Pre-Workout vs Energy Drink… the Pre wins every time.

Recently a friend of mine asked a very simple question that turned out to not be so simple to answer.  Let’s have a look at the use of energy drinks vs. a high quality pre-workout like NitroStorm by Legit Supplements. Believe it or not you can buy some delicious, safe and highly effective NitroStorm on this website right after you are done reading the following article. Truthfully, I am not a big fan of energy drinks and I would not drink one. Most are not good for you and may provide you little more benefit than straight coffee.  Plus a ton of sugar in some.

In my opinion there really is no contest, probably fairly obvious by now. I would never use an energy drink as a pre-workout!  At that point my choice would be ice water.  Two reasons: 1) extreme levels of caffeine or other stimulants actually decrease performance. 2) Being way over stimulated makes for a sloppy work out that can easily lead to injury. NitroStorm is a classic example of a lower stimulant pre-workout with a splash of nootropics (for brain stimulation) in there to make you motivated and still allow you peak performance. Any pre-workout worth taking has a powerful and safe form of creatine in the correct amount. It will contain a hemodilator to expand you blood vessels to allow more oxygen rich, nutrient rich blood to reach the muscles faster. The other side of that coin is the rapid removal of metabolic waste produced by muscle contraction. Those are the two main components of any pre out there. So, starting with some creatine info we can see where we should land on this subject.

Creatine is NOT the devil. I repeat, Creatine is NOT the devil. It has been demonized and horror stories have been told. Supplementing creatine has become safe and highly effective when done correctly. There have been many a study now showing the benefits of quality creatine for cardiac tissue even in the elder communities. You body produces creatine and one of its main functions is to allow your muscles to contract. By flooding the bloodstream with an outside source of creatine your ability to contract muscles harder and more frequently becomes quite clear. More reps per set at a higher weight… that’s the magic. Di-Creatine Malate is the form of creatine chosen for NitroStorm, that’s why you see the small font on the label that says “DCM”. It is a powerful and safe form of creatine that does not expose the user to a risk of high amounts of water retention and blood pressure concerns. Creatine monohydrate is the original form brought to market decades ago and boy would you pack on the water weight with it… walk around like a pumpkin head. The monohydrate is still used today in the lower tier products and it will still cause the same issues. Please try to avoid products with creatine monohydrate.  Mono does have a place in training and in competition, but it is a niche place and perhaps we can cover that another day. A good rule of thumb is that the more powerful the creatine the safer it is, especially because the need for larger quantities is removed. Stick with NitroStorm or a comparable.   In my opinion I do like Pump Fuel, especially the caffeine free version, and that has high quality everything with a price tag to match.  Pump Fuel is made by PMD Sports, certainly a competitor, but that is a very good product and my “go to” if I need the caffeine free version.  You won’t often hear me promote competitors, but that is a good solid company right there and I am long acquainted with the company and their products. Good people and good products at a fair price(a little on the high budget side for my pockets).

Now let’s jump into the art of hemodilation, expanding those blood vessels through natural ingredients. Arginine is an amino acid, naturally occurring and very common in the foods we eat. In a pre-workout the arginine is a precursor to nitric oxide (not the stuff at the dentist) which is naturally produced by the body to expand blood vessels walls when needed.  As with the creatine, adding an outside source to the body at work out will assure us that we have plenty in our bloodstream to help dilate correctly for maximum performance.  In NitroStorm we have l-arginine alpha-ketoglutarate as the source of arginine. Safe and highly effective to do the job at a lower dose.  There are a few side effects with using higher levels of straight low end arginine. If you are prone to getting cold sores and you guzzle down a rudimentary form of arginine you will have an outbreak(look at the blog on Lysine and cold sores on the site).  In addition to cold sores there is a chance of bloating, diarrhea, dizziness and vomiting.  You really have to tear it up with huge amounts to run into those issues. Either way, you won’t have to worry about that with NitroStorm and our l-arginine alpha-ketoglutarate form.  For lack a better description, it is the more refined and more potent form yielding great results with a small dose and thus no side effects for the normal, healthy individual.  There is also some l-citrulline malate included in the product for extra endurance and it works great with the arginine to provide some elasticity to the walls of blood vessels to allow them to expand. Just another wonderful, natural amino acid in a high quality form… that is what we are about.

There are a handful of other ingredients in NitroStorm including a plethora of B vitamins, some electrolytes, and beta alanine (great fatigue fighter that may make your arms or face tingle a bit, there is a blog on that too). Got some waxy maize and other ingredients for focus and natural energy. Please check it out and give it a try. It would be great to hear more feed back on all our products.

All that said… If my butt was dragging so bad that I couldn’t hit the gym without one or the other I would probably just go to bed and get rest. Listen to your body. Eat, train and supplement like your life depends on it, because it does.

Moderation my friends, Stay Healthy & Stay Legit.  Thanks and take it easy.

Strictly opinion and not medical advice. Consult your doctor, pharmacist and/or nutritionist before starting/stopping any supplement or exercise program.