Pre-workout comes in many different shapes and sizes (well usually just a cylinder container with some powder inside – not very smaller than a protein tub, bigger than a can of drink). The point being made here is that some may seem under-dosed whilst others push the boat to the extreme… why do companies do this and what does that mean for you the consumer?
Let’s break pre-workouts down into 4 main categories. High Stim, Nootropic, Pump and Daily Drivers. These boxes help us to place a pre-workout into the market and determine it’s value against others of the same type. It would be ridiculous to compare a Pump to a High Stim pre-workout if we wanted to achieve a buzz or caffeine rush. At the same time a Nootropic pre isn’t going to deliver the same vascularity as a pump product. Let’s start to break down each sub-category and get into the nitty gritty of how to determine which is which and what you might find in each.
High Stimulant Pre Workout
These are the big boys. The pre-workout that get most of the attention from supplement reviewers on YouTube, instagram and ticktock. They drive the most business as people look for that next hit of caffeine and other stimulants to drive home a workout.
The ingredients you’ll find in these pre-workouts are:
Caffeine, usually dosed about 250mg per serving. Potentially in different form such as Di-Caffeine Malate, Caffeine Anhydrous, Caffeine Citrate and ‘Natural’ Caffeine. The list goes on for chelations that have been formulated to change the way caffeine interacts with our adenosine receptors. Caffeine is a much larger topic and will be covered in another blog post.
Eria Jarensis, Eria Jarensis is a plant that contains high concentrations of very powerful stimulating alkaloids. The extract is the prime source of N-Phenyl Dimethylamine, which has been shown to increase the concentration of noradrenaline. It has similar cognitive benefits to substances like DMAA which are harder to obtain as they’re taken off the market.
1,3-Dimethylamylamine, Or DMAA as it’s most commonly known is not an approved substance within food supplements but has a very similar effect to caffeine but much higher intensity. This has led to a popularity for the ingredient amongst those looking for the highest stimulant based pre-workouts and sometimes those who have used this ingredient in the past find that nothing quite compares.
Nootropic
Nootropics are the new kids on the pre-workout block. Designed to improve focus, mental clarity and attention. Nootropic simply means that it assists with brain function. The reason these are becoming more attractive is they work well alongside stimulants. Plus, they have very little drawback.
The ingredients you’ll find in these pre-workout are:
Alpha GPC (choline) this is the best choline product on the market. Choline is essential for the health of the synapse in the brain. Those little messages that tell your body to move, breathe and think are all supported by this supplement. Most pre-workouts contain this variant of choline as it’s much better absorbed by the body, almost twice as effective as choline bi-tartrate or other chelations.
Ashwagandha is a fantastic ingredient found in most nootropic pre-workouts as it helps with mental focus, normal mood levels but also power output and testosterone levels. We have our own blog specifically on ashwagandha.
L-Tyrosine improves attention, has benefits to increasing noradrenaline and has a minor benefit in decreasing stress. You’ll fine L-Tyrosine in a lot of pre-workouts. But without a doubt a higher dosage in a good nootropic. Dosage should be expected from 1000-2000mg per dosage, preferably on the higher end.
Pump
Pumps are classically disregarded but from a personal point of view I find that they’re the most effective at improving your workout. Their main purpose is twofold. Increase nitric oxide release in the muscle tissues. Increase blood flow to the muscle. This improves endurance, power, lactic acid buffering and aesthetics. Don’t sleep on the pumps. (Or do because you actually can).
The ingredients you’ll find in these pre-workout are:
L-Citrulline (aka. citrulline malate or arginine) A primary driver for nitric oxide production in the muscle. L-Citrulline converts into arginine within the body but is much more available than arginine on it’s own.
Glycerol Powder (Glycersize, Glycerpump and other trademarks) is basically a high molecular weight carbohydrate that allows your body to rapidly recover glycogen to produce energy, this glycogen also fills up the muscle belly giving that appearance of pump and fullness.
Beetroot Juice Powder (Or other vasodilators such as S7(blend)) provides the body with a boost to vasodilation making sure that blood is delivered around the body effectively.
Daily Drivers
What is a daily driver – well it’s what it suggests. It’s something that keeps you going and has benefits when taken regularly rather than one off. The majority of the pre-workouts you find on the general market in supermarkets, online and from major companies are these pre-workouts. Dosed in such a way that they can provide small increases in energy and power, with some pump element – but not too high that they cause any adverse effects, inviting you to take it over and over again.
Some pre-workouts across the wider industry are 20/40 pre’s. Meaning they have either 20 (high stim) or 40 (daily driver) servings per container. They get away with this as a lot of the standard ingredients we find benefit from you taking them repeatedly. Such as…
Beta-Alanine fantastic at buffering lactic acid in the muscle and increasing your performance from 60-240seconds. This means for volume work, you’ll massively improve your working load allowing you to move more weight in the gym. Standard dose is 2-5grams however most pre-workouts will be 3.2grams, what is considered the clinical dose.
Betaine Anhydrous has many health benefits, but has been shown to benefit a lot of strength based training. This is mainly due to how it interacts with other ingredients within your pre-workout and the benefit of nutrient delivery through blood.
and most of the other ingredients listed above.
So in review.
High Stim for your one off, heavy, long gym days or those of use who chase that stimulant buzz.
Nootropics if you lack focus, want some stimulant but really love a sense of concentration in the gym.
Pumps for evenings, great performance and that aesthetic result at the end of a good session.
Daily Drivers for your every day gym goer looking to break through the fatigue of the working day.
