Pre-workout has become extremely popular over the years. Why? Because everyone who works out is doing so for a reason.
We all want to get better and keep making progress. One way to help yourself perform better is with a good pre-workout!
There are so many different ones out there, and they all may provide different types of benefits.
• More Energy
• More Strength
• More Power
• More Endurance
• More Pump
• More Focus
Which one you choose to use all depends on what you really want to get out of it.
One thing a lot of people use a pre-workout for is the energy boost. Some people won’t work out without the added energy they get from a pre-workout.
So, for these individuals, they choose a pre-workout loaded with caffeine and other stimulants. Not everyone wants that, though.
If you work out at night, having a bunch of caffeine can keep you up too late. We all know sleep is extremely important, not just for overall health, but for recovery too.
So you don’t want to mess around with getting a lack of sleep!
Many people are also very sensitive to caffeine, and don’t want it, but still want a boost in performance.
That’s where a caffeine-free pre-workout comes into play. Believe it or not, there are tons of ingredients that boost performance outside of caffeine!
That’s what we’re going to cover today.
In This Article:
• Benefits Of Caffeine-Free Pre-Workout
• Types Of Stimulant-Free Pre-Workout
• Key Ingredients To Look For
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Top Product Recommendations
Benefits Of A Caffeine-Free Pre-Workout
Let me break down exactly what you can expect from a well-formulated non-stimulant pre-workout...
Performance Benefits:
• Increased strength and power output
• Enhanced muscular endurance
• Improved oxygen utilization
• Better mental focus
• Reduced muscle fatigue
• Enhanced nutrient delivery
• Better muscle hydration
Lifestyle Benefits:
• No sleep disruption
• Flexible timing for workouts
• No caffeine dependency
• Suitable for all fitness levels
More Strength and Power
Getting stronger is a game-changer for any fitness goal. Whether you're trying to build muscle or improve athletic performance, a caffeine-free pre-workout with the right ingredients can give you that extra edge (2).
Think about it ... if you can lift more weight and produce more force in your workouts, you're setting yourself up for faster progress!
More Endurance
Ever notice how that burning sensation in your muscles can cut your sets short? A good stimulant-free pre-workout helps delay that feeling, letting you push harder for longer (3).
This means more quality reps, more total work done, and better results from every single workout!
Enhanced Pump and Blood Flow
When you're training, oxygen delivery to your muscles is crucial. The best caffeine-free pre-workout supplements include ingredients that help dilate your blood vessels, improving that oxygen delivery when you need it most (4).
Not only does this help with performance, but it gives you that awesome pump feeling that keeps you motivated!
Types Of Stimulant-Free Pre-Workout
Performance-Focused Options
Perfect for:
• CrossFit-style workouts
• Endurance training
• High-intensity training
• Traditional weight training
This is the type of caffeine-free pre-workout you’d choose if you want to improve your performance. I’m talking in the areas of strength, power, endurance, and focus.
If you’re doing a CrossFit-type workout, running, biking, or swimming, this is a great option. These are going to help you stay dialed in and make it easier to perform better.
You can definitely take this type of caffeine-free pre-workout when doing a traditional bodybuilding-style workout, too. It can be very beneficial!
Although many of these types of lifters will go after the “pump-focused” pre-workout, I’ll cover it in the next section. Many use both together.
I do it all the time, actually!
Performance-focused caffeine-free pre-workouts are going to offer the majority of the benefits I covered. The main difference is that they won’t supply the ingredients that give you a huge pump.
If you’re doing CrossFit, for instance, you don’t want a huge pump. If your workouts are very high intensity, a massive pump can actually hinder performance.
It can make you feel heavy and make it harder to push your intensity higher. The same thing goes for running, cycling, and swimming.
At least for some, but not for all. It just depends on how you feel and what you like.
If you’re one of those people, you’d want a performance-focused caffeine-free pre-workout. These won’t hinder performance in any way, or make your heart rate go too high like caffeine will.
Pump-Focused Formulas
Ideal for:
• Bodybuilding
• Muscle growth
• Aesthetic goals
• Maximum vascularity
This type of pre-workout is all about enhancing blood flow, vascularity, and pump.
For your everyday lifter or bodybuilder, this is likely the most commonly used. I like traditional weight lifting, so I use these quite a bit.
Why is getting a pump so important? Here’s one reason.
If you want to build muscle, getting a muscle pump increases the size of your muscles during training. It’s one of the best feelings during a weightlifting workout.
