Great for Recovery

Best Electrolytes for Recovery

4.6 from 1092 reviews

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After training or a hot shift, water alone runs straight through. 800mg sodium per serving helps you keep what you drink.

30-day money-back guarantee. Free shipping over $50. Pay with your HSA/FSA card. Reviewed by the Saltivate team.

  • 800mg sodiumper serving
  • Zero sugarno stevia, Reb M
  • HSA/FSApay by card, no letter
  • Made in USAImported ingredients, NSF GMP Certified facility. Third-party tested.

Recovery starts with holding the water

You finish the session a couple of pounds lighter, drink a full bottle, and an hour later most of it has left again. That is the usual post-workout pattern: sweat takes water and sodium together, and water on its own dilutes the blood enough that the kidneys let it go.

Recovery here means getting the fluid back and keeping it. Sodium is what makes that happen, and the amount in a typical sports drink is a fraction of what sweat carries. Runners, CrossFit athletes, and anyone who sweats through a shift under a helmet land in the same place; the formats made for a gym bag are in electrolyte powder for athletes.

Signs you are running low

  • Weighing noticeably less after a long session
  • Peeing clear within an hour of drinking a full bottle
  • A dull headache that sets in on the drive home
  • Legs that cramp up in the evening after a hard day
  • Feeling drained the next morning despite drinking plenty

What the rehydration studies found

In the 1990s, Maughan and Shirreffs at Aberdeen ran a series of studies in which volunteers were dehydrated by about 2% of body mass through exercise and then rehydrated with drinks of different sodium content. The finding was consistent: the more sodium in the drink, the more of the fluid was retained. Low-sodium drinks were mostly urinated out within hours, even when the volume drunk exceeded the sweat loss. Drinking more than you lost, on the order of 1.5 times, only restored fluid balance when the drink carried enough sodium.

The American College of Sports Medicine position stand on fluid replacement puts it the same way: after exercise the goal is to replace the fluid and electrolyte deficit, and sodium in the drink or the meal is what lets the body hold the water. Mixed into a 16 to 24 ounce bottle, one Saltivate serving lands in the range of the higher-sodium drinks those studies tested, with 240mg potassium, 60mg magnesium, and 0g sugar alongside.

Why Saltivate after the session

Saltivate is the salt side of recovery: 800mg sodium per serving, more than most electrolyte mixes carry, with 240mg potassium and 60mg magnesium and 0g sugar. Mix it into the bottle you drink on the way home and the water has a reason to stay.

Watermelon in the 45-serving jar is the pick for a training week: one scoop after every session, a second when it was a two-a-day or a hot one. Bright, lightly salted, sweetened with Reb M rather than stevia. The pocket version lives in hydration packets, and heavy sweaters have a page of their own.

  • 800mg sodium per serving, sized for real sweat loss
  • 240mg potassium and 60mg magnesium
  • 0g sugar, 10 calories in the flavored mixes
  • Sweetened with Reb M, not from stevia
  • Loose powder in a jar, so a two-a-day gets a second scoop
  • Pay with your HSA/FSA card

Try it. Sweat on it. Decide later.

Every order carries a 30-day money-back guarantee. If it is not for you, email us and we refund you in full. You do not even ship anything back.

Shop the Watermelon jar

What customers say

Rated 4.75 out of 5 from 4 reviews

★★★★★
After looking at my electrolyte needs (daily
After considering my electrolyte needs as a daily exerciser and occasional heavy sweater, along with taste, cost, and my sensitivity to highly acidic products, I switched from LMNT to Saltivate. I really appreciate the flexibility of being able to purchase Saltivate in bulk and choose...

Todd D. · Verified buyer

★★★★★
The watermelon flavor taste great!!
The watermelon flavor taste great. My whole family really likes it. If you like to eat watermelon with a little salt sprinkled on it then this is for you!

Troy W. · Verified buyer

★★★★★
I was excited to see a new flavor pop up and no
I was excited to see a new flavor pop up and no surprise Saltivate dropped another banger. I have tried a coupe other watermelon flavors and they always taste like a close approximation to the actual thing. I think this is the most accurate “watermelon”...

Anonymous · Verified buyer

Read all 4 reviews

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Shop all electrolytes

Common questions

What are the best electrolytes for recovery after a workout?

The ones with enough sodium to keep the water in. The rehydration studies put the effective range well above what most sports drinks carry, and Saltivate's 800mg per serving sits in that range. Sugar is optional for this job, and Saltivate has none.

Should I drink electrolytes before or after a workout?

Both work, and after is where the sodium does its clearest job. The ACSM position stand recommends starting hydrated, drinking during long or hot sessions, and replacing the full fluid and electrolyte deficit afterward. Heavy sweaters often take a serving before a hot session and one after.

How much should I drink after training?

A rough guide from the studies: about one and a half times the weight you lost, as fluid, spread over the hours after, with sodium in the drink or the meal. Weigh yourself before and after a session once and you will know your number.

Do electrolytes help with muscle soreness?

Saltivate does one job after a session: it replaces the sodium and helps you hold the fluid you drink. Soreness and muscle repair are separate questions.

Can I mix it into a protein shake?

