Of all the products on the list, this is #1 for me. My top pick.

No product I’ve found has such a high ratio of sodium to carbs as this.

Precision Hydration, now Precision Fuel and Hydration, is a product I have trusted for years to get me through the toughest, hottest, hardest, humidest (?) half and full Ironmans.

Normally, I’d concoct a sludge of Hammer Perpetuem and PH 1500 into a single 6-hour bottle which would be enough to sustain my carb and electrolyte needs on the bike.

It tasted horrible but it worked.

Now, that same company has combined the carbs and sodium into one single potent formula:

30 g of carbs + 500 mg of sodium = 1 serving (two scoops).

So, for a 72 kg guy like me that likes lots of carbs and sodium, 3.5 servings per hour = 105 g carbs + 1,750 mg of sodium is perfect.

As both a heavy sweater and a salty sweater (1,425 mg of sodium per litre of sweat), this is perfect.

No need to buy additional electrolytes.

No need to cook up a batch of product in my hotel room anymore before a race.

Now, what do I not like about this so much?

I don’t really love about how Precision Fuel markets their products using nutritional info of two servings.

On the package it says 60 g of carbs and 1000 mg of sodium, which is misleading.

That’s for two servings.

So, if you mistake that as being a per-serving measurement, you may accidentally give yourself half the needed nutrition.

I also don’t like how it doesn’t mention the flavor. When I first saw this, I thought it was unflavored.

But in reality, it’s a light citrus-like taste. Why don’t they say that on the bag?

In summary, this is the king of carb + sodium products out there, and it’s from a brand I totally trust.

And the 16.7 mg of sodium per gram of carb is as high as any other on this list.

So, if you are racing in the heat, and you demand big carbs and big electrolytes, this product has you covered.

It’s convenient, tastes light so you can even concentrate it, and you likely won’t need any other product alongside it.

Meaning you could mix up a thick sludge of this stuff that would see you through a full Ironman and the concentrate wouldn’t taste too overwhelming.

The Ziplock type resealable pack is really good, too.

Also, I do like that the owner listens to feedback from customers and keeps making improvements, so I can only assume Active Vita will only get better in time.

For example, there used to be a bit of an aftertaste, which I wasn’t crazy about, but in the most recent batch it’s been fixed.

Also, it’s not the most cost-effective product here, but if that awesome amount of sodium is what you need, I think it’s worth it.

The other thing I observed is that the product seemed to clump up pretty quickly once it had been opened (only referring to the large bag, of course).

I do live in the humid climate of Singapore, but other products don’t seem to have this problem, or not as much.

Last time I used it I had to break it up a bit before putting it in my bottle. Then it worked fine, and dissolved completely.

That said, I just met the owner on a long ride, and he mentioned that you can put it in the fridge or freezer to avoid this; furthermore he’s aware of it and is working on a solution.

Here’s an unsponsored review I did of Active Vita.

When I was doing the Melbourne 70.3 in March 2022, I met the owner of Fixx at a booth at the race expo. Pretty cool that the owner himself was selling the products retail.

I bought a few of these sachets and really liked them.

With 200 calories per 55 g serving, you’re getting almost 48 g of carbs along with 460 mg of sodium. That’s pretty decent.

When you buy it in the bag, you get a nice round 100 calories per scoop.

I totally enjoyed the unusual pear flavor; the lemon lime was fine, but it’s just super common.

The matcha green tea has 11 mg of caffeine per scoop. Not major, but I’ll take it.

It’s worth noting that Fuel X Pro also comes in a neutral (sorry, nude) variant, which tastes a bit sweet, but doesn’t have any aftertaste.

With respectable sodium and competitive pricing you’re getting a great deal with this product – if you can find it.

PURE is a brand out of New Zealand that is very popular here in Singapore.

I’ve used it a lot, especially at local races where it’s often given out on courses.

I’ve always liked it and have bought it a few times, too.

What sets PURE apart from others is that they use real fruit in their products.

You can actually see it.

The orange and raspberry flavors are mild, and can easily be concentrated for a stronger solution.

At first, it seems like PURE doesn’t have that much carbs or sodium, but once you realize the serving size is only 28 g, you see that each serving’s 21 g of carbs and 200 mg of sodium are actually respectable.

With a sodium : carb ratio of 9.6 : 1, this is almost the same as FIXX, and the fifth-best in this list.

It comes in a resealable package.

The only thing that really lets it down is the price.

This is the one product in this list that I haven’t tried yet. Hard to find in my neck of the woods, but I know it’s popular, so after a lot of research, here’s my verdict.

To start, I think it’s weird how Skratch Labs decided to define one serving as a whopping 105 g or 7 scoops, when most brands’ servings are closer to 30 g.

7 scoops coincidentally have 400 calories and also 400 mg of sodium; this is 100 g of carbs.

