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They come in bright colors and fancy packaging, but do you really need to guzzle a sports drink to enhance your workout? We checked in with Monica Reinagel, chief nutritionist at www.nutritiondata.com for some answers.

“Studies show that for long-endurance athletes, drinking some carbohydrates or some sugar actually helps enhance performance, because it refuels the muscles,” says Reinagel. “There is another reason that people exercising for longer than an hour might benefit from a sports drink and that is if you are sweating hard for a long period of time, you are loosing a lot of salt in your sweat and that can start to be a problem and the other thing that sports drinks contain is sodium and electrolytes.”

So unless you're working out very hard, very long or in very hot conditions, stick to water. You'll save money and calories. A 20-ounce sport drink can contain between 125 and 250 calories.

Then there are the artificially-sweetened sports drinks.

“They obviously can't do anything to replenish your muscles because they've taken the sugar out, but they are lower in calories,” says Reinagel. “So if you are using a sport drink just as way to get more fluids and the flavor helps you drink more then the lower-calorie options maybe helpful. But again water is really the ideal beverage for most people who are working out.”

If flavor is what you need to stay hydrated, just add some lemon to your water or a little bit of fruit juice. That way you can replenish your body without polluting it with artificial sweeteners.

So what about vitamin water?

“Having some vitamins dissolved in the water is not going to make a difference in your workout,” says Reinagel. “It can be a way to get some vitamins, but really if you are taking a multivitamin every day you are not getting any extra benefit.”

The latest trend in sports drinks promises protein with each sip, but how promising is it for your workout?

“The most recent studies show that having protein in a sports drink doesn't actually enhance your performance at all,” says Reinagel. “The time you need protein is after your workout. If you worked out very strenuously, protein can help you rebuild the muscles and help you recover.”

With this in mind, Reinagel says you can consider other options to get in your protein. So when it comes to the choice of drink for your workout, less can be a lot more.

For more information on sports drinks, you can go online to nutritiondata.com.