Every drop of sweat tells a story.
Every drop of sweat tells a story. It’s more than water. More than salt. It’s a carefully regulated system of fluid, electrolytes, and amino acids—built by your body to maintain temperature, support function, and optimise your performance.
At InnovAAte, we’ve spent decades studying what sweat reveals about our bodies under pressure. That research has shaped every scoop of ElectrAAte® and OptimAAte®—helping athletes, tradies, and high-performers hydrate smarter, recover faster, and stay stronger.
Let’s break down what’s really happening when you sweat—and why it’s crucial to replace more than just fluids.
Sweat: Your Body’s Built-In Cooling System
Sweat is created by eccrine glands all over the body and secreted in response to heat or stress. As your core temperature rises—whether from movement, sun, or exertion—your nervous system triggers sweat production to help cool you down.
The sweat starts as “primary sweat fluid” made up of water, sodium, and chloride. But before it reaches your skin, your body starts pulling some of those key electrolytes back in—a process called resorption.
To reabsorb sodium and chloride, your body trades them for something else:
- Potassium
- Magnesium
- Calcium
- A unique group of six amino acids we call High-Demand Amino Acids (HDAA)
HDAA: The Amino Acids You Can’t Afford to Lose
Sweat doesn’t just cool you down—it depletes your body of resources.
In studies led by Professor Hugh Dunstan, sweat samples showed that six specific amino acids were lost in significantly higher amounts—especially during physical exertion. These High-Demand Amino Acids (HDAA) include both essential and non-essential amino acids that are critical for:
- Protein synthesis and muscle repair
- Energy production and metabolism
- Hormone and neurotransmitter balance
- Immune system support
These same amino acids are also heavily used during physical stress, meaning your body needs more of them—at this very moment it’s losing them through sweat.
What Happens If You Don’t Replace Them?
When HDAA levels drop and your body can’t get enough from your diet (especially during or right after exercise), it starts breaking down its own muscle proteins to meet demand. This process is called the catabolic response, and it can lead to:
Slower recovery
Muscle loss
Decreased performance
Increased fatigue
Drinking plain water doesn’t fix this—and in some cases, it can make things worse by diluting your remaining electrolyte stores.
Why Hydration Needs a New Formula
Hydration isn’t just about drinking more—it’s about replacing what’s actually lost.
Water → Replaces fluid
Electrolytes → Restore sodium, chloride, potassium, magnesium, calcium
HDAA → Replenish muscle-protecting, energy-building amino acids
That’s the science behind ElectrAAte® and OptimAAte®. Our formulations were built on over 30 years of biochemical research—including sweat composition analysis, amino acid turnover modelling, and published metabolic studies.
Faster Recovery Starts Here
Most hydration and recovery products only cover half the story. Ours complete the cycle by using Amino Acid-powered Hydration— supplying what your body truly needs, when it needs it most.
ElectrAAte® – Designed for before, during or after exertion. Replaces HDAA + electrolytes + fluid. HASTA Certified.
OptimAAte® – Ideal for daily recovery and support. Restores metabolic function and helps reduce the need for muscle breakdown.
- Free-Form amino acids for rapid absorption
- No caffeine, sugar, or artificial sweeteners
- HASTA Tested – Safe for athletes and professionals
Key Takeaways
→ Your body sacrifices HDAA and electrolytes to retain sodium and chloride during sweat production.
→ Exercising in heat can double sweat losses, increasing demands on your system.Replacing only water can worsen muscle cramping and delay recovery.
→ Free-form amino acids, like those in ElectrAAte® and OptimAAte®, are rapidly absorbed—even when digestion is impaired.
→ InnovAAte’s research shows that HDAA supplementation can reduce muscle protein breakdown, improve recovery, and help sustain performance across repeated exertion.
Built from Research. Proven in Performance.
Professor Hugh Dunstan and the InnovAAte research team have published peer-reviewed studies, created biological models of amino acid loss, and written educational eBooks to help everyone—from elite athletes to everyday exercisers—understand the true science of hydration and recovery.
When you understand your sweat, you understand your performance.