preservatives, colors, flavors and no genetically modified organisms. It is even USDA Organic Certified.
Sounds good so far?
The Experience
For starters, I’m not a big fan of those colorful sports drinks. Whenever I play badminton, I choose to bring coconut water or plain old water. Before going to the gym though, I will eat a banana or a protein bar.
There are three things that turned me off from consuming sports drinks. One is the added sugars. While those sweeteners try to make the drink taste better, often times it does the opposite especially if the drink uses the artificial ones. (Hello bitter aftertaste!) Next is the artificial color. I simply do not understand why they have to make these drinks have radioactive colors. Lastly, other additives such as brominated vegetable oil or artificial preservatives.
In my quest to be healthier, I try to watch what I eat and squeeze in exercise in my schedule. It bothers me to think that these exercise aids are even more harmful than helpful. Oh and even big athletes endorse them. What’s up with that?
Going back to Pickle Juice, this drink is on the savory and not the sweet side. Since I already expected it to taste like pickles, I was a bit surprised that it is not as harsh or strong as an apple cider vinegar shot.
Since the taste is so familiar, I didn’t feel my tummy churning. In fact, after a few sips, I got used to it. Not bad at all.
The True Test
I have tried drinking Pickle Juice before my badminton games which happen to start at around 9 pm. (Yes, it is that late.) Anyway, on those days that I actually had Pickle Juice, I noticed that I am more alert and can actually play more games. It may not seem much but it helped me avoid drinking coffee after 4 pm in the afternoon. This has been a habit of mine on badminton days to get that extra energy boost and alertness.
The true test for Pickle Juice happened when Child#3 got sick this winter. For 2 days, he’s been coughing so much which forced him to throw up a lot. Since his throat felt sore, he barely ate or drank. Scared that he might get really dehydrated, I asked him to take a sip or two of Pickle Juice Shot. It’s the 75ml concentrated version. Yup! I didn’t have to worry giving it to him because it’s free of the top 8 allergens.
Every 10 minutes, I encouraged him to take another sip. By the time, he reached the half of the bottle, he said he felt way better. Indeed the electrolytes did the trick.
Since then, I keep a stash of Pickle Juice Extra Strength Shots at home. I find it a great alternative to sugary drinks or electrolyte solutions usually recommended by our pediatrician when my kids are sick.
Giveaway has ended! Congratulations Denise C.
The Giveaway
I bet you are curious about Pickle Juice now. Guess what? Our friends of The Pickle Juice company generously agreed to sponsor a giveaway. One lucky US reader will get to win a 24 pack case of 8 oz. Pickle Juice Bottles.
Simply do the steps below to get free entries. Hurry! The giveaway ends on March 23, 2018 11:59 pm EST.
Good luck!
This is really good to know because I don’t like giving the sugary drinks to my kids when they are sick or feeling dehydrated. It’s nice to see there are other options.
I’m intrigued by the name. I do love pickles, but the juice normally not so much. Might still try it at the gym (which we hit a few times a week).
Interesting! I like pickles and do use sports drinks, so I would be curious to try this product!
I exercise about 5 days per week (aerobics, strength training, elliptical, etc.), and it would be great to have a drink that replenishes electrolytes but doesn’t have all those other nasty ingredients. I’m especially excited that it doesn’t have sugar or sugar substitutes!
Wow, who would have thunk it. I happen to love dill pickle. I’d be game to give this a healthy shot for sure.
I’m sorry, I just can’t. I don’t know what it is but anything “pickle” just isn’t for me. I do know lots of people who would love this actually though.
Not sure this is for me but I will def share the giveaway with myer aders!
yes, jogging