Get your training machinery running: why the pre-workout machinery is so important

Don't have a plan for where to start with your pre-workout diet? This article will explain what you should eat before your workout and which supplements are best for this period.

Serious exercisers need massive amounts of energy and focus for their intense training sessions. The right pre-workout nutrition and supplementation fulfills this purpose in the most efficient way.

However, the pre-workout phase is also a time to promote muscle growth. To achieve this type of muscle growth with intense efforts in the weight room, protein synthesis must be continuous, especially before, during and after training.

Muscles are either in an anabolic or catabolic state. To experience ongoing muscle gains, the rate of muscle protein synthesis (the anabolic state) must continually exceed the rate of protein breakdown (the catabolic state).

You must make every effort to ensure that you are consuming the right nutrients at the right times if you want to achieve continuous muscle growth. The pre-workout period is the ideal time to prepare your body for peak performance, fat burning and post-workout recovery. This article will show you how to achieve this.

Why pre-workout nutrition is important

There is often confusion when it comes to pre-workout nutrition. Many exercisers think that meals consisting of whole foods are completely sufficient. However, while whole foods are important, they are only part of the equation. This raises the question of supplements. What are the best options and what specific ingredients are available?

As a dedicated exerciser, you may be wondering how you can get the most out of your workout with the help of innovative pre-workout supplementation. Below you'll find a detailed overview of the best pre-workout essentials you need to give your training intensity a boost and optimize the growth process.

The meal before training

Before you consume an effective pre-workout product, the all-important pre-workout meal needs to be addressed first. Aside from training energy, this meal also helps to delay or prevent muscle protein breakdown. In fact, studies show that training on an empty stomach more than doubles nitrogen loss due to protein breakdown (11, 14)

To maximize your performance and maintain muscle, it is essential to eat a solid meal within the last 2 hours before training. Poor pre-workout nutrition can lead to excessive cortisol release during exercise, which can result in suboptimal fat oxidation as well as muscle loss (11).

Whether it's an early morning cardio session or an abdominal training session after getting up, you should always eat something beforehand. No more cardio or resistance training in a fasted state!

The right pre-workout supplementation fills the tank to boost training energy, delay the onset of fatigue and increase muscle growth. The pre-workout meal does not have to be excessive: about 400 kcal, consisting of 70% low-glycemic carbohydrates (vegetables and oatmeal) and 30% low-fat proteins (egg white and chicken breast).

Since fat takes the longest to digest, a pre-workout meal must be low in this nutrient. A perfect pre-workout meal could consist of 100 grams of oatmeal, a banana and 6 egg whites.

The pre-workout supplement

A pre-workout formula consisting of the right high-performance ingredients is essential for muscle building. Taking a suitable pre-workout product before the first repetition of training maximizes strength, provides energy for longer endurance, increases fat oxidation, improves focus and minimizes muscle breakdown (increased muscle growth).

The days of exercisers simply eating a meal before a workout and expecting to dominate the iron are over. Today, it is undeniable that a proper pre-workout product can significantly improve focus, reduce fatigue and increase energy to a greater extent than a regular meal can.

Important requirements

Stay away from products with questionable ingredients and an excessive list of artificial substances. Instead, opt for a product that contains ingredients with scientifically proven effects and is free of useless fillers.

Avoid so-called proprietary blends, where you don't know how much of which active ingredient you're getting. In a proprietary blend, the exact amount of ingredients contained in the final product is not stated, but usually a large number of different ingredients are thrown together. Often the most effective ingredients are contained in such small doses that the effect and the price-performance ratio will be minimal at best.

What you should look for in an effective pre-workout product

A superior pre-workout product includes a whole range of performance nutrients in appropriate dosages. Below you will find a list of the most effective ingredients found in the best pre-workout products.

Creatine

Creatine supports training performance on many different levels. By increasing ATP (adenosine triphosphate, which is crucial for energy production) production within muscle cells, creatine helps you to increase your training intensity over a longer period of time (13). Creatine monohydrate remains the most popular and recommended choice due to its proven effects.

