Thirty days. Every morning, a glass of alkaline water before coffee. Every workout, a bottle of pH 9.5 instead of whatever came out of the tap. I tracked how I felt, looked at the research, talked to a sports dietitian, and came out the other end with an opinion nobody in the alkaline water space

You’ve probably seen it at the gym, on wellness Instagram, in the fridge at the upscale café where a bottle costs four dollars. Alkaline water. The label promises better hydration, acid neutralization, anti-aging properties, improved athletic performance. Sometimes it comes with a mountain on it and the word “ionized.” Sometimes it’s just a pH number