Summary: My top choices for the best energy drinks for cramps are XS Energy, Matchabar Hustle, and of course REIZE Energy!
If you tend to suffer from cramps and are looking for an energy drink that may help relieve it, you’ve come to the right place!
Although energy drinks aren’t an absolute solution for cramps, they could help make you stronger and more energised.
In this article, I’ll focus on discussing energy drinks and cramps in general. Also, I’ll tackle whether or not energy drinks are safe for you when you suffer from cramps.
Keep reading for the nitty gritty details!
Main Ingredients in Energy Drinks (that might cause cramps)
Let’s take a closer look at some of the commonly used ingredients in energy drinks – caffeine + sugar.
Caffeine
A typical energy drink has a caffeine content ranging from 50 to 300mg per standard serving.
Caffeine can boost your energy levels and makes you more alert, enabling you to stay awake and focused. It also improves physical performance which makes it a great workout buddy.
Caffeine may slow the blood flow in the blood vessel which can potentially make cramps worse. Therefore, it is suggested to go easy on caffeinated drinks such as energy drinks to avoid cramps and other symptoms.
The FDA recommends a maximum intake of caffeine of 400mg per day for healthy adults.
If you want to go caffeine-free with your energy drink, read here.
Sugar
Sugar is universally considered to be really unhealthy. It is also inflammatory which means it can make cramps worse.
Some people report that sugar consumption causes them to cramp.
Similar to caffeine, if you suffer from cramps, you might like to cut out sugar for a while to see if that helps.
Check here for my top recommendations for energy drinks without sugar.
Caffeine and Cramps
This study published in the American Journal of Medicine found that caffeine consumption may increase the frequency of cramps.
However, the study was limited to just one person, so it’s not overwhelming evidence one way or the other.
On balance, almost every study and piece of research available on the topic of caffeine and cramps suggests that caffeine can contribute to increased cramping.
While that is not in dispute, the rate that caffeine causes increased cramping seems to be fairly small compared to the rate of cramps without consuming caffeine.
Still, if cramps are a problem for you, you might like to experiment with cutting out caffeine for a while to see if it has any effect on the number of cramps that you experience.
As for period cramps, caffeine is a vasoconstrictor that causes your blood vessels to constrict, making the vessels around your uterus tighten, which in turn might result in worse period cramps.
Another study showed that there doesn’t appear to be any link between caffeine consumption and PMS.
However, keep in mind that different people metabolise caffeine at different rates. If you are very sensitive to caffeine, you may be more likely to have more cramps than someone who isn’t as sensitive to caffeine.
If in doubt, talk to your doctor.
Do BCAA’s in energy drinks help with muscle cramps?
Yes, branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) do help with muscle cramps in certain individuals.
This study of 8 individuals with cirrhosis of the liver found that BCAA supplementation had a significant impact on the frequency of muscle cramps.
Healthline also notes that BCAA’s can help reduce cramping for people with liver disease.
There isn’t much information available online about the impact that BCAA has on the frequency of cramping for individuals that don’t have liver disease or cirrhosis. This is a potential area for further clinical trials and testing that I would certainly be watching with a keen eye.
If you’re interested in conducting such a study, please contact me!
Another study published in the Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness found that BCAA’s don’t improve athletic performance, but can help with muscle recovery and the immune system.
What all of this means is that BCAAs certainly help with cramps if you have cirrhosis of the liver, and they probably don’t make cramps worse for you if you don’t have liver problems. Still, more research is needed on that.
Interestingly, the minimum effective dose of BCAA’s is 91mg per pound of body weight, per day (200mg per kg of body weight per day).
This means that an adult male that weighs 175 pounds would need about 16,000mg (16 grams) of BCAA’s to get the advertised benefits from taking them.
How to Prevent Cramps When Exercising
Warm-up
A simple warm-up before you exercise, lift weights, do cardio, or run a marathon can help regulate blood flow to your muscles, thus getting more nutrients and oxygen in and waste out faster.
This can decrease your chances of suffering from a cramp during or after exercise.
Pace Yourself
This study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine found that the only risk factors for cramps during exercise were:
- previous cramps within the last 10 days, and
- the pace that the athlete raced at
The study also looked at electrolyte depletion and dehydration but did not find any correlation between either of them and the frequency of cramps.
The key takeaway points for me from this study are that if you push yourself too much, you’re more likely to reach the point of muscle exhaustion and cramps.
If you pace yourself and never go too hard, the chance of cramping is much lower.
Track Your Caffeine Intake
What you consume before you exercise may play a role too in whether you end up with a cramp or not.
In relation to energy drinks, too much caffeine may cause muscle cramps.
This paper suggests that caffeine may contribute to muscle cramps due to the increased rate of magnesium loss after consuming caffeine and exercising.