Beta-alanine

Beta-alanine works synergistically with creatine. This active ingredient is a precursor of the lactic acid buffering amino acid carnosine. It has been shown that low carnosine levels in the muscle drastically reduce training performance (9).

Supplementation with beta-alanine saturates the muscles with carnosine. This improves anaerobic performance and reduces muscle fatigue.

Burn fat and increase your focus

Pre-workout boosters are also popular due to their stimulating and fat-burning effects, which result from stimulating compounds such as caffeine. Different types of caffeine and compounds that work synergistically with caffeine stimulate lipolysis and thermogenesis, improve focus and deliver a variety of performance benefits.

Caffeine

Caffeine is a cornerstone of all good pre-workout supplements, used by millions of people worldwide as a universal stimulant and performance enhancer.

Caffeine has been shown to increase blood circulation to increase the transportation of oxygen and nutrients to working muscles. In addition, caffeine reduces exercise-induced pain, increases resistance to fatigue, increases fat oxidation and improves mental focus (8).

Although caffeine is primarily considered a pre-workout substance, it can also enhance exercise performance by promoting an increase in glycogen uptake by up to 66% for up to 4 hours after exercise (1).

Particular attention should be paid to the amount of caffeine consumed before training. Depending on individual tolerance, between 200 and 300 mg of caffeine is usually required to reap the benefits mentioned above. Higher doses can lead to nervousness, restlessness and nausea.

Maximize the pump

Optimizing energy, burning fat and stimulating the mind are key features of an excellent pre-workout product. But we must not forget the pump. The pump supports muscle growth as a catalyst. The pump also provides a psychological edge. Pump makes the exerciser feel more muscular and invincible, giving them the feeling that they can move more weight than ever before.

The pump can be enhanced in many ways and a good pre-workout product will include a wide range of pump ingredients. Below we'll take a look at the best and most proven of these compounds.

Arginine

The benefits of arginine are not limited to muscle pumps. Once converted into nitric oxide in the body, arginine dilates blood vessels, allowing more nutrients and more oxygen-rich blood to reach working muscles. Arginine can also boost immune function and improve kidney function. This makes it potentially effective in supporting the healing of muscle tissue and the elimination of excess water from the body (19)

Arginine also helps the body process creatine and nitrosigns, stimulating the production of exercise energy and increased muscle growth. By stimulating the release of insulin, arginine allows more pre-workout ingredients such as amino acids and high molecular weight carbohydrates to reach the muscles.

Thus, different forms of arginine can stimulate the synthesis of new muscle tissue, support regeneration and the regulation of metabolism and help to burn body fat (3).

Arginine ethyl ester

Arginine ethyl ester is produced through a process known as esterification. This esterified form of arginine is absorbed more efficiently in the small intestine and has a higher bioavailability than regular arginine.

Arginine HCL

In Arginine HCL, arginine is bound to a hydrochloride molecule to improve absorption in the digestive system (20). Faster absorption allows arginine to enter the bloodstream faster for maximum results. Because the hydrochloride molecule produces a neutral pH, arginine HCL in powder form tastes better than other forms of arginine when mixed with water.

Arginine alpha-ketoglutarate (AAKG)

In arginine alpha-ketoglutarate, arginine is bound to the nitrogen intermediate alpha-ketoglutarate. Compared to arginine HCl, arginine alpha-ketoglutarate has a significantly better bioavailability and is absorbed by your body better and in larger quantities than regular arginine. This results in a significantly stronger effect and a lower amount of active ingredient.

Arginine pyroglutamate

Arginine pyroglutamate has a higher bioavailability than many other forms of arginine. Due to its pyroglutamate component, arginine pyroglutamate can cross the blood-brain barrier and thus increase the supply of oxygen and nutrients to the brain (21). As a result, arginine pyroglutamate can also promote learning ability and memory.

It has also been shown that arginine pyroglutamate in combination with the amino acid lysine can increase the body's release of growth hormone by several percent for up to 8 hours (10).

