If you’re particularly caffeine-sensitive (i.e you get jittery after one or two cups of coffee) then you’re probably best to avoid any kind of pre-workout but generally speaking, most adults should be able to handle the odd scoop (if, as Windas says, we’re not also having umpteen cups of coffees or energy drinks outside of the workout).

Since the majority of studies that exist on the subject are done over a relatively short period of time (fewer than eight weeks), however, we really don’t know what long term impact regularly taking these kinds of supplements has on heart rate, blood pressure and other issues.

Annoying side-effects

Even if you can handle the high caffeine dose that comes with pre-workout, there’s every chance that you might experience a few side effects. These can include totally safe (albeit annoying) symptoms like itching and poor sleep. While they’re nothing to be alarmed at, you might want to consider whether they’re really worth the extra boost during your workout or whether you’d be better off just having a rest day if you’re feeling tired. If you do want to experiment, try taking half a scoop to begin with, see what impact it makes on your session and how your body reacts before increasing the dose.

Low-regulation

It’s also worth noting that the supplement industry isn’t regulated in the same way that food and pharmaceuticals are; there have been incidents of pre-workouts being found to contain contaminants such as heavy metals, or banned ingredients, with one study reporting that “many formulations may intentionally contain banned substances as ingredients or unintentionally as contaminants”.

While supplementing anything is at our own risk, it is worth looking at where you get your pre-workout from, the ingredient list and whether it’s marketed as a hardcore supplement or not. While it’s not a fail-safe system, products marketed towards more mainstream audiences (like Innermost’s The Energy Booster) are probably going to be more careful about what goes into their products.

Do pre-workout supplements really boost energy and strength? We ask the experts