However, moderate amounts of caffeine are definitely beneficial for exercise performance. Overall, you’ll need to weigh the performance benefits that come from caffeine against the small risk of increased cramping.
Remember that your total caffeine intake includes caffeine from all sources.
Tea, coffee, energy drinks, sodas, chocolate, and any other food or drink products may all contain caffeine.
Does Red Bull cause cramping?
Red Bull may be a slight risk factor for increased cramping, but the impact it has is likely to be fairly small.
Red Bull contains a moderate amount of caffeine, with 80mg per can. This amount is unlikely to cause you much of a problem.
However, as outlined above, almost all studies of caffeine and cramps suggest that caffeine does contribute to the increased frequency of cramps. With that in mind, Red Bull may contribute to an increased frequency of cramping.
Also, regular Red Bull contains 27g of sugar per can.
Sugar can increase cramping frequency. Therefore, Red Bull may increase the chance of you suffering from cramps.
I personally would not suggest drinking Red Bull just for the high amount of sugar and calories, 27g and 110 respectively.
I’ve written extensively about Red Bull, including this very detailed post about whether or not Red Bull is bad for you which you should check out after reading this article.
Fun fact, did you know that Red Bull was once banned in France?
Also, if you’re wondering what the difference is between Red Bull and Monster, I covered everything you need to know in my other article.
For a more detailed view, here’s what a can of Red Bull contains.
| Ingredients | Amount |
| Caffeine | 80 mg |
| Calories | 110 cal |
| Glucuronolactone | 600 mg |
| Niacin (Vitamin B3) | 5.1 µg |
| Pantothenic acid (Vitamin B5) | 5.1 µg |
| Pyridoxine (Vitamin B6) | 5 mg |
| Cobalamin (Vitamin B12) | 5.1 µg |
Can energy drinks help when I have a cramp?
Energy drinks probably won’t help you when you have cramps.
Energy drinks contain caffeine, which is likely to contribute to increased cramps.
Many energy drinks also contain sugar, which is also bad for cramps.
Therefore, when you are suffering from cramps, it’s probably a good idea to give energy drinks a miss for a while.
This Harvard study mentions that sports drinks might be a better choice than energy drinks with regard to reducing cramps because they contain electrolytes like sodium and potassium.
I can’t argue with that.
However, I’ll mention the same study that I mentioned above again because I find it so interesting.
According to this study, the level of electrolytes doesn’t have any impact on the frequency of cramps during exercise.
That’s certainly interesting and I would like to see further studies on this in the future.
Other Drinks to Help With Cramps
Green Tea
Although green tea has caffeine in it, it’s a more mild dose than most coffee and energy drinks and therefore probably a better option for cramps.
A cup of hot green tea is soothing and filled with antioxidants that can also help you power through your menstrual cramps.
Peppermint Tea
Peppermint tea is also a good option to help with period cramps.
It’s a caffeine-free, herbal concoction yummy enough to soothe and relax your uterine muscles that cause menstrual cramps.
Energy Drinks for Cramps
BCAA Energy Drink by Nutrend
This drink is marketed more like a pre-workout, but the ingredients make it an energy drink in my opinion, so I’ll list it here.
Often the difference between an energy drink and a pre-workout is quite hard to determine, but this looks to be an energy drink aimed at the fitness crowd as far as I can tell.
It has zero sugar and 100mg of caffeine and is recommended to be taken 20-30 minutes before exercise.
It also has 5000mg of BCAA’s, which can help some people with cramps (as outlined above in this article).
XS Energy Drink
XS Energy Drink has 80mg of caffeine, with only 10 calories and zero sugar.
This is a sensible caffeine content and probably wouldn’t be a major concern for cramps while providing a nice energy boost.
XS Energy Drink also has 2 caffeine-free options:
- caffeine-free cranberry-grape blast
- caffeine-free mango pineapple guava
MATCHABAR HUSTLE
This is a healthier option and matcha flavoured. I personally like matcha-flavoured products, so this gets a thumbs-up from me.
Aside from being sugar-free, it only contains 5 calories per can.
However, with 120mg of caffeine, it might be a little more caffeine than you want if you’re concerned about the risk of cramps.
REIZE Energy Drink (10 out of 10)
Here’s my all-time favourite.
REIZE Energy Drink has just 50mg of caffeine – probably not enough to cause any concern with regard to cramps, but enough to give me a great energy boost and get me into the “optimal zone” of concentration and performance.
The caffeine works together with a unique blend of taurine, ginseng, and B-group vitamins to give you a long-lasting energy boost, with no crash.
Also, it’s sugar-free, and with just 11 calories, you don’t need to feel guilty when you have one.
Perhaps best of all, REIZE ships right to your door for around $1 per drink, including shipping.
That’s amazing value for money.
Try REIZE Energy Drink today, and you might find that it’s the best energy drink for cramps.