Best Recovery Drinks

In a Hurry? Editors choice:
Evlution Nutrition BCAA
Test Winner: Evlution Nutrition BCAA
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If you are an avid visitor to the gym and enjoy working out, then you know that after a strenuous workout, it's essential to take care of your body.

One of the best ways to do this is with recovery drinks. During a workout, you use a lot of energy, and this can put a lot of stress on your muscles. If you don't allow your muscles to properly recover, you may notice that you are not seeing any muscle growth, your muscles are more fatigued, or you aren't able to bounce back as quickly.

People often overlook the importance of recovery after working out, so we explain why this is a mistake and how recovery drinks can help. This guide reviews our top ten picks for recovery drinks of 2019 - soak it up, and you'll be on your way to optimum hydration in no time.

Standout Picks

Jacked Factory’s Powerbuild Recovery Drinks
Jacked Factory’s Powerbuild Drink Mix offers you an effective product that comes with a full money-back guarantee if you don’t like it or it doesn’t work well for you. This drink mix features all-natural ingredients like vitamins and amino acids that will help your muscles recover more quickly after every exercise. You'll have a product that’s been clinically researched, and is very popular for a reason; it's very effective.
Amazon Link
Evlution Nutrition BCAA
Evlution’s Nutrition BCAA Energy Drink Mix offers you an affordably priced option packed into an effective recovery drink mix. You’ll get plenty of amino acids, vitamins, and minerals to aid you with muscle recovery so that you get stronger faster. This product is all-natural and doesn't contain any carbs or sugars.
Amazon Link
$19.99
Labrada Nutrition BCAA
Labrada Nutrition’s BCAA Power Powder Drink Mix gives you a fermented BCAA drink mix that means you’ll get high-quality amino acids since fermentation means you won’t get extra additives in your amino acids. You get fermented BCAAs and L-glutamine in this mix, and that means you are getting more bang for your buck. The amino acids will help your body recover more quickly after a workout, and also build up your muscle strength.
Amazon Link
Post Jym Active Matrix
Post-Jym’s Active Matrix Drink Mix offers you a nice drink blend that combines BCAAs, creatine HCl, betaine, and beta-alanine to give you a very effective beverage to use after a workout. With these ingredients, you’ll be able to obtain better recovery, get stronger, and achieve better endurance. While this product is on the expensive end of things, it is a very effective post-workout drink mix.
Amazon Link
$40.49
Gaspari Nutrition GlycoFuse
Gaspari Nutrition's GlycoFuse Drink Mix wasn’t initially designed to be a post-workout drink mix, but it works so effectively that many people love using it just for that. It’s actually designed to be a carb mix, and it helps give you a lot of assistance post-workout because you get high-quality carbs here, including highly branched Cyclic Dextrin (HBCD). That means you will have a nice recovery aid that will help your body repair itself and provide you with energy as well.
Amazon Link
ReGen BCAA Drink Mix
ReGen’s BCAA Drink Mix gives you a nice beverage that will help you recover well after every workout. With this drink, you’ll get plenty of BCAAs that will help your muscles recover more quickly and that will also boost your protein synthesis so that you build muscle faster. You get a very effective product that is full of great ingredients and will make you feel far less fatigued after your workouts.
Amazon Link
Optimum Nutrition L-Glutamine
Optimum Nutrition’s L-Glutamine Muscle Recovery Powder provides L-glutamine in your post-workout regimen. Using this drink mix following your workouts will help prevent muscle breakdown, and the glucosamine will help maintain your joints and may give your immune system a slight boost.
Amazon Link
$23.96
Optimum Nutrition 2:1:1
Optimum Nutrition’s 2:1:1 Recovery Drink Mix offers plenty of carbs, starches, and simple sugars to help your body recover after working out. You get protein and BCAAs packed into this mix as well. Not only will you feel less sore the next day, but your body will also be able to build up lean muscle with ease.
Amazon Link
$19.58
BSN Amino X Recovery Drinks
BSN's Amino X Drink Mix offers you a nice powder that will give you a great tasting drink to help aid you after you complete your workouts. You get a product that is packed with ten amino acids, which serve you well in recovering post-workout. There's also no caffeine in it, so you can even use this if you work out at night or are sensitive to caffeine.
Amazon Link
Myogenix AfterShock Recovery Powder
Myogenix's AfterShock Recovery Powder gives you a great-tasting product option that works very effectively and is designed to be used right after working out. You'll have an effective product that is full of nutrients you’d need to replace after your workouts, and you'll feel less soreness in your muscles and joints. You do get a mix of carbs and creatine as well here, and a product that will help you feel better before your next workout.
Amazon Link

