Wassup guys!
Behind protein and creatine, the biggest supplements on the market at the moment are pre-workouts.
They have many benefits: Increasing the intensity of your workout, decreasing muscle fatigue, increasing focus and promoting that all important PUMP.
However, the majority of pre-workouts you buy already made contain a lot of ingredients that are pointless, or are in such low doses that they don’t make a difference and you are just feeling the effects of the caffeine and a couple of the other ingredients. This means you may not be getting value for money.
In addition, generally there are a lot of artificial colours, flavours and additives that are unhealthy and generally not wanted, and the caffeine that is used can give you a huge crash after your workout.
So what do i take to help me SMASH IT at the gym ?
I have tested a variety of ingredients for my pre-workout stack and it has come down to the best and most potent 4 ingredients: 4g Matcha Green Tea Powder, 7g Citrulline Malate, 5g Creatine, 4g Beta Alanine.
This combination gives me long lasting ENERGY, a sick PUMP, and decreased Muscle Fatigue so i can smash every single workout.
Let me explain each ingredient in detail...
Behind protein and creatine, the biggest supplements on the market at the moment are pre-workouts.
They have many benefits: Increasing the intensity of your workout, decreasing muscle fatigue, increasing focus and promoting that all important PUMP.
However, the majority of pre-workouts you buy already made contain a lot of ingredients that are pointless, or are in such low doses that they don’t make a difference and you are just feeling the effects of the caffeine and a couple of the other ingredients. This means you may not be getting value for money.
In addition, generally there are a lot of artificial colours, flavours and additives that are unhealthy and generally not wanted, and the caffeine that is used can give you a huge crash after your workout.
So what do i take to help me SMASH IT at the gym ?
I have tested a variety of ingredients for my pre-workout stack and it has come down to the best and most potent 4 ingredients: 4g Matcha Green Tea Powder, 7g Citrulline Malate, 5g Creatine, 4g Beta Alanine.
This combination gives me long lasting ENERGY, a sick PUMP, and decreased Muscle Fatigue so i can smash every single workout.
Let me explain each ingredient in detail...
Matcha Green Tea Powder
There are so many benefits to green tea besides the antioxidants, amino acids, vitamins, minerals and fiber that i could spend a whole article solely on that. Especially matcha green tea as it contains the whole leaf of the plant and a 137x more antioxidants than standard green tea along with triple the amount of the antioxidant EGCG[1].
In terms of increasing your workout capacity, matcha green tea powder has a few significant benefits.
Every 1g of matcha has 35mg of Theine[2], a type of caffeine molecule found in tea that provides energy over a long period of time, and with no crash opposed to standard caffeine as shown below:
There are so many benefits to green tea besides the antioxidants, amino acids, vitamins, minerals and fiber that i could spend a whole article solely on that. Especially matcha green tea as it contains the whole leaf of the plant and a 137x more antioxidants than standard green tea along with triple the amount of the antioxidant EGCG[1].
In terms of increasing your workout capacity, matcha green tea powder has a few significant benefits.
Every 1g of matcha has 35mg of Theine[2], a type of caffeine molecule found in tea that provides energy over a long period of time, and with no crash opposed to standard caffeine as shown below:
I take 4g of Matcha Green Tea, which is equivalent to about 140mg of caffeine. This provides me with insane energy for my workout with no crash afterwards.
In addition, matcha contains very high concentrations of an amino acid called L-Theanine. L-Theanine has been found to cross the blood-brain barrier and reduce mental and physical stress[3], enhance cognition and focus[4] and have a calming and mood enhancing effect that is synergistic with caffeine[5]. This helps me stay focused in the gym and prevents the negative effects of caffeine.
In addition, matcha contains very high concentrations of an amino acid called L-Theanine. L-Theanine has been found to cross the blood-brain barrier and reduce mental and physical stress[3], enhance cognition and focus[4] and have a calming and mood enhancing effect that is synergistic with caffeine[5]. This helps me stay focused in the gym and prevents the negative effects of caffeine.