Nitrosigne

Nitrosigne, which is technically inositol stabilized arginine silicate, has a higher bioavailability than many other forms of arginine and has additional muscle-building benefits. When combined with heart-healthy potassium silicate, Nitrosigne not only produces a superior pump, but also strengthens the walls of the arteries and keeps them flexible.

In addition to improving blood flow and cardiovascular efficiency, Nitrosigne can significantly reduce exercise-induced lactic acid buildup, inflammation, cramping and muscle pain, allowing you to train harder and longer, as well as recover faster from strenuous workouts (18).

Oxystorm

Oxystorm® is a proprietary extract from the plant Amaranthus hypochondriatus, also known as "red spinach". Of all plants, Amaranthus hypochondriatus contains the highest proportion of organic nitrate, which at 9 to 10% is up to 500% higher than beetroot. In addition, Oxystorm contains 8 to 14% potassium, which supports optimal hydration of the muscles during training. Scientific studies have shown that Oxystorm increases blood flow and endurance.

Citrulline malate

The amino acid citrulline malate is known to produce a pump that literally breaks the skin and leads to significant muscle gains (14). Similar to beta-alanine, citrulline minimizes lactic acid production to increase training energy.

The rate at which supplemented amino acids can be utilized by muscles is a predictor of increased exercise performance. Citrulline increases the utilization of amino acids present in the blood to ensure a continuous supply of amino acids to the muscles when they are most needed.

Glycerol

Glycerol is the "backbone" of triglycerides (fats) where the fatty acids are linked together. Glycerol is not stored in the body as body fat, but is converted into glucose and used as a source of energy. Glycerol has traditionally been used not by bodybuilders but by endurance athletes for whom optimal hydration is an essential part of their sport.

Due to its strong osmotic properties, glycerine has been shown to be an effective hydrating agent that draws fluid into the muscles and bloodstream where it is retained for long periods of time (2). This is of interest to bodybuilders, as optimal hydration plays a crucial role in achieving a skin-bursting pump.

Glycerol is used by strength athletes to dilate blood vessels, improve vascularity and achieve a maximum pump. Hydromax is a stable form of glycerol available in a convenient powder form. With a glycerol content of 65%, Hydromax leads to a condition known as hyperhydration, which significantly improves muscle function. Swelling of the muscle cells stretches the muscle cell membrane to a degree that activates long-term muscle growth. Taking it in combination with a creatine product can significantly enhance the positive effects of glycerol (2).

BCAAs

Whether used for strength training or endurance training, the BCAAs leucine, isoleucine and valine are the most valuable amino acids for increasing protein synthesis before, during and after training.

Shifting the ratio of catabolism to anabolism in the direction of muscle protein synthesis has clear therapeutic benefits for strength athletes (5). Taken before training, BCAAs keep muscles in an anabolic state.

According to scientific research published in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, BCAAs serve as the primary amino acids used during intense training sessions (15).

This study found that a combined intake of creatine, citrulline, whey protein, caffeine and BCAAs before exercise over a three-week period significantly increased aerobic and anaerobic performance, exercise volume and lean body mass. Advertise BCAAs here

Maintaining performance and promoting muscle growth

The pre-workout meal is at the center of pre-workout nutrition. The correct intake of solid food during the last two hours before training is crucial for increasing the level of muscle glycogen stores and protein synthesis.

However, as the training session progresses, energy reserves can begin to dwindle and catabolic processes (training with weights) can begin to inhibit protein synthesis. This is where a good pre-workout formula, consisting of energy-supplying and muscle-building components, comes into play.

Pre-workout nutrition is one of the most important times to consume training nutrients. A formula that includes high-potency components such as BCAAs, creatine, citrulline, glycerol, caffeine, beta-alanine, arginine and other high-performance compounds guarantees that every training session will be a killer workout.

In addition, such a formula can counteract muscle breakdown due to the catabolic nature of intense training. The result: more energy and, most importantly, greater muscle gains.

References

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Source: https://www.muscleandstrength.com/articles/important-preworkout-nutrition