When it comes to achieving your dream body, every additional rep and set matters.
And with supplement companies promising to give you the strength and energy to produce more reps… it’s no wonder pre-workouts are so popular.
Ads for Sculpt Nation’s pre-workout keep popping everywhere, making many people wonder if they should give it a try.
But with Vince Sant’s history of misleading fitness advice, is this going to be another letdown?
Well, stay tuned as we dissect this supplement below.
About the Creator – Sculpt Nation
Once upon a time, unidentified V-shred fans begged Vince Sant to solve their supplement problems as they were stuck with useless and dangerous products.
So Vince (being a notorious fitness villain *hero) created Sculpt Nation to provide a way for people to “sculpt their dream bodies” with the help of their supplements, like their apple cider vinegar gummies.
Sculpt Nation and its brother brand (V-Shred) get a lot of criticism (and they deserve most of it).
So let’s put this pre-workout under a microscope and take a closer look.
A Closer Look at Sculpt Nation’s Pre-Workout
A $37.00 bottle of Sculpt Nation’s Pre-Workout contains 30 servings made with ingredients that are supposed to improve your performance and give you energy while training.
For a pre-workout, Sculpt Nation didn’t hold back on making bold promises like:
- Instantly pump out more reps with more weight
- Receive long-lasting energy with Zero Post-workout crash (hmm)
- Rev up your body’s metabolism and burn more fat during training
- Boost your nitric oxide levels and enjoy sleeve-popping pumps
- Annihilate fatigue and crush every workout, every time
We’re very familiar with Sculpt Nation over-selling their products and claiming they do things that aren’t proven.
Really, do you remember when they said turmeric “is about as close to a miracle vitamin as it gets?”
So for newbies or anyone who needs a refresher on how pre-workouts actually work, keep reading as we explain below.
Want to try Sculpt Nation’s Pre-Workout at the sale price? Click here and use the discount code kyleh25 to get 25% off.
How Does It Work?
Pre-workout aims to improve your performance during training. These powders achieve this by combining ingredients like:
- Caffeine
- Beta-alanine
- L-tyrosine
- L-citrulline
- L-theanine
Caffeine, especially, can boost your energy levels and focus. Meanwhile, ingredients like beta-alanine can help decrease muscle fatigue during an intense workout.
Other ingredients like l-tyrosine and l-theanine help to enhance mood, focus, and mental cognition.
Some pre-workouts may also contain ingredients like creatine, which has its own benefits like increased water retention in the muscles and faster recovery.
But let’s talk specifically about Sculpt Nation’s Pre-Workout.
For starters, if we take a look at the ingredients, we can see there are already some problems with this product.
Sculpt Nation Pre-Workout Ingredients
BCAA (Branch Chain Amino Acid)
The BCAAs consist of leucine, isoleucine, and valine. Leucine plays an important role in muscle protein synthesis, and isoleucine can promote glucose uptake into your cells.
One study suggests that BCAA supplementation before and after a workout is beneficial for reducing exercise-induced muscle damage and promoting muscle protein synthesis.
However, examine.com suggests that BCAA supplementation alone results in a submaximal response in muscle protein synthesis (MPS). That’s because all the essential amino acids must be available in sufficient amounts for maximal MSP.
Another study concludes that BCAA supplementation alone isn’t enough to support an increased rate of muscle protein synthesis or muscle anabolism.
Although BCAA supplements may help, you won’t need them in a pre-workout if you’re already consuming an adequate amount of high-quality protein – such as whey, meat, or eggs.
L-Citrulline
L-citrulline is another non-essential amino acid that could help with performance.
One study observed that participants performed 53% more reps and had a 40% decrease in muscle soreness after taking 8 grams of citrulline malate.
Another group of researchers also noted that taking 8 grams of citrulline malate decreased levels of fatigue and increased performance in lower body weight training of resistance-trained men.
L-citrulline may also help with endurance during training.
For example, one study showed that cyclists who took 6 grams of l-citrulline were able to cycle 12% longer compared to participants taking a placebo.
As for Sculpt Nation’s Pre-Workout, it contains only 1.5g per serving.
This is far below the 4.5 grams (about 8 grams of citrulline malate) effective dosage for training performance based on research studies.
