Do Natural Energy Drinks Live Up to the Hype?
By: Christopher Najem (Budha9) Tags: guru, guruenergy, sustain, running, guarana, panax ginseng root, ginkgo biloba, echinacea, superfruit
Guru natural and organic energy drinks (guruenergy.com) are one of the many energizing drinks claiming to liven up your day. As with most energy boosting products, I flipped open the different flavors with a very skeptical attitude. I drank each of the six flavors offered on separate days thirty minutes before long runs (11-13 miles). I was most worried about the second half of my workout. Running out of gas during long tedious exercise on caffeinated beverages is about as common as a ten dollar bill (maybe a one dollar bill in this economy). However, I was pleasantly surprised with the taste and kick of the Guru beverages. The most impressive aspect was being able to SUSTAIN the energy consistently throughout the workouts.
Lets start with the basics, the ingredients. Boasting sweet ingredients such as organic cane juice, stevia (all natural sugar substitute with a 0 glycemic reading), natural fruit juice concentrates, and my personal favorite luo han guo. A native to southen China, this non caloric sweetener has a very crisp taste without leaving you more thirsty. Also, all natural energizers which include guarana, panax ginseng root, ginkgo biloba, and echinacea combine to create a sustained lasting energy kick without early jitters or sudden crashes.
All the different offerings were delicious. The regular version tastes the most like your common energy drink, but has a much smoother flavor than red bull or rockstar. The lemonade and green tea lemon flavors offered non carbonated forms of really great tasting juice that would good for anytime of the day to quench any and all types of thirsts. The juicy flavors include tangerine and superfruit (including acai, pomegranate, and yumberry). The tangerine is sweet with a refreshing tart finish and goes down pretty easy for a carbonated beverage without leaving your digestive track in knots. The superfruit flavor was my personal favorite. I love fruit juice especially acai and pomegranate juices. These two flavors combined with some natural sugar and other berries creates a burst of flavor that leaves you wanting can after can. The diet version is much better than most diet energy drinks. I personally like the taste of all natural stevia and luo han guo much more than splenda or aspartame. I think where the diet version excels is in the few sugars it does add to the drink. This gives it a much more naturally tasting beverage without the aftertaste of most diet drinks.
The price tag is like all good products these days, not cheap! I will say with confidence you get what you pay for especially when you shop smart. A single can at most natural food stores can run you anywhere from $2.50-3.00. This can be helpful if you need something quick and on the go as most single sold items are already chilled for you. Smart shopping would be buying in bulk. The flavors are offered in 12 ounce cans while the original and diet can come in 8.3 or 12 ounce cans (I recommend the 12 ounce cans). Shopping at bulk sites such as amazon can really reduce the price per can, in some cases as much as $1.50 per can. The guru website is also very thorough and easy to navigate giving you all the information you need as well as monthly specials and deals.
Overall, this is a terrific product with not much downside. It is as close as you can come to natural energy as picking the fruit and beans from the tree! Go out and get your Guru on!
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