# Why does Gatorade (tm) taste good only after working out? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 9, 2001, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-gatorade-tm-taste-good-only-after-working-out/49157 "2001-01-09T15:18:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![c\_goat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f4b2a3/32.png) [@c\_goat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/c_goat)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2001, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-gatorade-tm-taste-good-only-after-working-out/49157/1 "2001-01-09T15:18:43Z")
The Gatorade site says: > [@](#): > > Gatorade is formulated to taste best when you’re really hot, sweaty and thirsty – so you’ll drink enough of it to keep you going. (Notice how different it tastes when you’re not exercising?) I noticed that this was true after working out yesterday. I always drink it after karate. At other times it doesn’t taste good at all. What makes it taste better? Does sweating cause something to happen to your tongue that makes different parts more/less effective? (Correct me if I’m wrong in assuming your tongue produces taste) ---
**Author:** ![vanilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/f19dbf/32.png) [@vanilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vanilla)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2001, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-gatorade-tm-taste-good-only-after-working-out/49157/2 "2001-01-09T15:25:40Z")
I beg to differ. Me and son always drink Gatorade. It doesn’t have caffeine or carbonation so its healthier. I guess you can get used to almost any taste. ---
**Author:** ![Scarlett67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scarlett67/32/7387_2.png) [@Scarlett67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scarlett67)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2001, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-gatorade-tm-taste-good-only-after-working-out/49157/3 "2001-01-09T15:41:20Z")
I differ also. A few years ago when Mr. Scarlett and I were driving from Wisconsin to Colorado and back in August, in our tiny non-air-conditioned car, at every stop I bought a bottle of Lemon Ice Gatorade and a large cup of ice. It stayed cold and tasted good, yet not watered down, as the ice melted in the heat. Plain water would have been too blah, and soda would have been too gross and syrupy after long. YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![c\_goat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f4b2a3/32.png) [@c\_goat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/c_goat)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2001, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-gatorade-tm-taste-good-only-after-working-out/49157/4 "2001-01-09T15:45:41Z")
Ok. I didn’t mean it tastes bad. But there is a significant taste difference when drinking it before a workout (not thirsty and sweaty) and after a workout (thirsty and sweaty). What causes the taste difference? ---
**Author:** ![Anachronism](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e56c9b/32.png) [@Anachronism](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anachronism)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2001, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-gatorade-tm-taste-good-only-after-working-out/49157/5 "2001-01-09T15:57:05Z")
Maybe your so thirsty you don’t care that it tastes like old sweat? (I am not a fan of Gatorade ;)) Gatorade isn’t as sweet as other drinks (Juice, soda, etc), as you get hotter/thirstier you like drinks that are not as sweet. When you are very hot/thirsty even gatorade tastes syrupy. ---
**Author:** ![evilhanz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ba8739/32.png) [@evilhanz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/evilhanz)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2001, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-gatorade-tm-taste-good-only-after-working-out/49157/6 "2001-01-09T18:04:16Z")
Gatorade is not meant to be an everyday beverage, especially for sedentary people. It’s designed to quickly replenish carbohydrates after extended physical activity. It has a 6% solution of carbohydrates, mostly in the form of simple sugars, that closely mathces your body’s optimum absorption rate. That’s important because if that percentage is not right, your body has to add _more_ electrolytes or water to absorb the liquid, leaving you feeling more fatigued or thristy than if you had done nothing, or worse shotgunned a soda. That’s my best guess as to why it tastes better after a workout. You’ve just burned through several hundred calories, your bodies feeling fatigued … Gatorade is quickly and efficiently absorbed, replenishing the lost supplies… voila - it’s yummy, and doesn’t leave you feeling blah. Incidentally, here’s how to make your own gatorade: > [@](#): > > mix roughly 93.3% tapwater (7 fluid oz), 3 tablespoons sugar (sucrose/table sugar), 1/16 teaspoon of salt stirred into a preparation of 1 fluid oz. lemon-flavored citrus juice. In researching this answer, I also learned that Gatorade is a bit behind the curve in sports drink nutrition, but that’s not on topic. I looked at several sources of info, but this one: [http://www.angelfire.com/electronic/ultramentor/gatorade.html](http://www.angelfire.com/electronic/ultramentor/gatorade.html) provides a good summary and the recipe above. ---
