Best Non-Alcoholic Drinks for Runners

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It seems every year, when the Christmas season winds down and temperatures drop even further, our social media feeds become flooded with friends and acquaintances announcing their participation in Dry January. But these days, being sober-curious isn’t just a New Year’s challenge. According to a recent study, 61 percent of Gen Z and 49 percent of Millennials are trying to drink less in 2024, and one and three Americans tried mocktails in 2023.

When people I once witnessed pounding shots and performing impressive keg stands start posting about wellness milestones and sober PRs, it makes me want to roll my eyes and uncork a shiraz. But with age comes worsened hangovers, and you, too, might be tempted to cut back, even if it goes against every fiber of your competitive being. After all, athletes don’t do very well with moderation. They are used to pushing harder, faster, and higher. Unfortunately, that same drive can also translate to their approach to substances. Back in my younger days it wasn’t uncommon to stay up into the wee hours of the night (or morning) only to wake up early to compete in less than optimal circumstances.

These days, recovering from both a long night or a long run is a reminder that I can’t push it like I used to. Luckily for all of us “runners of a certain age” (Club ROCA?), there is now a burgeoning market for those interested in going dry, or at least, dryer. And Club ROCA, it turns out, is a pretty big group. According to the most recent Fleet Feet Running Report, which is based off of a survey of over 3,500 runners, the biggest piece of the running pie by a wide margin is those in the 35-44 age bracket (hello) at 32 percent.

So whether you are enjoying CBD infused gummies before a run, kicking back with a non-alcoholic brew after working up a sweat, or having an adaptogen-infused nightcap to unwind before the night before a race, there are plenty of options out there for the runner interested in living it up lite.

But are these substitutes enough to replace our favorite boozy beverages? Do they provide enough flavor and “buzz” to make this sober lifestyle shift stick? In order to find out, I went on a deep dive of the shallowest substances. It wasn’t Dry January, but it was certainly a Temperate June.

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Alcohol in Action

At the turn of the 20th century, it was common for runners to down champagne during a marathon for the energizing effect. The 1924 Paris Games featured wine as an option at hydration stations. Now, a century later, we’ve yet to completely shed these positive associations with alcohol in an athlete’s life. It’s not uncommon for people to assert that wine is healthy in moderation and that beer can be a replenishing part of a runner’s recovery process.

In Good to Go, journalist Christie Aschwanden’s 2019 exploration of the science of recovery, she examines the concept of beer as a performance beverage. When we spoke, she mentioned in the interest of full disclosure that she is married to a winemaker. “I have a vested interest in wanting alcohol to be good for you,” said Aschwanden, who found her own Dry January experience useful, but still appreciates unwinding with friends over a glass of wine. “But the idea that alcohol is a health benefit is increasingly looking like it’s not the case.”

Though wine does contain antioxidants that can reduce blood pressure, one would probably have to drink an abundance of it to impact the heart, and the overall would be a net negative. As the American Heart Association points out, studies that show a correlation between wine and a lesser risk of heart disease might reveal more about demographics than nutrition: if you drink a glass or two of wine a night you might also be someone that works out and watches their diet.

Indeed, a meta-analysis from 2023 that examined 107 studies turned out to be last call for those who still believed in the salutary effects of booze. Alcohol does not improve health. This sober reality is starting to dawn on consumers. According to a Gallup poll 39 percent of Americans now believe that consuming one to two drinks per day is bad for one’s health and 41 percent of Americans are trying to drink less alcohol in 2024.

Luckily for aspiring non-imbibers, a golden age of non-alcoholic options is upon us. Andrew Katz, the chief marketing officer of Athletic Brewing, which helped usher in this sober curious era, believes the NA renaissance is due to the dovetailing of tech and wellness after the lonely bacchanal that was Covid-19 lockdown.

“I think people started to reevaluate their relationship with alcohol,” said Katz. “People have more data from the wearables that give them feedback on recovery and the quality of their sleep, so they are more educated than ever before and are prioritizing their wellbeing over temporarily feeling good.”

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Athletic founder Bill Shufelt capitalized on this running/teetotaling venn diagram in the early days of his beverage company by driving up and down the East Coast to races, running them early, and then setting up Athletic tents after so participants could sample the product (which is, in fact, how he met Katz).

For European athletes, this kind of post-event consumption is not only social, but strategic. The German team at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang even gained notoriety for their commitment to non-alcoholic beer. The team doctor conducted a double-blind study (financed by a brewery, so take it with a grain of salt, or better yet a salty pretzel) that found that a steady diet of NA beer reduced inflammation and respiratory tract illness in runners of the 2009 Munich Marathon compared to those given a placebo.

Testing the (Non-Alcoholic) Waters

I didn’t have the resources to double-blind study myself, but I found that having NA beer in my fridge did help me remain dry-ish. I thoroughly enjoyed Partake Brewing’s Peach Gose while grilling at a family barbecue, and found the refreshing and tart flavor ideal for summer. And thanks to having a cold can in my hand while flipping burgers, I never felt the itch to have an actual beer, allowing me to stay fresh for a run the next day.

