I tried and tested this year’s best pre-workout supplements by taking them around 30 minutes before my strength-training sessions at the gym. Copy link. twitter. facebook. whatsapp. email. Forget snacking on a banana and quickly downing a coffee, if you’re really hitting it hard at the gym and feel like you could use a little extra oomph, then getting your hands on the best pre-workout supplement might just be the thing you need to give your muscles that extra push.
But what is pre-workout and what does it do? Alex Ward, head trainer at Sweat Society in Surbiton, describes pre-workout as a “sports nutrition supplement, designed to improve energy and enhance exercise performance”. Essentially, it’s a supplement designed to give you an energy boost. Just don’t chase it with a double espresso.
“Due to the various ingredients found in pre-workout, it can help stimulate the muscles, increase focus and concentration and make you perform at a higher intensity during sessions, with less fatigue,” says Ward. “It will generally keep you going through an hour’s workout of intense training such as a weights session,” he adds. The top rated pre-workouts are the ones that slowly release the energy – and prevent you from a ‘crash-and-burn’ scenario mid-workout.
With that in mind, I spent weeks testing the best pre-workout and you can read my full reviews below. Underneath that you can find advice from a nutritionist on when to take pre-workout and the effect of individual ingredients. If you’re in a hurry, here’s a quick look at my top five:.
