Umzu ZUUM: A Naturally-Minded Pre-Exercise Complement

Arginine Silicate Inositol (Nitrosigine) – 1,500 mg

Kicking off Umzu’s Zuum Pre-Exercise formulation we now have Nitrosigine, arguably the complement trade’s premiere nitric oxide (NO) boosting ingredient.

Why increase nitric oxide?

Nitric oxide is vital as a result of it causes vasodilation, a mechanism that results in your arterial diameter to enhance.^[1] Wider arteries means higher blood circulation, and with that comes a variety of vital advantages: specifically, improved mobile waste removing, higher tissue oxygenation, extra environment friendly nutrient supply, lowered blood stress, and decrease coronary heart charge. Many of those attributes are nice to have in a exercise setting – we’re primarily concentrating on the advantages of elevated blood movement.

Fixing the Arginine bioavailability downside with Nitrosigine

Nitrosigine was designed to unravel a really particular downside, which was usability of arginine as a nitric oxide booster. Arginine is the direct precursor to NO within the nitric oxide synthesis pathway, so when this was found, it initially made sense to complement L-arginine in an effort to extend NO ranges.

Nitrosigine is research-backed and “health club backed” — Picture courtesy Nutrition21

Within the 2000s, the trade used L-arginine as its major NO booster, nevertheless it grew to become clear over time that its oral bioavailability is fairly unhealthy.^[2-5] As soon as a consensus emerged, the trade switched to citrulline, which is the direct precursor to arginine, resulting in a “workaround”.^[6]

Over time, complement formulators began operating up in opposition to an issue with citrulline: you want a fairly large dose of it to get the optimum impact. Analysis on citrulline exhibits that the positive factors from larger doses don’t begin to diminish till you attain 10 or extra grams per day.^[7,8] That’s a lot of fabric for customers to ingest, and it additionally prices some huge cash to incorporate (however the extra flavoring and delivery prices).

It was on this context that Nutrition21 got here up and patented the third technology NO-boosting amino acid: Nitrosigine.^[9]

Nitrosigine is a chemical complicated of arginine, inositol, and potassium silicate (typically abbreviated as ASI within the analysis literature). The worth proposition of Nitrosigine is that it considerably will increase oral bioavailability of arginine, making arginine supplementation viable as soon as once more.^[9]

The best way it really works is that the inositol and potassium silicate, by way of their chemical bonds with the arginine molecule, defend arginine in opposition to degradation by the enzyme arginase.^[10] This course of normally breaks down arginine earlier than it will possibly attain the intestines,^[11] which is the place the amino acid can really be absorbed into your bloodstream and finally drive NO synthesis.

Nitrosigine’s athletic advantages

With a profitable nitric oxide boosting ingredient, we are able to start to chase the advantages that come downstream from improved blood movement. And lots of of them in the end assist with athletic and cognitive efficiency, which is why most pre-workouts include an enormous dose of 1 NO-booster or one other. Umzu correctly selected Nitrosigine for theirs.

Nitrosigine acts quick, and the results final for a very long time. Analysis exhibits that its supplementation can enhance blood nitric oxide ranges inside quarter-hour of ingestion, and hold them elevated for as much as 6 hours.^[10,12]

Nitrosigine’s cognitive advantages

Individuals normally consider NO and circulation within the context of athletic efficiency, and that’s comprehensible. However because it seems, NO-mediated vasodilation might be good on your mind, too.

A nitric oxide booster that improves cognition?! Sure – Nutrition21 handed round this beneficial infographic after the Nitrosigine cognition examine on wholesome younger adults was printed.^[13]

This makes complete sense – your mind consumes a disproportionately giant share of your physique’s sources, together with oxygen, blood, and glucose. And the mind is one place the place you positively do not need impaired mobile waste removing. It’s no marvel, then, that enhancing cerebral blood movement by way of nitric oxide upregulation might enhance world mind operate.

Nitrosigine-specific analysis bears this out. For one factor, Nitrosigine supplementation has been proven to forestall the non permanent cognitive impairment that sometimes follows an exhaustive exercise.^[14]

However the advantages aren’t restricted simply to those that’ve not too long ago exercised – one examine discovered that even in wholesome younger males who hadn’t accomplished a exercise, Nitrosigine improved task-switching, which is neuroscientists’ manner of quantifying multitasking skill.^[15,16]

One other examine performed in wholesome younger women and men discovered that Nitrosigine boosted efficiency on a reminiscence check.^[13]

In different phrases, Nitrosigine received’t simply assist with blood movement throughout exercises, it will possibly additionally assist athletes deal with the stress of a excessive coaching load, resulting in much less draining post-workout emotions. That is huge for individuals who can’t afford to have their exercises damage the remainder of their day.

