If you are looking to improve your lifts and get the most out of each session, a workout supplement before an intense workout is a great idea. There are many reasons to use pre workout supplements including the boost in energy and increase in concentration that they can provide. Achieving that slight edge in the gym can be the difference between a good and a great workout.
In this post we will discuss the best vegan pre workout uk formulas and our favourite recommendations. When it comes to purchasing supplements online, it can often not be easy. It often seems there is just too much to choose from, making it impossible to find exactly what you are looking for.
This is the same with vegan pre workout supplements. In recent years there has been a big rise in Veganism in the UK. This has seen a massive increase in the amount of products that are available and tailored towards vegans.
A quick search for vegan pre workout formulas will bring you hundreds of results. Furthermore there are often pre workout formulas that are suitable for vegans but may not necessarily be promoted as vegan supplements.
Best Vegan Pre Workout
If you are looking for that energy to stay focused and reach your training goals, a pre workout supplement can help. Take a look below at our favourite vegan pre workout supplements for 2021.
MyProtein Vegan Pre workout Powder
If you are looking for a vegan pre workout from the worlds no.1 online sports nutrition brand, MyProtein has you covered. Since their launch in 2005, MyProtein has gone on to be perhaps the most well known brand in the online supplement industry. The MyProtein website has often become my go to website for purchasing supplements online, including whey protein. With everything from protein to pre workouts in one place, the MyProtein site is super easy to purchase all your supplements from one place.
MyProtein actually now has a separate range and website called MyVegan. This is the vegan brand from MyProtein featuring a large range of vegan products. Vegan pre workout powder is a naturally flavoured vegan pre workout supplement which is ideal for plant based diets. The new blend contains a powerful blend of ingredients which are all plant based.
This includes both green coffee and green tea extracts. These ingredients are known for providing a natural caffeine boost and are also often found in many fat burner supplements. Per serving there is a solid 150mg of caffeine. L-Citrulline is also present to boost endurance and performance. A few flavours are available including lemon tea and tangy orange. There are currently only 250g pouches available, but this should be fine for a pre workout supplement.
CNP Plant Pre workout
CNP Professional are well known as one of the original old school supplement manufacturers. With over 20 years experience, they first launched in 1998 by a former bodybuilding champion. The CNP brand is known for offering unrivalled performance; utilising their sporting expertise. All of CNPs products are created at their own state of the art manufacturing facility in Manchester.
This gives the brand complete control to create supplements to the highest standard. CNP is popular in the sports industry and used by a wide range of professional sports teams and athletes. This plant based pre workout formula is high quality and caffeine based to provide the optimal energy. Furthermore, this supplement is designed to provide a great pump.
A great collection of active ingredients include Beta Alanine and Citrulline. Bioperine and Astagin are also present. Overall this pre workout will provide a great boot in terms of both energy and pump. A limited number of flavours are available including red berries and blood orange, which can be purchased in a 420g tub.
PhD Nutrition Pre-WKT Pump
PhD are a leading sports nutrition brand in the UK. The aim is to deliver performance nutrition for gym goers. PhD launched back in 2006 by two serious gym users who were trying to change the sports nutrition landscape. Since then, the brand is now sold in over 45 countries around the world. I find PhD to be a premium supplement brand. Yes, the products are often more expensive, but are of exceptional high quality. PhD is widely available from many supplement stores both online and offline.
Pre Workout Pump is a vegan and vegetarian friendly formula for boosting your workouts. The aim of this pre workout supplement is deliver a great pump during an intense workout. The essential pump inducing ingredients we would expect to find are included such as Arginine and Beta Alanine. A few flavours are available including raspberry lemonade and fruit punch. This supplement does come only in a small 200g tub that contains 20 servings. Purchasing from PhD I find to be quite expensive, but websites such as Discount Supplements will have it available for less.
The Protein Works Pure performance caffeine
The Protein Works are another leading supplement brand based out of the UK. Since their launch in 2012, The Protein Works have produced some of the best supplements on the market. What I really like with The Protein Works is some of their unique blends and combinations. Not afraid to try something new, many of their supplements contain formulations you cannot find anywhere else.
The website of The Protein Works allows everything to be ordered very conveniently in one place. Overall, the value is very good and the price of all their supplements is very competitive. Like most supplement brands, The Protein works do not have a dedicated vegan pre workout formula. However they do have a range of vegan friendly supplements that can be used before a workout to achieve that energy boost.
Pure Performance caffeine is one of my favourites. This supplement is in tablet form and each serving contains a massive 200 mg of caffeine. It is caffeine that is often the key ingredient in pre workout supplements for both energy and concentration. There are no flavours available for this supplement due to being in tablet form. Where Pure Performance Caffeine becomes interesting is the potential to use it along side the rest of The Protein Works vegan range. This includes Beta Alanine and creatine.
