Pre-Workout / N.O. Supplements - the good, the bad, and the ugly

[gbrice75]

Yea yea, I know this topic has been beaten to death and there are several "what's the best pre-workout supplement" threads already in existence. However, I haven't seen any recent ones and i'm a late comer to the pre workout sup. scene, so I wanted to start my own thread.

I realize these supps do nothing directly for muscle growth. However, I workout at 5:30am and I find it very difficult to even wake up fully, let alone get motivated and pumped to move heavy weights around. Coffee alone just doesn't do it for me. I should also point out that at 4:30am I am already eating my breakfast, 1 whole egg, 1/2 cup whites, a protein shake (30g), 1 cup of oats and 1/2 cup blueberries. So I have plenty of energy in terms of fuel to burn, but i'm just effin tired and walking around like a zombie.

I've used a few products so far and I find that they really do help me focus and get more into my workout. I can't really say i've felt a pump or anything like that, but for me it's more about that 'energetic' feeling (I personally like the jitters, but i'm an old ephedrine freak) and focus. So far:

N.O. XPLode NT - for me, this was garbage. I'm not sure I noticed anything at all, before, during, or after my workout. Would not buy this crap again.

Jack3d - i'm up to 3 scoops now, but I definitely feel this one, especially when I first started taking it. Unfortunately, I built up a tolerance pretty quickly. My fav. so far.

Everlast - I forget the exact product as it was a sample, but it was just ok. Better then N.O. XPLode NT though.

MRI Black Powder - i've heard good things about this one and have some on the way. Looking forward to trying it.

Those are all i've tried so far. Other's that I've heard were good (and i'd like to hear your opinions):

White Flood
Hemo Rage
WTF (Wake The Freak)

Any others worth mentioning?

Edit: I also used a sample of Napalm. It was just ok for me, nothing special.

[38jumper38]

N.O.XPlode nt, could't sleep at night.
Jack3d, got tolerance in 2 weeks

I'm using superpump max and its the best so far.

[yannick35]

You are entitled to your opinion my friend this is a free board, kind of weird that you did not experience anything with no xplode, i tought i was very good, only one scoop too. I train in my basement and usually very early in the morning too, around 6am, and yes i need something to boost me up.

I have tried Universal Animal Pump it was good the red pill is hell but not as good as No xplode.

Check out bodybuilding.com i order my stuff from there, you can get some free samples too BPI Sports 1.M.R Powder was just order and last time i also got a free sample bottle of cell mass, not bad.

[RussianVodka]

I had awesome workouts for 2 weeks when I used Jack3d. Back to normal after that. Just ordered DY NOxPump. Used N.O. XPlode NT for a while, had a very nice results for a month. It feels like first batches was stronger or had some "hidden" ingredients.

[scotty51312]

Jak3d is by far my favorite But i actually tried one I picked up at walmart called "ignition" by six star which is a muscletech brand, that wasn't bad. I'd rank it a close 2nd to Jak3d, 3rd on my list would be NanoVapor by muscletech which is horribly overpriced.

[kalspic]

i forgot the company name and the product, but big would always preach for them so it had to be reliable. i tried them and it was great. just had to down 8 pills. ill try and find the name of it or someone else might know what im talking about.

[l2elapse]

what about 1MR?

[optionsdude]

I saw Jack3d when I was in the store last week so I picked some up. I like it, noticed a good muscle pump and energy without being all jittery. I work differnt schedules and recently I was going to work at 3 am, I decided to go to the gym before work and try out the Jack3d. Not only was it good for the gym but kept me going for the first part of my shift. This was my first time trying a preworkout drink, looking forward to trying a different one after I use up the Jack3d.

[scotty51312]

what about 1MR?

My supplement company just sent me a couple sample packs of 1MR, l2elase, have you used it? Ingriedent look petty similar to jack3d, plus vitamin c and yerbe mate, niacin, grape seed extract (no clue why thats there) and red wine extract (same with that ingredient) I'll give it a try though since its free

[M302_Imola]

I use Jack3d amongst other additives for my preworkout caucation: 1 scoop jack3d, 200mg caffeine, 1000mg vit. c, 5g creatine mono, 4g beta-alanine, 5g of AAKG

[Bullseye Forever]

Ive tried a crap load of them and my favorite one was White Flood,great energy,pump and endurance,and no crash...but got resistant to it having to use to many scoops,now im using Optimum Nutritions Amino Energy....has everything in it,no stimulants though except a small amount of caffeine,plus loaded with BCAA's,Beta Alanine etc....incredible pumps and focus,will continue to use this one

[l2elapse]

My supplement company just sent me a couple sample packs of 1MR, l2elase, have you used it? Ingriedent look petty similar to jack3d, plus vitamin c and yerbe mate, niacin, grape seed extract (no clue why thats there) and red wine extract (same with that ingredient) I'll give it a try though since its free

i think i like jack3d better...how was it for you

[PistolStarta]

-Superpump is by far my favorite as energy isnt usually my problem but drive is, getting pumps helps me workout way harder. That being said 4 weeks and I dont feel it anymore and I dont drink a glass of water after I'll be pooping in 15 min.