Nitrosigine is considered one of our favourite substances right here at PricePlow, and each time it exhibits up in a brand new formulation, we prefer to remind readers that we’ve written an exhaustive evaluate about it. You may learn it at Nitrosigine: The Nitric Oxide Booster That Enhances Mind Operate.

Pure Caffeine (from Espresso Bean Powder) (VegiSURGE) – 150 mg

We’ve additionally written about caffeine a number of instances, however we don’t typically get to write down about VegiSURGE, which is a naturally-sourced type of caffeine.

VegiSURGE is derived from both inexperienced espresso beans or inexperienced tea. As you may see from the Umzu’s Zuum Pre-Exercise label, the shape used right here comes from espresso bean powder.^[17] VegiSURGE is standardized to include at the very least 99{12f4514ce7bdec0f94d6e75cdcba5826912bd7c369a1a11dc91f538f67b77237} caffeine by weight,^[17] so 150 milligrams of VegiSURGE is principally 150 milligrams of pure caffeine – a modest quantity in in the present day’s local weather.

Caffeine’s a number of advantages: mechanisms of motion

Caffeine, normally consumed within the type of brewed tea or espresso, is essentially the most broadly used (authorized) psychotropic drug on the earth. The overwhelming majority of American adults use caffeine each day, and in case you ask the proverbial man on the road why he reaches for that piping sizzling cup of Joe each morning, he’d in all probability say one thing alongside the strains of, “Caffeine provides me power.”

Caffeine does give us power – however in what sense? What is power?

Fights fatigue by way of adenosine inhibition

The primary “energizing” mechanism of caffeine we’ll talk about is adenosine antagonism. Adenosine is a nucleotide that accumulates in your mind as a metabolic byproduct throughout your working state. The extra adenosine builds up in your mind, the extra fatigue you’re feeling.^[18,19]

What caffeine does is block the adenosine receptor, that means that though adenosine continues to construct up, it doesn’t impact your mind, as long as caffeine stays lively.

That is the major means by which caffeine makes folks really feel energized – probably not rising power, per se, however moderately reducing fatigue. We regularly hear this described as an phantasm, however the reality is that psychological and neurological states are an enormous, and really actual, consider an individual’s capability for doing psychological and bodily work.

Will increase mobile power manufacturing by way of phosphodiesterase inhibition

However that’s not all. Caffeine also can enhance mobile power availability—a way more literal technique of boosting power—by affecting sure cellular-metabolic pathways.

Particularly, caffeine can inhibit an enzyme referred to as phosphodiesterase, which is liable for degrading cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP).^[18,19]

cAMP is a messenger molecule (type of like a hormone) that tells your cells to burn energy for power.^[20] The upper your cAMP ranges, the extra energy you’ll burn in a day – in different phrases, elevating cAMP hurries up your metabolism.^[20] So caffeine is especially good at rising the physique’s charge of fats burning. Supplementation has been proven to extend an individual’s charge of fats burning by as a lot as 50{12f4514ce7bdec0f94d6e75cdcba5826912bd7c369a1a11dc91f538f67b77237}.^[21]

Caffeine’s real-world efficiency advantages

A lot for a theoretical dialogue of caffeine’s advantages: what can sensible experiments inform us about caffeine’s results?

Sensible experiments inform us quite a bit in regards to the stimulant. Caffeine is definitely one of the crucial studied dietary supplements, famend for its properties as an ergogenic assist able to enhancing customers’ athletic efficiency, endurance, and restoration. The professional-metabolic results that we mentioned within the earlier part translate into small however vital enhancements in energy, stamina, and muscular energy.^[22]

Caffeine also can lower response instances,^[23] improve focus,^[23,24] and enhance vigilance.^[24] It’s additionally been proven to extend working reminiscence,^[25] which is vital for fluid intelligence.^[25] All of those work very effectively alongside the cognitive advantages of Nitrosigine, by way of a very completely different pathway.

The 150-milligram dose utilized in Zuum is important, however really on the smaller facet – normally we see 200 milligrams or extra in pre-workouts. Nonetheless, most will really feel it. However in case you’re a newbie and aren’t certain about your caffeine-tolerance ranges, begin with a partial dose and work your manner.

L-Theanine – 100 mg

The amino acid, theanine, happens naturally within the leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant, which is colloquially often called tea. Right here we imply true tea—as in inexperienced tea, black tea, or oolong tea.

L-Theanine comes from tea leaves, and pairs very effectively with caffeine offset any potential nervousness.

Theanine acts like a neurotransmitter within the mind the place it has inhibitory, versus excitatory, results on neurons. This results in calming, anti-anxiety results.^[26-29]

Though the tranquilizing results may make it sound like theanine is a depressant, it’s not, which suggests you don’t get the downsides sometimes related to sedatives.