Common vegan pre workout ingredients
While each pre workout supplement contains its own unique blend, many of them share the same ingredients. The quality and quantity of these ingredients just varies between different products. Here are some of the most common ingredients you will find.
Caffeine
The number one ingredient in most pre workout supplements is caffeine. Caffeine works to provide us with a huge amount of energy before the gym. Each pre workout contains a different amount of caffeine, measured in mg. This energy boost translates into power and motivation when it comes to an intense workout lifting heavy weights.
I often find a highly energised workout translates into better performance and much higher levels of motivation to squeeze in those extra reps. In addition to energy, caffeine also helps to increase our mental alertness. This helps us concentrate and stay focused. This sharpened focus can help reduce reaction time and keep us focused during a workout.
L-Citrulline
L-citrulline is an amino acid, sometimes labelled as l-citrulline and other times as citrulline malate. The L-citrulline is the free form version, where a malate is citrulline and Malic acid. In terms of performance, both offer similar results and so does not really matter which is contained in a pre workout supplement. Citrulline helps to improve blood flow and also endurance.
This increased blood flow helps to increase the amount of oxygen and key ingredients getting to the muscles when they need it. Both of these are key for a great workout. This ingredients is ideal for many high intensity and high endurance sports including weight lifting and cycling.
Beta-Alanine
Another popular ingredient found in a lot of pre workout supplements in Beta-Alanine, which is a non-essential amino acid. Unlike other amino acids, beta-alanine is not used for protein synthesis. Instead, it is used by the body for the production of carnosine. It’s carnosine which reduces lactic acid build up in your muscles during a workout. This leads to better performance.
Usually, levels of beta-alanine in the body are low. This reduces the amount of carnosine which can be produced. Supplements with beta-alanine allows for more carnosine to be produced. This in turn supports the reduction of lactic acid build up during a workout. Therefore reducing fatigue and often allowing us to push on further.
How to pick the best vegan pre workout
As you can see from this post, a huge number of pre workout formulas are available. When picking my favourite pre workout formula I look out for some key features.
Supplement manufacturer
For me, a really important part is the supplement brand or manufacturer. Firstly this is often an easy indication of a supplements quality. With a lot of positive reviews online, this is a sign of a good quality product and also supplement brand. Secondly it is also a good indication of price and who the supplement is positioned towards. For example supplements from brands such as MyProtein are going to be great in terms of both price and quality.
As there are loads of reviews online, I am confident in being able to trust them. The availability of a supplement can vary between different supplement manufacturers. Some brands may be harder to find and often only available from their own website. This could make it difficult if they run out of stock and it is not available anywhere else. On the other hand, any supplement brands are available from different supplement stores, both online and offline.
Taste and flavours
While some may not find the taste to be as important, I find it essential when looking for a new supplement. Out of all supplements, Pre workout formulas are the ones I find can be the most hit or miss on taste. Due to their ingredients, they can often taste very strong or have a very chemical flavour to them. If you are going to be using a vegan pre workout supplement every day, you want the taste to be enjoyable.
Some pre workout supplements will have many flavours available. Before purchasing, check to see if a good number of different options are available. I tend to find Apple flavours of pre workout supplements taste the worst. The flavour is often too strong and becomes off putting very quickly. If you are purchasing for the first time, a smaller amount is a good idea to ensure you like the flavour. Another top tip is to purchase 2 different flavours. This way the flavours can be rotated each day, instead of the same flavour every time.
Reviews
The reviews that a vegan pre workout supplement has should be an important factor to consider. If there are not many reviews for that product online, can you really trust it just from the manufacturers website. Reviews are also a good indication of the supplements popularity. A popular pre workout supplement will have lots of reviews online from other buyers experiences.
I always find reviews are very useful online. It’s also important to be aware of a fake reviews. If you have never heard of a supplement manufacturer before, and there are loads of 5 star reviews that all sound similar, they could potentially be fake. Use reviews as an important factor when making your decision. But just be aware of verifying their authenticity.
Summary
In summary there are a huge amount of vegan pre workout supplements available. We expect this to increase with the ever increasing trend of Veganism in the UK. But not all of the best vegan pre workout supplements are equal. We have featured our favourites in this post including supplements from brands such as MyProtein and PhD Nutrition.
To find the best vegan pre workouts, looking at the reviews should allow you to see for yourself how others have found them. Picking the right flavour is also key and can make or break whether you like the supplement. Let us know in the comments which vegan pre workout supplements you will be using in 2021.
