Most pre-workout supplements are a caffeine bomb wrapped in proprietary blends and artificial colors. The actual evidence-based ingredients — creatine, citrulline, beta-alanine, caffeine — are well-studied and cheap. You can build a better pre-workout stack than 90% of commercial products by buying the individual ingredients at clinical doses. Here’s how.

The Evidence-Based Pre-Workout Stack

1. Creatine Monohydrate — 5g (daily, timing flexible)

The most proven ergogenic supplement in existence. Over 500 studies show creatine improves high-intensity exercise performance, increases lean mass, and enhances recovery. The mechanism: creatine replenishes phosphocreatine stores, which fuel short-burst efforts (sprints, heavy lifts, HIIT intervals).

Key point: Creatine works through daily saturation, not acute pre-workout timing. Take it whenever you’ll remember. The “pre-workout” timing is just convenience, not necessity.

2. L-Citrulline — 6–8g (30 min before training)

Citrulline is converted to arginine in the kidneys, which increases nitric oxide production and blood flow to working muscles. A 2010 study in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research found 8g citrulline malate increased reps to failure by 52% on bench press. It also reduces perceived exertion and muscle soreness post-exercise.

Citrulline vs Citrulline Malate: Citrulline malate is citrulline bonded to malic acid (usually 2:1 ratio). If using citrulline malate, you need ~8g to get ~5.3g actual citrulline. Pure L-citrulline at 6g achieves the same effect with less powder.

3. Beta-Alanine — 3.2–6.4g (daily, timing flexible)

Beta-alanine increases muscle carnosine levels, which buffer hydrogen ions during high-intensity exercise. The result: improved endurance in the 1–4 minute work range (think hard sets, rowing intervals, circuit training). Like creatine, it works through chronic loading, not acute dosing.

The tingling: Beta-alanine causes paresthesia (skin tingling) in many people. It’s harmless and dose-dependent. If it bothers you, split the dose across the day or use sustained-release formulations. The tingle is not an indicator that “it’s working” — it’s just a nerve response.

4. Caffeine — 3–6mg/kg bodyweight (30 min before training)

Caffeine is the most reliable acute performance enhancer. The evidence supports a dose of 3–6mg per kg of bodyweight (200–400mg for most people) taken 30–60 minutes before training. Benefits: increased alertness, reduced perceived effort, improved power output, enhanced endurance.

Considerations: Tolerance develops. If you drink coffee daily, you may need the higher end of the dose range. Cycle off periodically (1–2 weeks every few months) to resensitize. Avoid after 2pm if sleep is a priority — caffeine has a 5–7 hour half-life.

Optional Additions

Beetroot Powder / Nitrate — 400mg nitrate (60–90 min before)

Dietary nitrate from beetroot is converted to nitric oxide, improving oxygen efficiency during endurance exercise. The evidence is strongest for aerobic activities — running, cycling, swimming. Less relevant for pure strength training. Takes longer to kick in than other pre-workout ingredients (60–90 minutes).

Alpha-GPC — 300–600mg (30 min before)

A choline source that may increase acetylcholine and growth hormone output. A 2008 study found 600mg Alpha-GPC increased power output by 14% in a bench press throw test. The evidence is emerging — not as robust as the core four above, but promising.

What Commercial Pre-Workouts Get Wrong

Proprietary blends: If a product lists “Performance Matrix 8g” without individual ingredient amounts, you have no idea if any ingredient is at a clinical dose. Our scoring penalizes proprietary blends heavily.
Under-dosed actives: Many products include creatine and citrulline but at 1–2g (well below clinical doses of 5g and 6g respectively). It’s label decoration, not performance.
Excessive stimulants: Some products pack 300–400mg caffeine plus other stimulants. The jitter-and-crash cycle isn’t performance — it’s stress hormones.
Artificial dyes: Completely unnecessary. Red 40, Blue 1 — these add nothing to performance and have questionable safety profiles.

Protocol Summary

Daily (any time):

Creatine monohydrate: 5g
Beta-alanine: 3.2g

30 minutes before training:

L-Citrulline: 6–8g
Caffeine: 200–400mg (based on bodyweight and tolerance)

Total cost for individual ingredients: roughly $0.30–$0.60/workout, compared to $1.50–$2.50 for most commercial pre-workout products. Better doses, fewer fillers, lower cost.

Build This Stack in Formulate

Add each ingredient to your stack in the Formulate app to track your doses, see evidence scores, and calculate your actual per-day cost.

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The Best Pre-Workout Supplement Protocol — Build Your Own Evidence-Based Stack