My progression of pre-workout supplements went from Cell Tech to NO-Xplode (review coming soon!) then on to Jack3d and taken to another level with C4! Admittedly, the real next level feeling did not start until experimenting with Jack3d but C4 just amped up the volume of my Jack3d experience to improvements that I didn’t know could still be reached. On my first work out with C4 I instantly felt the effects right after drinking the recommended dosage for the first time. There were pros and cons to this feeling.
Let me give you a little background on my state at the time when I started testing out C4. I weighed 168 lbs. and would sleep 4 hours a night (work induced) while running 3.5 miles in the morning before starting my 9 am PST my work day and lifting weights after work for an hour from 6:30 pm PST to 7:30 pm PST. This was my schedule 5 days a week while switching the morning runs with double day weight lifting days every other day. I would take C4 in the mornings before my morning activity and also later in the evening on the way to lifting weights at the gym. This allowed me to not have to drink any coffee (I’m a complete coffee addict too!) and just chug down water all day and evening long. My meals consisted of extremely low amounts of carbs and high protein. Whey protein shakes were also a heavy part of my eating lifestyle during my introduction to C4. Enough about my background, let’s go over the pros of C4.
C4 gave me enough of a jolt in the morning that I no longer needed that cup of coffee in the morning even after only sleeping 4 hours the night before. I was still able to focus through my work day and continue being the top sales and marketing leader within my company while producing, managing, and growing over 43% of a $35M Silicon Valley company’s revenue. The C4 made me light on my feet during runs and gave me that pep that I needed to pump me up for a run that would be accomplished in a shorter amount of time with every run while taking C4. I would still be very stimulated after my runs and it kept me going even through lunch time.
My weight lifting sessions benefited immensely. After taking Cellucor’s C4 it would take about 15 minutes to feel the effects but once the effects were felt then it had me feeling like a non-stop machine that would never get tired in the gym. This is what really pushed me to no longer take any breaks in between my sets. For example, if I were working chest as my main muscle for the session then I would do one set of 10 repetition bench presses but instead of taking a two minute break in between the next set, I would do 10 repetitions of abdominal crunches on the balance ball. I would repeat this cycle until my 4 sets of the bench press were done. Needless to say, I would be breathing hard and sweating pretty heavily but did not feel fatigued as if my muscles recovered quickly and were ready to take on the next challenge like I hadn’t just stretched my muscle fibers as much as possible. Another motivator for these intense sessions was the fact that after taking the C4 it had me feeling like I couldn’t just sit still and if I were to take a break between sets then I would be just wasting time away when I could be doing something productive like working out a non-related muscle group.
The cons of C4 was that I would know when it was activating within my body because within 15 minutes of drinking the recommended dosage I would start feeling like there were ants and spiders crawling under my skin. It gave me this tingling feeling that made the experience slightly uncomfortable UNLESS I started getting in to my workout. Although a great motivator to make sure that my butt got in to the gym and completed a workout or went for a run, it was very uncomfortable if I didn’t do any kind of exercise. Once I started running or lifting weights then the tingly feeling would disappear within 5 minutes.
One other con was that I would start feeling a slight crash once the C4 started wearing off. Albeit, it didn’t start wearing off for about 6 hours! Once it did wear off though then it was a struggle to get back to normal. This could have been a contribution of the 4 hours of sleep I was getting and the C4 come down but it was definitely felt 6 hours after drinking the C4. Although, during those 6 hours it was non-stop focus and energy that helped me achieve new levels both physically and mentally.
These results boggled my mind so I started to do some research as to why I had these feeling and what caused my great experience with Cellucor’s C4. My research is as follows:
Let’s first start with the supplement facts then move on to what the ingredients actually do for us:
Let’s Now Break Down What Some of These Ingredients Actually Do For Us:
Vitamin C
- Needed for the growth and repair of tissues in all parts of your body.
- The body is not able to make vitamin C on its own, and it does not store vitamin C. It is therefore important to include plenty of vitamin C-containing foods in your daily diet.
Calcium
- Helps build and protect your teeth and bones.
- Helps send and receive nerve signals
- Assists in releasing hormones and other chemicals
Niacin
- Helps the digestive system, skin, and nerves to function.
- Important for converting food to energy.
- Can be associated with feeling warm, redness, itching or tingling of the face, neck, arms or upper chest. This is called “flushing” and it usually improves after taking niacin on a regular basis for awhile.
- This is most likely the ingredient that adds to the feeling of having spiders crawling under the skin after taking it.
Folic Acid
- Helps tissues grow and cells function.
- Works along with vitamin B12 and vitamin C to help the body break down, use, and create new proteins.
- The vitamin helps form red blood cells and produce DNA.
Vitamin B12
- Important for metabolism.
- Helps in the formation of red blood cells and in the maintenance of the central nervous system.
- Recommended for people who follow a vegetarian or vegan diet.
Now The Following Ingredients Make Things Get Reeeeal Interesting:
Beta Alanine
- Used for improving athletic performance and exercise capacity, building lean muscle mass, and improving physical functioning in the elderly.
- Delays muscle fatigue.
- High doses can cause flushing and tingling. (This is the ingredient that causes the feeling of having spiders crawling under your skin :-/ )
Creatine Nitrate
- Improves exercise performance, running performance, and increased muscle mass.
- Involved in making the energy that muscles need to work.
- Increases strength and endurance
Arginine AKG
- Used to improve peak athletic performance.
- Helps with faster recovery.
- Prevents muscle breakdown.
The Explosive Energy Blend aka The Combination of Ingredients That Seperates All Supplements Apart From Each Other:
Vitamin C (as Ascorbic Acid)
- Needed for the growth and repair of tissues in all parts of your body.
- The body is not able to make vitamin C on its own, and it does not store vitamin C. It is therefore important to include plenty of vitamin C-containing foods in your daily diet.
N-Acetyle-L-Tyrosine
Caffeine Anhydrous
Mucuna Pruriens (Standarduized for L-Dopa)
Bitter Orange
Niacinamide
Folate (as Folic Acid)
Pyridoxal 5-Phosphate
Vitamin B12 (as Methylcobalamin)
Other Ingredients:
Citric Acid
Natural & Artifical Flavors
Silicon Dioxide
Calcium Silicate
Sucralose
FD&C Red Lake #40
Acesulfame Potassium (Ace-K)