Energy Pill almost killed me

I find I have a better workout (in the AM) if I have a protein shake, with a 1000mg BCAA (branch chain amino acids), and sometimes I'll add a scoop of Glutamine in my shake too. A Banana with the shake and I'm good to go.

Right now I'm trying a scoop of greens in my shake and skipping the banana, which seemed to do OK this morning, but I'll need to test more to be sure.

In short, if you can, opt for more nutrients over a stimulant so you're feeding your body what it needs over a temporary push.

There is water, pork chops, waffles.

........:huh:

I agree with the water, pork chops, waffles... Its also a super food combo.

Seriously though, I take 25mg of ephedrine and 200mg of caffeine about 40mins before I start working out.
I sweat a lot...but I have energy. LOL

http://www.jissn.com/content/7/1/7

Strategic Eating and Refueling
In addition to the general nutritional guidelines described above, research has also demonstrated that timing and composition of meals consumed may play a role in optimizing performance, training adaptations, and preventing overtraining [1,6,33,50]. In this regard, it takes about 4 hours for carbohydrate to be digested and begin being stored as muscle and liver glycogen. Consequently, pre-exercise meals should be consumed about 4 to 6 h before exercise [6]. This means that if an athlete trains in the afternoon, breakfast is the most important meal to top off muscle and liver glycogen levels. Research has also indicated that ingesting a light carbohydrate and protein snack 30 to 60 min prior to exercise (e.g., 50 g of carbohydrate and 5 to 10 g of protein) serves to increase carbohydrate availability toward the end of an intense exercise bout [51,52]. This also serves to increase availability of amino acids and decrease exercise-induced catabolism of protein [33,51,52].

When exercise lasts more than one hour, athletes should ingest glucose/electrolyte solution (GES) drinks in order to maintain blood glucose levels, help prevent dehydration, and reduce the immunosuppressive effects of intense exercise [6,53-58]. Following intense exercise, athletes should consume carbohydrate and protein (e.g., 1 g/kg of carbohydrate and 0.5 g/kg of protein) within 30 min after exercise as well as consume a high carbohydrate meal within two hours following exercise [1,31,50]. This nutritional strategy has been found to accelerate glycogen resynthesis as well as promote a more anabolic hormonal profile that may hasten recovery [59-61]. Finally, for 2 to 3 days prior to competition, athletes should taper training by 30 to 50% and consume 200 to 300 g/d of extra carbohydrate in their diet. This carbohydrate loading technique has been shown to supersaturate carbohydrate stores prior to competition and improve endurance exercise capacity [1,6,50]. Thus, the type of meal and timing of eating are important factors in maintaining carbohydrate availability during training and potentially decreasing the incidence of overtraining. The ISSN has a adopted a position stand on nutrient timing [13] that was summarized with the following points:

1. Prolonged exercise (> 60 - 90 min) of moderate to high intensity exercise will deplete the internal stores of energy, and prudent timing of nutrient delivery can help offset these changes.

2. During intense exercise, regular consumption (10 - 15 fl oz.) of a carbohydrate/electrolyte solution delivering 6 - 8% CHO (6 - 8 g CHO/100 ml fluid) should be consumed every 15 - 20 min to sustain blood glucose levels.

3. Glucose, fructose, sucrose and other high-glycemic CHO sources are easily digested, but fructose consumption should be minimized as it is absorbed at a slower rate and increases the likelihood of gastrointestinal problems.

4. The addition of PRO (0.15 - 0.25 g PRO/kg/day) to CHO at all time points, especially post-exercise, is well tolerated and may promote greater restoration of muscle glycogen when carbohydrate intakes are suboptimal.

5. Ingestion of 6 - 20 grams of essential amino acids (EAA) and 30 - 40 grams of high-glycemic CHO within three hours after an exercise bout and immediately before exercise has been shown to significantly stimulate muscle PRO synthesis.

6. Daily post-exercise ingestion of a CHO + PRO supplement promotes greater increases in strength and improvements in lean tissue and body fat % during regular resistance training.

7. Milk PRO sources (e.g. whey and casein) exhibit different kinetic digestion patterns and may subsequently differ in their support of training adaptations.

8. Addition of creatine monohydrate to a CHO + PRO supplement in conjunction with regular resistance training facilitates greater improvements in strength and body composition as compared with when no creatine is consumed.

9. Dietary focus should center on adequate availability and delivery of CHO and PRO. However, including small amounts of fat does not appear to be harmful, and may help to control glycemic responses during exercise.

10. Irrespective of timing, regular ingestion of snacks or meals providing both CHO and PRO (3:1 CHO: PRO ratio) helps to promote recovery and replenishment of muscle glycogen when lesser amounts of carbohydrate are consumed.

I use the Beachbody Pre-Workout formula, Energy and Endurance. Only because I wake up at 5am to do my workout and I am not a morning person but I always make sure I go to bed early to get enough rest. It does not makes me feel jittery or like I just had an energy drink or energy pill...I can't stand those things.

I like a Gu packet about 20 minutes prior to a race. I don't use them on a normal basis though. I also have a negative reaction to most "energy" items. If you feel that sluggish, you should really have some blood work done. Might a symptom and not the problem.