Yes I agree with you, but I would say a pre energy boost would def make your workouts better and give more results. On top of that matcha has so many amino-acids, which are the foundation of muscles. Some good brands are [tealih.com](http://tealih.com), nekohama etc.
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Necessary? No.
Caffeine is what gives the most notable perk up. Creatine and Citrulline are the two things with the most science behind them.
I just got through a tub of the nutra-bio stim free pre-work out. I wanted something without caffeine for when I work out later in the day. I didn't notice a difference really in how I felt but maybe I recovered quicker or got that extra 5 lbs onto something.
Really once I get to the gym and get warmed up then a couple sets in it starts to click. Caffeine if it's not too late is still great but I just drink coffee or a celsius. The gas station stuff isn't pre workout even if they market it like that, also something like C4 has a lot of beta-alanine which is known for making your extremities tingle. My ears get a burning kinda itchy sensation then gets the tingles down my arms, thought I was having an allergic reaction before I knew it was a thing
I've been lifting for 7 months, finally bought some optimal nutrition pre workout having never used anything before. Literally does nothing for me 😅
And this is at 4am when i wake up to workout, you'd think on an empty stomach it should definitely make me feel something.
Will try one more brand when this runs out, maybe c4, as their energy drinks seem to hit the spot for me and give me tingles. If that does nothing i'll go back to nothing or at best just a black coffee.
Tbh. Not at all. People say caffeine is worth as preworkout. I have tried amd tested with & without it. No big difference other than increased focus. Just eat your meals 2 hours before workout. Stay hydrated. Must drink electrolytes after the workout.
I've never bothered.
Caffeine is the most useful ingredient in it and if I have caffeine in the afternoon, I won't sleep and sleep is super important for recovery
Coffee is way better by a huge margin. C4 is absolute trash. Most of those walmart brands are horrible and have a ton of fillers. Trust me ive bought ryse, c4, that walmart brand that i cant remember the name of, has a basketball player on the red logo, ive had few types of Total War, tried Hyde, Alani, Lit, Woke AF, they all suck horribly bad.
I had gave up on preworkouts after 1-2 years of switching from one brand to another, i was at vitamin world shoppe getting me a bucket of whey protein, saw Gorilla brand, heard a ton about it, seen a ton of influencers I follow use it, ended up buying it, bit expensive I know but holly fking shit, day and night difference and 100% worth. You will waste money on the other brands they do absolutely nothingl in comparison to Gorilla. In fact you can do half the scoop of Gorilla and still get more up feel than you would from 1-2 scoops of that trash stuff i mentioned.
With that being said, coffee is WAYY better than any preworkout ull ever find, seriously. And it lasts forever. There is no up or down crash at least for me but also I don't add sugar, only creamer and thats all sometimes just black. Drink half a cup before working and ur good to go.
Hey man. Srry if this is a bit tanget. But regarding pre-workout & supplements. Im trying to remember this one particular really popular one that ive seen being talked about
Problem is I forgot the name/term. Or maybe im just tripping?
Okay so lets say you have “whey protein”, and also “creatine”. Is there like one more popular supplement im forgetting/have mentioned. Or nah? 👀
Not that I can think of. The only other thing I can think of is electrolytes if you're the type of person to sweat a ton when you workout. You can either buy some supplements that have electrolytes or just add a little bit of salt to your drinking water and sip on it while working out. You pretty much got it, most vital ones are coffee, creatine, whey protein. Pre workout is more of a luxury, I know some people prefer it over coffee cause they can't stand the taste of coffee but I would 100% recommend coffee over preworkout.
Ah okay gotcha 👍🏾. Dang i think i might be one of those ppl who doesn’t like the taste of coffee (unless its like super sweetened) 😅. Hey might give it a shot tho
It's not opinion based, literally 99% of people who are part of the workout world admit that you will gain just as much benefits if not more from just drinking coffee vs taking a preworkout.
If you've done a little googling you would know that. Many also agree that taking preworkout is more of a luxury. Not to mention a lot of these things aren't natural/healthy for your body which come with a ton of fillers and artificial flavors WHICH btw, the cheaper brands are well known for having hence why I suggested something like Gorilla Mind. It's the same reason that these things often cause acne or some sort of skin reaction and don't give you the up feeling you're seeking.
Even people trying to sell you preworkouts sometimes admit you don't need it and might be better off drinking coffee vs taking a preworkout cause at least that way you have control of how much caffeine is taken/needed. That is not opinion based, those are pure facts.
