BioSteel HPSD

Overview

Here’s what BioSteel have to say:

BioSteel Sports™ High Performance Sports Drink provides accelerated in-game or in-workout performance.

·                                 Allows for optimal concentration levels and sustained energy

·                                 Decreases exercise-induced muscle breakdown in your body

·                                 Helps stimulate muscle repair

·                                 Supports your immune system health during periods of physical stress

Other Advantages

·                                 Diabetic friendly

·                                 Vegan friendly amino acid blend

·                                 Sugar Free

·                                 Gluten free

·                                 Caffeine free

·                                 Lactose free

·                                 Certified Banned Substance Free

The BioSteel Science

BioSteel Sports ™ HPSD uses a precise ratio of amino acids, electrolytes, organic minerals and B vitamins to fuel your body and fight exhaustion - helping you reach peak performance in any sport or physical activity.

Amino Acids

Amino Acids are protein in its simplest form. They are quickly absorbed into your body, providing sustained energy, mental clarity and quicker recovery when you need it most.

Electrolytes (Organic Mineral Matrix)

Heavy exercise makes you sweat and lose electrolytes. BioSteel HPSD's organic mineral matrix will maintain your electrolyte balance and hydration.

Vitamin B Blend

The B vitamins are a group of water-soluble vitamins that play important roles in cell metabolism, which help:

·                                 Support and increase the rate of metabolism

·                                 Maintain healthy skin and muscle tone

·                                 Enhance immune and nervous system function

Nutritional Information

Looking purely at the nutritional information you’ll be forgiven for thinking this is just a fancy BCAA product. Without being caffeinated or having any carbs/sugars this doesn't look like the standard Intra drink that we've become accustomed to.

BioSteel have protected their formulas by placing them under proprietary blends but they have given the total amount of the Amino Acids, 3.8g, in one serving.

The Vitamin B Blend isn’t a new concept but BioSteel have added some new elements that aren’t often seen – Cyanocobalamin (Vit B12 to you and me) helps with metabolism and protein synthesis. Pantothenic Acid is a great inclusion here as it more or less forces your body to properly utilize protien and carbs to build and repair muscle.

Taste

It only comes in Mixed Berry – I found it tasted more like sherbet. Everyone who tasted it said it tasted like something slightly different but everyone agreed that it was delicious. It caused no bloating, had no nasty after-taste and was very easy to drink over the course of a workout.

Side Effects

None.

Price

£44.99 (£35.99 if you sign up to the BioSteel website) as this has 60 servings in you are looking at 75p per serving or 60p if you sign up. Not cheapest Intra on the market by any means but we have had much worse products that cost much more come across our desks.

Results

High Performance Sports Drink (HPSD) is supposed to increase endurance, athletic ability and improve your gym results. Based on these aspects HPSD is an unbelievable success. HPSD is an unrivalled Intra product when it comes to endurance and muscular endurance – you just don’t get tired when you take this product. I was able to blow through entire workouts that would usually floor me and still have some left in the tank. This product would be amazing for volume cycles or cutting down when the restricted calories begin to take their toll.

HPSD won’t improve your strength – although I would be interested to mix some creatine and maybe DAA into this to see how that effects it – but it certainly keeps you sharp and focused, making it a great choice for sports and competitions.

I didn’t notice too much difference on the recovery front but this could be because I was always in a calorie surplus when this was on trial, on paper this should definitely speed up recovery and reduce muscle pain when dieting.

I would recommend HPSD to anyone who is cutting down to help maintain energy levels and retain muscle mass. The price tag will turn some people off but this is a high end product for the serious athletes and fitness fans who are looking to take their results to next level. 9.5/10

You can buy HPSD here

Ride The Lightning

Overview

Here is what they have to say:

Ride The Lightning is engineered to give you a unique and intense training experience with an explosive, skin shredding pump effect. A great tasting pre-workout, suitable for both men and women.

Nutritional Information

A basic but potent 5 ingredient build. Hopefully no-one here needs to be told how useful Creatine is so all we’ll say on that is that it is in the most tested and widely considered “best” form, Monohydrate. Caffeine is kept fairly moderate at 300mg but a double scoop will net you between 3 and 4 cups of coffee worth (600mg).

Arginine AKG is an amino acid that helps with muscle pumps and improving general performance. Beta Alanine is the ingredient that makes you tingle but it also improves stamina and delays muscular fatigue. Tyrosine also helps endurance and plays a vital role in delaying muscular fatigue.

