Tag: preworkout

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Is a non-stim pre workout supplement worth it?

We often get asked: “Why would I take a pre-workout supplement if there’s no caffeine in it?” It’s an understandable question, especially since most “pre workout” supplements out there are nothing more than artificially sweetened mega-doses of caffeine. 

But caffeine isn’t always the “holy grail” pre workout ingredient. It’s probably not even in the top five most important ingredients for a high-quality pre-workout. The right ingredients with proper doses can make a significant difference in your workout. 

Caffeine is a central nervous system stimulant that can perk you up when you’re feeling lethargic, can help with athletic performance, and can even improve cognitive performance. However, caffeine does have side effects, such as an increased anxiety, nervousness, jitteriness, elevated blood pressure and heart rate, decreased quality of sleep and/or insomnia, and risks during pregnancy. 

We love caffeine when consumed safely and in moderation. In fact, our classic PR Pre Workout contains a total caffeine profile of 200mg. This includes a 2:1 ratio of L-Theanine to caffeine to blunt the blood pressure response for a smooth energy with no spike or crash. Additionally, 50mg is from DiCaffeine Malate, a slow-release caffeine that extends your energy boost, reduces jitteriness and enhances digestion. 

However, there are many reasons you may want to steer clear of a caffeinated supplement. Some people may want to enjoy their morning coffee or tea without adding to their overall caffeine intake. Some may avoid caffeine altogether due to undesirable side effects. Some who exercise later in the day may want to avoid disrupted sleep. 

Enter The Non-Stim Pre Workout

Fortunately, Non-Stim PR Pre Workout is packed with powerful, fully dosed ingredients that will help you crush your workout without impacting your sleep schedule. 

4g of CarnoSyn® Beta-Alanine helps to increase muscular endurance and reduces fatigue. By buffering lactic acid in the muscles, it reduces the “burning” feeling you get when doing a sprint or high reps of an exercise.

8g of L-Citrulline Malate helps to increase strength and power output so that you can do more sets and reps than your baseline before fatigue sets in. It also helps to reduce muscle soreness and speed recovery.

3g of Betaine increases your max power output, helping specifically to improve sprint performance. It’s also been shown to improve V02 max (aerobic capacity, aka longer duration cardio output) and capacity to handle higher training volumes.

600mg of Rhodiola Rosea, an adaptogen, helps to reduce cortisol levels during stressful events (like exercise). Rhodiola also helps to reduce rates of perceived exertion and lowers fatigue during exercise. There’s even some evidence that it may have anti-aging and pro-longevity effects.

Fully dosed nootropics: L-Theanine, L-Tyrosine, Alpha GPC, and Huperzine A to optimize cognitive function in both the short term and long term, helping increase your focus, sharpness, memory, and reducing harmful stress responses on the brain.

We hope you now know that caffeine isn’t the only ingredient that drives performance, and a well-formulated non-stim pre-workout can be just as effective in helping you train harder and recover better.  With Non-Stim PR Pre Workout, you get all the performance benefits of a high-quality pre-workout—without the caffeine. Our science-backed, fully dosed Non-Stim PR Pre Workout is the smart choice for peak performance at any time of day.

Posted on by

Do I really need a pre-workout?

I wouldn’t be a responsible coach, a business representative, or just an honest human being if I said pre-workout is essential; in fact, I’ll even say that it’s not essential for everyone. In contrast, proper macro & micronutrients, adequate hydration, and even creatine are critical in your everyday life. Your fitness and health foundation comes from how you eat, hydrate, train, and recover. 

No pre-workout on the market will ever magically take you from a beginner to an advanced-level athlete on its own. Only hard work and smart lifestyle choices can do that. If a company makes a claim that sounds too good to be true, it is most likely too good to be true! 

However…

The real question becomes whether certain compounds can help improve your daily workouts. They absolutely can! In the correct dosages, certain ingredients are clinically tested to take your workout from “good” to “great.” And guess what, they’re safe, too. You won’t become a professional-level athlete after one dose, but consistent use over time can improve your workouts’ quality, effort, and intensity. Combined with good nutrition habits and consistent, well-programmed workouts, pre-workout supplementation can be a fantastic tool to help you reach your fitness goals. 

How does that work? First, ensure that the ingredients in your pre-workout have scientific evidence backing up their claims. Here are some ingredients that we love:

Beta-alanine can help to delay the lactic acid buildup in your muscles, or the “burn,” especially when you’re pushing yourself in a cardiovascular activity like a bike, row, run, uphill hike, or a high-rep set of resistance exercises. A serving size of 4,000 mg is the dosage shown to be effective in multiple clinical studies.

Citrulline malate can help you push out more reps in each set of exercise. For example, if you’re training squats to failure, citrulline malate supplementation may help you do more than you would have without supplementation. Citrulline malate can also delay the point where your mind tells you you’re exhausted—in other words; it decreases your rate of perceived exertion. A dosage of 8,000 mg of citrulline malate has been shown to achieve these results in multiple clinical studies.  

Betaine can help increase your aerobic capacity, maximum strength output, and maximum power output. That means that the amount of power that your body can produce (while doing a max lift, a sprint, or an explosive exercise) is increased with betaine supplementation. A dosage of 3,000 has been shown to be effective in clinical studies. 

Nootropics such as AlphaGPC, L-Tyrosine, L-Theanine, Huperzine-A, and Rhodiola Rosea help with mental sharpness, memory, and focus, helping you stay locked in on your workout. Without the dreaded “brain fog,” your mind can focus on things like accurate rep counting and proper form and technique. (There’s also compelling evidence of the long-term benefits of these ingredients for preserving cognitive function and being protective from cognitive decline!) 

However, throwing all of those ingredients into a supplement isn’t enough—you also have to ask if the amount of the ingredient is enough to actually make a difference. That’s what makes NorthStar Nutrition different. Our PR Pre Workout is unique: effective ingredients, no under-dosing, and no “proprietary blends” that don’t disclose how much of each ingredient you’re actually getting. 

Finally, your pre-workout shouldn’t have anything that you don’t need. Artificial sweeteners, colors and flavors are a cheaper way to make supplements come off more appealing to consumers, but can have negative impacts on your health. Some pre-workout brands hang their hat solely on mega-doses of caffeine. Other ingredients that supposedly improve performance may have little to no research backing those claims.

In conclusion, you certainly don’t need a pre-workout supplement to get a good workout and to reach your fitness goals. However, a quality pre-workout with correctly dosed ingredients can take your workouts to the next level! 

Read more about our ingredients that we carefully researched and chose to formulate the best pre-workout on the market.