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By Kyle Alterman
Whether you are training for your next race or simply staying ready, supplements can help provide the nutrients and vitamins needed to enhance your performance. Snagging a bunch of big-name brands off the shelf is fine and great but to fully see the benefits of these powerful resources you need a tailored plan based on your needs and goals. That is where our friends at Gainful have completely changed the game. Each product is catered to every athlete’s personal needs, and they use exclusively clean ingredients, meaning zero sweeteners and no artificial flavors.
After a few weeks of training alongside Gainful products and guidance here are our thoughts:
The first step of the Gainful process is being sent their questionnaire. It's mostly standard info like weight, height, sleep, and all that but then they get into the goals you would like to achieve. Your goals can be anything like weight management, muscle growth, sustained energy, or crushing a big race. You can get your personalized plan by taking the Gainful Quiz here.
I was looking to have a bit more energy for afternoon workouts as well as build some more upper-body strength. With running being my sport of choice, keeping muscles in the arms as strong as our legs can be a challenge. That's why in addition to mixing in some Gainful protein I added an extra cross-training session per week at the gym.
Pre-workout: It had been a while since I tried a pre-workout mix but with the backing of the Gainful team I felt confident giving it another go. I started with a small half scoop of their Strawberry Lemonade Pre-Workout with a dash of their fiber and collagen powder and gradually would take a bit more than that depending on how I was feeling that day. It tastes like a saltier tangier version of lemonade but you can feel the energy-boosting effects on your run. It's perfect if you are an evening runner who has to conjure the energy for a trot after a long work day. This Pre Workout also comes in a non-caffeinated option for those who may get a jittery feeling.
During workout: There are tons of amazing options out there for staying hydrated during your workout. If it's a long run, it's not a bad idea to pack away one or two forms of supplemental hydration in addition to water. Hydration Packs from Gainful are a total game changer for enhancing performance during your workout. A single pack only has two grams of sugar and comes in either a caffeinated or non-caffeinated option. It's proven that electrolytes help athletes hydrate better than just water alone and this formula contains loads of them. Even on an off day, it's good to mix in one or two of these packs to recover faster and add flavor to your water goal jug.
Post-workout: What I was most excited to try from Gainful was the Protein Powder recovery shake. What's cool about this product is each bag of protein is specially formulated for your athletic goals. It's common for some people to be bothered by whey-based proteins so they offer four blends based on your dietary needs. Probably my favorite part about this Protein Powder is that it comes with 8 different kinds of flavor boosts packs so you can shake up the taste every day of the week. The go-to has been the cinnamon toast but I have enjoyed them all! It goes down smoothly and is not much fuss to make thanks to the shaker they sent over too. If you are on the go all day it's easy just to load a couple of scoops into your shaker and bring it with you to the gym or office. Staying locked in after your workout is just as important as the run or lift itself. Protein Powder from Gainful makes recovery simple.
Adding weight training to my running regimen helped tack on some muscle to my biceps and triceps. It's something I notice on runs when pumping my arms trying to catch that perfect stride. In all, I felt that the protein shake aided with some of the muscle soreness everyone feels after being out of the gym for a while. I started mixing these shakes in after my runs not just a lift. If it helps with the upper body soreness then it's certainly aiding the lower body muscles used on runs like the calves and quads.
Ready to see what all the hype is about? Take the Gainful Quiz here and get your personalized supplement plan now.