Energy Drinks

The Dunner

Just wondering what is the best sort of energy drink for the gym,to hydrate the body and so on.

Just feel while drinking water pre-gym its ok to hydrate but sometimes feel i could do with a little more energy.

My workout is good bit of cardio to shift the wee belly,threadmill,bike and rowing machine,abs exercise,about 40 minutes and about a half hour of weights,mainly upper body.

dave80

The Dunner wrote: »

Just wondering what is the best sort of energy drink for the gym,to hydrate the body and so on.

Just feel while drinking water pre-gym its ok to hydrate but sometimes feel i could do with a little more energy.

My workout is good bit of cardio to shift the wee belly,threadmill,bike and rowing machine,abs exercise,about 40 minutes and about a half hour of weights,mainly upper body.

i just have a banana and a caffeine tab wit a pint of water about 45 mins before training, its cheap and effective, you can get 100 caffeine tabs for 6 euro, a banana for bout 20cent

brianthebard

I add a little salt to my water bottle, seems to help compared to plain water. Some glucose would probably improve things even more.

thaifighter

Pre-workout carbs are very important in terms of boosting energy levels.

A couple banana's would be perfect.

In terms of hydration during your workout, there's lots of options about in terms of intra-workout supplements that have added BCAA's, electrolytes, creatine, taurine, some stimulants etc....that'll keep your focused and full of life.

Have a search around for "intra-workout" drinks and you'll find an abundance of options.

Cheap way - 2 bananas, lots of water
Best way - 2 bananas, some sort of good, well reviewed intra-workout supplement

Hope that helps.

The Dunner

thaifighter wrote: »

Pre-workout carbs are very important in terms of boosting energy levels.

A couple banana's would be perfect.

In terms of hydration during your workout, there's lots of options about in terms of intra-workout supplements that have added BCAA's, electrolytes, creatine, taurine, some stimulants etc....that'll keep your focused and full of life.

Have a search around for "intra-workout" drinks and you'll find an abundance of options.

Cheap way - 2 bananas, lots of water
Best way - 2 bananas, some sort of good, well reviewed intra-workout supplement

Hope that helps.

Yes massive help thanks.Have you tried any particular brand of the above.

The likes of creatine and taurine i have been put off by people.Some tell me they add a lot of weight to the body which i am defanitly not trying to do.

Mr Cawley

i used to jog everyday and i needed a bottle of lucozade afterwards for the sugar and calories

Hanley

Mr Cawley wrote: »

i used to jog everyday and i needed a bottle of lucozade afterwards for the sugar and calories

No, you didn't.

thaifighter

The Dunner wrote: »

Yes massive help thanks.Have you tried any particular brand of the above.

The likes of creatine and taurine i have been put off by people.Some tell me they add a lot of weight to the body which i am defanitly not trying to do.

Loads and loads tbh. Personally, I'm using Gaspari SizeOn (the old / original formula) now during workouts. I'd use the new Pre-Contest one if I hadn't had a tub of the original in my cupboard lol.

I know a lot of guys who's tried the "Max Performance" SizeOn which has added carbs and an ingredient called pterostilbene. Pterostilbene is supposed to work a little like insulin and is hence good for "bulking up". There's also a whole load of other ingredients in their like amino acids, various carb source (i.e. slower & faster burning types), electrolytes etc.

Here's a typical SizeOn review:
http://www.muscletalk.co.uk/Gaspari-Size-On-m4032367.aspx

If you just wanted a plain intra-workout style drink, the original one is probably Scivation Xtend. Xtend is just BCAA's, citruline malate (good for muscle pumps & some evidence to it supporting improved strength), mixed together with flavouring / sweetener. You can get large serving tubs so it's probably a little better value than the SizeOn, but personally I'd say the SizeOn is the "best" intra-workout out there at the mo.

john_cappa

x 2 on the size on! Very expensive though! Green mag from controlled lab is a decent alternative

thaifighter

john_cappa wrote: »

x 2 on the size on! Very expensive though! Green mag from controlled lab is a decent alternative

True, SizeOn is an expensive product but I've never read a bad review. Green Mag everyone raves about but I've never tried it myself. There's too many things to have a go on lol!

Mr Cawley

Hanley wrote: »

No, you didn't.

Yes, I actually did! training for hours a day, I needed lucozade or I wouldn't have been able to run again for hours the next day. Eating meals was not an option. Lucozade was a constant and important source for sugar and calories! Thanks for your concern!

I'd recommend lucozade, have no experience with other isotonic fluids however

john_cappa

just to add green mag is not an energy drink per say.

For hydration/energy i know h&b do isotonic powder fairly cheap that you mix with water

The Dunner

thaifighter wrote: »

Loads and loads tbh. Personally, I'm using Gaspari SizeOn (the old / original formula) now during workouts. I'd use the new Pre-Contest one if I hadn't had a tub of the original in my cupboard lol.

