Pre-workout supplements have become all the rage in recent years. These supplements are designed to be taken just before you have a workout. They help to improve the results of your workout in a number of ways.
- Pre-workouts can improve energy levels
- Pre-workouts can provide protein so that you can build more muscle
- Pre-workouts can help your body become more effective at stacking on muscle
- Pre-workouts can make you push yourself for harder and longer
But how exactly do pre-workouts do this? The answer to that question depends on what sort of ingredients are in your pre-workout supplement. This article will discuss some of the most common ingredients in pre-workout supplements.
Common Pre-Workout Ingredients
These are some of the most common ingredients included in pre-workout supplements.
Amino Acids
Amino acids are the building blocks of protein. This means that when they’re used in a pre-workout supplement, they have a dual action. Not only do they provide the building blocks that your body needs to build new muscle tissue, they often promote health in a way that improves your workout.
There are a number of different amino acids that are used in some pre-workout supplements.
- L-arginine is an amino acid that converts into nitric oxide. Nitric oxide is used to dilate your blood vessels. This helps to bring more oxygen into your muscles which allows you to workout harder.
- Citrulline malate is a natural amino acid that your body produces on its own. It has similar benefits as L-arginine. Taking a pre-workout with citrulline allows your body to make more use from it.
Creatine
You’ve probably heard about creatine - it’s hands-down one of the most popular workout supplements in the world. Creatine is actually an amino acid - but a non-essential one, which means that your body can produce it on its own.
What creatine does is help to keep your muscles functioning. When you work out, you rapidly deplete the creatine that is stored in your muscles. Taking extra creatine in the form of a pre-workout helps to supply more to your muscles so that you can work out for longer.
BCAAs
Branched-chain amino acids, or BCAAs, are a different form of amino acid. These are a mixed combination of isoleucine, leucine, and valine, three of the essential amino acids that our body cannot make on its own.
BCAAs are able to bypass the liver. That means that once you eat them, they’re absorbed directly into the bloodstream. They then pass from the blood into the muscles where the body can convert them into protein. In other words, BCAAs are a fast-acting source of protein that allow you to build muscle quicker.
Caffeine
You already know what caffeine is and what it does. As a stimulant, caffeine allows you to push yourself harder during a workout. This means you’ll be able to do more reps at a higher weight, tearing your muscle tissue quicker. This allows you to build muscle quicker. You can read many reviews on supplements here.
Electrolytes
Electrolytes are chemical messengers. They help to ensure proper communication among your cells - including those in your muscles. Without the proper electrolytes, your body won’t be able to effectively communicate which could make it harder to signal when to build muscle.
Electrolytes are lost when we sweat - which means that during a vigorous workout, your electrolytes are being depleted. Taking a pre-workout loaded with electrolytes will help keep you in good shape.
Protein
You need protein to build muscle. It’s not hard to see why protein is included in pre-workout supplements. There are many different types of protein that are included.
- Whey protein is the most common. However, whey is derived from milk and not suitable for vegans.
- Pea protein.
- Hemp protein often comes with a number of other nutrients as the hemp plant is extremely nutritious.
- Nut protein.
The type of protein is not super important. What’s important is that you’re getting enough protein to build muscle.
Vitamin B12
Vitamin B12 (well, actually, all of the B vitamins) are important nutrients. They help your body signal when to use its metabolism. Without a healthy amount of B vitamins, your body won’t know when to burn fat, when to conserve calories, or when you need to stop working out.
Conclusion
There are a lot of different ingredients used in pre-workouts. They all play an important function, and it’s important to understand what they do when you’re deciding what sort of pre-workout you want to use.
