How do you start your workout? I have two things that I must do before I exercise – one I like and the other I tolerate. So the first thing is a pre-workout (pre-wo) drink. It serves two purposes: 1) Ritual – let’s my brain and body know we’re gonna get started, and 2) Rush – it gives you a kick in the ass!
When I first started taking pre-wo it was a serious rush. In fact, the first time I tried it, I had no idea what to expect and when the beta-alanine starting making my face tingle, I was pretty sure I was dying. But I survived! And now I love the tingle.
I’ve tried many, many different pre-wos and even made my own. Stopped making my own when I mis-dosed the caffeine anhydrous once and hit myself with two grams of caff. NOT fun – heart racing and headaches, but it passed after a sleepless night. I’ve tried some pre-wos that I should have half-dosed to start, but I’m not really that type of person. Kinda all or nothing. So I took the whole dose and my oh my hung on for the ride. I mix them to see if it will up the efficacy, and I’ve been around long enough to have used some old school pre-wos that have since been banned.
Anyway, after using pre-wo for years now, I don’t usually get the same kind of rush I used to. In fact, there have been times when I got no rush at all and even got tired. There is a scientific reason for this – your body develops caffeine tolerance. Caffeine blocks adenosine which is a neurotransmitter that signals the brain to sleep. In addition, the adenosine’s inability to bind keeps it in the blood where it creates an adrenal response. Thus, the rush. Then a crash as the caffeine wears off and the adenosine fights to get where it is supposed to be. As your body gets more and more used to caffeine, it becomes less proficient at blocking adenosine, the rush gets shorter and the crash comes on faster. So you have to take breaks from caffeine now and then. Caff detox, if you will.
There are many choices of pre-wo drink, and they break down into two basic categories – stim and no-stim. Basically means caffeine or no caffeine. And then they branch out from there. I like to hit the caffeine until it doesn’t work anymore, then limp along on the no-stim for a little bit and then get back to the caff. The stim drinks dose you with a bunch of caffeine (in various forms), citrulline, beta-alanine and betaine. The caff dose is usually between 150 mg to 450 mg. Keep in mind a good espresso is about 65 mg – so it’s a good hit. Citrulline improves blood circulation and creates a Nitric Oxide response which is good for you in many ways and induces a good “pump” from your lift. Beta-alanine gives you the “tingles” as I mentioned above, and both it and betaine have been shown to improve performance in certain dosages. From there they add all types of things – creatine, agmatine, various “focus” ingredients, BCAAs, taurine, NALT, alternative forms of caffeine, plant extracts, ingredients designed to assist with absorption of the main ingredients, etc.
So today I’m using a new one I picked up at GNC. I don’t usually go with the generic brands, but I asked the guy in the store and he said this one really kicked him in the pants and warned me to only take a half dose, which I ignored completely. It’s C4 Dynasty MMXX from Cellucor. I checked the ingredients at the store, which was really tough because the label is black and the print a shiny red color and I didn’t have reading glasses. Usually I ask them to read it to me, but I was feeling lazy. I could make out that it was really nicely dosed with citrulline and beta-alanine, and the guy confirmed, so I figured I’d give it a shot.
It packs a caff wallop with 350 mg of caffeine anhydrous (that’s basic caffeine) and then an additional 62.5 mg of Theacrine, which is a caffeine alternative. So it got me going – I felt the rush. On top of that it touts 10 grams of citrulline matrix. 3 grams of L-Citrulline, which is pure citrulline, 6 grams of Citrulline Malate which yields 3 more grams of citrulline and then 1 gram of Citrulline Nitrate. I don’t know what Citrulline Nitrate yields in terms of pure citrulline but added to the 6 grams from the L-Citrulline and the Citrulline Malate, it puts it higher than most pre-wos, which often have 6 grams of Citrulline Malate and call it a day.
It also includes a huge dose of beta-alanine – the “tingle” ingredient. The typical dose for this ingredient is 3.2 grams, but C4 Dynasty doubles that. I’ve taken a lot of these and that’s the highest I’ve seen. Many tests I’ve reviewed deem 3.2 grams before and after a workout to be effective. I can assure you that the double dose puts a serious “tingle” on you.
In addition, it contains a healthy 5 grams of creatine blend, 1 gram Taurine, NALT, a little less A-GPC than I’d like but a decent amount nonetheless, and a few focus ingredients. Strawberry lemonade flavor was good, mixed without issue and price was typical for these products. All-in-all I found it to be a solid product – good initial rush, great tingles, strong pump, and a good even delivery of energy and focus throughout the workout. Plus, it’s readily available at GNC. Many of the pre-wos I use I can’t get at GNC or on Amazon, and need to use sites like bestpricenutrition.com and priceplow.com. Both are solid and I’ve found them to be reliable, but not much is as easy as Amazon. Shout out to Jeff.
I recommend C4 Dynasty – good product. If you’re newer to these drinks, I’d recommend stepping the dose down until you get a little used to it, or if you’re the adventuresome type – go for it! I’ll talk about more pre-wos I try as we move forward and some will have more of the exotic ingredients in them – can be interesting, Part 2 to follow. Chat soon.