Athletic’s offerings also kept my thirst for alcohol at bay thanks to their full flavor, particularly the hazy Free Wave IPA. I was also surprised, when I mentioned Athletic to my New England IPA guzzling friends during my research phase, how many of them admitted to enjoying it. The day I interviewed Katz I was at a poolside picnic when a couple friends busted out cans of Athletic. “It’s all I drink now,” said my friend Kassie. “Why bother feeling like crap later?”

My friend Hunter Marston, who once dazzled us in college by finishing a 40 ounce bottle of malt liquor in under 60 seconds, and is now a middle of the pack ultrarunner, said, “A good crushable Kölsch is so perfect post run, and the fact that the NA beer game has improved so much in recent years makes it an easy substitute to get that fix.”

The other beverages I tried during Temperate June were NA spirits. The Three Spirit Nightcap was a nice summer alternative to a cocktail. During my daughter’s bedtime, I found myself looking forward to a pour of it the same way I might a whiskey nightcap, and the earthy, sweet flavor worked well over ice. Did the valerian root and ashwagandha (an adaptogen said to reduce anxiety) actually mellow me out, or was it the familiar ritual of ice clinking in glass, book in hand that did the trick? Does it matter?

I also tried Dromme’s Calm, which features adaptogens, and though the spicy flavor was enjoyable, that kind of kick didn’t quite give me the down regulation I was looking for. I did, however, feel great about the fact that I wasn’t sluggish the next morning.

Ultimately, the performance expectations one might have for a temperate approach may need to be tempered. “If it can help you cut your drinking down a little bit I’m all for that,” said Aschwanden. “but I think you need to be realistic and understand there’s no magic here.”

Runner’s High

When it comes to CBD, the evidence is somewhat…cloudy. A recent study published in Sports Medicine found that consuming CBD during endurance exercise had no significant effect on the subjective experience of the participants. A double-blind, placebo-controlled, repeated-dose study in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, which examined the impact of a CBD and CBG beverage powder on delayed onset muscle soreness, found a modest effect for those that used the powder, indicating such a formulation could aid recovery. Truth be told, however, there isn’t that much research on the correlation between CBD and performance yet, which has left it open to all kinds of claims.

“Any kind of benefit under the sun you can imagine has been attributed to CBD,” Aschwanden said. “Some people swear by it, but I think the science is pretty weak.”

That said, before all of my June runs, I took a CBD and CBG beverage powder from Offfield, a company that markets cannabinoid products to runners. Their drink packets, which claim to allow access to the runner’s high while fighting inflammation and fatigue and improving energy, feature 20 milligrams of CBD and CBG, as well as electrolytes and adaptogens.

Much like the participants of the above studies, it was hard to notice a subjective difference. I did happen to run my longest distance ever during this month while participating in the Last Human Standing backyard ultra in Rhode Island. The race consisted of four mile loops, and on the final lap of the race in which I established my PR (a whopping 12 miles) before tapping out, there was a moment I found myself alone on the trails, the pain in my knees peaking, the music in my earbuds hitting just right, and the breeze gently sifting through the leaves above. In other words, I felt good despite feeling bad.

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Most importantly, however, I have enjoyed the preparation that the ritual mixing of the elixir offers before a run. Whether it is providing me with increased energy and anti-inflammatory relief or not, I seem to believe that it is, and that belief was a boon to my summer running.

I also tried a CBD pain relief lotion called Melt CBD by Kush Queen. Like Icy Hot, one of the ingredients was menthol, so I was met with that familiar tingling, cooling sensation that felt like a balm on tired muscles. But aches and pains are part of Club ROCA, and it was hard to say whether the impact of the pain relief lotion lasted beyond the final tingle. Still, as with the CBD beverage powder, having a post-run recovery ritual was soothing in and of itself. And rituals, studies have shown, can have a small impact on performance.

The Middle Path

Ultimately, consuming less intoxicants is undoubtedly a healthy thing. Having explored the substance-adjacent offerings out there, I can say that temperance proved to be easier and tastier than I thought, and it’s a lifestyle I’m learning to embrace while still remaining committed to ordering a dirty martini any time I dine by the ocean.

“It’s not a zero sum game,” Katz reminded me. “Eighty percent of our customers also drink alcohol. A lot of people call Athletic a pacer beer. I might have my double IPA, but then I might have an Athletic because it’s satisfying.”

“Everyone’s looking for the secret trick, the one weird thing you can do that will change everything and boost your performance,” Aschwanden said. “The things that do that you can’t really purchase—proper sleep, hard training, and good rest.”

As is often the case, becoming a better runner doesn’t have to mean overhauling your lifestyle, but tweaking it to find the right balance. As my friend Hunter noted, “I haven’t necessarily said I’m going to cut back on booze so I can excel at running. More than anything the two are mutually reinforcing. If I like to run everyday, that requires a certain amount of recovery, and too many drinks is not conducive to feeling snappy on the trails.”

You can keep your Dry January. But I’ll offer a toast to Temperate June. So please raise a glass of…whatever you want. Just remember, at the end of the day, you get out what you put in.