I’m going to start with a confession. Although as a research student I spend most of my time studying (river) water, I’ve never been very good at ensuring I drink enough water. The fact that I find tap water really bland wasn’t helping, to be honest where I live the tap water is pretty uninspiring. Rather than drinking water, during an average day I was consuming between 5 and 6 cans of fizzy drinks. I wish that this was an overestimation!

During the recent warmer weather I realised that I was heading out on my lunchtime runs feeling thirsty, far from ideal. After running I would return home and immediately knock back another can of fizzy drink. So much for post run hydration and so much for being a water expert.

Inevitably a couple of hours after running I would feel tired and would have a headache. Although I knew that I needed to drink more water, for some reason I kept drinking fizzy drinks and cups of tea. Water was definitely on the missing list.

I had just returned from London when I noticed that nuun were looking to recruit more bloggers. I love the nuun concept and love writing so was definitely interested in becoming a nuun blogger.

Fast forward a couple of weeks and a box containing a lovely note from nuun, a sports bottle and tubes of lemon+lime, cherry limeade and tropical nuun arrived in the post. Thanks nuun.

Before I launch into my review, I want to share some of the science behind nuun (apologies for this but I am a scientist!).

100% electrolyte hydration nuun is formulated to contain no sugar or carbohydrates. why? energy needs are based on effort but hydration is more on temperature and starting hydration levels. fixed carb: fluid ratios can really mess your stomach up. nuun believe that we should have the choice on how we manage our energy.

optimally balanced nuun contains key electrolytes: sodium, potassium, magnesium and calcium to maximise fluid uptake and to prevent cramping. nuun has been chosen for more than 10 years by top athletes and tested at some of the toughest events in some of the harshest conditions on earth. why? the answer is simple; nuun works and is a simple solution to a challenging issue.

clean light taste = faster consumption nuun was designed with a lighter refreshing taste, perfect for an active palate.

ready when you are nuun is simple – add one nuun tab to 500ml of water, wait two minutes and the transformation is complete.

When it comes to sports hydration, pre-nuun I was a complete novice. My idea of hydration was drinking a bottle of sports drink after long runs or a cup of tea after shorter runs. Far from ideal. I’ve now tried the lemon+lime (really refreshing), the cherry limeade (I’m not so keen on cherry so struggled with this one), and the tropical flavour nuun (slightly sickly and reminds me of an alcohol induced “lost evening” when I was an undergrad). While orange remains my favourite flavour, I’m hoping *hint hint* that banana nuun will soon be an option.

Since incorporating nuun into my daily routine my headaches have stopped. I’ve found that my energy levels have increased and my sneaky afternoon naps, some lasting for more than two hours, are no longer part of my life. By adding nuun into the equation I’ve gradually managed to increase the amount of water I drink. Most importantly my running and recovery have both improved, I’m seeing the benefits of being hydrated before and after I run.

During a recent trip to London I also got to test out one of the less well publicised benefits of nuun, hangover management. It’s true! nuun is really, really effective at reducing the effects of drinking too many beers. Thanks to orange nuun I was able to run the morning after an evening spent drinking beer. I’m anticipating an investigation into the effectiveness of nuun in champagne hangover management when I complete my PhD viva.

**Disclaimer: Massive thanks to nuun for sending me a box of goodies for free to review. I wasn’t paid to write this post and all the opinions and dodgy photos are my own.