Theanine and caffeine have synergistic results

The primary motive we see theanine in Umzu Zuum Pre-Exercise is that it synergizes effectively with caffeine. Analysis exhibits that when these two substances are taken together, as a unit they carry out higher for cognitive enhancement than both substance taken in isolation.^[30]

This will provide you with a a lot extra nice buzz than caffeine alone, serving to you calm down and to concentrate on appropriately performing your exercise.

Theanine might assist with diets

Theanine has additionally been recognized as considered one of a number of diet-friendly compounds in Camellia sinensis,^[31] the place, once more, it really works synergistically with caffeine (and catechin antioxidants) to inhibit sure blood biomarkers which might be related to extra weight achieve.

Theanine drives a course of referred to as physique fats browning, through which white adipose tissue (WAT) is transformed to brown adipose tissue (BAT).^[32] That is helpful as a result of BAT has a higher mitochondrial density and burns additional energy as warmth in a course of referred to as non-shivering thermogenesis (NST).^[33]

NuLiv Proprietary (from Astragalus membranaceus and Panax notoginseng) root extract (AstraGin) – 50 mg

AstraGin boosts the quantity of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) accessible to intestinal cells. Since ATP is your physique’s power foreign money, extra ATP means intestinal cells can do extra work absorbing vitamins that you just eat and drink.

NuLiv Science’s information exhibits that AstraGin boosts commonplace L-arginine absorption! Can this assist with Nitrosigine? We’re unsure, however given the ingredient’s different intestine well being advantages, it’s nice to have both manner.

The upshot is elevated nutrient absorption,^[34-41] which, in the case of a complement, means elevated bioavailability for the substances.

The crops from which AstraGin is derived, Astragalus membranaceus and Panax notoginseng (colloquially known as astragalus and ginseng), have been utilized in conventional Chinese language medication to increase healthspan and lifespan. Though human research on healthspan and lifespan are inherently troublesome to hold out, research in decrease organisms have attested to the results of astragalus and ginseng.^[42,43]

Thiamin (as thiamin hydrochloride) – 100 mg (8,333{12f4514ce7bdec0f94d6e75cdcba5826912bd7c369a1a11dc91f538f67b77237} DV)

Thiamin (vitamin B-1) is considered one of your physique’s essential cofactors for the manufacturing of adenosine triphosphate (ATP),^[44] a compound whose significance we mentioned within the earlier part.

In case your physique had been a automotive, ATP can be the gasoline – it powers every little thing your cells do. So, in the end, ATP powers your entire physique as effectively.

Thiamin can be wanted for glucose metabolism,^[45] and excessive dose thiamin supplementation has been proven to enhance blood sugar management in pre-diabetic topics.^[46]

A 2013 meta-analysis of 20 completely different research discovered that thiamin supplementation might enhance cardiac operate in sufferers with coronary heart failure,^[47] which is an efficient illustration of how physiological operate might be improved by boosting mobile power manufacturing.

Thiamin’s athletic advantages

A minimum of one examine has discovered that 100 milligrams of thiamin (the identical dose utilized in Umzu Zuum Pre-Exercise) might help forestall the onset of fatigue following intense train.^[48]

One other examine discovered that topics who took thiamin confirmed higher endurance and grip energy than placebo controls, basically boosting their efficiency. Thiamin was additionally proven to clear lactic acid higher and enhance liver and muscle glycogen ranges, which is sweet for acute restoration and long-term efficiency.^[49]

Along with enhancing lactic acid clearance, one more examine discovered that thiamin additionally clears ammonia. That is vital as a result of ammonia, like lactic acid, may cause psychological and bodily fatigue if it builds up an excessive amount of.^[50]

Thiamin also can even enhance VO2max in athletes, that means that their coronary heart charge is decrease when exercising on the similar stage of depth.^[51]

Biotin (as biotin dicalcium phosphate) – 300 mcg (1000{12f4514ce7bdec0f94d6e75cdcba5826912bd7c369a1a11dc91f538f67b77237} DV)

Biotin (vitamin B7) is mostly used as a hair, pores and skin, and nails complement, however like different B nutritional vitamins, it’s an vital cofactor for mobile power manufacturing, which is why it’s in Umzu Zuum Pre-Exercise.

Biotin is critical for the correct operate of carboxylase enzymes, that are vital for mitochondrial well being.^[52] Right here’s a brief checklist of some issues the carboxylase enzymes are concerned with:

• Oxidizing glucose within the liver and kidneys^[52]
• Oxidizing fatty acids^[52]
• Absorption and metabolism of leucine (a strongly anabolic amino acid)^[52]
• Absorption and metabolism of different aminos^[52]

So biotin is one other ingredient that may hold your mobile metabolism optimized, which is vital for peak efficiency, restoration, and long-term adaptation to train.