Citrulline Malate
Citrulline malate is the combination of Citrulline and Malic acid molecules. Citrulline is a potent arginine precursor and is actually a better than taking arginine by its-self. High arginine levels in the blood relax the blood vessels through increased nitric oxide, and so help provide a PUMP in the gym. Studies have also shown that it significantly increases training volume and decreases fatigue[5]. I have found that these effects are very noticeable in the gym and allow me to train a lot harder and get a much better pump.
To give you an idea, with citrulline malate i would normally be able to do 10 reps when before maybe i could only do 7 or 8.
Malic acid also helps the body to produce energy via the citric acid cycle, which further enhances training intensity and volume.
I find that 7g of Citrulline Malate taken pre workout does the trick.
Citrulline malate is the combination of Citrulline and Malic acid molecules. Citrulline is a potent arginine precursor and is actually a better than taking arginine by its-self. High arginine levels in the blood relax the blood vessels through increased nitric oxide, and so help provide a PUMP in the gym. Studies have also shown that it significantly increases training volume and decreases fatigue[5]. I have found that these effects are very noticeable in the gym and allow me to train a lot harder and get a much better pump.
To give you an idea, with citrulline malate i would normally be able to do 10 reps when before maybe i could only do 7 or 8.
Malic acid also helps the body to produce energy via the citric acid cycle, which further enhances training intensity and volume.
I find that 7g of Citrulline Malate taken pre workout does the trick.
Creatine
The benefits of creatine are well known and helps with explosive energy during workouts through the storing of high-energy phosphate groups due to higher levels of phosphocreatine.
I take 5g pre-workout because, from experience, i have found that it helps with the pump and filling out the muscles during the workout.
I always take it with at least a pint of water though, to prevent cramping.
The benefits of creatine are well known and helps with explosive energy during workouts through the storing of high-energy phosphate groups due to higher levels of phosphocreatine.
I take 5g pre-workout because, from experience, i have found that it helps with the pump and filling out the muscles during the workout.
I always take it with at least a pint of water though, to prevent cramping.
Beta-Alanine
Beta Alanine is a precursor to carnosine which acts as an acid buffer in the body. This includes lactic acid, which is produced during exercise, and generally causes the feeling of ‘burn’ during the end of a set when you cant push any more.
I have found that taking 4g Beta Alanine gives me an extra 1-2 reps on each set and helps me recover faster in-between sets. In addition, when it kicks in one of the effects is a tingling sensation on the skin, this is completely harmless and i like it because it lets me know when my pre-workout has absorbed.
There are a lot of different ingredients on the market that work, however i have found these to be the most value for money in terms of results.
And thats what i do !
Much love,
Charlie
References:
1] Weiss, David J.; Anderton, Christopher R. (2003). "Determination of catechins in matcha green tea by micellar electrokinetic chromatography". Journal of Chromatography A 1011 (1–2): 173–80
2] http://blog.myteabreak.com/2011/05/18/theine/
3] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16930802
4] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21040626
5] http://examine.com/supplements/Citrulline/
Beta Alanine is a precursor to carnosine which acts as an acid buffer in the body. This includes lactic acid, which is produced during exercise, and generally causes the feeling of ‘burn’ during the end of a set when you cant push any more.
I have found that taking 4g Beta Alanine gives me an extra 1-2 reps on each set and helps me recover faster in-between sets. In addition, when it kicks in one of the effects is a tingling sensation on the skin, this is completely harmless and i like it because it lets me know when my pre-workout has absorbed.
There are a lot of different ingredients on the market that work, however i have found these to be the most value for money in terms of results.
And thats what i do !
Much love,
Charlie
References:
1] Weiss, David J.; Anderton, Christopher R. (2003). "Determination of catechins in matcha green tea by micellar electrokinetic chromatography". Journal of Chromatography A 1011 (1–2): 173–80
2] http://blog.myteabreak.com/2011/05/18/theine/
3] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16930802
4] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21040626
5] http://examine.com/supplements/Citrulline/