DYVAL PERFORM was created specifically with young athletes in mind.
That isn't simply a marketing statement. From the beginning, the product was developed around the nutritional considerations of active children and teenagers who are training, competing, sweating and recovering while their bodies are also growing and developing.
Young athletes are not simply smaller adults.
Sports Dietitians Australia recognises that adolescent athletes have unique nutritional requirements because they are managing the demands of regular training and competition at the same time as the nutritional demands of growth and development.
That principle was an important part of the thinking behind DYVAL PERFORM.
Rather than taking an existing adult sports nutrition formula and marketing it to teenagers, we wanted to create a simple, carefully considered hydration product specifically for young athletes and their families.
Why we created DYVAL PERFORM
The idea for DYVAL PERFORM came from our own experience as sporting parents.
Our son Jake trains and plays football regularly, often in hot Australian conditions. We wanted something convenient he could take to training and games that would support his hydration without relying on highly sweetened drinks or products containing ingredients we didn't feel he needed.
When we looked at many traditional sports and performance drinks, we couldn't find the combination we wanted - a product created specifically with young athletes in mind, with carefully selected mineral sources, very little sugar, no caffeine, no artificial sweeteners and no artificial flavours.
So we created it.
The result is DYVAL PERFORM.
What makes the formulation appropriate for young athletes?
1. Hydration is particularly important for active young people
Young athletes need access to adequate fluid before, during and after sport.
Sports Dietitians Australia recommends that adolescent athletes have access to sufficient fluids before, during and after participation in sport. Guidance for junior athletes also emphasises frequent drinking around exercise, particularly during prolonged activity and in hot conditions.
This is one of the fundamental reasons DYVAL PERFORM exists.
It provides young athletes with an easy-to-prepare, great-tasting drink that can form part of their hydration routine around training and competition.
2. It provides sodium lost through sweat
Sweat contains both water and electrolytes, including sodium.
Sodium is therefore commonly included in sports drinks designed for use around exercise. The Australian Institute of Sport notes that sports drinks typically contain sodium alongside fluid and carbohydrate as part of their formulation.
Each serve of DYVAL PERFORM provides 278.1 mg of sodium, with Lake Deborah salt included as one of the formula's mineral sources.
Rather than simply trying to put as much sodium as possible into the product, the formulation was developed to provide a considered amount within a drink designed for young athletes.
3. It contains magnesium to support normal electrolyte balance and muscle function
Each serve of DYVAL PERFORM provides 73.1 mg of magnesium, equivalent to 23% of the Recommended Dietary Intake (RDI).
Magnesium contributes to normal electrolyte balance, normal muscle function and normal energy metabolism.
DYVAL PERFORM uses marine-derived Aquamin magnesium as its magnesium source.
This was part of our broader formulation philosophy - selecting quality mineral sources rather than building the product around an extensive list of performance ingredients.
4. It provides calcium
Each serve contains 91.9 mg of calcium, providing 11% of the RDI.
Calcium is particularly relevant during adolescence because this is an important period for growth and bone development. Sports Dietitians Australia specifically identifies calcium as one of the nutrients that warrants particular consideration in adolescent athletes.
DYVAL PERFORM uses AlgaeCal, a marine plant-derived source of calcium.
Importantly, PERFORM isn't intended to replace a balanced diet or the calcium young athletes should obtain from food. It simply contributes calcium as part of its mineral blend.
5. It includes potassium
Potassium is another mineral involved in normal body function and electrolyte balance.
Each serve of DYVAL PERFORM provides 151.3 mg of potassium, primarily contributed through ingredients including organic coconut water powder.
We deliberately use factual nutrient information here rather than making a specific potassium nutrition claim, as the amount in PERFORM is below the level required for such a claim under Australian food regulations.
6. Coconut water powder forms the foundation of the formula
Organic coconut water powder makes up approximately 70% of the DYVAL PERFORM formulation.
Coconut water naturally contains minerals, making it a logical foundation for the type of clean hydration product we wanted to create.
Rather than beginning with sugar and artificial colours or flavours and then adding nutrients, we approached PERFORM from the opposite direction - starting with carefully selected ingredients and building the formula from there.