Beta-Alanine
Beta-alanine or β-alanine may have some benefits for athletic performance, like increasing endurance, reducing fatigue, and boosting performance in high-intensity exercises.
One research study suggests that beta-alanine supplementation can enhance muscle endurance during high-intensity exercises that last between 0.5-10 minutes.
Another study showed a 13-14% increase in TTE (Time To Exhaustion) in rowers who took about 6.4 grams of beta-alanine daily for 4 weeks.
Beta-alanine is also notorious for its tingly feeling, which may help create a placebo effect.
For a pre-workout powder, beta-alanine may boost training volume and help you crank out more reps and sets.
But Sculpt Nation’s Pre-Workout is underdosed at 1.2 grams of beta-alanine per serving (which is a little more than half of the 2g minimum research dosage).
An effective dose of beta-alanine ranges between 3.2 to 6.4 grams.
Caffeine
Caffeine has a couple of well-known researched-backed benefits like:
- Improving mood and brain function
- Boosting metabolism and aiding fat burning
- Enhancing exercise performance
For example, one study noted that consuming caffeine can stimulate your body’s metabolic rate and produce a thermic effect that may aid fat burning.
Another study concludes that ingesting 300 mg of caffeine a day may help you burn up to 79 additional calories daily.
In terms of boosting exercise performance, caffeine may also increase the body’s use of fat as fuel. This can keep glucose stored in muscles for longer periods (potentially delaying the speed at which your muscles reach exhaustion).
But the research doesn’t stop there.
Another research study observed that taking 5 mg of caffeine per kg of body weight improved endurance by up 5% when ingested an hour before training.
Meanwhile, other studies [2014, 2015] have reported caffeine’s benefits in sports, resistance exercise, and high-intensity workouts.
And yet another study suggests that consuming caffeine before a workout can reduce the rate of perceived exertion (RPE) by up to 5.6% compared to a placebo group.
This is the only ingredient in Sculpt Nation’s Pre-Workout that isn’t underdosed and may even be overdosed – at 300 mg per serving.
Betaine Anhydrous
Betaine or betaine anhydrous is surrounded by conflicting research concerning its effectiveness in enhancing training performance.
But what does the science say?
Well, one research review links betaine supplementation with reduced fatigue, a boost in protein production, and an increase in creatine synthesis. Yet, the researchers noted that it’s not exactly clear how betaine works under the hood.
Another review analyzing several studies on betaine supplementation observed mixed results, with two studies recording a significant boost in muscle strength and power.
On the other hand, several other studies [2017, 2018, 2020] conclude that betaine supplementation had no noticeable impact on overall strength and exercise performance.
In summary, more research needs to be done on betaine before any firm confirmations can be made on its effectiveness.
L-Tyrosine
L-tyrosine’s main benefit is replenishing your brain’s catecholamine levels (which deplete under stress).
There’s also plenty of research into it.
For starters, one study suggests that L-tyrosine can help prevent a decline in cognitive function under stressful or cognitively demanding conditions.
Another study shows that tyrosine supplementation can alleviate reduced memory during stressful conditions.
Now, the main aim of l-tyrosine in a pre-workout is to help you improve focus and reduce fatigue during intense exercise. And an effective dose of l-tyrosine is between 500-7000 mg (based on research studies).
But the geniuses at Sculpt Nation decided to use only 100 mg (one-fifth) of the minimum effective dose.
L-Theanine
L-theanine is an amino acid that’s said to help with reducing stress and anxiety.
Four out of five trials in a review linked l-theanine with reduced levels of stress and anxiety in participants going through stressful conditions.
Another study investigated the effects of combining l-theanine with caffeine. The researchers concluded that their combination enhanced cognitive performance and improved alertness in participants.
The dosage used in these studies ranges from 200-400 mg of l-theanine, but a serving of Sculpt Nation’s Pre-Workout contains just 50 mg.
Other Ingredients
The other ingredients include citric acid, natural flavor, calcium silicate, silicon dioxide, and sucralose.
Nutritional Facts: Pre-Workout by Sculpt Nation
| Nutrient | Amount Per Serving | Daily Value % |
| InstAminos Trademark Blend | 3g | ** |
| L-leucine | ||
| L-isoleucine | ||
| L-valine | ||
| L-citrulline | 1.5g | ** |
| Beta-alanine | 1.2g | ** |
| Caffeine | 300mg | ** |
| Betaine | 100mg | ** |
| L-tyrosine | 100mg | ** |
| L-theanine | 50mg | ** |
How to Use Sculpt Nation’s Pre-Workout
You can use Sculpt Nation’s Pre-Workout powder like any other pre-workout. Just pour a serving in water, then shake the bottle and chug it down. It’s that simple.