Criteria Used for Evaluation

Effectiveness

It is focusing on recovery after a workout is one of those things many of us interested in training often overlook. However, it’s one of the most important things to consider because it can assist you with soreness and fatigue and help get you back to working out again more quickly. Many recovery aids also boost your ability to grow muscle.

On top of that, they provide what you need to replenish your body of what it used right after you train. By making sure you are giving your body what it needs post-workout, you can achieve results much more quickly, and you’ll feel much better overall.

Since you are probably already at the point where you don’t want to ignore the recovery process after your workouts, it’s time to think about what you need in a drink.

When you are searching for a post-workout drink that can help your body recover faster, it’s essential to think about a few things. When we examined our products, we discussed the benefits, ingredients, ease of use, and value. We’ll talk about each one of these things in a bit more detail below.

Accuracy

These types of recovery drinks offer you a bevy of benefits and share many similar characteristics overall. However, there are a few crucial differences mostly because occasionally you’ll find other ingredients included in these products. So, we’ll talk about this a bit more.

Most products like this offer you a combination of supplements that offer help with muscle recovery so you won’t feel as sore after your workout.

Also, you’ll find that you wake up feeling much better the next day, and you’ll be ready to exercise again with more strength and efficiency. Plus, you’ll also notice that you will build up muscle faster because you are helping your body do this by replenishing it with what it needs post-workout.

What we usually find in these types of products is amino acids, a combination of carbs on occasion, nutrients, minerals, and vitamins. Sometimes you’ll notice a combination of these things, but what you’ll see most commonly is a product that features amino acids or carbs, or both, as the main ingredients that aid in muscle recovery. That is quite typical of all of these products.

Besides that, you’ll notice some of these recovery drinks also contain things like caffeine that are there to give you an energy boost. Some people like this, others don’t, and it probably depends on when you complete your workouts. If you have heart problems or are sensitive to caffeine, consult with your doctor before using a supplement that contains it.

Materials

Most of these products feature some amino acid combination or a few types of carbs. Sometimes, the products will have both in them as ingredients.

Amino acids and carbs are so prevalent in recovery products because that’s what your body is using when you work out. If you replace these things right away, your body will feel better, experience less soreness and fatigue, and recover more quickly. Instead of your body needing to wait to get what it just lost, you are replacing it right away by drinking your mix.

You’ll discover that these types of ingredients will work well to help you feel better almost right after your workout. Plus, you’ll wake up feeling less soreness overall, and you’ll be ready to train more intensely again the next day.

Ease of Use

Many of these recovery drinks are designed as drink mixes, and they have different instructions about how to use them. However, usually, you are adding one or two scoops to a certain amount of water, and then drinking the beverage within 30 minutes after you are done with your workout.

Drinking the product then means you’re getting what your body needs in an essential recovery window since your body needs to replenish immediately. That will also not only make you feel better, but you’ll be able to build up muscle more quickly as well. Some of these products absorb quickly into your body so that you feel better very soon after finishing your drink.

That’s certainly a plus, but what is even more important to know is whether the product can create stomach issues, especially if you have any digestive questions. If you aren’t sure how to figure this out, start with a smaller quantity and read up on other customer’s reviews to see what their experiences with the product have been like.

Top 10 Picks

1. Jacked Factory’s Powerbuild

Where to buy
Amazon Link
Jacked Factory’s Powerbuild Recovery Drinks
Amazon Link

Jacked Factory’s Powerbuild Drink Mix offers you an effective product that comes with a full money-back guarantee if you don’t like it or it doesn’t work well for you. This drink mix features all-natural ingredients like vitamins and amino acids that will help your muscles recover more quickly after every exercise. You'll have a product that’s been clinically researched, and is very popular for a reason; it's very effective.

