There are some products you are introduced to through work that quietly make their way into your own life. HIRO is one of them.
At our recent Autumn Equinox evening at Bowland House, we talked a lot about intention.
The intention behind what we eat. How we move. The people we surround ourselves with. The rituals we create. And, perhaps most importantly, those small things we can do every day that cumulatively make us feel better.
It was therefore incredibly fitting that HIRO Hydration joined us as one of our goodie bag gifting partners.
Our guests left Bowland House with some rather lovely things, but HIRO was one of those gifts that I subsequently found myself actually using. And using again.
It has now become one of my new favourites.
And if you know me, you will know that I have always been a huge fan of electrolytes.
They aren’t a new wellness discovery for me. I have used them for years because I genuinely notice the difference in how I feel when I am properly hydrated. Personally, I find I feel less puffy and less prone to that feeling of holding onto water, my body feels better hydrated, and perhaps most noticeably, I feel as though I can think more clearly.
There is something about being properly hydrated that, for me, changes the way I feel almost immediately. Particularly on those long days when I am travelling, styling, working on events or simply running from one thing to another.
So when I discovered HIRO, they were already speaking my language.
Because while I love the idea of wellness, I am far more interested in wellness that actually fits into real life.
And this does.
Hydration, but make it grown-up
I have tried a lot of electrolyte drinks over the years and, if I am completely truthful, I’ve often struggled with the taste.
Too sweet. Too salty. Too synthetic. Too reminiscent of something you would drink from a fluorescent sports bottle after running a marathon.
HIRO feels very different.
The tablets dissolve into water to create something light and refreshing, with three genuinely sophisticated flavour combinations: Lemon & Elderflower, Watermelon and Ginger & Lemongrass.
And perhaps this is the secret.
If something tastes lovely, you actually want to drink it.
It sounds ridiculously simple, but so many wellness products ask us to endure something in the name of being good for ourselves.
HIRO doesn’t.
Lemon & Elderflower is crisp, elegant and fresh. Watermelon is lighter and less confectionery-like than you might expect. And Ginger & Lemongrass is probably the most unusual of the three: aromatic, slightly warming and wonderfully grown-up.
They feel less like a sports supplement and more like something I would happily order at a spa.
So, what exactly are electrolytes?
We hear the word electrolytes constantly, but what are they actually doing?
Essentially, electrolytes are electrically charged minerals involved in some very fundamental processes within the body, including maintaining fluid balance and supporting normal nerve and muscle function.
And this is something I think we sometimes misunderstand about hydration.
It isn’t simply about drinking more and more water.
Minerals including sodium and potassium are involved in regulating fluid balance within the body. We also lose electrolytes through sweat, which is one reason they have traditionally been associated with exercise.
For me, however, electrolytes are simply part of everyday hydration.
Yes, after Pilates. Yes, after exercise. But also after travelling, during an incredibly busy working day, after a flight, when it’s hot, or simply on one of those mornings when I know I haven’t been looking after myself quite as well as I should.
What’s actually inside HIRO?
This was the part I wanted to understand properly.
A serving of two HIRO tablets provides potassium, chloride, magnesium, sodium, zinc and manganese.
Potassium contributes to normal muscle and nervous-system function and the maintenance of normal blood pressure.
Then there is magnesium, one of those minerals that seems to appear in almost every modern conversation around wellbeing, but with good reason. Magnesium contributes to normal muscle and nervous-system function, normal energy-yielding metabolism and the reduction of tiredness and fatigue.
Chloride is another electrolyte, while sodium plays an important role in maintaining normal fluid balance and is one of the minerals we lose through sweat.
HIRO also includes zinc, which contributes to the normal function of the immune system and protection of cells from oxidative stress, alongside manganese, which contributes to normal energy-yielding metabolism and the maintenance of normal bones and connective tissue.
In other words, there is rather more going on inside that fizzy little tablet than you might initially imagine.
And I think transparency around that matters. This isn’t a magic potion, nor do I think any wellness product should be presented as one. It is simply an incredibly convenient way of adding a measured combination of electrolytes and minerals to your water.
Why I notice the difference
Hydration is one of those things we tend not to think about until we’re not doing it properly.
For me, the signs are quite obvious.
