Red Bull before a work out?

Beau

I go to the gym at 8am in the mornings so I feel pretty tired and weak when I'm there. My trainer pushes me pretty hard so I've started drinking red bull before I go. Is that healthy?

Diamondmaker

reports are that it is dangerous.

You will note that it is never advertised in a sporting sense such as lucozade and powerade etc, more a lifestyle pick me up.


I would never do it and have heard you should not drink it for a few hours after a work out either.

Hanley

Reasons??

I think red bull is magical when you need a kick like that.

But IMO the absolute best thing out there is this; http://www.pronutrition.ie/products.php?action=product&id=29

It'll help you push in the gym like no other.

It's expensive enough, BUT it'd probably work out cheaper in the long run. It's about a months supply for the cost of 25 red bull cans.

Diamondmaker

Well red bull its self never advertises it as a sports drink .............thats saying something for one!

Red Bull artifiacially increases your heart rate without doing any excercise.
Not good for all types of hearts in all fairness is it?

"Medical professionals have raised concerns about mixing alcohol with energy drinks, especially those with big doses of caffeine and taurine.They warn that the combination could create potentially fatal heart arrhythmias, especially when strenuous exercise is involved.

Spiked with caffeine and taurine - an amino acid that increases the heart rate -"
Just something from Sunday Business Post. granted it refers to alcohal also.

Im sure nothing is 100% conclusive but I bet there are no studies out there ADVISING people to take it with strenuous excercise for sure.

Hanley

Diamondmaker wrote:

Well red bull never advertises it as a sports drink so that one thing Ill try and find something backing up what I had heard.

Red Bull artifiacially increases your heart rate without doing any excercise.
Not good for all types of hearts in all fairness is it?

Is that not more a property of caffeine than red bull?

Diamondmaker

Yes and also taurine both of which RB is loaded with therefore a property of RB.
Do you relly need your heart rate up 20% BEFORE you start a work out?
Is this safe?



There are plenty more on here better placed to discuss this than me and I too would be keen to here their views.

I, for one, would not take RB before any strenuous physical activity.

Hanley

Do you drink coffee?

brianthebard

Where are you getting those quotes from Dm? I've never read anything that said red bull was dangerous to someone unless they had an existing heart condition or drank far too much. OP, if you are going to drink a caffeine drink before a work out, try and get it in at least a half hour beforehand, or even an hour, since it takes about that long for the effects to kick in. Anything felt before that is usually placebo.

Dragan

Diamondmaker wrote:

There are plenty more on here better placed to discuss this than me and I too would be keen to here their views.

Just about to watch a flick, keep working away and i'll be back in a bit.

G'em says hi.

Dragan

Diamondmaker wrote:

"Medical professionals have raised concerns about mixing alcohol with energy drinks, especially those with big doses of caffeine and taurine.They warn that the combination could create potentially fatal heart arrhythmias, especially when strenuous exercise is involved.

Right, now that i have my cheeky post for the day out of the way, lets get down to brass tax.

Alchohol is a depressant. Red Bull contains stimulants. Thats why they should not be mixed. Taking two different elements that perform contrary actions of the brain is just not big, and it just ain't clever. The line you quoted is directly related to mixing alchohol and Red Bull, so has no place in the argument that i can see?

With regard to the OP's question, sure, you could take Red Bull before a workout, but ask yourself why do you feel weak?

Do you eat breakfast before you head to the gym? Do you even have a shake?

If you can't stomach a wholemeal breakfast before going to the gym then i suggest a Meal Replacement drink containing carbs and proteins. You want REAL food in you, not a fake buzz brought about by manipulation of your endocrine systems.

The reason we feel weak is because our body wants proper fuel, not false energy from sugars and stimulants. Get in a source of protein ( amino acids ) and carbs ( glycogen ) to fuel your workout and to perform at optimal levels.

So, do you eat breakfast?

Diamondmaker

Hanley wrote:

Do you drink coffee?

...rarely makes me wired.... I am prone to heart palpatations, hireditary thing.

I KNOW that I should not drink stimulants, but I am fit and have a strong heart.

I think its a bit careless to advise an unfit person, with a possibly weaker heart than it could/should be, to take stimulants not knowing their health.

Is this a fair enough point?

I believe it is...