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Benefits

Jacked Factory’s Powerbuild Drink Mix comes with a robust set of ingredients that features vital amino acids, which aid in muscle recovery and reduce soreness and fatigue. Amino acids also provide you with the ability to build muscles more quickly, allowing you to work out harder. It also includes vitamins like Beta-Alanine, which is made to help you boost your strength to prepare you for your next workout.

Ingredients

Jacked Factory’s Powerbuild Drink Mix offers you a list of active, all-natural ingredients that will aid in muscle recovery, and also help you build yourself up faster. You’ll get a wide variety of amino acids and vitamins, like L-Glutamine to support your recovery and L-Leucine to promote lean muscle growth. Creatine is included in this product as well, to provide you with an added boost of strength.

Ease of Use

This product is straightforward to use and functions as a compelling drink mix. You mix in one scoop with two cups of water, and then you have your recovery drink. Also, we like that this product is designed not to upset your stomach, which is a real plus if you have any sensitive stomach issues.

Value

Jacked Factory’s Powerbuild Drink Mix is a bit more expensive than some of the other products we have on our list, but it does offer you a full month’s supply. So you do get a decent-sized portion of it, and it will also benefit you in your post-workout recovery process.

Amazon Link

2. Evlution Nutrition BCAA

Where to buy
Amazon Link
$19.99
Evlution Nutrition BCAA
Amazon Link

Evlution’s Nutrition BCAA Energy Drink Mix offers you an affordably priced option packed into an effective recovery drink mix. You’ll get plenty of amino acids, vitamins, and minerals to aid you with muscle recovery so that you get stronger faster. This product is all-natural and doesn't contain any carbs or sugars.

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Benefits

Evlution’s Nutrition BCAA Energy Drink Mix features a combination of ingredients that can benefit your workout regimen. It comes with plenty of BCAAs that work to provide what your muscles need to help them properly recover. You’ll get more energy to your muscles, and you’ll get the vitamins you need to feel great the next day. This is a great combination product that will serve you well after working out.

Ingredients

Evlution’s Nutrition BCAA Energy Drink Mix is packed with a bevy of useful parts. You get four BCAAs in the mix: L-Leucine, L-Isoleucine, L-Valine, and L-Alanine. These amino acids allow your muscles to recover, as well as build up and get stronger faster. You’ll also get some vitamins and natural energizers like green tea, to help boost you after your workouts.

Ease of Use

This product is straightforward to use, and it won’t take much time to get you what you need. You just put one scoop of the mix into your water, shake it up, and drink it. Plus, this drink mix does a great job of not upsetting the stomach, and that makes it much easier to use if you have any digestive issues.

Value

Evlution’s Nutrition BCAA Energy Drink Mix brings you an affordably priced option that will work out great for you if you are shopping on a budget. With this drink, you will get a nice mix that will help you with muscle recovery without upsetting your stomach. Plus, you get a full month’s supply with your purchase.

Amazon Link
$19.99

3. Labrada Nutrition BCAA

Where to buy
Amazon Link
Labrada Nutrition BCAA
Amazon Link

Labrada Nutrition’s BCAA Power Powder Drink Mix gives you a fermented BCAA drink mix that means you’ll get high-quality amino acids since fermentation means you won’t get extra additives in your amino acids. You get fermented BCAAs and L-glutamine in this mix, and that means you are getting more bang for your buck. The amino acids will help your body recover more quickly after a workout, and also build up your muscle strength.

Read more

Benefits

Labrada Nutrition’s BCAA Power Powder Drink Mix is made to give you a post work out drink mix that will aid your muscles in recovery. Also, while your muscles recover, you’ll also be able to build them up faster since you’ll feel better. Amino acids also allow you to build lean muscle faster as you work out, so you’ll love how much strength you gain.

Ingredients

Labrada Nutrition’s BCAA Power Powder Drink Mix comes with leucine, isoleucine, and valine amino acids in the drink mix, all of which are high quality and fermented. You’ll get plenty of effective muscle recovery since the amino acids will help build up muscle strength faster while combating fatigue. You’ll feel better, and be able to work out harder after drinking this product.