I feel more sluggish. I don’t feel as sharp. My body can feel puffier and, bizarrely, simply drinking more plain water doesn’t always leave me feeling as though I am genuinely hydrated.
This is why I have gravitated towards electrolytes for such a long time.
When I incorporate them into my day, I personally feel that my body handles hydration differently. I feel less puffy, I feel more hydrated and, importantly, my head feels clearer.
There is science behind the broader connection between hydration and cognitive performance too: dehydration can affect things such as concentration, alertness and cognitive performance. That doesn’t mean an electrolyte tablet is a magic brain booster, but it does reinforce something I have instinctively felt for years – our brains, as well as our bodies, notice when we’re not properly hydrated.
And on a day when I might be making a hundred decisions before lunchtime, I’ll take every sensible hydration habit I can get.
Why I’ve started reaching for HIRO
My days can be ridiculous.
I can be styling, travelling, on a train between Manchester and London, running an event at Bowland House, sitting in back-to-back meetings, doing Pilates, getting on a flight or realising at four o’clock that the coffee I drank that morning doesn’t technically count as lunch.
We’ve all been there.
And it is remarkably easy during those days to forget the basics.
HIRO recommends dissolving two tablets in around 300ml of water. That tiny ritual has become something I genuinely look forward to.
A bottle of water suddenly feels less like something I should drink and more like something I actually want.
There is also something wonderfully portable about them. A tube goes into a handbag, gym bag or suitcase without any thought at all.
For travel in particular, these are becoming a permanent fixture in mine.
The flavour question matters more than you think
I keep coming back to taste because I think this is where HIRO has been rather clever.
Wellness has finally grown up.
We don’t necessarily want everything berry-flavoured, neon-coloured and screaming SPORTS NUTRITION at us.
HIRO’s flavour combinations feel considered.
Lemon & Elderflower has that lovely botanical freshness that makes it almost feel like a summer cordial without the syrupy sweetness.
Ginger & Lemongrass feels more aromatic and sophisticated. It’s probably the one I would choose when travelling or when I want something that feels a little more restorative.
And Watermelon is fresh and easy, the crowd pleaser.
The result is something subtle enough to drink throughout the day rather than something you have to gulp down because it’s supposedly good for you.
And that distinction is important.
Why HIRO made sense at Bowland House
Looking back, I also think this is precisely why the partnership worked so beautifully for our Autumn Equinox evening.
Bowland House is increasingly becoming a place where I want to explore a different idea of luxury.
Not simply luxury as things, but luxury as how we feel.
Time.
Space.
Movement.
Nature.
Good food.
Music.
Community.
And taking care of ourselves properly.
Our Equinox evening was built around exactly those ideas: yoga, candlelight, live strings, beautiful surroundings and a moment to acknowledge the changing season.
The goodie bags weren’t intended to be bags of random products. I wanted the brands involved to have some relationship to the experience we were creating.
HIRO did.
After an evening centred around movement and wellbeing, sending everyone home with something encouraging them to think about hydration felt incredibly natural.
And, rather wonderfully, I ended up finding a new version of something I already believed in.
The Voyages & Vanity verdict
There is an enormous amount of noise in wellness.
Every week there seems to be another powder, potion, supplement or morning ritual we’re told we absolutely cannot live without.
So I have become increasingly selective.
For me, the things that stay are usually the simplest.
They have to be easy.
They have to fit into my life rather than require me to reorganise my life around them.
They have to actually make me feel good.
And ideally, they have to feel a little bit lovely too.
HIRO ticks those boxes.
I was already an electrolyte devotee. What HIRO has done is create a version I genuinely enjoy drinking.
I love the considered flavours. I love that I can throw a tube into my handbag. I love that it turns drinking water into a small daily ritual rather than another thing on the to-do list.
Most of all, I love that my introduction to it came through an evening celebrating the Autumn Equinox, a moment that, for me, has always represented recalibration, new beginnings and deciding what we want to take with us into the next season.
Apparently, I’m taking electrolytes.
And this little HIRO is coming with me.
Discover the full HIRO range and find your new daily hydration ritual. Go and explore their products, flavours and wellness essentials here: HIRO: Daily Electrolyte Tablets & Superfood Blends + Protein/Collagen
With love,
Gemma x