Even Arnold Schwarzenegger talked about this! Getting a pump is something very sought after. It can boost your confidence and show you the growth potential you have.
It’s also pretty great for performance, too. The ingredients that enhance your pump improve muscle oxygenation, hydration, and can even help with ATP production (3, 4).
So not only do they make you feel awesome, but they can help you see greater gains in the long run. If you're doing traditional “bro lifting”, you’ll fall in love with pump-focused pre-workouts!
Like I said before, some people like these in higher intensity workouts like CrossFit and cardio, too. You just have to try them out and see what works best for you and your style of training.
Key Ingredients To Look For
When choosing a stimulant-free pre-workout, these ingredients make all the difference:
• Glycerol
• Citrulline / Arginine / S7 / Agmatine / Norvaline
• Beta Alanine
• Creatine Monohydrate
• PeakO2
• Alpha-GPC
Glycerol
Glycerol is one of the pump ingredients. It helps to give you a pump by pulling water into your muscles until they swell.
Trust me, the swelling is not a bad type of swelling. It makes your muscles look and feel their biggest!
So it’s great for hydrating your muscles. It also helps with aerobic and anaerobic power, as well as ATP production (3).
Glycerol should be taken with a good amount of water, about 16-20 oz. This helps to pull that water into your muscles during your workout!
Citrulline / Arginine / S7 / Agmatine / Norvaline
These ingredients are all used in different caffeine-free pre-workouts. They’re also used in ones with caffeine, too, but it’s for the same reason.
These ingredients are all involved in helping us produce more nitric oxide. What that does is increase vasodilation.
So when it comes to opening up our blood vessels to allow more oxygen-rich blood into our muscles, these are what to look for.
When looking for a caffeine-free pre-workout, you don’t have to find all of these. You might find only 1 of these in there.
Having 1 of these ingredients can be effective, but if you find a pre-workout with 2 or 3, it’ll be more effective! At least, if they’re all in a proper dosage.
The dose matters a lot!
Beta Alanine
If you’ve ever had a pre-workout that made you feel a slight itchiness or tingling around your face and ears, it's from beta-alanine. I know it sounds weird, but hear me out!
When you work out, you start to feel that burning sensation in your muscles, right? That’s acidity causing that burn.
Beta-alanine helps to buffer that acid to keep the pH more neutral for longer, which delays the burn. This can help you get in more reps and is great for muscular endurance.
A side effect is the slight itchy/tingly feeling called paraesthesia. A lot of people, like myself, actually like it. Why?
Because it gives you feedback that your pre-workout is working, and makes you feel ready to go! It all depends on how you look at it, but that’s how I and many others choose to see it.
Once I feel that tingly feeling, I know it’s time to push myself!
Creatine Monohydrate
Creatine is arguably the most heavily studied supplement on the planet. The evidence of its effectiveness is overwhelming!
Creatine can enhance muscular strength, power, and can even help with muscle growth and recovery (5).
It’s a supplement that I recommend to just about everyone, but there are several types of creatine on the market. None have been shown to be more effective than creatine monohydrate.
Creatine monohydrate is also the cheapest form of it. Many companies have tried to use newer forms of creatine to make it sound new and improved, but it’s unnecessary.
In my opinion, if you’re buying any other form of creatine, you’re likely overpaying. The gold standard for creatine in any caffeine-free pre-workout is creatine monohydrate.
PeakO2
PeakO2 is actually a mushroom blend. It sounds odd, but it’s a really effective ingredient!
Peak O2 can help increase your VO2 Max, time to exhaustion, and relative peak power (6). So basically, it helps your body use oxygen more effectively and boosts performance!
If you want better endurance, this is definitely an ingredient I’d look for.
Alpha-GPC
Alpha-GPC is an interesting one. It helps with 2 main things.
1. Memory/learning
2. Muscular strength
It works by boosting acetylcholine levels in the brain to support memory, learning, and cognition (8). In your muscles, it helps strengthen muscle contractions and boost force production (7).
So if you want to stay dialed in during your workouts and increase your strength levels, this is a good one. I highly recommend looking for alpha-GPC in your next caffeine-free pre-workout!
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Can I Take a Caffeine-Free Pre-Workout with Other Supplements?
A: Yes! Many athletes stack their non-stimulant pre-workout with other supplements for enhanced results.
Q: When Is the Best Time to Take a Stimulant-Free Pre-Workout?
A: Take your caffeine-free pre-workout 15-30 minutes before training. Since it's stimulant-free, you can use it any time of day without affecting sleep.