Ease of Use

This product is very simple to use, and all you need to do to make your recovery drink is to mix one scoop of the powder into water. After that, you’ll be ready to go. This drink mix is also made to be easy to digest, so that’s good news if you have a sensitive stomach.

Value

Labrada Nutrition’s BCAA Power Powder Drink Mix is priced a bit expensively, but it isn’t completely out of reach even if you are shopping on a budget. It does come with a full one-month supply, which is good news, and it is also a very effective product that will help you recover after your workouts much more quickly.

Amazon Link

4. Post Jym Active Matrix

Where to buy
Amazon Link
$40.49
Post Jym Active Matrix
Amazon Link

Post-Jym’s Active Matrix Drink Mix offers you a nice drink blend that combines BCAAs, creatine HCl, betaine, and beta-alanine to give you a very effective beverage to use after a workout. With these ingredients, you’ll be able to obtain better recovery, get stronger, and achieve better endurance. While this product is on the expensive end of things, it is a very effective post-workout drink mix.

Read more

Benefits

Post-Jym’s Active Matrix Drink Mix combines a lot of effective BCAAs to help your body recover and build muscle more quickly. It includes beta-alanine to aid in building muscle and repairing your body, plus creatine HCl and betaine, which will help you build muscle and strength. You’ll wind up with an excellent product that will help your muscles experience less fatigue and soreness after your workouts.

Ingredients

Post-Jym’s Active Matrix Drink Mix features several effective ingredients that will help provide you with what you need after each workout. You get a combination of effective BCAAs that will help speed up the muscle recovery process and allow you to get stronger more quickly. Plus, with creatine HCl and betaine, you get a boost in protein synthesis so you'll build muscle faster.

Ease of Use

This product is made to be very easy to use. All you need to do is add one scoop to some water and mix it up. After that, it’s ready to go. What is also lovely about this drink mix is that it is designed not to cause stomach problems.

Value

Post-Jym’s Active Matrix Drink Mix is priced on the expensive end of things, but it does offer you a full month’s supply with your purchase. Also, it is a beneficial recovery aid and a popular one, so it is worth taking a look at it since it will give you what you need.

Amazon Link
$40.49

5. Gaspari Nutrition GlycoFuse

Where to buy
Amazon Link
Gaspari Nutrition GlycoFuse
Amazon Link

Gaspari Nutrition's GlycoFuse Drink Mix wasn’t initially designed to be a post-workout drink mix, but it works so effectively that many people love using it just for that. It’s actually designed to be a carb mix, and it helps give you a lot of assistance post-workout because you get high-quality carbs here, including highly branched Cyclic Dextrin (HBCD). That means you will have a nice recovery aid that will help your body repair itself and provide you with energy as well.

Read more

Benefits

You’ll get a lot of great benefits with this product, which is designed to give you the carbs you need to help your muscles recover, and it also makes you feel better after a workout pretty quickly. You also get electrolytes in this drink mix, which will help hydrate you and balance out your body.

Ingredients

Gaspari Nutrition's GlycoFuse Drink Mix comes with very high-quality carbs that help your body recover quickly, and it also features electrolytes that help speed up the process with excellent hydration. You’ll get 25 grams of HBCD each time you scoop, which will give you a boost in the recovery process. The electrolytes provide hydration and balance, and you wind with a helpful recovery aid.

Ease of Use

This product is straightforward to use since it comes with a scoop. All you need to do is mix one scoop with your water, and you’ve got your drink. Plus, this stuff tastes lovely, and that’s a bit of a shocker since often with these drink mixes, the taste can be an issue. That’s not true here, making this a plus.

Value

Gaspari Nutrition's GlycoFuse Drink Mix does run on the expensive end of things here, but it’s still worth considering. You do get a full month’s supply with your purchase, and a very effective product to aid with muscle recovery. So it is certainly worth the money.