Approximately 74% of the ingredients in DYVAL PERFORM are certified organic.
7. It is low in sugar
One of our biggest priorities was avoiding the unnecessary amount of sugar found in many sweet drinks.
Each serve of DYVAL PERFORM contains just 0.7 g of sugar.
This is intentional.
The Australian Dietary Guidelines recommend limiting foods and drinks containing added sugars, including sugar-sweetened sports drinks.
We therefore wanted PERFORM to provide young athletes with a flavoured hydration option without making a large amount of sugar the foundation of the product.
8. No artificial sweeteners or artificial flavours
We wanted the ingredient philosophy behind PERFORM to be something parents could easily understand.
That's why DYVAL PERFORM contains:
- No artificial sweeteners
- No artificial flavours
- No caffeine
- Low sugar
- Food-derived and marine-derived mineral sources
- Plant-derived B vitamins
- Certified organic ingredients
This isn't because every artificial ingredient is inherently "bad". It reflects the philosophy behind DYVAL - if we can formulate an effective, great-tasting product for young athletes using carefully selected ingredients, that's the approach we prefer to take.
9. No caffeine
DYVAL PERFORM contains no caffeine.
This was a deliberate decision.
PERFORM isn't an energy drink and isn't intended to stimulate young athletes.
Sports Dietitians Australia junior athlete guidance states that caffeinated energy drinks are not suitable for children.
We wanted PERFORM to focus on hydration and nutrition rather than stimulants.
10. Plant-derived B vitamins
DYVAL PERFORM also contains a blend of plant-derived B vitamins from Panmol.
These include vitamins B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, folate, B12 and biotin.
Rather than adding extremely high doses, the formula provides considered amounts across the B-vitamin group.
For example, one serve provides:
Vitamin B1: 14% RDI
Vitamin B2: 10% RDI
Vitamin B3: 20% RDI
Vitamin B5: 20% RDI
Vitamin B6: 12% RDI
Folate: 10% RDI
Vitamin B12: 30% RDI
Biotin: 100% RDI
The formulation has been designed to complement a young athlete's normal diet - not replace it.
Why didn't we simply create another adult sports drink?
This is an important part of the DYVAL philosophy.
Young athletes already have enormous amounts of sports marketing directed towards them, but many sports nutrition products have been developed primarily for adult consumers.
We wanted to start somewhere different.
Instead of asking:
"How do we make an adult performance product appealing to teenagers?"
We asked:
"If we were creating a hydration product specifically for our own children and other young athletes, what would we want in it - and what wouldn't we want in it?"
That influenced everything from the amount of sugar to the absence of caffeine, the choice of mineral sources, the use of organic ingredients and the overall simplicity of the formulation.
Food and water still come first
DYVAL PERFORM isn't intended to replace water or a nutritious diet.
In fact, this is another important principle behind the brand.
Sports Dietitians Australia recommends a food-first approach for adolescent athletes and emphasises that their nutrition should support both long-term health and sporting demands.
We agree.
Young athletes should be eating a varied diet containing quality carbohydrates, protein, healthy fats, fruit, vegetables, dairy or suitable alternatives and other nutrient-rich foods, while drinking plenty of water.
PERFORM has been created as a convenient option to use as part of that bigger picture.
Created for young athletes. Designed with parents in mind.
Ultimately, DYVAL PERFORM exists because we wanted a product we would be completely comfortable giving to our own children.
A product designed around the needs and lifestyles of young athletes.
A product without caffeine.
A product without artificial sweeteners or artificial flavours.
A product that's low in sugar.
A product using carefully selected food-derived, marine-derived and plant-derived ingredients.
And a product that recognises something fundamental about youth sport:
Young athletes are still growing and developing while asking extraordinary things of their bodies through training and competition.
That's why DYVAL PERFORM was created specifically for them.
References
Desbrow B, McCormack J, Burke LM, et al. Sports Dietitians Australia Position Statement: Sports Nutrition for the Adolescent Athlete. International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism. 2014;24(5):570-584.
Australian Institute of Sport. Sports Drinks - What Is It? AIS Sports Supplement Framework.
Sports Dietitians Australia. Nutrition for Exercise in Hot Environments.
Australian Government. Australian Dietary Guidelines.