Plain sparkling-water cans can be a drink for training days, but they are not a source of carbohydrate fuel. For longer runs, plan carbohydrate separately and practise drinking what you intend to use while running. Before buying a multipack, check that it contains cans and read the nutrition panel, particularly if the drink is flavoured.
A portioned sparkling-water multipack may suit you for drinking around routine training. Keep it separate from any carbohydrate plan for longer runs: World Athletics identifies carbohydrate intake as a consideration in endurance events.
Choose the carbohydrate sources and drinks you intend to use while moving, then rehearse the combination. World Athletics’ distance-running nutrition guidance emphasises balancing fluid and carbohydrate intake against practical opportunities and gut discomfort.
Try the drink during an ordinary training session before relying on it for a demanding run. If carbonation feels uncomfortable, plan a still alternative rather than making an untested can part of your run-day routine.
Decide whether the drink is for ordinary fluid intake or part of your fuelling plan, then check the individual can and the full pack.
Choose it when: You want a fizzy drink around training and are planning any long-run carbohydrate intake separately.
Bear in mind: Plain sparkling water is not carbohydrate fuel, and you should test whether fizz suits you while running.
Choose it when: You deliberately want a drink that contributes carbohydrate and have checked the particular can’s label.
Bear in mind: Its carbohydrate content varies by product, so it cannot automatically stand in for your planned fuel.
Choose them when: You are practising how to take carbohydrate during a longer run.
Bear in mind: Rehearse the amount and timing alongside your fluid plan; World Athletics’ distance-running guidance notes that gut comfort and opportunities to consume fuel matter.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| Carbohydrate | Read carbohydrate and sugars on the nutrition panel, using the stated unit and the amount you will drink. For longer endurance activity, World Athletics shows 30–60 g carbohydrate per hour for 1–2.5 hours and up to 90 g per hour beyond 2.5 hours; an individual plan still needs practice. | I need to know whether this drink contributes to my long-run fuel or is simply something to drink alongside it. |
| Comfort | Check the can size and whether you can close it after opening. Try the exact drink, amount and timing in training before counting on it during a demanding run. | If fizz bothers me while running, I want a still drink available instead. |
| Sweat losses | Read any stated sodium or mineral content rather than assuming mineral water replaces salt. The Health and Safety Executive’s workplace heat guidance notes that replacing lost sweat with water alone does not replace lost salt. | For a sweaty session, I want to distinguish the fluid I am carrying from anything else in my practised plan. |
| Pack format | Confirm cans or bottles, the number of units and the volume of each. Sainsbury’s and Tesco list sparkling-water multipacks in bottles, so the word ‘multipack’ does not establish the container type. | I want individual cans, not a bottle pack that happens to appear in the same sparkling-water category. |
Plain sparkling water can be a fluid choice, but it does not provide the carbohydrate addressed in World Athletics’ longer-event fuelling guidance.
Plan carbohydrate from drinks, gels or food separately for a longer run, and check the nutrition panel if you expect a canned drink to contribute.
UK listings from Sainsbury’s and Tesco include bottled sparkling-water multipacks; the pack description matters more than the category name.
Check the container, unit count and volume on the exact listing before ordering.
A long-run fluid and fuelling plan needs to work in practice. World Athletics’ distance-running guidance identifies gut discomfort as one factor to balance when rehearsing that plan.
Trial the drink and timing in training, and keep a still option if carbonation feels uncomfortable.
Formulations differ: Marks & Spencer lists apple juice and sugar in its Sparkling British Apple Spring Water, with 7.6 g carbohydrate per 100 g.
Read the ingredients and nutrition panel of the particular drink rather than relying on ‘water’ or ‘sparkling’ in its name.
A brand name alone does not establish that a particular UK multipack contains plain sparkling water in cans; check the format on the individual listing.
A sparkling natural mineral-water option listed in UK supermarket multipacks.
Perrier describes its carbonated mineral water in a slim-can format.
A sparkling-water brand with bottled multipacks listed by UK supermarkets.
A retailer whose sparkling-water category includes branded multipacks.
A retailer with own-label and branded sparkling-water multipacks.
A retailer listing a 330 ml Sparkling British Apple Spring Water can.
These multipacks offer plain or orange-infused sparkling water in cans for drinking around training. Choose any carbohydrate fuel for longer runs separately, and check whether the can size and opening suit how you plan to carry and drink it.
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A plain sparkling-water option for drinking around training, with carbohydrate fuel planned separately for longer runs. The pack contains 12 × 500 ml resealable cans; test whether fizz suits you before taking it on a demanding run.
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A plain sparkling-water option in smaller individual cans for drinking around training, not a substitute for planned long-run fuel. The pack contains 24 × 330 ml ring-pull cans; if you need to close a can between sips, check the opening before choosing it.
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An orange-infused sparkling-water option if you prefer flavour around training. The pack contains 12 × 330 ml cans; read its nutrition panel if you intend a flavoured drink to contribute to a carbohydrate plan, and trial the fizz before relying on it while running.
No: plain sparkling water can be a fluid choice, but it is not carbohydrate fuel. World Athletics shows 30–60 g carbohydrate per hour for endurance activity lasting 1–2.5 hours and up to 90 g per hour beyond 2.5 hours; practise a fuelling plan suited to your run rather than relying on the water.
Take it only if you have tried that drink while running and find it comfortable. If fizz does not suit you, use a still alternative; for substantial sweating, remember that fluid and salt are separate considerations. The Health and Safety Executive makes that distinction in its workplace heat guidance, which is not a running-specific prescription.
Not automatically: compare the can’s stated carbohydrate content with your practised hourly plan and consider what else you will take. For example, Marks & Spencer lists 7.6 g carbohydrate per 100 g for its Sparkling British Apple Spring Water, but that figure alone does not establish how the can fits your plan.