Raw Unflavored can go into anything; one serving carries about 2g of salt, so it seasons a shake noticeably. Most people keep the electrolytes in the water bottle and the protein separate.

Buying for a group?

Request a sample case for your crew

Coaches, gym and studio owners, safety managers, and crews: request a free case of samples for your whole group. If it's a fit, we ship it to you.

Request a sample case

Hosting a race, run club, hot yoga class, or sauna day? Samples for events.

Put the salt back. Keep the water.

Watermelon in the 45-serving jar: 800mg sodium in the bottle you drink on the way home.

Shop the Watermelon jar

Sources

Cited for general background only. Follow your own clinician's guidance for your sodium and fluid targets.

How we compare

How Saltivate compares

Pick the format you shop, then see how Saltivate stacks up against the brands that sell it too.

Compare what matters for sweat recovery: sodium per serving, zero sugar, and paying direct with your HSA/FSA card with no letter of medical necessity.

Flavor
Format
SaltivateBPN ElectrolytesCarnivoreCureDr. Berg's Electrolyte PowderGatoradeGHOST HydrationGood IntentionsHRDWRKHydrate ProJust Ingredients ElectrolytesLiquid I.V.Promix Electrolyte Drink MixRe-LyteSanta Cruz PaleoSkratchTreviUltima
Serving size1 stick (6g)1 scoop (5.6g)1 scoop (~3g)1 scoop (8.3g)1 scoop (6g)1 powder stick (35g)1 scoop (9g)1 scoop (2.69g)1 scoop (3g)1 scoop (4.93g)1 scoop (5.7g)1 scoop1 scoop (5.18g)1 scoop (7g)1 scoop (5.42g)1 packet (22g)1 stick (4.8g)1 stick/scoop
Sodium800mg (from salt)500mg (from himalayan pink salt, citrate)500mg (from citrate)240mg (from salt)40mg (from pink himalayan salt)230mg (from salt, citrate)150mg (from citrate, himalayan pink salt)200mg (from salt)650mg (from citrate, bicarbonate, chloride)1000mg (from salt)100mg (from salt)510mg (from salt, citrate)1000mg (from salt (himalayan pink))810mg (from salt)800mg (from salt)400mg (from citrate)230mg (from pink himalayan salt)55mg (from salt)
Potassium240mg (from citrate)200mg (from chloride)300mg (from citrate, bicarbonate)310mg (from coconut water)1000mg (from citrate)70mg (from phosphate)375mg (from citrate)200mg (from chloride)300mg (from bicarbonate)200mg (from chloride)300mg (from citrate)390mg (from citrate)200mg (from chloride)400mg (from citrate)300mg (from chloride)49mg (from citrate)250mg (from phosphate, citrate)250mg (from phosphate)
Magnesium60mg (from malate)25mg (from bisglycinate chelate)40mg (from oxide, citrate)0mg120mg (from citrate)0mg83mg (from citrate)42mg (from malate)150mg (from glycinate, citrate)60mg (from glycinate)50mg (from citrate)0mg60mg (from malate)50mg (from glycinate, malate)60mg (from glycinate)48mg (from carbonate)100mg (from citrate)100mg (from citrate)
Sugar0g0g0g0g0g32g0g0g0g0g0g11g0g0g0g19g0g0g
SweetenerReb M (not from stevia)Stevia (steviol glycosides)SteviaStevia, monk fruitSteviaSugar, dextroseSucraloseSteviaSucralose, natural steviaSteviaStevia, monk fruitCane sugar, dextrose, steviaMonk fruit (lightly sweetened versions)SteviaOrganic steviaCane sugar, dextroseSucralose, steviaStevia
Artificial ingredientsNoneArtificial flavors, dyes (Yellow 5, Red 40)Sucralose, Artificial flavors, dyes (Red 40, Blue 1)Sucralose, Artificial flavorsSucralose
Pay with HSA/FSA cardYesNoNoYesNoNoNoNoNoNoNoNoNoNoNoNoNoNo
Made inUSAUnknownUSAUSAUSAUSAUSAUnknownUnknownUSAUSAUSAUSAUSAUSAUSAUSAUSA
Servings per unit30 sticks50 (jar)90 (jar)28 (jar)50 (jar)30 sticks40 (jar)100 (jar)100 (jar)45 (jar)30 (jar)30 (jar)30 (jar)60 (jar)30 (tub)20 servings45 (jar)20 sticks
Price per serving$1.33$0.90$0.46$1.37$0.97$0.90$0.82$0.22$0.30$0.78$0.83$1.39$1.40$0.77$1.00$1.20$0.78$1.05
Price per 1,000mg key electrolytes i$1.20$1.24$0.54$2.49$0.83$3.00$1.34$0.49$0.27$0.61$1.84$1.54$1.11$0.61$0.86$2.41$1.34$2.59
Ways to save moreBuy 3 Get 1 -25%HSA/FSA -30%Varies by brandVaries by brandVaries by brandVaries by brandVaries by brandVaries by brandVaries by brandVaries by brandVaries by brandVaries by brandVaries by brandVaries by brandVaries by brandVaries by brandVaries by brandVaries by brandVaries by brand

Per serving, from each brand's published label. Values can vary by flavor and change over time.