The Power of Supplementing with Aminos and The Recovery Benefits You'll Receive!

So you all have read the reviews of mine on various amino drinks, Amino Energy and Aminolast and know that I do like them, but if you were to ever ask me what the exact purpose of each and every amino acid was, and what roll they played in the body I wouldn't be able to tell you... What I would be able to tell you from my own experience though is that without a doubt supplementing with amino acids will help you recovery a lot faster! For about 2-3 months I was taking various amino drinks (the one's I've reviewed on here) before, after, and always during my workouts, but it wasn't until I stopped taking them that I truly realized their benefits and their power.

Sure if someone asked me why I would take them or why they were good I would tell them because they help aid in recovery, to prevent the breaking down of muscle tissue, and in the case of Optimum Nutrition's Amino Energy, for an extra boost due to the caffeine in it. Like I said though I didn't really think much of them other then as a tasty way to flavor my water with possible benefits to help recovery and they are cheap, win win... Well it has been about 6 weeks since I've taken any amino supplements, but it hasn't been until recently that I noticed ever since I stopped taking them that not only has my workout intensity dropped somewhat, but more importantly that I'm getting sore after workouts now. Especially when I train legs heavy, I'll be sore for 3-4 days after.

I never really thought anything of it, or saw the possible correlation between taking aminos and being sore until a couple of days ago I had two different clients tell me that when they don't take their Amino Energy they notice that they get sore for the next couple of days after a workout! Not only that but they also said they feel like they just don't have the same intensity when they're working out either, coincidence? I think not! So because of this I decided to try supping with amino acids again to see if taking them was what was preventing me from getting as sore after my workouts. I bought some Amino Capsules from Optimum Nutrition, the same maker of the great Amino Energy because sometimes I don't want to have to make a drink with the powder; with the caps you can just pop them before and after you workout! I have yet to try them, I'm waiting for my leg day to come up before I start using them again, but without a doubt I definitely think I'm going to find that I'm not as sore afterwards; I'll keep you all posted...

Now for those of you interested more about amino acids and their functions I found a great article by Ben Green, which goes on to explain exactly what they do without being boring and making you want to fall asleep while you're reading... Definitely take a look!

http://www.bengreenfieldfitness.com/2011/04/do-amino-acids-really-help-you-exercise-or-are-nutrition-supplement-companies-pulling-a-fast-one-on-you-part-1/ 

FINAFLEX Ignite 2 - Best Pre-Workout Supp I've Tried in a Minute!!

Got a bunch of free samples of this stuff at work the other day and I was eager to try it. Usually I don't like pre-workouts, especially in today's market I think they're just a bunch of crap with a bunch of caffeine to get you cracked out. Finaflex brand products on the other hand I have always wanted to try but I just never had the opportunity to before. Usually the ingredients on all of their supplements sound so crazy and sketchy, but in a good way. It's all stuff that sounds like it's going to be banned any day now, but it's also stuff that's really going to do what the product was made for. Then again for all I know it could all be a load of crap and marketing tactics, but lets talk about the actual product now...

Right off the bat I'll give you some my favorite things about Ignite 2, the first was that you can drink this and start your workout within 5-15 minutes right after, it kicks in so fast, and you will feel it. Most other pre-workouts direct you to drink them 30-45 min before which can suck a lot of the time in my opinion. The second highlight for me was the insane pumps I got from it; I haven't had pumps like this in a long time! The ones where it literally feels like your skin is tearing with each rep, your veins are bulging out, and there's heat radiating from your muscles. It makes you feel dense and very tight, one of the best supplements I've used for getting a great pump and I love it for that; it gets so much blood to the muscles that from training arms I actually have new stretch marks forming on my biceps! The third and final thing I liked about it was that it got me focused and energized, but not cracked out! I can't tell you how many times I've taken a pre-workout supplement and felt like I was going to have a heart attack mid workout, or how many times I've taken one and felt like crap, weak, and shaky. Finaflex got the formula down perfect for this one so that I didn't experience any of that.

Those were the 3 main things I love most about this product; now for the people out there who care about taste, it does taste overly sweet like most other similar supplements out there but it's not a deal breaker. As for the mixability it mixes really easily in a glass or bottle. Also just to compare it to another product for those of you who are curious; I've tried C4 by Cellucor many times and have hated it every single time, so if you feel the same way then you may just love Ignite 2 as well!

Overall I'll give this product a 5/5 because it delivered exactly what it was supposed to do, along with extra goodies like Aminosterone and Crea-Trona which you can see about in the pictures. You definitely have to try this product!