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The Dangers of Pre-Workout: Is It Worth the Risk?

A powder for fitness and you have energy for ten. Pre-workout is popular among young people. It is one of the best-selling products of sports nutrition giant XXL Nutrition in Deurne and popular influencers such as Mo Bicep from Breda praise it on social media. However, its use is not without danger. “If you want to stay healthy, you shouldn’t want this,” says dietician Kevin Minten, who specializes in sports nutrition.

Omroep Brabant dived into the sense and nonsense of pre-workout. You can see that in this episode of HOW..?

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Pre-workout is a supplement that you mix with water. It contains a lot of caffeine, which gives you an energy boost. That can help you perform better and go longer. Out research from the Hogeschool Arnhem en Nijmegen and the University of Utrecht shows that more than forty percent of male fitness enthusiasts use these supplements. And a quarter even for each training.

“I use it every day when I exercise, so five times a week.”

Fitness is popular. The number of young people who fitnest increased by 30 percent last year, according to an annual report by sports federation NOC*NSF. As a result, the number of followers of ‘fitfluencers’, influencers who are involved in fitness, is also increasing. They often also recommend pre-workout, which makes young people more inclined to use it as well.

That pre-workout is widely used becomes apparent when we put it to the test. Four out of five young people we spoke to at a gym in Eindhoven say they regularly use pre-workout.

“Every day when I exercise, so five times a week,” says 19-year-old Elanur. The same goes for Florian and Tim. “It really works,” says Tim (19). “Today I really didn’t feel like it, but now I have one scoop taken and it’s fine. You are very energetic, motivated and feel like working hard.

“If you also drink coffee in addition to pre-workout, you can get sleep problems.”

An average scoop of pre-workout contains about 300 milligrams of caffeine. That corresponds to about four cups of coffee. Sometimes there is even 400 milligrams in a scoop. “A safe healthy dose of caffeine is 200 milligrams at a time. A maximum total of 400 milligrams per day is involved,” explains dietitian Kevin Minten.

For young people under the age of 18, a maximum of 2.5 milligrams times your body weight in kilograms applies. “So you quickly get over that with pre-workout,” says Minten. “If you also drink coffee, you can have sleeping problems.”

There is often a warning on the pre-workout jars. Users must adhere to the prescribed dose. However, habituation can occur with a lot of caffeine use, so that users often take more.

“I always take two scoops,” says Elanur. “Otherwise I can’t focus. Since I’ve been using it, I can’t live without it.” According to Kevin Minten, that is also the danger of daily use. “You need more and more to notice it. If you don’t use it once, you collapse.”

“It can make you restless, your heart will speed up and possibly your blood pressure too.”

Out research Radar shows that half of the people who sometimes use the supplement have side effects. This concerns sleeping problems, restlessness or palpitations. Therefore, according to Minten, it is important that you stick to the prescribed dose. Especially when you are young.

“With two scoops you are already well above that safe dose. It can make you restless, your heart will speed up and possibly your blood pressure too. If you do that daily, it can have an effect on your growth and brain development. If you want to stay healthy, you shouldn’t want it. It’s much better to focus on good basic nutrition.”

The young fitness enthusiasts in the gym are aware of this. “It won’t be fantastically healthy,” says Tim. But he hasn’t experienced any negative effects yet like the others we spoke to. “If it helps me, it helps,” says Elanur. “And your sport in any case”, concludes Florian. “You don’t sit on the couch. I think that’s the most important thing in the end.”

A jar of pre-workout containing 300 milligrams of caffeine per dose (Photo: Omroep Brabant).
A jar of pre-workout containing 300 milligrams of caffeine per dose (Photo: Omroep Brabant).

2023-06-07 17:00:40


#Energy #powder #exercise #dangerous #dose

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