Like any good endurance fuel, Skratch uses a combo of dextrose and fructose.

Not crazy about how they came up with their own term, “Cluster Dextrin” as if they’ve innovated something totally unique.

It’s not wrong, but it’s probably no different than any other product with dextrin.

It’s only available in two flavors, raspberry and lemon + lime. The flavors are said to be pretty mild, and as the package suggests, they’re made with real fruit.

And I love how they have a product guarantee – if it doesn’t work for you they’ll find you something else or refund it.

UCAN is known for their SuperStarch, which is said to not have any crashing effect, post-consumption.

I am not sure of the science behind it, but I definitely liked UCAN and it easily did the job for me when I tried it on a few long rides.

What’s really different about UCAN is that it’s sugar free; instead the carbs come from corn starch.

They have a range of products, including the unflavored option, which I’m always a fan of, as it can be easily mixed with pretty much any other product – an energy drink, an electrolyte sachet, or even another brand’s energy mix.

As you can see in the images, I also tried the cranberry raspberry and it tasted great.

The powdery mix results in a really milky solution which to me is somehow more satiating or satisfying than others.

It comes in Tropical Orange, which I liked, too, Lemon, and Cocoa Delite which sounds interesting.

You can buy this in tubs that have 30 servings in them or individual packets.

Although the prices are a bit higher for UCAN, you can get a deal if you buy a subscription, and the fact that they have a wide variety of bars, protein products, gels, electrolytes, and more could really just make it all worth it.

Secret training is different. Different flavors, packaging, and product lineup. I like that.

Founded by European Champion Track Cyclist Tim Lawson in the UK, Secret Training has a range of innovative and different products: Gels, bars, electrolytes, and this: Stealth Big Energy Drink Mix.

It tastes great and comes in unusual flavors: Pineapple, watermelon, and peppermint!

This great lineup of flavors in itself is exciting – I’m getting tired of the orange and lemon / lime stuff.

With 28 g of carbs and just 140 mg of sodium, we’re on the low side for electrolytes, but it’s all relative: If you’re a light sweater or in a cool climate – or if you like to take your sodium separately – this may be just fine.

What I didn’t love about this was the confusing lineup of products.

First, the brand is Secret Training but nowhere does it mention the brand on the product. It just says “Stealth” – so already I’m lost.

Next, within the energy drink mixes, you may expend a lot of effort deciphering what product does what. There are so many with similar names and it’s complex.

Finally, you need a microscope to read the labels – the print is so fine that I had to take a pic with my phone and then zoom in on my phone to read it.

The chip-clip like closure to seal the bag was unusual and innovative.

I did a YouTube review of Secret Training which you can watch below.

Like the name implies, you can go for perpetuity with this product.

Based in Montana, USA, Hammer has been around a long time, and there’s a reason why.

For years, this was my go-to Ironman mix. I first used it in a 12-hour mountain bike race, and then I used it in many 70.3 and full Ironmans.

But its low sodium : carb ratio of 5 to 1 is just too mild for my hot and sweaty racing.

If you’re in cooler climates or have no problem supplementing this with lots more electrolytes, no problem.

But still, when I did, I would mix Precision Hydration 1500 into it and the flavor was a bit gnarly, but it preformed.

I always knew I could rely on it to get me through the hardest efforts. Whenever I took this stuff, I never felt anything.

No hunger, but no fullness, either.

Just a neutral feeling in my stomach, which is what you want when you are racing.

I like the caffé latte flavor, especially since it has 30mg of caffeine per serving.

It also comes in strawberry (this one is awesome), orange, and chocolate.

Note that recently, they came out with a new, tapioca-based formula (the other was made from corn) which is supposedly superior. The nutritional values are the same, though.

Two scoops is 34 grams of carbs. I will usually go for X scoops in a single bottle for a 2.5-hour bottle.

This is enough for me on the bike leg of a 70.3.

I’ve always loved the GU gels and have used them in many races, so I thought it would be apt to test their endurance mix.

What GU has done to set them apart from most of the competition is to add amino acids.

Personally, I regard this as a way for GU to charge significantly more money, as I am not convinced it’s worth it.

That said, they do have a great product which I’ve had good success with.

The Grape tastes awesome, and it’s not too intense. Also comes in Lemon berry, Summit Tea, and Tropical Fruit.

The grape is the only one without any caffeine; the others have a bit, 35 mg.

Each 65 g packet has 60 g of carbs, 250 mg of sodium and those amino acids (ahem).

I’d say this is a decent ratio for athletes that don’t sweat much or that are in cooler climates. Or for athletes whose sweat is not too salty (more info on that here).

But for me here in the tropics, if I took two of these for 1 hour or maybe 90 minutes, it may be light on the salt.