Amazon Link

6. ReGen BCAA Drink Mix

Where to buy
Amazon Link
ReGen BCAA Drink Mix
Amazon Link

ReGen’s BCAA Drink Mix gives you a nice beverage that will help you recover well after every workout. With this drink, you’ll get plenty of BCAAs that will help your muscles recover more quickly and that will also boost your protein synthesis so that you build muscle faster. You get a very effective product that is full of great ingredients and will make you feel far less fatigued after your workouts.

Read more

Benefits

ReGen’s BCAA Drink Mix offers a lot of great benefits to aid you in your post-workout recovery. You’ll get a product that will prevent your muscles from breaking down or feeling fatigued, which will assist with protein synthesis, and that helps give you the hydration you need after working out. You’ll be able to replace what you need after each workout, and you’ll feel great.

Ingredients

ReGen’s BCAA Drink Mix provides you with plenty of active ingredients that can help you boost your strength, recover more quickly, and aid you in protein synthesis. ReGen features four different BCAAs that are packed into the product to help your body get what it needs after a workout. You’ll also get electrolytes packed into this drink mix, which aid in hydrating correctly.

Ease of Use

This product is straightforward to use, and all you need to do is mix one scoop of it with eight ounces of water. Plus, this drink mix won’t upset your stomach if you have digestive issues, which is a huge plus, and you’ll start feeling better just moments after you drink it.

Value

ReGen’s BCAA Drink Mix is a bit expensive, but you’ll get a lot if you purchase it. You’ll have over fifty servings of this product, which is almost a full two month supply. Also, it will help hydrate you and provide what you need to help your muscles recover after your workout.

Amazon Link

7. Optimum Nutrition L-Glutamine

Where to buy
Amazon Link
$23.96
Optimum Nutrition L-Glutamine
Amazon Link

Optimum Nutrition’s L-Glutamine Muscle Recovery Powder provides L-glutamine in your post-workout regimen. Using this drink mix following your workouts will help prevent muscle breakdown, and the glucosamine will help maintain your joints and may give your immune system a slight boost.

Read more

Benefits

Optimum Nutrition’s L-Glutamine Muscle Recovery Powder features glutamine as the main ingredient, and the powder mix is designed to be all-natural. Glutamine helps your body recover after you’ve done some serious workouts, and helps you avoid soreness and fatigue. It also helps with your joints, so you'll feel great even after a strenuous workout.

Ingredients

Optimum Nutrition’s L-Glutamine Muscle Recovery Powder is comprised of all-natural ingredients and its main ingredient is glutamine. Glutamine works to help recover from intensive workouts quickly and efficiently, which will allow you to work out harder next time. With less soreness and pain, you’ll feel great and be able to work out more.

Ease of Use

This drink mix is very easy to use and comes in the form of a powder. All you need to do is put one teaspoon into a cup of water, and mix it up. Plus, this drink mix tastes great and won’t upset your stomach, and that’s great news.

Value

Optimum Nutrition’s L-Glutamine Muscle Recovery Powder does come with an expensive price tag, but you get about fifty total servings with it. So, that’s almost a full two month supply, and if you consider that, the price isn’t too terrible. Plus, you’ll get the glutamine you need to help make your muscle recovery smoother.

Amazon Link
$23.96

8. Optimum Nutrition 2:1:1

Where to buy
Amazon Link
$19.58
Optimum Nutrition 2:1:1
Amazon Link

Optimum Nutrition’s 2:1:1 Recovery Drink Mix offers plenty of carbs, starches, and simple sugars to help your body recover after working out. You get protein and BCAAs packed into this mix as well. Not only will you feel less sore the next day, but your body will also be able to build up lean muscle with ease.

Read more

Benefits

Optimum Nutrition’s 2:1:1 Recovery Drink Mix is packed with benefits and features a lot of great ingredients that will speed up your body’s recovery. It's pack with protein which you will need to help your muscles. Plus, the carbs will also help your body get the recovery time you need, and the BCAAs help with building lean muscle. Your body will start feeling better immediately once you drink this after your workouts.

Ingredients

Optimum Nutrition’s 2:1:1 Recovery Drink Mix is packed with a lot of significant parts. The carbs in this product offer you a mix of sucrose, fructose, waxy maize starches, and glucose polymers. You’ll also get simple sugars and plenty of protein. The proteins include micellar casein, egg albumen, and hydrolyzed whey isolate. The BCAAs include L-leucine, L-valine, and L-isoleucine.

