Pre-workout matrices are definitely one of the most interesting categories when it comes to supplements. We always expect something more from them and we always follow new products that come on the market. Our experience with this category of supplements started before the end of 2018. And we have to admit, there were all kinds of products… This month we’ve been trying out the Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard Pre-Workout. Here we bring a brief review of this excellent and powerful pre-workout supplement crafted for athletes and bodybuilders with very serious goals.
It is important to know why we use this category of supplements, when we use them and what we strive to achieve with them. It took us a while, despite our extensive prior knowledge. We blindly believed in the effectiveness of certain products thanks to good marketing campaigns.
But everything has an end. Throwing money away and disappointment every time we didn’t get what we expected made us educate ourselves about supplementation so that we wouldn’t make the same mistakes again in the future Therefore, don’t just believe what you hear on television, or what you hear people say on social media, but actually do your homework and educate yourself about the effectiveness of each individual substance that makes up the final product.
What are pre-workout supplements and do you really need them?
Pre-workout supplements (like Optimum Nutrition’s Gold Standard Pre-Workout) are taken before exercise to maximize performance. Pre-workouts increase power, endurance, alertness, and mental focus. They can contain a combination of stimulants, vasodilators (increases blood flow), nootropics (cognitive enhancers), BCAAs, and endurance-enhancing ingredients. Therefore, they may contain a near infinite combination of ingredients but will commonly contain caffeine, guarana, creatine, taurine, branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs), and beta alanine as the main active ingredients, along with some additional combination of stimulants, botanicals, plant extracts, and vitamins. In short, they’re much more energising than a banana, shot of espresso or a black coffee.
Do you really need them? No. Most active individuals don’t use them at all. Those who take them do so in order to ease the fatigue of an intense workout and boost energy and athletic performance, focus, and mood during workouts. In our opinion, pre-workouts can be a good tool to use, if used as a tool and not something to rely on. Use them during extremely strenuous workouts of large muscle groups.
Brief product description & key product features
We have gone through many different pre-workouts in order to find the one that we like the best – Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard Pre-Workout.
Description
Gold Standard Pre-Workout by Optimum Nutrition is an excellent, high-quality, pre-workout formula that combines caffeine from natural sources with creatine monohydrate and beta-alanine to help you unleash energy, focus, performance and endurance.
Key product features
- Gold Standard Pre-Workout is an ingenious new product from Optimum Nutrition.
- It brings a unique combination of caffeine, beta-alanine, citrulline and l-carnitine.
- Contains only high quality ingredients.
- Each serving size (11 g or 1 level scoop) contains 175 mg of caffeine from natural sources, 3 g of creatine and 1.5 g of beta-alanine.
- Gold Standard Pre-Workout is ideal for anyone who wants top performance.
- A large selection of different flavors: blueberry lemonade, fruit punch, green apple, and watermelon candy.
Key benefits of Optimum Nutrition’s Gold Standard Pre-Workout
- Contains ingredients that have been proven to increase energy, promote enhanced endurance and mental focus so you can go longer and harder with your workouts.
- Great steady energy to get through the long workouts without feeling like your heart will jump out of your chest.
- Made with only premium ingredients (none of which are on the banned substances list).
- Great choice of flavors without any unpleasant artificial sweetener.
- Only 5 calories and 1g of carbs per serving. It’s a great option for those looking to manage their weight.
- Reputable brand (giant supplement company) and reasonable price.
- Doesn’t have that chemical “rush” feel that some of the other pre-workout powders on the market tend to have.
Key product ingredients and their positive impact
It pays to read the ingredients label before you invest in a fresh pot of pre-workout. Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard Pre-Workout contains all the ingredients necessary for an effective pre-workout supplement.
MUSCLE MATRIX INGREDIENTS
- Creatine monohydrate (3 g). High purity creatine monohydrate contained in this product has great potential to increase muscle power and performance during training.
- Astra GIN proprietary blend: (25 mg). AstraGin® is a patented ingredient from NuLiv Science that is completely natural and clinically proven to help with the absorption of a variety of ingredients, ranging from amino acids, to creatine, as well as Omega-3s.
