If you’re into pineapple you’re onto a winner with Innermost’s pre-workout powder.

With a sweet and fresh flavour, added vitamins, and energy-boosting ingredients, Innermost The Energy Booster is one of the best pre-workouts we’ve tried. Here’s how it performed on test.

Innermost The Energy Booster

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$44.95 / £29.95 for 300g (30 servings), liveinnermost.com

Pros:

  • Low caffeine will suit those with high sensitivity
  • Vitamin B complex
  • Pleasant flavour

Cons:

  • Only one flavour
  • Slightly odd aftertaste
  • Some of the ingredients need to be taken daily to be effective

Taste: 4.5/5
Solubility:  5/5
Effectiveness:  4.5/5
OVERALL: 4.5/5

If you’re a fan of pineapple-flavour supplements, you’re in luck. That’s the only flavour Innermost has gone with for its Energy Booster pre-workout. Available in 300g bags, each 10g serving contains 38 calories and 2g of sugar, as well as six other active ingredients and vitamin B complex.

At 5g, there’s a decent dose of branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs), which help decrease exercise-induced muscle damage and promote muscle protein synthesis.

Innermost The Energy Booster benefits

Innermost has added maca to enhance energy levels and improve endurance, although evidence for this could be more robust. It is also touted as an adaptogen, meaning it influences mood, but again the jury’s out on this.

When you think about what pre-workout is, your mind might immediately spring to caffeine. However, this powder contains less caffeine than others, at just 71g. So it won’t offer the same performance benefits, such as increased alertness and concentration, given the recommended dose for this is around 200mg. Instead, Innermost has added guarana, which releases its caffeine more slowly rather than an abrupt burst of energy.

That will be better for people who are sensitive to the effects of caffeine. Recommended dosage of guarana is between 50 and 75mg to be effective, and The Energy Booster contains 100mg.

There’s also 1.2g beta-alanine, which is used to increase levels of carnosine in the muscles. That helps buffer hydrogen ions, which cause acidity during short bursts of high-intensity exercise. Beta-alanine needs to be taken daily for a prolonged period to be effective. The amount here isn’t likely to be effective, even as a daily dose, but it may still cause a tingling sensation.

The pre-workout also contains citrulline malate, which acts as a vasodilator, opening up blood vessels and allowing more oxygen to reach the muscles, giving it creds as a muscle growth supplement. The combination of citrulline and malate is thought to increase the production of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which fuels cell activity.

A 10g dose contains just 2g citrulline malate, which is lower than the efficacious dose of 6-8g suggested by research.

Innermost’s pre-workout powder has a B complex, providing 100% of the nutrient reference value for each individual vitamin. The body requires this group of vitamins to help turn food into energy and to promote a healthy nervous system.

Innermost The Energy Booster taste

We were impressed by the taste of The Energy Booster, something we weren’t expecting from the smell of the powder. The powder does have a slightly odd aftertaste, but nothing too unpleasant. Innermost suggests you mix 10g with 300-400ml water and take 40 minutes before working out. It mixes well, but does require the odd shake between sips.

At £1 per serving, Innermost The Energy Booster is excellent value. It’s a good pre-workout choice with a solid blend of active ingredients and a pleasant taste. It’s an ideal choice for people who are sensitive to the effects of caffeine – and who like pineapple.