All of the ingredients are effectively dosed.

Taste

It currently only comes in Fruit Punch Fury which tastes very weak with one scoop and far too powerful with two scoops. The taste isn’t bad but I just haven’t been able to get it quite right with the water levels. It mixes up fine and has no aftertaste.

Some of the team have taken to using less water and almost taking it as a shot. Each to their own I guess.

Side Effects

The first few time it was used the tingles were very pronounced but that calmed down after several uses.

Price

£21.99 for a tub with 50 servings in (assuming 1 scoop)

Results

Ride The Lightning promised to be the strongest preworkout we have ever tried. Some of the team agreed – others didn’t! Ride The Lightning uses a tried and tested formula so we knew that the doses were great and had a rough idea of what we’d be going to experience. The female reviewers were content with one scoop but the male ones found that two scoops were needed to really make an impact.

The energy rush is quite intense and hits hard and fast – about 10 minutes after consuming it you’ll feel the rush. Worth bearing in mind when you take it as I had it hit me when I was still on the way to the gym and preworkout in traffic is no fun at all. The pump is pretty good but nothing mind blowing or painful. Super high reps aren’t required – anything over 8 and you’ll feel it kicking in.

The real star of Ride The Lightning is the endurance. Once I upgraded to two scoops I didn’t tire out. I could easily complete my workout, then cardio, then my partners workout, then a triathlon, then return a gold ring to Mordor etc. You just don’t get tired. Muscular fatigue is greatly delayed as well – I wouldn’t say strength was increased but if you can normally lift it for 5 then you’ll be able to hit 8 or 9 easily.

Another bonus is it’s quite cheap! Coming it at only 43p per serving.

Whilst Ride The Lightning probably wasn’t the strongest preworkout we’ve ever had it certain ranks as one of the greats due to its price point and expolsive energy that doesn’t fade. 8.5/10

You can buy Ride The Lightning here

Cognizance Enhance

 

Overview

Here’s what Cognizance have to say:

Athletic Performance

Take your game to the next level! ENHANCE is proven to lead to an increase in lean muscle build and responsive energy. Its ingredients specifically target an enhanced recovery for muscle regeneration.

Sexual Function

Naturally, ENHANCE will have a direct effect on your hormones, culminating in a surge of increased Libido, Sexual Function and impacting on Fertility

Immune Boost and Mood Support

The carry over of these health benefits is an influence on your mood, and receptive brain activity. The positive changes to your health, reflect in your body and in your mind.

Nutritional Information

INGREDIENTS                          PER SERVING
(MG)

Goji Berry Extract                     200

Maca Extract                            500

Tribulus Terrestris                   250

Vitamin B6                               5

Enhance has only 4 main ingredients and all of them are fairly common in testosterone support products. The dosing is pretty good and within the effective range. I would have liked to see a little bit more Tribulus Terrestris but that’s a fairly minor gripe.

• Goji Berry has links to various health benefits including heart health and blood pressure but in Enhance they will be banking on its links to increased Athletic Performance.
• Maca Extract is proven to increase stamina and energy – it also has links to helping with erectile dysfunction and improved sexual performance.
• Tribulus Terrestris is the main muscle building compound in Enhance – it has links to increased testosterone, increases in buidling lean muscle and increased strength.
• Vitamin B6 increase protein synthesis.

Taste

They don’t have an after-taste.

Side Effects

None – most Test Boosters carry one or two side effects but Enhance doesn't have a drawback.

Price

£21.99 for 30 days supply

Results

Its hard to review products like this because it can be hard to quantify how successful they have been. There are a few key markers such as; strength increase, muscle gain, fat loss around the belly, acne across upper back, libido increases etc.

A lot of people expect natural testosterone booster to produce the same results as steroids or even prohormones – the reality is that they are much milder (and safer) and can be used over longer periods of time. Enhance is a bit of a slow burner and we didn't notice some results until week 4. Enhance definitely increased recovery time from the beginning, its is great for reducing DOMS and getting you back in the gym. Mood elevation is quite prevalent early on as well. Fat loss around the belly and strength gains took a lot longer to come through. We ran Enhance for 8 weeks and it took until week 4 for those to start showing. No acne across the upper back popped up during the whole cycle so that was nice surprise.

Enhance is very competitively priced but take into account that you may need to run it for 2 months to see results. It is nice to have a testosterone booster that doesn't carry any side effects.

Enhance has a lot of things going in its favour and if you are looking for a boost in the gym and don’t mind a little wait for a safe edge then absolutely try Enhance. 8.5/10

You can buy Enhance here.