PERFORMANCE COMPOSITE
- L-citruline malate (1.5 g). Citrullinc malate is an amino acid produced in the body and found in watermelon that helps to stimulate the production of nitric oxide. Nitric oxide is a natural vasodilator that relaxes blood vessels and increases blood flow to the muscles. More blood flow to your muscles results in improved energy and endurance along with a bigger “pump.”
- Beta-alanine (1.5 g). CarnoSyn® Beta-Alanine supports your intramuscular buffering system to help you train harder and longer. Benefits of beta-alanine supplementation include a boost in explosive muscle strength and power as well as increases in anaerobic endurance and aerobic capacity, thus allowing an athlete to train harder for longer.
ENERGY & FOCUS COMPLEX
- Caffeine (175 mg). Helps raise energy, mental alertness, and sharp focus before you hit the gym.
- Citrus Bioflavonoids (100 mg). They help to increase anaerobic capacity and peak power output during high intensity exercise without affecting the maximum heart rate.
- Acetyl-L-Carnitine HCl (375 mg). Helps your muscle mitochondria burn fat, which can increase your endurance, give you an edge in the gym and help you recover faster.
- N-Acetyl-L-Tyrosine (250 mg). L-tyrosine has been shown to provide increased energy and endurance.
Suggested use (method of application)
Mix 1 scoop (10 g) into 6 to 8 fluid ounces of cold water and shake for 30 seconds until consumed. Consume 15-30 minutes before exercise.
If you continue to take pre-workout on a regular basis (daily), your body can build up a tolerance to its effects, which is why we advise cycling the supplement, or coming off it for six to eight weeks at a time to give your body a chance to reset.
Which company is behind this pre-workout supplement?
If you’ve been in the fitness and nutrition space long enough, then you should know all about the Optimum Nutrition brand. This company is famous for its wide array of supplements including popular options like Gold Standard Casein and Gold Standard Whey.
How quickly can I expect visible results?
Advertisements for pre-workout supplements are some of the most exaggerated in the industry. Take 10 — 20 grams of powder and you’ll experience “highly explosive energy,” “maximum anabolic activation,” and “extreme training endurance,” they say. Are these products actually worth it, though, or are you better off popping a couple caffeine pills or drinking an espresso instead? The reality is an underdosed pre-workout drink is not worth the money as you won’t get much more out of it than caffeine pills.
A supplement like Gold Standard Pre-Workout (or any other on this planet) isn’t going to magically help you to build muscle overnight. Along with supplementation, a healthy diet and lifestyle are also necessary. Regular usage of Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard Pre-Workout supports muscle preservation essential in giving you a toned and muscular sculpt in response to your regular workouts over the period of at least two months.
Gold Standard Pre-Workout side effects
Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard Pre-Workout (just like every product of this type available on the market) produces notable stimulatory effects. Therefore, people who suffer from stimulant or caffeine sensitivity should utilize it with great caution. We all have different thresholds when it comes to ingesting caffeine.
Keep in mind that this is a supplement that also triggers vasodilation (widening of blood vessels). This is a process that might be an issue for those struggling with pre-existing heart conditions.
That’s why it’s always a good idea to consult with your physician before you try this or any other supplement.
The same goes for pregnant or breastfeeding women, as well as under 18’s and people who suffer from any pre-existing medical conditions.
Summing up (Final verdict): Should you buy Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard Pre-Workout?
Yes! After trying countless pre-workouts and researching different companies and ingredients, we came across Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard Pre-Workout and we could not be happier! It’s a popular supplement designed to get you firing at the gym and make sure that you get the very best out of your sessions. If you take your workouts and performance seriously you definitely don’t want to settle for a second place product. Finally, it’s time to get the legit pre-workout that’s as good as gold – leaving all other pre-workouts behind on performance and taste! And best of all, this product comes from the most trusted brand in sports nutrition. Can you wish more than that?
Rating Breakdown
-
Support for claims
-
Ingredient safety
-
Value for the price
-
Brand transparency
