Whether you’re a strength workout junkie, athlete, or just beginning your journey towards a healthier you through weightlifting, you’ve probably heard of pre-workout supplements. You can easily invest in these from stores like Supplement First, with these supplements meant to give consumers energy for exercise.
The main ingredient in pre-workout supplements is caffeine and they can come in either pill or powder form. It also includes other ingredients that can benefit your health and workouts. That said, there are certain side effects to be aware of. Read on as we share the benefits and side effects of pre-workout supplements.
Benefits
Pre-workout supplements would give you a burst of energy to keep you going for your entire workout. The ingredients can help increase blood flow, pumping oxygen to the muscles. Excellent pre-workouts would have amino acids, particularly BCAAs, which help you build muscle while working out, reduce muscle soreness, and continue facilitating muscle protein synthetics even after the exercise.
Here are the benefits pre-workout supplements offer:
Muscle Gains
Amino acids are the major ingredient benefiting muscle gains, with pre-workout supplements containing high levels of them. They would have concentrations of branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs), three essential amino acids going directly into muscle protein synthesis. BCAAs would bypass the digestive process, becoming available to build muscle immediately.
Enhanced Strength
Pre-workout supplements help enhance strength in many ways. Besides increasing muscle as mentioned above, pre-workout supplements can fortify the metabolism for better strength while working out.
This is most likely thanks to creatine, which increases our biochemical mechanisms enhancing our energy levels. It also helps enhance strength, endurance, and muscle mass.
The same goes with nitrate, which allows the body to carry even more amino acids and nutrients to the muscles. As a result, you experience increased strength as you push further when training and in competitions.
Boost Endurance
Pre-workout helps boost endurance by removing mechanisms causing fatigue. This is done thanks to caffeine, beta-alanine, and sodium bicarbonate. Caffeine provides you energy while beta-alanine and sodium bicarbonate reduce acid accumulation causing burn from working out.
Side Effects
A lot of people might be sensitive to caffeine. While the amount in pre-workout supplements is considered safe, some people may feel anxiety after taking them.
Moreover, there might be rare allergies to some ingredients in pre-workout supplements, with some people reacting to the beta-alanine, causing numbness or tingling. Since pre-workout supplements might have niacin, those sensitive to it may notice their skin reddening. These are not considered dangerous symptoms but are uncomfortable.
With that in mind, are pre-workout supplements safe? Yes, they are generally safe. However, they aren’t for everyone.
Pre-workout supplements are best for those engaging in high-intensity training for competitions and sports. They are not for those who only do all-around fitness workouts or low-intensity exercises. Furthermore, it’s not the best for those sensitive to caffeine and some of the usual components pre-workout supplements contain.
Wrapping It Up
You should only take pre-workout supplements if you do high-intensity training, as they can boost you through the tough points of your workout!