Hi all, I was wondering if any of you had had any short term success with any pre workout supplements? As my job is hugely demanding and I am finding it a real physical & mental challenge to overcome the tiredness, and drag my sorry ass to training. I find that during a workout I am not maximising the potential as I am gassed & tiered before I walk through the door. I have cleaned my eating up massively over the past few months, but find my food allowance is not giving me enough energy. I'm sure it will get easier as I loose weight, but I was looking for something short term that will help me maximise my sessions. Thanks
Eat more and the cleanliness of your diet will take care of fat gain. Brands like NO Xplode and Superdrive work (if by work you mean a cocktail of jet fuel and adrenaline injected directly into your heart). But a shot of black coffee and a banana 30 minutes before if money is tight.
Try eating some complex carbs (baked potatoe/sweet potato/whole wheat pasta, etc.) an hour before you train. Also drink a lot of water as it helps keep things moving in your system, like lubrication for a car. Preworkout supplements will help, but not if you don't have the fuel in your body to actually do the workout. You'll be amped up, but you'll feel crappy. I would also watch out for depending on caffeine. I used to drink pre-workout just to wake up in the morning, then at least 2 energy drinks and pre-workout before each workout (sometimes 2-3 times a day). It's a horrible habit and like any substance, you need more and more to get the same result. At some point, going to the bathroom is going to become pretty "interesting" with too much caffeine.
After a certain amount of time, it's like stamping on a tube of toothpaste when it has broken down into solid, dry chunks and watery fluid. :ukeface::
More disappointed you haven't questioned the OP's sleep patterns. No good training and eating well if you're not addressing any sleep problems. #Disappointed.
My diet is about as clean as it can get according to my trainer and my sleeping pattern is solid. I find if I eat I get really bogged down and feel even more sleepy. I'm thinking more of a temporary thing that will help me attend class until it becomes routine and my body's expecting me to go train, instead of it being a shock & me going in half assed. The toilet scenario sounds interesting lol, I hope that happens at home not in the second round of sparring
Eat more, sleep more, train more. All workout supplements are essentially stimulants, and stimulants borrow energy from the future so you can use it now, which is no good for regular training.
How much do you eat in one sitting? If you're drinking plenty of water (upwards around 1 gallon per non training day, 2-3 on training days depending on intensity) you shouldn't have a hard time digesting some quick fuel an hour before working out and it shouldn't make you tired. I find that drinking a glass of water prior to eating (literally right before I eat) and then another glass after eating helps the digestion go quicker. You also don't want to slam down something like an entire bowl of pasta that hour prior, more like 1/4 a bowl or as Van Zandt suggested, just a banana. If anything you could drink some coffee and eat a few sugar cubes (super healthy! not really though). Try some pre workout if you want though, a little caffeinated pick me up might be all you need. The toilet scenario is going to happen literally 5 minutes after you drink the pre workout on an empty stomach. It's good to stand up a few times after you think you're done at the toilet to move things around to make sure you're done. Weird, sure, but nobody is going to be watching your time on the throne.
I tend to eat out of the small tupa wear containers, usually consisting of meat, veg, & a home made sauce, I also only drink water during the day. I have been considering chucking a protein supplement into the day somewhere? Naturally after training would be good, but I tend to eat my tea right after training.
Not the term "good way" in my question, a can of cola or some manky energy drink isn't going to give me much pep for training, at least not without a down that lasts twice as long.
Edit: A "good way" of getting caffeine in your system for a workout is to drink or eat something with caffeine. I stand by my statement, lol. Well, getting a pre workout boost can be dependent on how you eat. There are two ways I've learned to get a huge boost in energy prior to working out. The first is a pre workout drink with a lot of caffeine in it. Biotest has always been extremely effective but I don't know how available their products are across the pond. They sell their "spike" brand pre workout here at convenience stores. If you're not used to caffeine they'll have you trembling your first few times. After that I usually use Jack3d or N.O. Explode. I never get a crash using that stuff. The second way is to cycle your diet. Starve yourself of carbs for a week and you'll feel like superman after a bowl of oats or some fruit. I can maintain this if I keep carbs out of my diet until an hour prior to working out, but I've always had to go through a week of carb depletion first. This method was a pain in the butt for boxing. You run out of carb fueled energy pretty quick when you're doing a long duration, high intensity activity. Regardless of what method I've done, getting some carbs (liquid form is the best) after a workout to replenish the energy stores in the body have always kept me from crashing.
Man, the only experience I have with caffeine pills is the Spike Energy tablets and NoDoz. Both can be bought at convenience stores. Pill form caffeine always gives me the jitters. I would never workout off of them. I've only taken them for long drives that take around 24+hours. You drive really safe too, because caffeine hitting you like that makes you paranoid.
Maybe have some workouts that you try to just freshen yourself up then I imagine you would have more energy to work harder other times.