And perhaps more to the point it should not be a substitute for eh....good food and should not be encouraged as a substitute.

brianthebard

Who's unhealthy? Who told a person with a weak heart to take stimulants? I think you are inferring an awful lot there dm.

spurious

I would have thought anyone who was into taking care of themself by going to the gym etc., would not be drinking Red Bull at all.

Diamondmaker

brianthebard wrote:

Who's unhealthy? Who told a person with a weak heart to take stimulants? I think you are inferring an awful lot there dm.

Yes I am inferring quite a bit...

When advising people of health issues ( completely unrelated to fitness here just in general ) its not really wise to assume an individual is as fit or healty as you are and just say:

"yes fire away ..... it does me", is it??

It does no harm to outline the harms it may do to a certain category of person and let the poster decide where they fit in the scheme of things.

You told the OP how to take stimulants without any suggestion of any harmful effects that they may have to some peole. Its a bit casual IMO.

Any way the question is " is it healthy?"

Answer

A. No,not in place of food
B. No,not for certain people.

I think those are fair answers to the actual Qu.

Dragan

Guys i'm just gonna point out that three people were active in this thread excluding the OP and nobody asked them about fitness levels, what type of training they do or the all important breakfast question.

So we'll have no arguments about who inferred what or what's healthy and whats not.

Diamondmaker, either find some studies and link to them about Red Bull being unsafe as a workout stimulant or leave the argument be. Lastly, if you have an issue with the content of any post then report it, don't point it out mid thread and don't try to moderate whats posted. That is done by myself, Daveirl and Jak.

Advice was given based on the OP's post and he did not infer that he had any difficulties with his heart or reactions to stimulants, merely that he was tired before the workout. If you feel something might be dangerous for someone, for any reason, then ask the appropriate questions to gain the knowledge you need to advise them.

I'm about an inch away from closing this as it's going in pointless circles.

Let the OP come back and answer the questions about his pre workout meal and go from there.

Simple.

Diamondmaker

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Bull

here ya go then.

wikipedia, under health risks..........make up your own minds.

Any way its loaded with calories is it not and would be a poor aid in losing weight surely ?!

Dragan

Point the First - No one said "Hi" back the G'em and now you've all upset her. I hope your proud of yourselves.

Point the Second - Wikipedia is NOT www.pudmed.com

It can be edited by anyone about anything. After reading the entry about health risks it simple says the usual thing about Taurine and then talks about mixing with alchohol. Again.

I believe i made a simple request about posting to actual studies, not an online encyclopedia that can be edited by any one who uses the net?

Lastly i would like to know where the OP has said he would like to lose weight in this thread???

brianthebard

Dragan wrote:

Point the First - No one said "Hi" back the G'em and now you've all upset her. I hope your proud of yourselves.

I didn't know she was talking to me!
Hi g'em!
Also, I know National geographic isn't a medical journal, but they have a few articles on caffeine that I think back up what I've been saying.

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/08/0831_050831_coffee.html - coffee as antioxidant.

http://magma.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0501/feature1/ - gives an introduction to the article they ran in the magazine a year or two ago, plus several links at the bottom to related articles. I haven't read all of those links myself so I don't know if they will help.

That's probably the best I can contribute, since I'm not a science student medical journals aren't my strong point. Plus I really should be studying....

Diamondmaker

Ill dig out some "acceptable" references when I get some time ........

Hey Im curiuos too.......

"Is it healthy"?

Do you use it?

Dragan

Diamondmaker wrote:

Do you use it?

Nope. I get 95% of my energy from wholefoods, and use X-plode by Nutrition X for that pre workout kick.

Diamondmaker

So why am I getting all this flack dude?

Its NOT a healthy alternative to REAL food and it MAY ( subject to further documantation I will find ) have negative health issues or dangers to CERTAIN people.

I think in absence of knowing more about the OP it should be answered that No it is not a healthy option.

Really with such concerns about it, I would like some one to post an independant document where by they say RB is great for pre physical activity, like wise I will find one to the contrary.

bilbo79

Dragan wrote:

Point the First - No one said "Hi" back the G'em and now you've all upset her. I hope your proud of yourselves.

Point the Second - Wikipedia is NOT www.pudmed.com

It can be edited by anyone about anything. After reading the entry about health risks it simple says the usual thing about Taurine and then talks about mixing with alchohol. Again.

I believe i made a simple request about posting to actual studies, not an online encyclopedia that can be edited by any one who uses the net?

Lastly i would like to know where the OP has said he would like to lose weight in this thread???

