Best Pre-workout Supplements For Your Goals

This is a debated topic—not everyone agrees. But we believe there are a handful of supplements worth considering if you want to maximize your exercise efforts, one of which is a pre-workout supplement.

Some people argue that the only real benefit of pre-workout is caffeine, which you can get from a cup of coffee. But the truth is that a quality pre-workout with the right ingredients offers benefits beyond a jolt of energy. The key is finding a pre-workout that aligns with your specific needs and fitness goals.

When considering a pre-workout supplement, you shouldn’t blindly pick one or automatically assume the pre-workout your favorite fitness influencer takes will be right for you. You need to consider your goals, where you struggle, your stimulant tolerance, what time of day you exercise, and more.

This guide will help determine if you could benefit from a pre-workout and the best supplement for your goals!

What is a Pre-Workout Supplement?

Pre-workout supplements are powders you mix with water or ready-to-drink (RTD) formulas that are composed of ingredients that can give you an extra push so you can make the most of your workouts.

Depending on the ingredient profile, a pre-workout can help boost energy, focus, and

endurance. Some formulas can also give you crazy pumps, increase power, reduce muscle fatigue, and/or enhance focus.

Pre-workouts are usually a mix of several ingredients. However, you can find some of the most popular pre-workout ingredients individually, such as beta-alanine and creatine.

Reasons to Take a Pre-Workout Supplement

You don’t “need” a pre-workout to get in a good sweat session. Like many supplements, they are optional tools designed to give you an edge. However, there are many reasons why you might want to consider taking a pre-workout before exercise.

If any of these sound familiar, it’s worth taking a pre-workout supplement before exercise:

Feel Sluggish or Low on Energy

Some people work out first thing in the morning, while others work out at the end of a long day. In either scenario, most people need a little push to get started. A pre-workout can give you a quick energy boost that will help get (and keep) you going!

Struggle to Get Into the Right Mindset

There are a million reasons why you might find it challenging to get your head in the game. It might be because life is pulling you in a million different directions, you aren’t progressing how you had hoped, or you are human and just feeling lazy.

The mental aspect of working out plays a big part in whether or not you reach your goals. The focus ingredients in some pre-workouts can help get your mind right. Not only can these ingredients help you actually have the motivation to show up, but they can also help you stay focused throughout your entire workout session. This is especially helpful for longer or more challenging workouts.

Want to Increase Endurance and Stamina

Endurance and stamina are vital to sustaining longer workouts and pushing through your training sessions. If you want to increase the duration and intensity of your workouts, a pre-workout can help.

Want to Build More Muscle or Lose Body Fat Faster

A pre-workout isn’t magic. No matter how good the formula is, building muscle and losing fat both require consistency and effort. However, a quality pre-workout with the right ingredient profile can help you maximize your efforts.

By enhancing your workout performance, increasing your energy levels, and improving focus, you can train harder and more efficiently. This means more muscle gain and fat loss over time, helping you reach your goals faster.

Need to Break Through a Plateau

Plateaus are frustrating. Sometimes, no matter how hard you try, you just can’t seem to lift more weight or push yourself any harder. A pre-workout can give you the edge needed to push past those sticking points by boosting your energy, focus, and endurance.

Want to Have More Strength

You won’t take a pre-workout and suddenly become stronger. However, a quality pre-workout can give you energy, delay muscle fatigue, enhance blood flow, and/or improve mental focus.

These are all things that will help you lift heavier and possibly even hit some PRs. With time, these benefits add up, and you will get stronger and more powerful.

Are a Beginner

If you are new to working out, some people might tell you a pre-workout is a waste of money. We’re gonna have to disagree with this statement. Not because you need a pre-workout to see results but because they can help you create the habit of going to the gym.

When you are new to exercise, consistency is a crucial factor that will determine whether you stick with it or throw in the towel after a couple weeks. A pre-workout helps you show up! Trust us, once your pre-workout kicks in, you’ll go whether you want to or not!