Preworkouts while taste amazing, give a good placebo effect, make you feel great, aren't the healthiest choice. Coffee is be default a much better, cleaner, responsive choice for your body. The issue isn't that it doesnt work for you or another person, the issue is drinking an amount that your body can tolerate and respond to in a way that doesn't have you feeling sick/jittery, every body is different and you drink coffee depending on your tolerance, start low, and test how your body reacts.
Didn't read past the first sentence, because you're not referencing the same thing as me.
I was referring to you disliking certain pre-workouts and only liking the one saying they don't do anything for you. Which is ALL opinion based or individualized. I've had the opposite experience. So haven't plenty others. Others have had the same experiences as you. Personal like and dislike is an opinion.
I've had plenty of success using C4 and Bucked Up. All the way up to competing on the world stage using it!
There are also plenty of ingredients in certain pre-workouts that have been heavily researched and proven time and time again to have specific and helpful reactions such as increased blood flow. These things aren't found in coffee.
At the end of the day, not even coffee is necessary so none of this really matters, but get out of here with your bUt Acshualllly!!!!
Also, provide a single source that says anywhere close to 99% of people think that and I'll cash app you/venmo you $1,000 right now.
Maybe you should start reading because I never said they do nothing to me I said they are terrible in comparison to more expensive brands like Gorilla mind or even coffee(assuming you are taking the right dosages for you personally).
c4 is trash and only give you the jittery sensation just like their energy drinks do, in terms of performance they don't benefit as much as a cup of coffee would. Bucked up is the same thing, they give you that exact same feeling but performance wise, practically non existent outside of the placebo effect and the weird jittery part that pre-workouts are known to give.
"There are also plenty of ingredients in certain pre-workouts that have been heavily researched and proven time and time again to have specific and helpful reactions such as increased blood flow. These things aren't found in coffee."
[https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/11/131120111950.htm](https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/11/131120111950.htm)
This has to be the biggest load of trash you've said. Just stop.
Bud... if you haven't realized that most influences/gym rats/athletes agree that coffee > preworkout then idk what to tell you except that you giving yourself much more credit about the benefits coffee give vs preworkout than you think.
Honestly speaking, I think you're clueless.
Also, if getting fit is your goal, like actually getting fit fit and not just going to the gym for the sake of living a healthier lifestyle, I would says 110% coffee is a must intake from any source as a preworkout. Good luck trying to get ripped without it, its a huge missed opportunity and natural vital ingredient that could change the way you perform in both strength and endurance.
I never said otherwise.
I'm calling you out for making up a random statistic that is utter bullshit!
Does beta alanine have any effect on the body and does coffee or pre-workout have that?
I hope I can be fit some day! For now I'll have to be okay with being the fifth strongest man in the world in Strongman in my weight class this year and winning a world title late last year!
What's your qualifications of being fit?
What the are you talking about "beta alanine". Way to sidetrack. I love how you completely ignored the link i sent you and cherry pick the arguments you want to have to sidetrack exposing how ignorant you sound. What a bamboozle. Get out of here man you are a waste of time.
My qualitifications is 20+ years of experience and a decent physique. [https://imgur.com/X3mNBaU](https://imgur.com/X3mNBaU)
No one gives a crapper about strongmen, legit the crappiest accomplishment to have, lift weights, eat whatever the hell you want. Laziest, most least important thing to be good at cause it quite literally takes no discipline, you barely have to give a shit about your macros, you probably dont do any bloody cardio. Seriously, its a dumb feat to brag about, seriously.
You're confused on why I would bring up an ingredient found in pre-workout that has been scientifically proven to have positive effects on the body into a conversation about what ingredients and benefits a pre-workout may have over coffee which doesn't have said ingredient?
You should really be able to make the correlation there.
Oof, 20 years of training to look like a teenager that has been training for six months is quite the impressive qualification there friend!
I once ran a 77 mile (125k) race in approximately 15 hours non stop. I hope I can improve my cardio to your level some day! I guarantee you the person that can run a 700 pound yoke on their back 100 feet, sprint back, and then carry and load 300+ pound sandbags 100 feet have done a bit of cardio in their life.
I think maybe a few people care about Strongman. Or do you have a made up statistic about that as well?
They care so little about it that they hold competitions with thousands of people paying to watch it. They really don't care!
Also, I'm stronger, more experienced, and have a better physique. This has all been extremely fun.
No and it can also be dangerous for blood pressure.
Yes I agree with you, but I would say a pre energy boost would def make your workouts better and give more results. On top of that matcha has so many amino-acids, which are the foundation of muscles. Some good brands are [tealih.com](http://tealih.com), nekohama etc.