Bio-Synergy Whey Hey

 

Overview

Here's what Bio-Synergy have to say:

Bio-Synergy Whey Hey is a delicious, light and refreshing whey protein powder.

With over 21 grams of protein and 4.8 grams of BCAAs per serving, this low-fat, gluten free protein powder is enough to make anyone go nuts. Don’t be shy, grab a tub of Whey Hey and #MakeItHappen

Nutritional Information

 

A nice simple “pure” protein powder. Nothing added, no fancy extras, just a supplement to help you hit macros. Keeping it simple like this should ensure that it can be slotted into every diet plan. We always need more protein!

Fats have been kept fairly low and the protein content is fine at 21.5g of Whey Protein Concentrate and a little bit of Milk Protein. The only thing that is a bit out of place is the sugar content which is a fairly high 7.22g per shake. This comes from both the coconut flavouring and sucralose.

Taste

We have sampled both the coconut and watermelon flavours and they are amazing. The coconut is the best tasting shake on the market. Period. No competition. You could drop a little rum in it and have it is a cocktail! Just make sure you like coconut before you order as it is a strong flavour. The watermelon is also a very strong tasting shake – I was less keen on this one but other members of the team lapped it up. They are both fairly sweet tasting but not in a sickly way. 

Side Effects

None

Price

Both Coconut and Watermelon are priced at £49.99 for 2.25kg providing 64 servings. So you're looking at £0.78 a serving which isn’t that bad when you put it like that.

Results

Taste is king here. Bio-Synergy have obviously set out to make the best tasting shake they could. The nutritional content has suffered slightly because of this plan but they definitely succeeded in making an amazing tasting shake. Both of their offerings taste fantastic but its you’re stance on the high sugar content that will probably sway you one way or the other with Whey Hey.

Since this is a pure protein product you could in theory place it in any supplement stack on any diet plan but, again, the sugar content might stop you on a strict cutting cycle. If you’re bulking, maintaining or just don’t care about the sugar then Whey Hey will make a great shake to take postworkout – you can then at least put the sugars to work.

The price seems a lot on the surface but once you split it out to the per serving amount its actually really competitive.

In summary: Sugars bad. Taste amazing.

8.5/10

You can buy Whey Hey Coconut here

You can buy Whey Hey Watermelon here.

USN Amino Stim

 

Overview

USN have built an amino product with the addition of stimulants to propel your workouts to new heights. Flooding your muscles with both BCAAs and EAAs will create the perfect environment to add slabs of rock hard muscle to your body. 

USN want your workouts to be the best they can to come out of the gym feeling like you have accomplished something. They feel that this product can make sure that you have the necessary energy and drive to make that happen each and every time you set foot in the iron paradise! 

Amino Stim comes in 6 flavours.

Nutritional Information

Serving Size: 10g

Per 10g

Calories 10  

Carbohydrates 2g

Calcium (Dicalcium Phosphate) 24mg

Potassium (Monopotassium Phosphate) 55mg

Focus Energy & recovery Blend - Taurine, L-Leucine, L-Isoleucine, L-Valine, L-Threonine, L-Histidine,

L-Methionine, L-Lysine, DL-Phenylalanine, L-Glutamine, HydroMax™, Betaine Anhydrous (BetaPower®), Agmatine Sulfate (Agmapure®), L-Tyrosine, Choline Bitartrate, Caffeine Anhydrous (75mg)

Citric Acid, Natural and Artificial Flavors, Artificial Sweeteners (Sucralose, Acesulfame Potassium), Silicon Dioxide, Red Beet Powder (color).

Amino Stim is a BCAA product with added kick. You have the usual 3 BCAAs along with some of the Essential Amino Acids making the formula more potent. Amino Stim is also laced with a small amount of caffeine which almost acts as a top up after your preworkout. It’s a shame we aren’t given an exact breakdown of the nutritional profile but rather told that it’s a blend.

Coming in at 10 calaroies per serving this can be used on any cycle and regardless of your stance on carbs during your workout (for the record I’m incredibly pro-carbs).

Taste

We used the Blue Raspberry flavour and its taste great but does have a slight aftertaste, not so much to spoil the product but enough to notice. It also comes in Acai Berry, Orange and Mango, Pineapple Punch, Watermelon and I’m genuinley disappointed that I didn’t try Strawberry Limeade because that sounds amazing.

The products mixes up in a standard shaker or USN steel shakers without a trace of grit.