Benefits of Pre-Workout Supplements

Many assume they don’t “need” a pre-workout because they just contain a bunch of caffeine. It’s true that many pre-workout formulas contain stimulants. However, a quality pre-workout does much more than provide a temporary energy boost.

In fact, some of the best pre-workouts on the market are completely stimulant-free. Taking a pre-workout supplement can enhance your exercise routine in many ways, giving you an extra edge to reach your fitness goals faster and easier.

The specific benefits of a pre-workout supplement will vary depending on the ingredients (which we will discuss next), but here are some of the key advantages you might experience:

Increased Energy Levels

We’ve all been there… procrastinating putting on our gym clothes or sitting in the parking lot trying to convince ourselves to just walk in! If you take a pre-workout, the rush of focus and energy it provides makes it hard to procrastinate.

You will feel a surge of energy and motivation within minutes of consumption. Then, once you walk in, you will have enough stamina to power through your workout, even on days when you don’t want to!

Enhanced Focus and Motivation

There is a huge mental aspect to working out. Some pre-workouts have ingredients that can help sharpen your mental focus. This helps you stay motivated throughout your session and enhances that “mind-muscle” connection you often hear about.

Improved Endurance

If you are hoping to log an extra mile, push harder to get your heart rate into that fat-burning zone, or hope to pump out a few more reps during an intense lift, certain pre-workout ingredients can increase your stamina, enabling you to push harder and train longer without feeling as fatigued.

More Strength and Power

If getting stronger is your goal, some pre-workouts have ingredients that can give you a power boost that helps you lift more weight. Over time, this will result in more strength!

Faster Recovery

The faster you can get your body into recovery mode, the better! Some pre-workout formulas have ingredients that can reduce muscle fatigue and soreness, allowing quicker recovery and less downtime between workouts.

Better Blood Flow

A pre-workout formulated with the right ingredients can help improve blood flow and blood vessel health, which will boost exercise performance by allowing you to do more reps per set, resulting in bigger pumps.

There is nothing like looking in the mirror after a gym session and seeing vascularity and your muscles fuller and tighter! Gym pumps no doubt make for a great gym selfie, but they go beyond aesthetics. Research shows that muscle pumps can actually enhance long-term muscle growth.

Key Ingredients in Pre-Workout Supplements

There are a lot of different ingredients and combinations of ingredients that could be in a pre-workout supplement. That said, there is a core list of ingredients commonly found in multi-ingredient pre-workout supplements.

Energy Boosters (Caffeine, Dynamine, Theobromine)
Nitric Oxide Boosters (L-Citrulline or L-Arginine)
Beta-alanine
Creatine
Taurine
L-Tyrosine
Adaptogens (Lion’s Mane)
Focus Enhancers (Huperzine A and Alpha GPC)
Betaine anhydrous
Amino Acids
Salt

You’d be hard-pressed to find a pre-workout that doesn’t have at least a few of these ingredients. You can also buy some of them as a stand-alone supplement. However, remember that ingredient quality and dosage matters as well.

When selecting a pre-workout, it’s vital that the manufacturer uses best practices and that their supplements are third-party tested for quality and purity.

Top Pre-Workout Supplements

Whether you lift weights at a gym, workout from home, like to go on long runs, enjoy CrossFit, or take group fitness classes, there is a pre-workout that can help you make the most of your training sessions.

If you’re unsure which pre-workout is best for your goals, there’s no need to spend hours researching. We’ve done the heavy lifting for you. At RAW Athletic Club, we trust and use RAW pre-workout supplements because they’re made with the purest ingredients in the industry, and each batch is third-party tested for banned substances.

Here are our top picks from RAW and their unique benefits to help you choose the one that best suits your goals.

Essential Pre

If you are new to pre-workouts, Essential Pre is a good place to start. This pre-workout offers a balanced blend of ingredients that maximize blood flow and fight fatigue with just enough caffeine to stimulate energy, making it perfect for beginners seeking a solid muscle pump without overwhelming intensity.

