Our Story
At Active Root we're committed to delivering delicious, natural, eco-friendly, ginger-based sports nutrition.
Whether you're a seasoned ironman, a keen ultra runner or training for your 1st park run, our drinks and gels are crafted to help improve your performance.
All of our products are suitable for vegetarian, vegan, gluten and dairy free diets.
OUR ETHOS
GINGER: We use natural root ginger in all our nutrition products. Ginger is scientifically proven to help prevent bloating, nausea and stomach discomfort during exercise, thereby allowing athletes to focus on their performance rather than their stomach.
NATURAL: We only use simple, high quality natural ingredients. You won't find any unpronounceable nasties in our products. We believe natural ingredients help maintain a settled stomach, which provide more predictable results, avoiding the dreaded gut bomb!
ECO-FRIENDLY: Part of our ethos at Active Root is to bring you sports nutrition that reduces and reuses plastic. We offer compostable refill pouches for all our products and our Gel Mix removes the need for single use plastic gel wrappers. Join us and reduce your carbon footprint.
DELICIOUS: All of our products have a clean, light refreshing taste that leaves you wanting more. We know you want your sports nutrition to taste clean and delicious, rather than refuelling & rehydrating with something that you don’t like the taste of!
OUR HISTORY
AN IDEA ON THE RUN: Active Root was formed by Edinburgh based sports enthusiasts Will Townsend and George Ashley. Will, a keen marathon runner, often complained that mainstream sports drinks upset his stomach during races. He knew there must be a better way of staying hydrated and energised without the accompanying side effects of nausea and stomach problems...
ALL ABOUT GINGER: ...He remembered that his Mum had given him ginger beer to cure stomach ailments when he was a child. He wondered if there might be a way to get the benefits of ginger into a sports drink. After much trial and error in the kitchen, they came up with a starting recipe!
GINGER THE FOX: The Active Root mascot is Ginger the fox. We chose Ginger after an encounter with a fox on the Edinburgh Meadows during a tasting session. He shot across the grass at a rate of knots, avoiding dogs and pedestrians then sprang over a wall. We were impressed! Now he is our good luck charm at all events we do!
SMALL UK BUSINESS: Our office is near Edinburgh and Active Root is actually made just across the road in Glasgow. We absolutely love supporting local running, cycling and triathlon clubs as well as supporting endurance events, particularly ultra-relays where we've be known to race and support at the same time!
Some of the frequent questions we get asked explained
FAQ
WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF GINGER?
Ginger has been used to cure nausea and sea sickness since ancient Chinese times. However, until now, its athletic performance benefits have never been properly applied. Active Root uses natural root ginger in all its products to help soothe the stomach and prevent gastric discomfort before, during and after exercise. Studies have shown that 30%-50% of endurance athletes suffer from gastrointestinal (GI) discomfort.
That’s hardly surprising given the impact on the body of activities such as running, cycling and swimming. Further information on how ginger can make you feel better during exercise are in our science section.
WHAT INGREDIENTS DOES ACTIVE ROOT CONTAIN?
All ingredients in Active Root are familiar and natural: our base is always unbleached cane sugar, citric acid, sea salt and natural root ginger. We have configured these ingredients into a formula that helps keep the body balanced, fuelled and hydrated for longer than similar products. All our products are completely free of artificial sweeteners, preservatives and colours.
IS ACTIVE ROOT VEGAN?
Yes! All the ingredients in Active Root are suitable for vegans and are produced using methods that do not introduce or use meat or derivatives of meat. Our products are manufactured under strict hygiene guidelines where no contaminants can be introduced to the recipe.
WHEN DO I DRINK ACTIVE ROOT?
Active Root can be drunk before, during and after exercise.
- Sports Drink Mix is designed for pre and during.
- Electrolite Drink Mix is designed for day to day, pre and during.
- Energy Chews are designed for day to day, pre and during.
- Energy Gel Mix is designed for pre and during
- Hot Recovery Mix is designed for post.
WHAT'S THE BEST WAY TO GET ACTIVE ROOT TO DISSOLVE?
All Active Root powders are designed to dissolve rapidly into water.
Simply add the required amount of powder to your bottle or soft flask and shake for 30 seconds or more. In the case of a soft flask it can be squeezed to ensure all areas of the powder are dissolved into the water.
Active Root contains all natural sugars therefore it doesn't leave a nasty residue in your bottles.
WHERE CAN I BUY ACTIVE ROOT?
You can buy Active Root online, at high street retailers and at events.