Welcome to the first installment of our new Fitness & Nutrition blog series today – Talman's Training Tuesdays!

We are heading into the summer months and I'm sure lots of you are going to be hitting the pavement, gym, cross trainer, pool in a last ditch effort to shed those last couple of kilos! As we hit the sunny sandy beach months ahead there is something within all of us that inspires us to go extra hard it seems. If you're anything like me, this only seems to last a couple of weeks before the lure of relaxing takes over and you settle for second best.

To get you off your bum and into your exercise why not try a pre-workout supplement? Pre-workouts are great when you need that extra edge to get you through a tough patch. The extra energy will not only give you the fuel you need to lift heavier, but also the mental sharpness and drive to get your body to where your mind wants it to be!

There are a few different types of pre workout supplements you can take:
1. Whey Protein
2. Creatine
3. Nitric Oxide
4. Caffeine
5. BCAA’s (leucine, isoleucine, valine)
6. Thermogenics
7. Glutamine

1. Whey Protein
Attributes:

• Quickly digested
• Decreases muscle catabolism (breakdown)
• Increases muscle synthesis (growth)

When to take:
30 minutes before lifting, immediately after lifting

2. Creatine
Attributes:

• Provides extra energy (ATP)
• Decreases muscle breakdown
• Allows quicker recovery

When to take:
30 minutes before lifting, immediately after lifting

3. Nitric Oxide
Attributes

• Increased oxygen delivery to muscles
• Greater pumps

When to take:
30 minutes before working out

4. Caffeine
Attributes:

• Increases alertness and focus
• Increases energy throughout lifting

When to take:
30 minutes before lifting

5. BCAAs (Branched Chain Amino Acids: leucine, isoleucine, valine)
Attributes:

• Decreases muscle breakdown
• Increases muscle synthesis (growth)

When to take:
Upon waking up, 30 minutes before lifting, immediately after lifting

6. Thermogenics
Attributes:

• Increased body temperature
• Increased metabolism

When to take:
Early morning, midday

7. Glutamine
Attributes:

• Decreases muscle breakdown
• Aids in muscle recovery
• Provides muscles with energy

When to take:
Upon waking up, Immediately after lifting

Now that you have a bit more of an understanding about what the different elements are when it comes to pre-workouts I'll let you in on a few of my favourites!

One gem I have been using is Horleys Havoc. Now like most of you here I too enjoy getting my game on, with the newly released Xbox One and PlayStation 4 there has been lots of this going on! I have been using the Fusion Berry flavour keep me going through the night! It's much easier than making coffee (I think it tastes better), and I find it gives me much better mental clarity than anything else I've tried.

A couple of the warehouse monkeys have been taking this to keep them up to speed with the crazy amount of Christmas orders you guys have been sending through!

Be careful though, pre-workouts are designed to be used in conjunction with physical exercise. Why not you try a couple of push ups or some hand grips while you're waiting in a queue? This will help you use up some of that extra energy you'll have! And who knows? The extra strength from the hand grips may help with your clicking/mouse spe­ed?

Now pre-workouts have had a bit of a bad rap in the media lately, but I don't think they are all to bad – just as long as you strictly follow the label and don't mix them with other substances!