With its moderate caffeine levels and essential amino acids, this pre-workout provides a steady boost that will carry you through extended gym sessions, ensuring you get the most out of your workouts.

Pre Extreme

This pre-workout formula is for those seeking an extreme boost. Pre Extreme offers high stimulation and fat-burning benefits, along with an impressive muscle pump.

It packs 400mg of caffeine for serious energy and maximizes blood flow to target muscles, making it perfect for powerlifters and anyone looking to conquer fatigue and supercharge their training sessions.

Pump Non-Stim Pre-Workout

Pump pre-workout should be your go-to if you are a serious lifter and want an intense pump without stimulants. It contains eleven powerful ingredients, including L-Citrulline, Agmatine, Lion’s Mane Extract, Alpha GPC, Nitrosigine, L-Taurine, and Himalayan pink salt.

Pump2

For those focused on hydration and muscle fullness, Pump2 is a great choice. This flavorless supplement features only one ingredient – Glycersize™, a patented glycerol powder that hydrates muscle cells, allowing them to become bigger and fuller while also promoting enhanced endurance and recovery.

You can use Pump2 alone or stack it with other pre-workouts such as PRE, PRE Extreme, or Raw Pump.

Christopher’s Secret Stuff

This pre-workout is created by the one and only five-time Mr. Olympia champion Chris Bumstead (CBUM) – so you know it’s a “winning” formula!

Secret Stuff is a unique blend of ingredients designed to deliver maximum mental and physical benefits. Some key ingredients include L-citrulline for enhanced blood flow and insane pumps, Betaine Anhydrous for increased muscle power, L-tyrosine for mental focus, and Alpha GPC & Huperzine A for further enhanced cognitive performance and concentration.

It is also non-stimulant, making it a great choice for anyone sensitive to caffeine or who exercises later in the day.

Thavage Pre-Workout

Another formula developed by CBUM is Thavage. Whether you are lifting weights or going on a long run, this all-in-one powerhouse option is a great way to boost endurance and elevate your workout intensity.

It is packed with ingredients like L-Tyrosine, Beta Alanine, Arginine Nitrate, Huperzine A, Alpha GPC, and Bitter Orange. The combination of these ingredients leads to improved cellular hydration, enhanced mental focus, spiked energy production, optimized blood flow, and amplified fat burning.

Thuper Thavage Pre-Workout

If you REALLY need a boost and can handle high stimulants, there is an accelerated version of Thavage called Thuper Thavage. Each scoop of Thuper Thavage has higher doses of many of the key ingredients in Thavage, plus 5g of creatine.

With 400mg of caffeine, it’s not for everyone. But if you are a serious lifter and can handle higher levels of caffeine (or already love Thavage and want a supercharged version of this popular pre-workout)– you’ll want to try Thuper Thavage.

Beta-Alanine

This powerful amino acid works by increasing the carnosine levels in your muscles, which helps buffer acid build-up during intense exercise.

Research shows that 87% of all pre-workout products contain Beta-Alanine. You’ll find it in most RAW pre-workout formulas, but it’s also available as a stand-alone supplement for those who primarily want to enhance endurance, such as runners.

Takeaway

If you are having a hard time staying motivated, frequently lack energy or mental focus, have hit a plateau, or want to take your performance to the next level—it might be time to consider a pre-workout formulated for your goals.

A quality pre-workout with the right ingredients in efficacious doses can provide an extra edge when you feel low on energy or want to push beyond your usual limits.

There are some great pre-workout supplements that can help you reach your goals. However, none of them can do the work for you. Simply taking a pre-workout (or any other supplement, for that matter) won’t get the results you want.

You’ve gotta put in the hard work…

You’ve gotta remain dedicated and consistent…

You’ve gotta find ways to push through the hard days…

If you need help figuring out the best workout for your goals, RAW Athletic Club has a team of experienced, certified personal trainers who can create a tailored workout and offer nutritional and supplement guidance and support to help you achieve your goals.