Q: Will I Still Get Energy without the Caffeine?
A: Yes and no. Non-stimulant pre-workout formulas with nootropic ingredients like alpha-GPC can help enhance focus and energy production without stimulating the central nervous system.
Q: How Long Does a Caffeine-Free Pre-Workout Last?
A: Effects typically last 1.5-3 hours, depending on the ingredients and your body's response.
Q: Can Beginners Use Stimulant-Free Pre-Workouts?
A: Absolutely! In fact, starting with a caffeine-free pre-workout is often recommended for those new to pre-workout supplements.
Amazing Caffeine-Free Pre-Workout Options
When it comes to choosing your next caffeine-free pre-workout, you have so many options. Not every single one is going to be as effective as others, though.
Some may use just a couple of these ingredients. Some may use all of them.
I used to run a supplement store with dozens of brands, and I’ve tried at least 100 different pre-workout supplements. Many with caffeine, and many without it.
The most effective ones I ever used always had more than one focus with their ingredients.
If it was pump-focused, it also had ingredients for focus and strength. If it was performance-focused, it also had something in it to increase blood flow and mental focus.
The doses matter a lot, too! Here are a few of my favorite options.
Endura-Formance
Our top performance-focused option features:
• Creatine Monohydrate
• PeakO2
• Beta-Alanine
• S7 Blend
Perfect for high-intensity training, CrossFit, or anyone looking to maximize their performance without stimulants!
Endura-Formance is one of my favorite caffeine-free pre-workout supplements on the market. It’s highly effective and is mostly performance-based.
It has ingredients like creatine monohydrate, PeakO2, and beta-alanine. These can benefit you in multiple ways, including better strength, power, and endurance during training.
It also has S7 in it to give you added blood flow for better endurance as well. It won’t give you a huge pump like AlphaSurge will, but it’s still very helpful.
That’s why so many CrossFit athletes, as well as other high-intensity athletes, love using this pre-workout. It gives you all the performance benefits you could want without a huge pump that isn’t necessary for that type of training.
Plus, the flavors are awesome!
AlphaSurge
The ultimate pump formula with:
• Glycerol
• Alpha-GPC
• Agmatine
• Norvaline
Alphasurge is an amazing pump-focused caffeine-free pre-workout! It has glycerol, alpha-GPC, agmatine, and norvaline.
It helps to give you massive pumps in the gym, more vascularity, and can help with strength and focus too!
AlphaSurge is a powder, but if you’d rather take capsules, there is also AlphaSurge DRV. That one also has a good dose of arginine to boost performance even more!
The great thing about these is they’re very stackable with other pre-workouts. So if you have another pre-workout you like, you can add one of these in for an insane workout!
Ideal for bodybuilders and anyone chasing that maximum pump feeling!
Ready To Transform Your Workouts?
Looking for the best caffeine-free pre-workout that actually delivers results?
Try 1st Phorm caffeine-free pre-workouts!
If you have any questions or need any help in the meantime, don't hesitate to reach out to us. We have a full team of NASM Certified Personal Trainers and Nutrition Coaches right here in St. Louis, Missouri. Just give us a call at 1-800-409-9732 or send us an email at CustomerService@1stPhorm.com any day from 6 AM to 10 PM Central. We'll be more than happy to help in any way we can!
References:
(1) Ramanlal R, et al. Physiology, Vasodilation. StatPearls. 2025.
(2) Coull NA, et al. Effect of tyrosine ingestion on cognitive and physical performance. European Journal of Applied Physiology. 2015;115(2):373-386.
(3) Patlar S, et al. The effect of glycerol supplements on aerobic and anaerobic performance. Journal of Human Kinetics. 2012;34:69-79.
(4) Bailey SJ, et al. l-Citrulline supplementation improves O2 uptake kinetics and high-intensity exercise performance in humans. Journal of Applied Physiology. 2015;119(4):385-395.
(5) Wax B, et al. Creatine for Exercise and Sports Performance. Nutrients. 2021;13(6):1915.
(6) Hirsch KR, et al. Cordyceps militaris Improves Tolerance to High-Intensity Exercise. Journal of Dietary Supplements. 2017;14(1):42-53.
(7) Bellar D, et al. The effect of 6 days of alpha glycerylphosphorylcholine on isometric strength. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition. 2015;12:42.
(8) Kerksick CM. Acute Alpha-Glycerylphosphorylcholine Supplementation Enhances Cognitive Performance in Healthy Men. Nutrients. 2024;16(23):4240.