-Jack3d is an energy booster pretty much, never liked the taste or the feeling of it, just felt wide awake no real difference in using it when I lift to doing cardio, I could just use caffiene.

- MRI black powder- Felt alot like Jack3d except it made me get itchy more than jack3d from the arginine. Also because the stuff I used (this was years ago may be different now) when mixed with water turned to a blue foam and upset my stomach alot.

- NoXplode worked well for short periods then became accustomed to it. Probably only two weeks worth of good stuff.

- Dymatize Xpand- Lots of itch, chalky and doesnt mix well. No pump.

[terraj]

Pre-workout supps= waste of cash.

BCAA only.

[Iron_Mutant]

aps mesomorph is supposed to be bomb...gonna try it soon. also have heard muscle marinade is pretty good, but the taste isnt so great

[yannick35]

What can i say the first time i took NO xplode was in 2009, it was awsome, i decided to start using a NO supplement once more before training so i bought some No xplode once more but this time around i just don't feel it, not sure if they tamed the product or not.

I got a free sample of 1MR it did nothing, Jaked3d seems to be the best for now it really gets me going, and for the price its really good on sale now at bodybuilding . com 76$ for 3 bottles.

[redz]

I had good luck with noxplode however the taste of a few of the flavors is just revolting.

[Flier]

Love J3D and 1MR.
Always take 2 weeks off after finishing a can.
2/3 of the serving does it for me.
Huge difference in my gym days with or without Pre.wo.
Off right now and can´t wait to get on another Jack can in 1 week.
Tried NO explode.....crap in comparison.
Just got a can of White Flood which I will stack with Purple Wraath next time around.

[optionsdude]

I'm loving the jack3d. Huge help with keeping going on cardio days. I took some today before my hike and I was an animal. I usually need a break before my buddy on our hikes, but today he had to stop for a break before me. It was a great hike so many waterfalls with all the rain we've been getting. However, the poison oak was a nice shiny new green color, and my knees aren't what they used to be.

[robert.]

jack3d is awesome for cardio. i take it when i do spinning and i love it for that as for lifting it doesnt help anymore because like you i got up to 3 scoops fast. white flood is pretty awesome. 1mr is okay. my fav by far is the gnc amp product n.o. loaded. made by gnc and kicks serious ass

[scotty51312]

i think i like jack3d better...how was it for you

I feel the same bro

[songdog]

I dont use nothing.

[EcToMoRpHiAn]

Ive tried a crap load of them and my favorite one was White Flood,great energy,pump and endurance,and no crash...but got resistant to it having to use to many scoops,now im using Optimum Nutritions Amino Energy....has everything in it,no stimulants though except a small amount of caffeine,plus loaded with BCAA's,Beta Alanine etc....incredible pumps and focus,will continue to use this one

I too workout at 5:30am and understand the need for a little "pick-me-up" before hitting the iron.

*Disclaimer - I add 5g of creatine mono to all of these preworkout supps. Although it doesn't affect energy, it is worth noting (could slightly affect pumps?)

White Flood - Great from an energy standpoint. The first time I took it, I felt like I was having a mini-panic attack (and my receptors were fried at that time in my life from excessive caffeine & adderall use). I've found that the endurance on White Flood is second to none - I literally couldn't exhaust my muscles.

ON's Amino Energy - Really interesting to me; I tried a sample packet and was extremely impressed. The only variable is that I worked out in the afternoon vs my typical morning workout, so I had significantly more carbs and whole food in my system to help. I definitely plan on giving it another shot soon. Plus the taste is PHENOMENAL!

Jack3d - Can't go wrong with it. Great results, great focus, great pump. I take it 5x a week and haven't noticed a huge tolerance build-up that others have mentioned. Not sure about how all these banning rumors will play out with the 1,3 dimethylelelelelele (spell check? haha).

Hemo-Rage - Absolute shit, not worth a dime

NO-Xplode - Personally I feel like it's overrated just like 99% of BSN's other products. I had mediocre results, but nothing that would warrant a switch from Jack3d.

Superpump - I had good workouts and great pumps, but something in it made me sh1t through a screen door with massive cramping. Had to stop taking it after a week.

[07santafe]

i would have to agree with the majority in saying jack3d is my favorite as of now musclepharm assualt was product of the year i believe so i tried it and it is absolutely horrible to me. I didnt notice a thing workout wise and the taste is terrible too. its like throwing cash out the window. but ive tried a sample pack of superpump and it worked well but heard you build up a quick tolerance with it.

