Information regarding Nitric Oxide supplements?

Hi Craig,

NO (nitric oxide) supplements generally contain caffeine and other stimulants and certain amino acids, herbs and other ingredients that boost NO and that may improve recovery or even increase muscle protein synthesis (muscle building) during training.

I actually helped design and patent the first bodybuilding supplement that was designed to boost NO and deliver the associated benefits back in 1999.

The first decision you have to make is whether you want an NO supplement that contains geranium / DMAA, 1,3 dimethylamylamine. It has a powerful stimulant effect but it causes your blood vessels to constrict. This causes high blood pressure and reduces the body's ability to deliver nutrients and oxygen to the muscles and makes it less likely that you will get a pump in the gym. So I recommend against it.

So look for one with the proven performance enhancers and nitric oxide boosters caffeine, citrulline (L-citrulline, citrulline malate), creatine, arginine and beta alanine. However, these alone don't always do the trick. So the addition of other herbs and ingredients is uesful. I personally am not thrilled with any one pre-workout product on the market right now but probably my favourite is Animal Rage.

However, there is light at the end of the tunnel. I do some work for Grenade and have been helping to develop a new pre-workout product that has already been given the best feedback I've ever heard from experienced bodybuilders and fitness athletes. I've tried it and I can honestly say, it's the best pre-workout ever (I know I'm biased but I truly believe this).

Anyhow, with a bit of luck (these things take time) it will be out in 2 or 3 months and you can try it for yourself!

I've been using the .50 Cal pre workout for the last 4 weeks or so and I can honestly say that I am having great results from it.

I tried a few others on the Market before. N.O Xplode, Beta-Cret and Hemo Rage Black, Reflex Performance Matrix. And to be honest although these helped me stay "focused" they did very little else to improve my gym sessions. Only the Reflex gave me a little pump. (Appreciate that these are probably different sorts of products though).

So took some advice from Mark above and gave the Grenade a go and its really helped me out with my training. I wouldn’t say it gives me the craziest pump in the world but I would honestly say that I my endurance levels and ability to get those slightly heavier weights up has improved.

I tended to take it about 15-20 mins before working out though as I found any earlier and I started flagging a little and felt fatigued. I would put this down to my stimulant tolerances though (maybe).

Thanks for the feedback Steve, I sill use my .50 Cal before most workouts.