How Long for Pre Workout to Kick In? & How Long It Lasts

We're going to cover some of the pre-workout basics including the common ingredients found in these formulas, how long it takes pre-workout to kick-in, and how long does pre-workout last.

Key Benefits of Pre-Workout

• Increased energy and focus
• Increased muscular endurance
• Increased strength and power
• Increased muscle pumps

How Long Does Pre-Workout Last?

Pre-workout is a multi-ingredient supplement designed to prime your body for performance. Pre-workout products are formulated to support increased energy, focus, and athletic performance. Pre-workouts are generally taken 20-30 minutes before exercise so that the active ingredients in the formula have sufficient time to be metabolized.

Typically, the energy from pre-workouts lasts a few hours. Caffeine is one of the most common ingredients that contributes to the energy experience in pre-workouts. Caffeine has a half-life of about five hours, this means that it takes the body about five hours to excrete half the dosage of caffeine that you ingested.[1] While the tingling sensation from beta-alanine tends to subside within an hour of ingestion.[2] And the pump ingredients, arginine and citrulline tend to return to baseline levels within three to five hours after supplementation. [3,4]

How Soon Do You Feel Pre-Workouts Effects?

The amount of time it takes for pre-workout to kick in will vary from person to person but in general you should expect to feel pre-workout's effects within an hour of taking it.

Caffeine and beta-alanine are two of the most common ingredients found in pre-workouts and they’re also generally the ones most associated with the sensory experiences of pre-workouts. Caffeine contributes to the increased energy levels and alertness sensation you feel from taking a pre-workout. Caffeine tends to reach peak plasma levels within an hour of ingesting it, although some people may metabolize it faster or slower than others.[1]

While beta-alanine contributes to the harmless tingling sensation on your skin you may experience with some pre-workouts. Beta-alanine reaches peak plasma levels within 30 minutes of consumption.[2]

The amino acids arginine and citrulline are also commonly used in pre-workouts for their ability to increase plasma nitric oxide levels, this contributes to the pump sensation. Research has shown arginine and citrulline to reach peak plasma levels about an hour after consumption. [3,4]

Choose Your Pre-Workout Supplement

C4 SuperSport Pre-Workout: Supercharged with 150mg of caffeine content, C4 SuperSport drives workout performance. NSF® Certified for Sport®.

C4 Original Pre-Workout: Our original pre-workout that started it all - C4 Original is built to take your energy, muscular endurance, and pumps to the next level.

C4 Ultimate Pre-Workout: Formulated to fuel your ultimate workout, C4 Ultimate provides ingredients to support ultimate energy + alertness, pump + performance and muscular endurance

NO3 Chrome Stim-Free Pre-Workout: For nearly a decade, NO3 Chrome has been raising the bar in nitric oxide support. Whether you're looking to take your exercise performance to the next level, or amplify results with a caffeine-free nitric oxide igniter, NO3 is engineered to make sure that you get the most out of each rep.

References

[1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK223808/

[2] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6107792/

[3] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2014227/

[4] https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/british-journal-of-nutrition/article/doseranging-effects-of-citrulline-administration-on-plasma-amino-acids-and-hormonal-patterns-in-healthy-subjects-the-citrudose-pharmacokinetic-study/914C4C4EA85887DC2935740ACF8E36DE