Dragan i think your taking the piss with this moderator job, you sound like a bully and are not letting the conversation flow-do you want everyone to be robotic or something-i've read lots of your posts and think you have a habit of trying to pick fights with your domineering way of talking to people-chill out a bit man,

bilbo79

Diamondmaker wrote:

So why am I getting all this flack dude?

Its NOT a healthy alternative to REAL food and it MAY ( subject to further documantation I will find ) have negative health issues or dangers to CERTAIN people.

I think in absence of knowing more about the OP it should be answered that No it is not a healthy option.

Really with such concerns about it, I would like some one to post an independant document where by they say RB is great for pre physical activity, like wise I will find one to the contrary.

And yes your right-red bull is unhealthy in any walk of life-anyone with any knowledge of nutrition knows that

brianthebard

What sort of real food are you talking about DM that contains caffeine? No body is arguing that it may not cause health issues for some people, in the same way as getting on an aeroplane or eating a burger or a snickers may cause health issues for some people. But for the most part none of these things cause too much damage, especially in moderation. I think in the absence of the OP stating he/she had any health issues it should be answered that there is no evidence to suggest it will cause hardm. Here are a few articles on caffeine, and a few on red bull. All state that there is an advantage to drinking either caffeine or red bull before a workout (at least 30 mins before, as I stated). Red bull is shown in one of them to be more effective than coffee because of the addition of Taurine. Because the OP is training in the morning there should be no ill effect on their sleep patterns, as can be caused by such stimulants. I would personally feel that if I was drinking coffee/rb to improve my workout I wouldn't have it at other times in the day/week, as this would lessen its effectiveness.

So, links then;
http://www.mamashealth.com/exercise/caf.asp
http://ezinearticles.com/?Would-You-Like-a-Little-Caffeine-With-Your-Workout?&id=177117
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1608/is_9_17/ai_80309795
http://www.diet-blog.com/archives/2005/11/13/red_bull_gives_you_wings.php

Tbh I'm not sure how good these sources are, but there are a few of them and one of them at least provides a bibliography. I've said my bit enough times at this stage, I don't feel the need to defend my position any further.

JayRoc

bilbo79 wrote:

And yes you're right-red bull is unhealthy in any walk of life-anyone with any knowledge of nutrition knows that

Your post is a blanket statement with nothing to back it up whatsoever. Inferring that someone that disagrees with your so-far-unfounded opinion is somehow ignorant.... is unacceptable.

Hanley

bilbo79 wrote:

Dragan i think your taking the piss with this moderator job, you sound like a bully and are not letting the conversation flow-do you want everyone to be robotic or something-i've read lots of your posts and think you have a habit of trying to pick fights with your domineering way of talking to people-chill out a bit man,

I think you're taking the piss with your blanket statements and unapologetic ignorance.

What makes you such an authority on nutrition (genuine question). The people I tend to listen to are the ones who have got **** done in the real world.

Anybody can come on an internet forum and make assertations which they can't back up. Not many people have the guts to back these statements up with photos or accomplishments.

bilbo79

are you claiming that sugar is good for you? and i dont see anyone proving how good for you red bull is? sugar makes you diabetic and fat-while excess caffeine cause insomnia in some people.

Hanley

bilbo79 wrote:

are you claiming that sugar is good for you? and that caffeine way over the rda is a good thing?

Is that aimed at me?

I don't see where I said that. I don't even see what I said that would infer I believed that.

Sugar is good for you. Post workout your body is in desperate need of sugar (to replenish glycogen stores and aid recovery).

But I'm sure you already knew that since you're an expert.

bilbo79

Your body is not looking for sucrose which is the main sugar in redbull its looking for better versions such as glucose-or even fructose to a lesser degree

JayRoc

bilbo79 wrote:

and i dont see anyone proving how good for you red bull is?

I have no particular opinion on the potential dangers of red bull, although so far what I've read here frankly smacks of the same red-top sensationalism that has hopefully turned all who post here away from the nightmare that is creatine addiction.

But the onus is on you, as the person making such a definitive yet controversial statement, to provide us with acceptable evidence to back up what you're saying.

JayRoc

bilbo79 wrote:

Your body is not looking for sucrose which is the main sugar in redbull its looking for better versions such as glucose-or even fructose to a lesser degree

Are you talking about post-training?
As I thought it was pretty clear from the OP that he was taking said refreshing beverage before he trains