Side Effects

None

Price

£29.99 for a tub with 30 servings in.

Results

Amino Stim is primarily going to be used as an intra product although technically it could be used at any time. Amino Stim won’t interfere with any of your other supplements unless you are particularly sensitive to caffeine. USN have wisely included EAAs alongside the BCAAs making the product more effective. This product is designed primarily for endurance during the workout with the extra boost of caffeine being the driving force behind Amin Stim.

An important factor of an intra is that it doesn’t cause bloating, discomfort or interfere with your workout. I never experienced any issues with Amino Stim – its easy to drink and tastes great. Blue Raspberry does have a slight aftertaste but it doesn’t detract from the products excellence.

USN’s products aren’t known for being cheap and Amino Stim isn’t breaking the trend. At £29.99 it isn’t over priced but it will put it out of some peoples price range. Coming in at just under £1 a serving it is above the average cost for similar products.

If you can handle the cost then Amino Stim is excellent. It excels in almost every area and accomplishes exactly what it sets out to do. 9/10

You can buy Amino Stim here

Muscle Magpie Ho'Whey

 

Overview

HO’WHEY, powered by Muscle Magpie, is a high quality, fast release whey protein formula that uses 100% premium whey. HO’WHEY combines a specially developed blend of whey isolate, hydrolysed whey and whey concentrate and is designed to give you an immediate supply of high quality amino acids. Muscle Magpie insists on quality assurance as standard so has further enhanced and fortified HO’WHEY with Glutamine, BCAA’s and Digestive Enzymes.

Glutamine (4g per serving) is the most abundant amino acid found in skeletal muscle. Glutamine gets depleted during times of intense exercise and becomes conditionally essential. High levels of Glutamine are vital for muscle health and recovery. BCAA’s [Branched Chain Amino Acids] (5g per serving) are considered to be the most crucial amino acids for athletes. We have strengthened HO’WHEY with BCAA’s to ensure that there is a sufficient pool of these vital amino acids. Digestive Enzymes (50mg per serving) have been added to HO’WHEY in order to maximize and magnify absorption.

With 22g high quality protein per serving, this low carb, low calorie, low fat, protein shake will tick all the boxes for you!

Nutritional Information

 

22g of protein from Whey Concentrate, Isolate and Hydrolysed Whey. The protein has been fortified with glutamine and BCAAs. The carbs (1.7g) and fats (2g) are kept low to fit in with any diet plan. Although the Sugars are less than 1.5g it would have been nice to see just Stevia used - although trace amounts of sucralose isn’t going to hurt too much.

Although no creatine has been included you do receive Glutamine in a fairly strong dose and a digestive enzyme to make sure you absorb as much as possible.

Taste

We have tried all 5 flavours Chocolate, Mint Chocolate, Vanilla, Strawberry & Banana. All of them are very pleasant to drink but the Mint Chocolate does have a slight aftertaste which is a shame because it tastes like melted Mint Aero. There isn’t really a weak flavour among them but if I had to rank them I’d say the Banana is the best. All of them mix well in a standard shaker in single or double servings and apart from the mint chocolate none of them have an aftertaste.

Side Effects

None

Price

£27.99 for a tub with 30 servings. If you use code MAGPIE20 then you get 20% off making it a much better at £22.39 per tub.

Results

Muscle Magpie is a pure protein shake so its not specifically designed for postworkout, fat loss or mass gain. Its basic structure isn’t a drawback it just means that it can be used on any cycle to help you hit your macros. The nutritional information itself is fairly good – decent protein content, low fats, low carbs. The Glutamine is nice addition as speeding up recovery will help with almost any cycle. The extra BCAAs are a little bit overkill but they aren’t going to hurt you. We never experienced any side effects with Ho’Whey so the digestive enzyme must be working.

Ho’Whey tastes great in all its flavours but I have to recommend the Banana, 350ml of water and a double scoop of Ho’Whey and you have a high protein banana milkshake. The vanilla flavour was actually very useful for baking protein treats.

Muscle Magpie have priced Ho’Whey competitively but with the additional 20% discount code (MAGPIE20) it makes it only £0.75 a serving which is excellent.

Ho’Whey is a great all round protein shake that can be slotted into any diet to help fit your macros. 8/10

You can buy Ho’Whey here – remember to use MAGPIE20 for your discount

Biosynergy Insanity

Overview

Here’s what BioSynergy has to say:

Insanity is an explosive pre workout supplement designed for people who are serious about increasing their performance, size and strength in the gym. The insane blend of creatine monohydrate, arginine AAKG, beta alanine, caffeine, taurine, riboflavin, vitamin B6 and pantothenic acid is designed to help you lift more weight, push through more sets and truly take your training to the next level. Train insane or remain the same with Insanity.