[Bigd89]

Labrada nutrition- SuperCharge Xtreme N.O.

[biggymrat]

I am a 5am gym guy.

I used N.O.-Xplode faithfully for two tubs worth. While I was taking this product I got an obstructed bowl. The doctor believed strongly that N.O. Xplode had caused it. I stopped using it and never had a problem again.

I've always gotten great focus and energy with Jack3d. Probably my favorite N.O. product.

I am currently taking N.O. Shotgun. I don't feel as jittery with it, but I seem to have good focus. I like this product because it has 18g of protein in a serving.

[Gucks]

http://forums.steroid.com/showthread...ut!&highlight=

sorry im late jumping on this bu ti havent been around 4 a while. thts my own thread on making my own pre-workout. its my favourite way 2 go by far!

just 2 let u know the ones ive tryed are NO shotgun, NO xplode, jack3d, Hemo rage ultra concentrate, jack3d and hemo rage were descent but i much rather making my own, its cheaper and im pretty insensitive to stimulants so i use quite alot of beta (i love the jitters man!).

ive heard really good things about dorian yates' nox pump if ur interested, my m8 is on it and it tastes like shit but give u an awesome workout.

[Gucks]

Labrada nutrition- SuperCharge Xtreme N.O.

tryed it when my m8 had it once. its absolute shit imo, just full of sugar!

[werms]

Has anyone tried Plasma Jet? it's 10pills in a blister pack

[spicyer]

How about a preworkout with creatine nitrate, beta alanine, vitamin c, bcaa's? I''ve seen it at forunutrition they have free samples and musclefeast has it too. Creatine nitrate pumps are awesome and nitrates plus beta alanine = endurance.

[Loveismurder613]

No one around here has ever taken MHP's Dark Rage? If your stomach can tuff it, its one of the best pwo's out there in my opinion. I agree with everyone saying jack3d is excellent though too. MHP claims dark rage has EPO blood doping technology, one of 4 ways to increase the red blood cell count in your body. Something in it though gets ridiculous results for pumps and horrible stomach pains.

[optionsdude]

Man I don't know if the stomach pain would be worth it to me. I have enough stomach problems already.

[dooie]

what the FVck is power pump? anyone heard of it?

[Athlete127]

I've used...
C4 Extreme-gives me nice energy, good pumps and good focus, just not INTENSE like the first couple times I used it
Assault-Good taste, Shoots me through the roof with energy, for about 15 minutes, then I'm dead. Plus, the scoop is HUGE.
Dark Rage-Good focus, other then that,nothing.. plus it was GROSS.
Jack3d- Really good energy, but thats about it. And I hear bad things about the tolerance
N.O Explode-Feels like you are drinking energy with acid. Gave me pretty solid energy, pretty good pumps too, but didn't last long
Endorush-only comes in a 2 serving little bottle, and I drank the whole thing, and my energy was AMAZING, and focus too. Not so much pumps, but I love the energy

So far overall my favorite is C4 because it isnt expensive, although I feel my tolerance becoming closer... I wish endorush was made in big containers.

To try soon list
Superpump Max
Whiteflood
N.O. Shotgun
Hemo Rage Black
Bullnox Androrush
Isatoi Morph Megadrive
N.O. Loaded

Can anyone tell me anything about the above?

[Gucks]

I've used...
C4 Extreme-gives me nice energy, good pumps and good focus, just not INTENSE like the first couple times I used it
Assault-Good taste, Shoots me through the roof with energy, for about 15 minutes, then I'm dead. Plus, the scoop is HUGE.
Dark Rage-Good focus, other then that,nothing.. plus it was GROSS.
Jack3d- Really good energy, but thats about it. And I hear bad things about the tolerance
N.O Explode-Feels like you are drinking energy with acid. Gave me pretty solid energy, pretty good pumps too, but didn't last long
Endorush-only comes in a 2 serving little bottle, and I drank the whole thing, and my energy was AMAZING, and focus too. Not so much pumps, but I love the energy

So far overall my favorite is C4 because it isnt expensive, although I feel my tolerance becoming closer... I wish endorush was made in big containers.

To try soon list
Superpump Max
Whitefloodabsolute shit
N.O. Shotgundont waste ur money, had watermelon which is at least better then black cherry but both taste horrible and arent effective
Hemo Rage Blackfvcking awesome! better then jack3d imo. definately one to try
Bullnox Androrush
Isatoi Morph Megadrive
N.O. Loaded

Can anyone tell me anything about the above?

in bold

[Buddhabody]

I'm fan of Jack3d....on it for a few weeks and I'm only using two scoops. I imagine I will develop a tolerance at some point but that has not happened yet. Will try 1.M.R in the future. I really like BPI, I'm using they're A-HD right now.