**Author:** ![evilhanz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ba8739/32.png) [@evilhanz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/evilhanz)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2001, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-gatorade-tm-taste-good-only-after-working-out/49157/7 "2001-01-09T18:05:40Z")
oops, “bodies” should be “body’s” 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2001, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-gatorade-tm-taste-good-only-after-working-out/49157/8 "2001-01-09T18:53:26Z")
I’ll go with that answer. When you exercise and sweat, you lose moisture and minerals like potassium. Your body needs those minerals and that moisture. So when you drink Gatorade, you are getting those things and your body recognizes that. Besides, anything cold and wet tastes good when you’re hot. 😉 But those same minerals stand out more when your body isn’t craving them. Not that I’ve tried Gatorade in a while. Powerade tastes better, though it’s hard to completely eliminate the mineral taste. I’ve tried Propel (new Gatorade product) a couple times, but have trouble finding it in stores. ---
**Author:** ![hapaXL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/94ad74/32.png) [@hapaXL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hapaXL)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2001, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-gatorade-tm-taste-good-only-after-working-out/49157/9 "2001-01-09T20:19:07Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by evilhanz \* > **In researching this answer, I also learned that Gatorade is a bit behind the curve in sports drink nutrition, but that’s not on topic.** well, let’s take it slightly off-topic. what are better brands? and please, don’t drink that stuff everyday–i’m pretty sure the extra salt can be harmful to your health. ---
**Author:** ![bluecanary](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bluecanary/32/3614_2.png) [@bluecanary](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bluecanary)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2001, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-gatorade-tm-taste-good-only-after-working-out/49157/10 "2001-01-09T20:27:13Z")
I’m British and haven’t tried Gatorade… …But it seems more than plausible that _any_ drink would taste better after a workout, simply because you’re more dehydrated Has anyone tried an experiment with a new and unusually flavoured drink (like [Rivella](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=51810) perhaps?), asking people to rate it when given it before exercise, and comparing their ratings to those given to the drink by people having exercised? ---
**Author:** ![evilhanz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ba8739/32.png) [@evilhanz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/evilhanz)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2001, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-gatorade-tm-taste-good-only-after-working-out/49157/11 "2001-01-09T20:52:46Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by hapaXL \* > well, let’s take it slightly off-topic. what are better brands? Gatorade’s source of carbs are simple sugars (sucrose, glucose). They are not as easily absorbed and converted into muscle energy as complex sugars like maltodextrin. With sports drinks containing long-chain sugars, you get twice as many calories for the same amount of fluid, by volume, and thus has more energy avilable to it. Endurance athletes notice the difference. I don’t know if I would. This is not to say that Gatorade is bad, it’s just not as efficient as it could be, according to sources such as [http://www.angelfire.com/electronic/ultramentor/gatorade.html](http://www.angelfire.com/electronic/ultramentor/gatorade.html) The sports drinks with complex sugars include: Sustained Energy, Cytomax, Buz-RN, Endurox. I’ve never heard of any of them, and you’re unlikely to find them in your local grocery store. ---
**Author:** ![evilhanz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ba8739/32.png) [@evilhanz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/evilhanz)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2001, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-gatorade-tm-taste-good-only-after-working-out/49157/12 "2001-01-09T20:55:49Z")
> [@](#): > > thus has more energy avilable to it. should read: > [@](#): > > thus your body has more energy available to it. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![flyboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/4da419/32.png) [@flyboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flyboy)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2001, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-gatorade-tm-taste-good-only-after-working-out/49157/13 "2001-01-10T04:19:19Z")
Commenting on the OP: I TOTALLY agree with c\_goat. This stuff kept me going through four years of high school sports. Couldn’t get enough of it after practices, and still love it these days after a hard workout, but I can barely handle it otherwise. Then again, I can say the same thing for water… but I still think he’s on to something.