One of the best ways to improve your overall health and fitness is to commit to some kind of workout routine. Regular exercise has been proven to help lead to improvement in so many areas of life. Woking out helps to build strength and stamina and helps people achieve better sleep and rest at night so they can feel more energized throughout the day.
While working out can help you feel your best throughout the week, sometimes getting to the gym or finishing a workout can feel like a mile too far. In fact, cultivating the strength and energy to hit up the gym regularly is an important part of anyone’s health and fitness journey. This requires eating the right kinds of foods, staying hydrated, and being sure to get enough sleep and recovery to feel your best.
Pre-workout is a popular supplement that is designed to help people feel their best while at the gym so they can get the most out of their workout. This supplement is one of the most popular supplements in the health industry, and it can be used for a variety of different workouts and exercises. Whether you love to lift weights, or you are about to start a cycling class, pre-workout can help to give you the energy, clarity, and focus of mind that you need to have an awesome workout.
If you have been wanting to find out more about pre-workout, what it is, and when to take it – here is everything you need to know!
When Should You Take a Pre-Workout?
A good way of thinking about a pre-workout is to compare it to a caffeinated beverage. Usually, you have your hot coffee in the morning, or your take an energy drink during the day, and you have to wait a little bit to feel it’s effects. Sometimes that period of time is five to ten minutes, while other times it can be twenty to thirty minutes.
The truth is, drinks like these can vary from person to person on when they start to ‘kick in’ and the same goes for pre-workout. A high-quality prework out will be different from an energy drink, or even a coffee, in that it won’t be crammed with sugar or just concentrated caffeine. Pre-workouts are specifically designed to help give you these things during your workout:
- Clarity and focus
- Energy
- Stamina
While coffee in the morning can help you feel more awake by blocking your adenosine receptors, it usually can’t give you energy and stamina. The same goes for a regular energy drink. Typically energy drinks are so full of sugar that whatever burst of energy they supply is quickly forgotten because of the tremendous ‘crash’ that happens quickly after.
The goal of a pre-workout is to supply you with benefits but to use ingredients that won’t leave you feeling heavy or sluggish once they wear off. For example, rather than relying solely on caffeine for alertness, a pre-workout might combine caffeine and L-theanine in order to help provide focus and clarity. This combo is effective at helping you feel clear-headed and focused, without the jitters of pure caffeine or the threat of a ‘crash’ after it wears off.
That all being said, pre-workouts still have an onset time that is important. Taking your pre-workout too late might mean that you don’t get that boost of energy till after your workout. Or if you take your pre-workout too soon, it might wear off in the middle of your workout and this can be noticeable which can make finishing your workout a challenge.
The optimal time for taking a pre-workout is typically thirty minutes before your workout begins, however, this does vary from person to person. This is a pretty safe general rule, but the truth is you will have to see how your body reacts to the pre-workout that you chose. This might involve some trial and error, but simply take note of the time and then adjust accordingly.
Don’t be discouraged if you miss time during your first couple of pre-workouts. Every person process pre-workout differently and has a different response to it. Taking the time to find out how your body processes pre-workout and what the timing looks like for you will have big payoffs in the end.
Start Slow
Another good piece of advice to keep in mind when starting with a pre-workout for the first time is to start slow. See how your body feels during and after your workout on the minimum suggested dosing. If you feel like you need more, you can always work your way up.
Conclusion
Pre-workouts are a great supplement to help improve your level of energy and enjoyment at the gym. Working out is one of the best ways to improve your overall quality of life and health, and pre-workouts are a great way to improve the quality of your workout. So don’t be afraid to try different time frames and see what works best for you when taking pre-workouts.