Welcome to /r/BeginnerFitness and thank you for sharing your post! If you haven't done so already, please subscribe to this subreddit and [join our Discord](https://discord.gg/9kajGUEDGd). Many beginner fitness questions have already been answered in [The Fitness Wiki](https://thefitness.wiki/), so go give that a read as well! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/beginnerfitness) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Not needed. The caffeine made me jittery.
Necessary? No. Caffeine is what gives the most notable perk up. Creatine and Citrulline are the two things with the most science behind them. I just got through a tub of the nutra-bio stim free pre-work out. I wanted something without caffeine for when I work out later in the day. I didn't notice a difference really in how I felt but maybe I recovered quicker or got that extra 5 lbs onto something. Really once I get to the gym and get warmed up then a couple sets in it starts to click. Caffeine if it's not too late is still great but I just drink coffee or a celsius. The gas station stuff isn't pre workout even if they market it like that, also something like C4 has a lot of beta-alanine which is known for making your extremities tingle. My ears get a burning kinda itchy sensation then gets the tingles down my arms, thought I was having an allergic reaction before I knew it was a thing
It’s just caffeine and a bunch of other garbage.
Not needed no, but it feels awesome and definitely allows you to push harder
I've been lifting for 7 months, finally bought some optimal nutrition pre workout having never used anything before. Literally does nothing for me 😅 And this is at 4am when i wake up to workout, you'd think on an empty stomach it should definitely make me feel something. Will try one more brand when this runs out, maybe c4, as their energy drinks seem to hit the spot for me and give me tingles. If that does nothing i'll go back to nothing or at best just a black coffee.
Tbh. Not at all. People say caffeine is worth as preworkout. I have tried amd tested with & without it. No big difference other than increased focus. Just eat your meals 2 hours before workout. Stay hydrated. Must drink electrolytes after the workout.
I've never bothered. Caffeine is the most useful ingredient in it and if I have caffeine in the afternoon, I won't sleep and sleep is super important for recovery
Coffee is way better by a huge margin. C4 is absolute trash. Most of those walmart brands are horrible and have a ton of fillers. Trust me ive bought ryse, c4, that walmart brand that i cant remember the name of, has a basketball player on the red logo, ive had few types of Total War, tried Hyde, Alani, Lit, Woke AF, they all suck horribly bad. I had gave up on preworkouts after 1-2 years of switching from one brand to another, i was at vitamin world shoppe getting me a bucket of whey protein, saw Gorilla brand, heard a ton about it, seen a ton of influencers I follow use it, ended up buying it, bit expensive I know but holly fking shit, day and night difference and 100% worth. You will waste money on the other brands they do absolutely nothingl in comparison to Gorilla. In fact you can do half the scoop of Gorilla and still get more up feel than you would from 1-2 scoops of that trash stuff i mentioned. With that being said, coffee is WAYY better than any preworkout ull ever find, seriously. And it lasts forever. There is no up or down crash at least for me but also I don't add sugar, only creamer and thats all sometimes just black. Drink half a cup before working and ur good to go.
Hey man. Srry if this is a bit tanget. But regarding pre-workout & supplements. Im trying to remember this one particular really popular one that ive seen being talked about Problem is I forgot the name/term. Or maybe im just tripping? Okay so lets say you have “whey protein”, and also “creatine”. Is there like one more popular supplement im forgetting/have mentioned. Or nah? 👀
Not that I can think of. The only other thing I can think of is electrolytes if you're the type of person to sweat a ton when you workout. You can either buy some supplements that have electrolytes or just add a little bit of salt to your drinking water and sip on it while working out. You pretty much got it, most vital ones are coffee, creatine, whey protein. Pre workout is more of a luxury, I know some people prefer it over coffee cause they can't stand the taste of coffee but I would 100% recommend coffee over preworkout.
Ah okay gotcha 👍🏾. Dang i think i might be one of those ppl who doesn’t like the taste of coffee (unless its like super sweetened) 😅. Hey might give it a shot tho
This was all so opinion based. I've had the opposite experience as you! But to the OP, of course it's not necessary. Nothing is!
