Pre-workout just got way more fun.
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Between protein powder, creatine, BCAAs, and pre-workout your supplement stack might be looking a little liquidy these days. We’re not against hydration, in fact, we highly recommend it. But a stack of blendable powders can become cumbersome and inconvenient when you’re constantly on-the-go. Allow us to present: Pre-workout gummies.
Pre-workout gummies promise to deliver all the benefits of liquid pre-workout, like elevated performance, endurance, and focus, in a bite-sized gummy. Are pre-workout gummies worth it, and which you should buy? Here’s the scoop.
Hone Health is a team of health-obsessed journalists, editors, fitness junkies, medical reviewers, and product testers. We’ve spent hours researching pre-workout supplementation, pre-workout gummies, the effects of the wide variety of ingredients, and why gummies may be preferable to powder or pills before ever putting finger to keyboard.
Kelsey Costa, MS, RDN, is an esteemed authority in the field of nutrition, holding a Master of Science and registered dietitian nutritionist credentials. She’s a nutrition consultant for Consumer Health Digest, master certified wellness coach, and author
According to registered dietitian Kelsey Costa, MS, RDN, pre-workout gummies fall under a larger class of multi-ingredient pre-workout supplements (MIPS). In general, MIPS may boost muscular stamina and mood when consumed before exercise (1). But each ingredient brings different benefits to the table.
Ingredients like creatine, beta-alanine, caffeine, and l-carnitine might boost workout performance (2, 3, 4, 5). Creatine may also enhance focus and reduce fatigue along with adaptogens like ginseng and Rhodiola rosea (6, 7, 8). On the other hand, you can count on ingredients like BCAAs, glutamine, and taurine to aid in recovery (9, 10, 11). Citrulline delivers a pretty sweet muscle pump (12).
Pre-workout gummies and powders offer similar benefits, but gummies offer a few perks over powder:
If you care about precision or are sensitive to any of the active ingredients in a typical pre-workout blend (like caffeine) getting the exact amount of pre-workout is helpful. Pre-measured gummies can offer peace of mind.
Pre-workout gummies come in clutch for anyone who doesn’t want to haul their Blender Bottle and a jar of powder around. Gummies easily stash away and are perfect for popping when the compulsion to workout strikes.
Pre-workout gummies don’t absorb as quickly as powder, so take your gummy 30 to 60 minutes before your workout for best results.
If you’re thinking about giving pre-workout gummies a try, these are the best you can buy. We’ll note that while creatine gummies and energy chews could fall under the umbrella of pre-workout gummies, we’ve stuck to gummies that contain a cocktail of workout-boosting ingredients, which we’d argue is the spirit of a true pre-workout supplement.
Leave it to Olly—the brand that has basically taken over the Target supplement aisle—to enter the pre-workout gummy game strong. Its pre-workout gummies pack a blend of green coffee bean, green tea, turmeric, tart cherry, blueberry, broccoli, and kale—ingredients the brand claims work together to support your body’s natural production of nitric oxide, which is essential for exercise endurance (13). They also contain vitamins B6 and B12 to boost energy.While many gummies recommend a range of one to upwards of 10 gummies depending on your activity of choice, Olly recommends taking just one. This means you can depend on a jar of 25 gummies to last you for exactly 25 workouts, versus other brands which might only last you for a few. Olly’s gummies are also NSF certified, so competitive athletes can rest assured no funny business will pop up on a drug test.
If you’ve spent any amount of time looking into pre-workout gummies, you know that most sound good but may contain sketchy ingredients. Battle Born pre-workout gummies, on the other hand, have several stamps of approval. They’re Non-GMO and GMP certified; plus, they’re made in an FDA registered facility.With ingredients like beta-alanine, l-citrulline, l-tyrosine, l-taurine, and caffeine, Battle Born’s gummies run true to a classic pre-workout formula. Just watch the dose: One serving is 10 gummies. The first ingredient is also sugar, but the amount of sugar in a serving isn’t listed. And considering one Walmart reviewer claims that they “taste just like candy,” we’ll assume these gummies will run up your daily sugar intake.
If you’re looking to hit your pre-workout needs while tapping into the stress and fatigue-relieving benefits of adaptogens, Elm & Rye pre-workout gummies are your best bet. Each gummy contains caffeine, beta-alanine, ashwagandha, reishi, CoQ10, and vitamin B12.Typical pre-workout formulas load a dose of 4,000 to 6,000 mg of beta-alanine (14), and can contain upwards of 300 to 500 mg of caffeine per serving. Elm & Rye’s gummies run lighter: only 50 mg of caffeine and 10 mg of beta-alanine. Which means if you’re looking for a slight boost in one simple gummy, Elm & Rye gummies might be worth a shot. But for the price, you might be better off piecing together a stack of pre-workout and adaptogen supplements that provide a more effective dose of each ingredient.
Optimum Nutrition’s highly-rated Essential AMIN.O. Energy pre-workout is now available in gummy form. Each serving includes 100 mg of caffeine and five grams of amino acids. Many athletes and exercise enthusiasts use amino acid supplements, as research suggests that these nutrients may improve performance, support muscle recovery, and reduce exercise fatigue. However, there’s mixed research on how effective (or ineffective) amino acids supplementation is for working out (15).Optimum Nutrition is a solid bet for quality and purity since their supplements are informed-choice certified. That said, you might be better off sticking to the powder. According to Amazon reviewers these gummies are hit and miss for flavor and texture.
For another option that hits the typical pre-workout bases—l-citrulline, beta-alanine, l-tyrosine, l-taurine, caffeine, and vitamins B6, B12, and D3—consider Chewz. Each pack comes with 70 gummies, and the brand suggests a dose of three to 10 gummies. We like that the brand is transparent about the amount of sugar in their gummies, but note—the highest dose of gummies will run you 12.3 grams of sugar.
There’s a lot to consider when looking for a pre-workout supplement. Here’s what Costa looks for:
“Look for products that are transparent about their ingredient list and dosages,” says Costa. Stick with pre-workout formulas that include only ingredients that are generally recognized as safe (GRAS) by the FDA and backed by current scientific literature, such as caffeine, ginseng, B-complex vitamins, and creatine, she adds. Proprietary blends that don’t list ingredients or amounts may not be effective.
Third-party testing guarantees the quality, safety, and efficacy of any supplement. NSF Certified for Sport ensures a supplement is safe for competitive athletes, while the GMP stamp signals that a supplement is consistently produced and controlled for quality.
“Sugars and other additives can impact the rate and extent of nutrient absorption,” says Costa. While gummies typically range from one to four grams of sugar per chew, the first ingredient of most formulations is sugar, glucose syrup, or corn syrup. The less sugar, the better.
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