Very Best Pre-Workouts (original) (raw)
By ,a writer at the Strategist covering clothing basics and bath and body. She joined the Strategist as a junior writer in 2022 after interning at the site.
Additional reporting by Rachael Griffiths
Photo-Illustration: The Strategist; Photos: Retailers
If you’re training intensely and could do with a little extra energy at the gym, then a pre-workout could be for you. Consider it a bookend to a post-workout protein shake — it’s a supplement that boosts your energy, allows you to focus better, and provides some additional endurance for your muscles. “For most, taking pre-workout gives you the energy boost you sometimes feel you need before getting in motion. Oftentimes, we find ourselves training early morning before work or early evening after work and might need a bit of pep in our step,” says Sam Tooley, lead trainer at Gainful.
It’s important to note that pre-workout isn’t suitable for everyone — the people who’ll benefit most from a pre-workout are those who are “bodybuilding or training for a big marathon,” says personal trainer Eva Peña. As Tooley explains, “Everyone is different, and you should be selective in which pre-workout you take, why you’re taking it, and, of course, how it makes you feel. Rather than becoming reliant on it, I save it for special occasions or harder training sessions where I know I truly need it. Less is more, in my opinion.” Additionally, Dr. Raj Dasgupta, chief medical adviser for Garage Gym Reviews, also advises that the use of pre-workouts risks side effects such as “anxiety and jitters, headaches, stomach upset and nausea, insomnia, dizziness, a tingling sensation in the skin, muscle cramps, dehydration, and water retention.” But don’t be alarmed: As with any new addition to your diet, listen to your body and figure out what works for you. For example, I’m not very sensitive to caffeine (I can drink a few cups of coffee per day and still fall asleep at night without fail), so pre-workout has always given me a natural boost. My colleague Jeremy Rellosa also finds the slight “tingle” he gets from his favorites to be conducive to a great workout. However, other folks may find pre-workout to be too stimulating, like my boyfriend who plays a professional sport and often experiences a crash after a workout.
With that in mind, if you want to incorporate a pre-workout into your routine, we chatted with nutrition and fitness experts about what to look for in an ingredient list, how to incorporate it into your diet, and the ingredients to avoid.
Updated on June 10, 2026
All of these items are still our favorites and have been updated with the latest pricing and availability. I also added Thorne’s new Advanced Pre-Workout as our best NSF-certified pick for competitive athletes.
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Pre-workouts use ingredients such as caffeine, beta-alanine, and L-citrulline to provide energy. Beta-alanine and L-citrulline are both natural amino acids that stimulate the production of nitric oxide in the muscles, enhancing your performance when exercising. Dr. Adam Gonzalez, an exercise-physiology professor at Hofstra University, also recommends caffeine because of its “well documented” performance-enhancing effects.
All of the experts we spoke tostressed the importance of avoiding pre-workouts that are pumped full of too many artificial ingredients. Some of those include sweeteners such as sucralose, aspartame, and saccharin. “While these sweeteners may improve the taste of the product and be low in calories, there are plenty of negative side effects that come along with them — like inflammation in the body and a lower amount of good bacteria in your gut,” says Megan Darlington, a registered dietitian at Test Prep Insight. Instead, ingredients to look for include fruit and vegetable extracts, which will help to improve exercise performance and provide some flavor. It’s worth noting, though, that two of the trainers we interviewed said that encountering sweetener is unavoidable in pre-workout blends but that, in moderation, they shouldn’t cause side effects.
I’ve also calculated the price per serving of each pre-workout.
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Energy source: Caffeine, creatine monohydrate, and beta-alanine | Other notable ingredients: Citric acid, sucralose | Price per serving: $1.09
This pre-workout includes caffeine, creatine, and beta-alanine, meaning it’s designed to boost energy, increase endurance, and improve focus. That makes it a great pick for a variety of goals at the gym, and Manuel Simons, certified nutritionist, coach, and co-owner of Stress Reliever’s Club, tells us he recommends it to clients who are training for a marathon or gearing up to lift a personal best. This is the same trio of ingredients that all our experts explicitly recommended for a pre-workout. While this blend does contain an artificial sweetener (sucralose), we’re still selecting it as our best overall pre-workout thanks to its other high-quality ingredients, its range of flavors, and its affordability at little over one dollar per serving. (We also like Optimum Nutrition’s protein powder and included it in our story on the best options for those.)