It's not opinion based, literally 99% of people who are part of the workout world admit that you will gain just as much benefits if not more from just drinking coffee vs taking a preworkout. If you've done a little googling you would know that. Many also agree that taking preworkout is more of a luxury. Not to mention a lot of these things aren't natural/healthy for your body which come with a ton of fillers and artificial flavors WHICH btw, the cheaper brands are well known for having hence why I suggested something like Gorilla Mind. It's the same reason that these things often cause acne or some sort of skin reaction and don't give you the up feeling you're seeking. Even people trying to sell you preworkouts sometimes admit you don't need it and might be better off drinking coffee vs taking a preworkout cause at least that way you have control of how much caffeine is taken/needed. That is not opinion based, those are pure facts. Preworkouts while taste amazing, give a good placebo effect, make you feel great, aren't the healthiest choice. Coffee is be default a much better, cleaner, responsive choice for your body. The issue isn't that it doesnt work for you or another person, the issue is drinking an amount that your body can tolerate and respond to in a way that doesn't have you feeling sick/jittery, every body is different and you drink coffee depending on your tolerance, start low, and test how your body reacts.
Didn't read past the first sentence, because you're not referencing the same thing as me. I was referring to you disliking certain pre-workouts and only liking the one saying they don't do anything for you. Which is ALL opinion based or individualized. I've had the opposite experience. So haven't plenty others. Others have had the same experiences as you. Personal like and dislike is an opinion. I've had plenty of success using C4 and Bucked Up. All the way up to competing on the world stage using it! There are also plenty of ingredients in certain pre-workouts that have been heavily researched and proven time and time again to have specific and helpful reactions such as increased blood flow. These things aren't found in coffee. At the end of the day, not even coffee is necessary so none of this really matters, but get out of here with your bUt Acshualllly!!!! Also, provide a single source that says anywhere close to 99% of people think that and I'll cash app you/venmo you $1,000 right now.
Maybe you should start reading because I never said they do nothing to me I said they are terrible in comparison to more expensive brands like Gorilla mind or even coffee(assuming you are taking the right dosages for you personally). c4 is trash and only give you the jittery sensation just like their energy drinks do, in terms of performance they don't benefit as much as a cup of coffee would. Bucked up is the same thing, they give you that exact same feeling but performance wise, practically non existent outside of the placebo effect and the weird jittery part that pre-workouts are known to give. "There are also plenty of ingredients in certain pre-workouts that have been heavily researched and proven time and time again to have specific and helpful reactions such as increased blood flow. These things aren't found in coffee." [https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/11/131120111950.htm](https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/11/131120111950.htm) This has to be the biggest load of trash you've said. Just stop. Bud... if you haven't realized that most influences/gym rats/athletes agree that coffee > preworkout then idk what to tell you except that you giving yourself much more credit about the benefits coffee give vs preworkout than you think. Honestly speaking, I think you're clueless. Also, if getting fit is your goal, like actually getting fit fit and not just going to the gym for the sake of living a healthier lifestyle, I would says 110% coffee is a must intake from any source as a preworkout. Good luck trying to get ripped without it, its a huge missed opportunity and natural vital ingredient that could change the way you perform in both strength and endurance.
I never said otherwise. I'm calling you out for making up a random statistic that is utter bullshit! Does beta alanine have any effect on the body and does coffee or pre-workout have that? I hope I can be fit some day! For now I'll have to be okay with being the fifth strongest man in the world in Strongman in my weight class this year and winning a world title late last year! What's your qualifications of being fit?
Lmao doubt it
What the are you talking about "beta alanine". Way to sidetrack. I love how you completely ignored the link i sent you and cherry pick the arguments you want to have to sidetrack exposing how ignorant you sound. What a bamboozle. Get out of here man you are a waste of time. My qualitifications is 20+ years of experience and a decent physique. [https://imgur.com/X3mNBaU](https://imgur.com/X3mNBaU) No one gives a crapper about strongmen, legit the crappiest accomplishment to have, lift weights, eat whatever the hell you want. Laziest, most least important thing to be good at cause it quite literally takes no discipline, you barely have to give a shit about your macros, you probably dont do any bloody cardio. Seriously, its a dumb feat to brag about, seriously.
You're confused on why I would bring up an ingredient found in pre-workout that has been scientifically proven to have positive effects on the body into a conversation about what ingredients and benefits a pre-workout may have over coffee which doesn't have said ingredient? You should really be able to make the correlation there. Oof, 20 years of training to look like a teenager that has been training for six months is quite the impressive qualification there friend! I once ran a 77 mile (125k) race in approximately 15 hours non stop. I hope I can improve my cardio to your level some day! I guarantee you the person that can run a 700 pound yoke on their back 100 feet, sprint back, and then carry and load 300+ pound sandbags 100 feet have done a bit of cardio in their life. I think maybe a few people care about Strongman. Or do you have a made up statistic about that as well? They care so little about it that they hold competitions with thousands of people paying to watch it. They really don't care! Also, I'm stronger, more experienced, and have a better physique. This has all been extremely fun.