I know a lot of guys who's tried the "Max Performance" SizeOn which has added carbs and an ingredient called pterostilbene. Pterostilbene is supposed to work a little like insulin and is hence good for "bulking up". There's also a whole load of other ingredients in their like amino acids, various carb source (i.e. slower & faster burning types), electrolytes etc.

Here's a typical SizeOn review:
http://www.muscletalk.co.uk/Gaspari-Size-On-m4032367.aspx

If you just wanted a plain intra-workout style drink, the original one is probably Scivation Xtend. Xtend is just BCAA's, citruline malate (good for muscle pumps & some evidence to it supporting improved strength), mixed together with flavouring / sweetener. You can get large serving tubs so it's probably a little better value than the SizeOn, but personally I'd say the SizeOn is the "best" intra-workout out there at the mo.

Thats great information.Thanks alot.

Also what kind of prices have you being paying for these,even where have you being buying it.

Any side effects,deffanitly don't want a weight producing drink.

cc87

The Dunner wrote: »

Thats great information.Thanks alot.

Also what kind of prices have you being paying for these,even where have you being buying it.

Any side effects,deffanitly don't want a weight producing drink.

I dont know much about most of the drinks mentioned but they will only cause you to put on weight if your not doing enough work to burn off the calories in them. So be aware of whats in those drinks before you decide to use them the whole time.

JJayoo

Skimmed milk seems to do the trick, plus a liter = 33grams of protein. Milk is good for hydration as it contains salt and sugar, and skimmed milk is very light so you wont feel like puking while in the gym

DL Saint

thaifighter wrote: »

Loads and loads tbh. Personally, I'm using Gaspari SizeOn (the old / original formula) now during workouts. I'd use the new Pre-Contest one if I hadn't had a tub of the original in my cupboard lol.

I know a lot of guys who's tried the "Max Performance" SizeOn which has added carbs and an ingredient called pterostilbene. Pterostilbene is supposed to work a little like insulin and is hence good for "bulking up". There's also a whole load of other ingredients in their like amino acids, various carb source (i.e. slower & faster burning types), electrolytes etc.

Here's a typical SizeOn review:
http://www.muscletalk.co.uk/Gaspari-Size-On-m4032367.aspx

If you just wanted a plain intra-workout style drink, the original one is probably Scivation Xtend. Xtend is just BCAA's, citruline malate (good for muscle pumps & some evidence to it supporting improved strength), mixed together with flavouring / sweetener. You can get large serving tubs so it's probably a little better value than the SizeOn, but personally I'd say the SizeOn is the "best" intra-workout out there at the mo.

I thought the new Size-ON was banned in Ireland?
IMO I didn't think size-on lived up to all the hype.
I didn't see great gains from it compared to post workout creatines such as Storm (but hey that could just be me)
I also did not think it mixed well in the shaker (very clumpy)
and I find it had me putting on too much water weight, which I don't think the OP wants.

I find the X-tend to be a very good intra-workout supplement, it has a great amino profile and helps recovery nd boosts energy

TommyKnocker

DL Saint wrote: »

I find the X-tend to be a very good intra-workout supplement, it has a great amino profile and helps recovery nd boosts energy

+1 for X-tend

thaifighter

DL Saint wrote: »

I thought the new Size-ON was banned in Ireland?

Really?

Why?

DL Saint

thaifighter wrote: »

Really?

Why?

I don't actualy know why, it makes no sense.
But I suppose neither does banning no-explode or animal pack! :pac:

Kevster

As a general guide:

Hypertonic drinks = Mostly provide energy
Isotonic = Provide energy and rehydration
Hyptotonic = Mostly rehydration

Four-Percent

DL Saint wrote: »

I don't actualy know why, it makes no sense.
But I suppose neither does banning no-explode or animal pack! :pac:

didn't NO-xplode have something like 12000% the daily recommended limit for vitamin B12 or something ridiculous like that?

kazzer

Anyone tried guarana tablets?

Dathai

For the week I do cardio (1 week at the end of 8 weeks of weight training), I usually take a 2 litre bottle of water with 4 scoops of High5 energy powder. I take 2 scoops of the Isotonic powder and 2 scoops of the energy source. Each tub is the 2:1 ratio. I drink this during training.

http://www.highfive.co.uk/energy_endurance_drinks/isotonic.html

I find I'm not as tired or as cramped when I take it during training. Before training (45mins to 50mins before) I usually take half a litre of water with 1.5 scoops of volumaize and then a Beta-Nox shot around 30 minutes before I train. I'm in the gym at 7am most mornings so my body needs that extra bit of hydration and energy to keep me going.

I sweat profusely when I do cardio, so these have helped keep me hydrated and feeling great throughout training.