Vive la Verve!

The energy drink enigma has intrigued me for a while. Most are loaded with sugar and caffeine. Some of top-of-mind brands are Red Bull, Full Throttle, and AMP Energy. When they first appeared on the market, I figured they were a novelty item that would make some business man a lot of quick money and then the drinks would disappear as fast as they appeared. Kind of like the McRib sandwich...doesn't taste very good, but everybody wants one when it's put back on the menu, then "poof!" it's gone. But, I was wrong. Looks like energy drinks are here to stay and seems like everyone is trying to get a part of the action. Hooters even has an energy drink - Power Trip! Well, just like most things these days, there's good and bad and as a discerning shopper, you have to weed through the offerings to find the good stuff.

There's been a lot in the news lately about the dangers of energy drinks, especially for our youth. So my ears perked up when a Twitter friend of mine, Ryan Bittorf (Tweeter name: SanDiegoFitness) told me about a new energy drink, Verve!, that's loaded with "healthy energy." I was a little skeptical, so I asked him to send me a sample. I'm a diet soda fanatic, so I asked him to send me the sugar free version. While I was waiting for it to arrive, I did a little research and man was he right! Verve! is packed with an entire host of vitamins and minerals for a natural energy boost. The chart below shows you just how Verve! (sugar free) stacks up against Red Bull (sugar-free).

Looks like both drinks provide a boost, but Verve! provides a whole host of important vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. In addition to what's listed in the chart, Verve! also contains a proprietary mangosteen, organic glyconutrient rich aloe vera and organic green tea blend: Reconstituted Mangosteen Juice (Garcinia mangostana L.)(fruit), Aloe Vera Gel (leaf), Green Tea (leaf) (decaffeinated), Mangosteen Extract (pericarp) (standardized 10% xanthones) and a proprietary plant-sourced mineral blend: Carbon (Organic), Calcium, Sodium, Sulfur, Magnesium, Chloride, Bromide, Fluoride, Iodine, Potassium, Niobium, Aluminum, Iron, Phosphorus, Silica, Manganese, Boron, Strontium, Titanium, Tungsten, Copper, Zinc, Tin, Zirconium, Molybdenum, Vanadium, Chromium, Selenium, Nickel, Cobalt, Lithium, Gallium, Barium, Yttrium, Neodymium, Hafnium, Cadmium, Thorium, Antimony, Cerium, Tellurium, Beryllium, Samarium, Dysprosium, Erbium, Bismuth, Gadolinium, Cesium, Lanthanum, Praseodymium, Europium, Lutetium, Terbium, Ytterbium, Holmium, Thallium, Thulium, Tantalum, Germanium, Gold, Platinum, Rhodium, Rubidium, Ruthenium, Scandium, Silver, Indium.

I downed my sample before my regular Saturday long run. I normally have a cup of coffee, but this time I decided to try the Verve! It had a nice taste. It kind of reminded me of a sparkling orange drink. Not overly sweet, but I could tell it was heartier than just sugar and carbonated water. I definintely noticed a nice boost during my run. The one benefit of the sugar-free energy drink was that I never experienced that sluggish feeling I get when coming down from the sugar rush that I usually experience with full-leaded energy drinks. All-in-all I was very pleased with the taste and the energy boost that the Verve! (surgar free) energy drink provided me.

If you're looking for the added jolt to get the most out of your run, you might as well be putting good stuff in your body, not just caffeine. The only drawback is you won't find Verve! in your local convenient store; you have to order it online. Also, if you already take a lot of supplements, you need to make sure you're not overdoing when using Verve. Check out the Fox News clip on Verve! below.

For more scoop on the energy drink market as a whole, check out this clip from CBS News.