Life
Just because you're hitting the gym doesn't mean you have to give up on your Starbucks habit. All you need to do is make conscious decisions about what you order immediately before and after a workout, to make sure your body gets the nutrients it needs. The best Starbucks drinks for a workout are from all over the menu, and are seriously delicious.
The most important thing to drink before, during, and after a workout is always water. Being hydrated is always important, but especially so if you're breaking a sweat. But if you're looking for an extra boost, drinking things that will keep you hydrated will adding the maximum benefits of their added ingredients.
Obviously, you know how great Starbucks is anytime of day, but the chain also offers a few drinks that secretly have workout benefits. While Starbucks doesn't expressly suggest these drinks for your workout, looking at their ingredients and nutritional facts reveals how they can be beneficial for your exercise regimen. From upping your performance to aiding your recovery, choosing wisely from the Starbucks menu can have a subtle, positive effect on your sweat sesh.
Alongside drinking water and choosing one of these workout-enhancing drinks, make sure you eat some nutrient-rich foods, and get the rest you need. You deserve the self-care benefits of working out to carry you through the day. Here are five Starbucks drinks can be helpful for a workout.
1
Green Tea
Green tea has some major benefits that make it the perfect drink for before or after a workout. On a macro level, green tea helps your heart, which is major for workouts. But if you have other workout-related concerns, it is also good to know that green tea can clear up your skin too.
If you're looking to tap into the health benefits of green tea, then, around your workout, try ordering Starbuck's Teavana Emperors Cloud And Mist Green Tea, which can be enjoyed hot or iced.
2
Starbucks® Refreshers™ - Black Cherry Limeade with Coconut Water
This option from the Starbucks refrigerator section is the Black Cherry Limeade with Coconut Water. This drink, which you can get the benefits of both before and after a workout, includes the benefits of both cherry juice and coconut water.
Tart cherry juice pre-workout can help ease muscle soreness, and coconut water after a workout has potassium to replace lost electrolytes. While this refresher has a bunch of other ingredients and the cherry juice is from concentrate, this can be a nice choice if you're looking for something sweet but not harmful to your workout plan.
3
Matcha Green Tea Latte
For all the perks of drinking green tea, matcha seems to multiply them. The health benefits of matcha include calming and cancer-preventing properties. If your workout has revved you up, the Starbucks Matcha Green Tea Latte can help calm you while giving you a slow-releasing boost of caffeine for the rest of your day. Available hot or iced, this tea latte can have even more workout perks if you replace regular milk with coconut milk (which some studies have found to be anti-inflammatory).
4
Almond Protein Blended Cold Brew
Starbucks protein blended cold drinks aren't like anything else on the menu. The may look a little bit like Frappuccinos, but they're a way better bet around a workout.
The Almond Protein Blended Cold Brew is available for a limited time, but it sounds amazing to try. This drink takes Starbucks go-to cold brew and blends in plant-based protein (pea protein and brown rice protein), a banana-date sweetener, almond butter, and almond milk, with ice. That's a pretty great post-workout treat.
5
A Plain Coffee
If tea isn't your thing, and other drinks sound too busy for you, having a plain coffee before a workout isn't going to harm you, and may actually help. TIME reports that a jolt of caffeine pre-workout can increase your energy levels (of course), and can make you more alert (so you can concentrate better on your form). Just make sure you're properly hydrating too. Try Starbucks' featured dark roast, with whatever mix-ins you typically take with your coffee.
6
Luckily, Starbucks lovers don't need to avoid their favorite coffee shop around workouts. Still, being strategic about what you order before or after hitting the gym will help ensure that you see as many benefits of your workout as possible.