Ease of Use

This product is straightforward to use, and all you need to do is mix two scoops into your water, and you have your recovery drink. This product is also made to be easy to digest, and it starts working right away, so you'll feel better faster. It's easy to drink and has a great taste.

Value

Optimum Nutrition’s 2:1:1 Recovery Drink Mix is a bit more expensive than some of the other products on our list, but you do get a full month’s supply with your purchase. Plus, you’ll get plenty of assistance with muscle recovery after your workouts.

Amazon Link
$19.58

9. BSN Amino X

Where to buy
Amazon Link
BSN Amino X Recovery Drinks
Amazon Link

BSN's Amino X Drink Mix offers you a nice powder that will give you a great tasting drink to help aid you after you complete your workouts. You get a product that is packed with ten amino acids, which serve you well in recovering post-workout. There's also no caffeine in it, so you can even use this if you work out at night or are sensitive to caffeine.

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Benefits

With ten grams of amino acids per serving, BSN's Amino X Drink Mix will provide you with the recovery benefits you need post-workout. These BCAAs are made to work quickly, and the product tastes great and is easy to digest. L-Alanine, Taurine, and L-Citrulline will help your body repair more quickly, and you'll feel great tomorrow so that you can work out again and build more strength.

Ingredients

With over ten grams of BCAAS packed into each serving, you get a drink that can help you build up more protein and assist with building lean muscle. Not only will you experience less soreness and fatigue, but you’ll also recover faster. The Taurine, L-Citrulline, and L-Alanine, and the BCAAs in this product will keep you feeling great and more active so that you can keep working out and not feel as sore or fatigued.

Ease of Use

This product is very easy to use, and all you need to do is grab one scoop and mix it with water, and that's it! It tastes great, is quick to digest, and is easy on the stomach.

Value

BSN's Amino X Drink Mix offers you an affordable price, making this a great option to consider if you are shopping on a budget. You’ll get 30 servings or a full month’s supply with this drink. Plus, you’ll get all the assistance you’ll want to help you recover more quickly after your workouts.

Amazon Link

10. Myogenix AfterShock Recovery Powder

Where to buy
Amazon Link
Myogenix AfterShock Recovery Powder
Amazon Link

Myogenix's AfterShock Recovery Powder gives you a great-tasting product option that works very effectively and is designed to be used right after working out. You'll have an effective product that is full of nutrients you’d need to replace after your workouts, and you'll feel less soreness in your muscles and joints. You do get a mix of carbs and creatine as well here, and a product that will help you feel better before your next workout.

Read more

Benefits

This product is made to be used right after your workout, and if you follow those directions, it will not only help your body recover after your workout, but it will also help facilitate lean muscle growth. The carbs and nutrients present in this drink help to replenish glycogen, and assist with joint recovery as well as muscle growth.

Ingredients

Myogenix's AfterShock Recovery Powder features a lot of useful nutrients that will stimulate muscle growth and aid in recovery. You’ll get the carbs you need to help you feel better, including waxy maize as well as fructose. It also comes with creatine, which aids in muscle growth and will help make you stronger. With these ingredients, you’ll get both joint and muscle benefits, and you’ll gain muscle more quickly.

Ease of Use

This drink mix is effortless to use, and all you need to do is scoop one scoop right into your water and mix it. The manufacturer states that you should make the mix and drink it within thirty minutes after working out, to get the most benefit from this product.

Value

Myogenix's AfterShock Recovery Powder runs on the expensive end of the market, but it comes with fifty servings, which is almost a two month supply. If you consider that in addition to all of the recovery benefits it provides, it is well worth the cost.

Amazon Link

Sources

  1. Brian Price, 10 Best Recovery Drinks, Informatiional Running Website
  2. SpotMeBro, Best Post Workout Recovery Supplements To Pack On Muscle & Improve Performance, Informational Consumer Website
  3. Andrea Cespedes, Post-Workout Muscle Recovery Drinks , Informatiional Running Website