According to Sculpt Nation, pregnant women and anyone below 18 shouldn’t take this supplement. Also, consult your doctor if you’re taking any medications.
In terms of dosage:
It’s not exactly clear how many servings you can take daily. But two servings will give you 600 mg of caffeine (which is above the daily recommended limit).
So you’re better off sticking with one serving of this supplement per day.
Side Effects of Pre-Workout from Sculpt Nation
The ingredients in Sculpt Nation’s Pre-Workout should generally be safe, but here are a couple of things to keep in mind when taking this supplement:
- A serving contains 300 mg of caffeine, which isn’t suitable if you regularly drink coffee. Taking a scoop of Sculpt Nation’s Pre-Workout the same day you drink coffee will take you above the safe limit of 400-500 mg.
- Many energy drinks contain caffeine, so pay close attention if you plan to be using Sculpt Nation’s Pre-Workout regularly.
Where Can You Buy Sculpt Nation’s Pre-Workout?
If you want to try Sculpt Nation’s Pre-Workout, then hop over to their sales page (which is the only place it can be found).
Want to try Sculpt Nation’s Pre-Workout at the sale price? Click here and use the discount code kyleh25 to get 25% off.
Pre-Workout Pros
Some Ingredients May Work
Sculpt Nation used some research-backed ingredients like l-citrulline, beta-alanine, betaine, l-tyrosine, and l-theanine. Now, the amount used is a different story.
Caffeine May Help
When it comes to boosting exercise performance, coffee might be the only ingredient in this product that uses an effective dosage. Taking caffeine can improve focus, boost energy, and improve performance during workouts.
Pre-Workout Cons
Dosage Is Too Low
After hearing Vince describe how supplement companies increase profit margins by reducing the dosage and charging top dollar, you’d think his company would be different. They aren’t!
The effective ingredients in this powder are far below the dosages used in research studies.
Besides the caffeine, it’s likely you won’t experience anything remotely close to what Vince describes from this pre-workout powder.
Uses a Proprietary BCAA Blend
In terms of ingredients and dosages, we didn’t get to see the full story because this pre-workout uses a proprietary blend to mix the 3 grams BCAA.
This may be a small amount, but it lacks nutritional transparency. Of course, this is considered a red flag in the sports supplement industry.
Caffeine May Be Too High
Although the 300 mg of caffeine in Sculpt Nation’s Pre-Workout is considered safe, taking your regular cup of coffee and using this supplement will be too much caffeine for the day.
What Other Reviews are Saying
Sculpt Nation sells this product only on their website, and there are almost no independent reviews from real customers.
Also, you probably don’t want to hear what Bob676 @ Sculpt Nation’s website has to say. But here’s footage of Vince Sant having conflicting opinions about pre-workout powders (ironic).
Although Sculpt Nation added 300 mg of caffeine, Vince says, “you should opt for pre-workout that uses 200 mg of caffeine,” while suggesting that anything close to 350 is too high.
Sean Nalawanjy suggests that Sculpt Nation’s Pre-Workout powder may be the worst on the market. His biggest complaint is the small dosages used. No surprise!
Pdppro also took a closer look at this pre-workout, but they weren’t impressed by the low dosage.
Is Sculpt Nation’s Pre-Workout Powder Worth it?
Now, the million-dollar question: Do we think Sculpt Nation’s Pre-Workout powder is worth your hard-earned money?
Our answer: Not worth it.
If you were reading along, then you’ll see that Sculpt Nation uses a research-backed ingredient but puts a tiny bit inside their pre-workout.
Any improvement in energy or focus you feel after using this supplement is just from the 300 mg of caffeine in every serving. Plus, the itchy feeling you get when you take beta-alanine may produce a placebo effect.
So this supplement will technically work, but we aren’t impressed by its overall quality.
Rating: 2.0 out of 5
Want to try Sculpt Nation’s Pre-Workout at the sale price? Click here and use the discount code kyleh25 to get 25% off.
