I know, I know drink coffee, eat a banana, yada yada…but, does anyone out there take any preworkout supplements (ie. NO Explode, C4, Assault etc.)? Or have any suggestions?
In place of coffee, I like Advocare Spark. It’s essentially a 5-hour energy type drink, so caffeine with B-vitamins. Also has a really sweet taste like kool-aid. Sometimes I will mix it with Gatorade or Perform powder for extra carbs.
Awesome thanks Adrian, going to do some research tonight on it
.
I do some beta alanine in with a scoop of protein whey and a banana before a race.
these caffeine premix supplements are really a rip off. That being said, I spent some money and bought gamma labs ptf. I use if for race and key workouts that I have to get up early for. It may just be a placebo effect but I really feel much more focused and ready to work hard after taking it. 150mg of caffeine so not a lot but enough for me.
I think the effect of any of these bosters is marginal at best. Topping off muscle glycogen stores 2-3 hours before your training session is key, of course, but the best way to promote efficient energy transfer for the next workout is with proper replenishment after the current workout.
Sometimes if I’m really hungry I’ll eat a powerbar in addition to my poptarts or I may choose a poptart of a different flavor. Too much cherry or chocolate can make me run in circles 
Here are some things I’ve tried before key races or long/intense workoutss.
Sheets Energy Strips - 50mg of caffeine, no sugar, loads of b-vitamins. I would take 3 of these usually at once. I would combine this with an Accelerade gel and bottle of AMP Endurance Booster. This seemed to work well last season no stomach issues for me and was a clean feeling of energy. My fiance does not have the same results she feels the energy but her stomach does not agree with the mix for more then 2 hours or so.
This season I have been trying out the Body Glove Surge gel. It’s the usual gel with 150mg of caffeine It’s pretty damn intense feeling. I only take it before intense workouts. I also switched to Skratch Labs hydration mix which has been very tasty and clean. It’s probably worth mentioning that besides taking these gels or sheets from time to time I otherwise don’t take in caffeine(maybe a coffee here and there after a fancy dinner out). So I get a pretty strong jolt of energy from it.
Aside from that I have never tried any other supplements or aids before workouts. Caffeine does the job for me.
Ive heard about those sheets strips. I want to give those a try! Do they sell them in general grocery stores or can you only find them online/specialty stores??
Have you tired 1MR by BPI Sports, there is a good review on it here if you are still interested.
One can of NOS Zero mixed with a scoop of NO Explode or Platinum Pre. Try it for your next 20K TT or 5K. It’ll put lead in your pencil like a motherfucker.