Nutritional Information

Good doses of all the usual suspects – creatine, AAKG, Beta-Alanine and Taurine. Caffeine is kept to a moderate level, it’ll still be effective but wont lead to a massive energy spike and crash. Pantothenic Acid helps the body make use of protien and turns carbs, in this case a small amount of dextrose, into energy.

Insanity doesn’t have any ground breaking ingredients included but it has everything a good preworkout should.

Taste

I had Cherry Bomb and it was actually fairly nice (for a preworkout) it tastes very strong and takes a few servings to get used to it but it grows on you. Mixes up fine and as a bonus the bright red/pink colour will look awesome in a DuelFuel shaker.

Side Effects

None – the Beta-Alanine may cause some tingling but it’ll pass in 10-15 minutes and I only experienced it when I up the dosage.

Price

£34.99 for a 250g tub with 50 5g servings in – or 25 10g servings depending on how strong you want it.

Results

Insanity is a solid preworkout but there are a few drawbacks. Biosynergy has crafted a fairly standard preworkout. None of the ingredients are unique or groundbreaking but they are high quality and they are within effective dosing ranges. This makes for a pre that will work much like any of the high quality ones on the market. The flavour is what sets it apart. Preworkouts are known for not tasting great but Insanity’s Cherry Bomb makes an impact. It can be a little bit sweet but it tastes really nice.  

Insanity is geared more towards strength and muscular endurance rather than a buzz and energy spike. This will keep your muscles working rather than make you feel like you've had a bump of MDMA.

The price point will depend on how strong you are going to need it. Our male reviewers need a double dose making it cost about £1.40 per serving but our female reviewers found it to be effective with only a single serving coming in at £0.70.

The main drawback to Insanity is the packaging. The tube it comes in is fairly narrow and when you get near to the bottom of the tube it can be difficult to get the product out. The product itself it a well crafted, if slightly unoriginal, preworkout that’s sure to give you the kick you need to give it your all. 7.5/10

You can buy Insanity here

Multipower Mass Gainer

Overview

Here’s what Multipower have to say:

Trying to put on size but struggling to take on the required amount of calories? Multipower's Mass Gainer is the solution to your problem! More than 1,000 great tasting calories per serving will give you the muscle gains you’ve been dreaming of. A high quality protein complex (whey, casein, milk and egg protein) in combination with an energy boosting blend of complex carbohydrates (maltodextrine, waxy maize and barley starch (Vitargo)) will give your body all nutrients you need to build lean body mass. The product is refined by valuable medium chain triglycerides (MCT) plus Vitamin B6 to support your protein metabolism and hormonal activity. Try it now and take your strength and size to the next level!

Nutritional Information

Nutrition Information per	260 g**
Energy	4407 kJ / 1043 kcal
Fat	13 g
of which saturates	11 g
Carbohydrate	177 g
of which Sugars	68 g
Dietary Fibre	3,1 g
Protein	52 g
Salt	0,34 g

A serving will give you near enough 1050 calories made up from 177g carbs (maltodextrin, dextrose and Vitargo) and 52g protein (mostly whey and milk protein’s with a  little egg albumen thrown in). The dietary fibre is a little low at 3g but you should be eating enough veggies for that not to matter too much.

It’s a fairly basic gainer with no extras (creatine, glutamine, extra BCAAs, t-boosters etc).

Taste

I had the chocolate and it was a bit too thick for me but had a nice taste – it mixed up surprisingly easy for a gainer.

Side Effects

None

Price

£84.99 for a bag with 21 servings in.

Results

Multipower have delivered a basic product but not a bad one. It will add mass to you. Adding a few 1000 extra calories can’t fail to add mass. It won’t all be clean mass you must be prepared to add fat along with muscle as with any good bulking program or mass gainer supplement.

I was a bit surprised not to see some of the extras I’ve come to expect in all good gainers – especially creatine. Since there aren’t any extras included you would think that it would be a cheap product – nope! Its £4 a serving. That is incredibly expensive.

There is nothing wrong with this product – it’s a good gainer but there are more complete gainers out there for a cheaper price and it is as simple as that. The price is really the deal breaker here. 4/10

You can buy Multipower Mass Gainer here