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Ingredients: Beta-alanine, caffeine | Other notable ingredients: Vitamin C | Price per serving: $0.70
Simons also recommends this cheaper option to his clients because of the price point. “Cellucor always provides good value for the quality of ingredients — and the brand’s reputation,” he says. Simons also finds that Cellucor’s flavors (fruity blends like cherry limeade and fruit punch) “encourage consistent use” among his athletes as it makes the drink less of a chore to down before a workout.
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Energy source: natural caffeine derived from coffee beans, beta-alanine, L-citrulline | Other notable ingredients: alpha-GPC, L-theanine, vitamin B6, vitamin B12 | Price per serving: $2.75
In a previous version of this story, we recommended Thorne’s Pre-Workout Elite, which was discontinued in February. The brand launched Advanced Pre-Workout, a new formula for high-level athletes, which is also NSF-certified — meaning it’s been tested to ensure the absence of banned substances and other contaminants. The new blend contains caffeine derived from coffee beans, beta-alanine for delaying muscle fatigue, and L-citrulline for enhanced blood flow. It’s a more traditional energy source than the previous blend, which relied on ATP (or adenosine 5’-triphosphate disodium) and adaptogenic mushrooms to boost cell energy. After testing the new formula for the past few months, I’ve found that it gives a quick energy boost for a range of workouts, from weight lifting to endurance sports and elite competition. I love that the formula eliminates the need for extra pre-workout supplements since it contains key amino acids like L-citrulline, beta-alanine, and L-theanine for mental focus without an energy crash. It also contains vitamin B6 and vitamin B12, which help with hormone regulation, metabolism, and red blood cell formation. It doesn’t make me jittery, and the sherbet flavor is on the sweeter side, but I personally find it to be a nice treat on the way to the gym.
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Ingredients: Citrulline, beta-alanine | Other ingredients: Stevia and erythritol (non-artificial sweeteners) | Price per serving: $1.69
All our experts warned against proprietary blends. “Proprietary blends hide the specific dosages of individual ingredients, making it challenging for consumers to know how much of each ingredient they are getting,” says Simons. This pre-workout by Legion athletics is one of his recommendations as all ingredient information and amounts are available online. Legion’s blends contain no artificial flavorings but still have a range of 20 flavors from mojito to apple cider. This one contains citrulline and beta-alanine to provide energy to the muscles, alpha-GPC for endurance, and caffeine for energy and mental stimulation. But caffeine avoiders need not be deterred: You can remove it as an ingredient when you order.
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Energy source: Beta-alanine | Other ingredients: Green coffee, orange, lemon, turmeric | Price per serving: $0.96
Strategist associate editor Jeremy Rellosa has been loyal to this pre-workout for three years. “After about 20 minutes from the first sip, I get a tingly feeling on my skin (I think the brand also mentions it, which I found funny) — which weirdly helps when I’m doing a hard workout. I feel like I’m buzzing and ready to lift or climb hard whenever I have it.” The blend’s beta-alanine helps improve muscle endurance, while green coffee provides an energy boost. It tastes pretty familiar, too, says Rellosa: “One scoop mixed into my water bottle is enough, and the lemon flavor tastes like a less-sweet Gatorade mix.”
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• Megan Darlington, registered dietitian at Test Prep Insight
• Dr. Raj Dasgupta, chief medical adviser for Garage Gym Reviews
• Dr. Adam Gonzalez, professor of exercise physiology at Hofstra University
• Eva Peña, personal trainer and founder of Wellness+ Studio
• Jeremy Rellosa, Strategist associate editor
• Manuel Simons, certified nutritionist coach and co-owner of Stress Relievers’ Club
• Sam Tooley, lead trainer at Gainful
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