About Jym Supplement Science Pre Workout
Founded by Dr. Jim Stoppani in 2013 – former Senior Science Editor at both Muscle & Fitness and FLEX – Jym Supplement Science has a host of exercise and fitness related products focusing on protein powders, pre/post workouts, fat loss, and overall health.
In addition to having a PhD in exercise physiology, Dr. Stoppani has authored or co-authored multiple books and is a “leading authority on exercise science, sports nutrition, and supplementation.” He’s also served as a nutrition and health consultant to celebrities including LL Cool J, Dr. Dre, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, and Mario Lopez.
And, hey, if it’s good enough for AC Slater(!), I figured it’s good enough for me. So based on all that, I went ahead and grabbed a carton of pre JYM pre workout to try. Like usual, this review is not sponsored in any way, shape, or form; I spent my own money to buy and review this.
Anyways, read on for my detailed review or go ahead and just skip to the final rating.
Packaging
I don’t buy a pre-workout for the packaging, just like I don’t watch the news to learn the truth. But, it is nice to be able to quickly find the relevant information – nutrition facts, dosing information, and ingredients about the product.
That said, I’m not a fan of the packaging on Grape Candy (the flavor I bought) Pre JYM as the text is pretty small and the dark-on-dark look is hard to read. Beyond that, though, it just doesn’t look as professional or slick as some competitors, such as ON’s Amino pre workout.
I’m no designer, but I think it could use a bit of a revamp to help brighten it up. On the plus side, it does have all the relevant information and it’s better than Beyond Raw’s LIT, which I previously reviewed.
How To Use / Dosage
If you’re not used to caffeine or are on the smaller side, I would be pretty careful about taking a full dose initially. Instead, take maybe a half dose and assess your tolerance of the ingredients which is what I ended up doing (more below).
A full dose contains 300 mg of caffeine which, in my opinion, is too much caffeine for most people. Even if you’re caffeine tolerant, you can still have an adverse reactions with too much of the stimulant.
In fact, caffeine can pretty easily kill you. Obviously, it takes a lot more than 300 mg for that but if you experience anything “odd” (such as a rapid heartbeat, etc.) you should immediately discontinue and seek care from a qualified healthcare professional.
Blah blah blah…enough of the PSA…
Ingredients
Let’s highlight some of the JYM pre workout ingredients and their intended effects:
- 6 grams of Citrulline Malate – intended to be a Nitric Oxide (NO) enhancer and help with ATP (energy) production
- 6 grams of Branched Chain Amino Acids (BCAAs) in the 2:1:1 ratio – used to help build muscle and decrease muscle fatigue and soreness
- 2 grams of Con-Cret® Patented Creatine HCl – a patented form of a creatine hcl designed to increase ATP (energy) while using a smaller dose
- 2 grams of Beta-Alanine – a non-essential amino acid used to enhance performance and endurance, although supplementation results are inconclusive
- 1.5 grams of Betaine– a component of beet root, it’s a possible “ergogenic” aid in that it helps with stamina and endurance
- 300 milligrams of Caffeine – a central nervous system stimulant used for alertness and performance
Overall, the ingredients look pretty solid although I am skeptical that (and the science is unclear) that some of them – such as Beta-Alanine and Betaine – actually promote sustainable results. Also, since I plan on using Pre JYM just occasionally, it make sense to supplement daily with just plain creatine.
I’m not fan of a lot of the other ingredients – artificial colors, sweeteners, and flavors – but I don’t plan on using this often. That said, if you are concerned about those, you should definitely avoid Pre JYM.
Mixability
It’s always annoying when a powder doesn’t mix well and you end up with a lot of clumping or settling. Luckily, Pre JYM didn’t suffer from either. Even though you use a rather large scoop – 20 gram – mixing with 12 oz. of water was easy. Even after just 10 seconds of sort-of vigorous stirring, most of the powder dissolved, as you can see.
The resulting foam was also pretty minimal, especially when comparing it to something like the Isopure Infusions protein powder. Now, after a bit there was some additional settling but it was easy enough to give it a stir or two with a spoon and solve that problem.
Taste
As good as mixability was, that’s how bad the taste is. While that may be a bit harsh, I didn’t enjoy the taste of Pre JYM pre workout at all. It’s certainly not the worst I’ve ever had and it did get a little bit better the more I drank but it’s nowhere near as good as ON’s pre workout.
It does have a bit of a grape flavor to it but it’s really artificial, probably due to Acesulfame Potassium and sucralose. Luckily I don’t drink pre workouts for their taste, so it’s easily dealt with but I wish I would’ve tried a different flavor such as pink lemonade, strawberry kiwi, or even rainbow sherbet.
Effectiveness
This is really the mark of any dietary supplement – does it work? And, I’m happy to say it did enhance training performance. I followed directions and started taking JYM pre workout about 30 minutes before my scheduled workout. About 10-15 minutes in, I could tell something was happening.
And right around the 30-35 minute mark, I was ready to go. I did a pretty basic workout with only 4 lifts: a chained bench press, weighted pull-ups, squats, lunges. And then I finished up with some HIIT battle ropes.
I not only had more energy but I had more mental focus and clarity during my workout. If you’ve played sports and have been “in the zone”, you’ll know what I’m talking about. Now, it wasn’t exactly like that but you get the idea; mentally, I was excited to do the work.
I didn’t really feel “the pump” anymore than usual but did feel stronger than normal and I did push more weight than I normally do.
That was workout number one. I also tried it a couple more times while cutting back on the dosage to 2/3 and then 1/2 of the recommendation. Pleasantly, I still had more energy and still had pretty good mental focus both times.
While it wasn’t as much as the first time, that’s to be expected since I took less. Since it still worked while taking less, I’m pretty impressed. Again, my recommendation would to be to start with a half dose and assess tolerance and then adjust from there.
One last note: I also didn’t experience a hard crash but I’m generally not susceptible to them either. All in all, I count this one as a win.
Value
On JYM’s website, the Pre JYM lists for $55 for 30 servings or $1.83 per serving. That’s not horrible for a pre workout but not as good as ON Amino Energy which you get around for $1 per serving.
On the plus side, at least for me, if you cut the dose it still works. That gives you more bang for your buck 1 like in I hear you can get in Thailand and makes it a decent value.
Also, if you catch the right deal, you can sometimes find it much cheaper. For example, I bought 20 servings for just under $23 on Amazon. At that rate, it’s a much better deal.
Summary
As a high performance pre workout, JYM pre workout is pretty legit. While it’s an overly caffeinated product and I’m not a fan of a couple of the ingredients, I can’t deny the fact that it works. While I certainly would not use it every day (or even every workout), I can definitely see how it could beneficial when you need that extra “boost.”
I felt stronger, had more physical energy, and more mental focus. All those things led to a better workout and isn’t that the point of a pre workout?
