In 1987, as a high schooler, I started competing in cross country skiing and road bike racing. Back then, fueling for a race consisted of bananas and fig newtons. Then power bars came out, and we needed to drink a full water bottle in order to get them down! Gradually, sports nutrition became easier to consume, and a host of endurance drink mixes hit the market. The issue I had was that every time a new product hit the market, it came with the latest “scientific research” that proved confusing at best and inaccurate at worst. 

 

Fast forward 33 years, and I fell for the latest trend. Trying to get back into “race shape,” I started fueling with a zero to very low-carbohydrate diet and using a very high sodium sports drink that I made at home with zero calories to hydrate. While I did meet the goal of losing some weight, my performance on the bike had taken a serious hit. My theory was that sodium alone was more than enough to stay hydrated, but to my confusion, I would do a 50 mile ride consuming this high-sodium zero-calorie drink mix and be thirsty beyond belief by the end! It was then that I remembered what my old friend Greg Lemond told me: “Human physiology hasn’t changed in thousands and thousands of years!”

 

After that, I started reducing the amount of sodium, increasing the amount of potassium and adding carbohydrates. Then I started doing my own research, reviewing data dating back to the 60’s through today, and one thing has been consistent: people hydrate and perform better with a 5-8% carbohydrate solution and a reasonable amount of sodium combined with a diet high in potassium. I started training with the “new” formula, and guess what - I started to feel better, train better and perform better. Greg was right! 

 

Over the next year, I refined the formula and taste to the current KORSA formula while keeping the drink mix kid-friendly by not adding caffeine, artificial flavors or sweeteners. The result was a simple 7-ingredient formula that simply works!

 

Thanks for reading, 

Paul