For gym enthusiasts, pre-workout supplements are an excellent booster. You may find that they can keep you up at night or mess up the natural circadian rhythm. If that is the case, don’t worry, pre-workout can be flushed out of your system, both in the long and short term, depends on what your needs are.
Tips For How To Get Pre Workout Out Of Your System
There are two types of processes to get pre-workout out of your system. If you are going for the short term, you will focus on flushing the compounds out of your body before fully absorbed.
For the long term, you will start by cutting down the amount of pre-workout and gradually taper it off until you rid your body from its dependence entirely.
How Long Does It Normally Last?
Usually, the supplements last between 1.5 hours to 2.5 hours, from beginning to end. The caffeine part, however, kicks in around the 45-minute mark and will last for about 4 hours. Mostly the pre-workout supplements will pass through the body within this time frame and processed in the kidneys and liver, regardless of the amount you took.
However, the excessive amounts of the supplement can remain longer in the body. You may experience lingering effects such as palpitation, sweat, and tightness in the chest.
Why Should You Drink Lots Of Water?
If you have taken a supplement, which does not agree with your body, or you have taken an excessive amount of your supplement, you may need to get it out immediately. The effects that your body feels can, unfortunately, not be eliminated.
Instead, you can try to pass the compounds out from your body as fast as possible. You need to drink lots of water in order to do this. Although water will not help in passing the caffeine out or getting rid of those energetic jitters, it can help in removing the other ingredients more quickly from the body.
Keep drinking water until you start to pass out clear urine for a while. The pre-workout effects may wear off in an hour instead of two hours or so.
How Can You Remove It Long-Term?
Gym goers can sometimes find themselves moderately physiologically addicted to pre-workout effects. This addiction is just like a standard coffee addiction that many people experience when they just have to have their morning coffee.
If it is also like this in your case, then you will be pleased to know that to get rid of this dependency is just like getting rid of any caffeine addiction. You can do it two ways: stop cold turkey or do it progressively.
Stop Cold Turkey
You simply stop taking the pre-workout supplements and mentally prepare yourself that your body will crave for them in the next weeks or months. You can keep on performing your regular workouts. It is recommended to drink lots of water to keep hydrated and focused.
Don’t give in; no matter how tired you feel, your body will eventually strengthen itself and get over the reliance on the pre-workout compounds. You will be able to do your workout routine on your own. This method is difficult, as you need immense will power, but it is not threatening to your overall health.
Progressively Cut Down
For some, this method is easier to follow. All you need to do is start cutting down your pre-workout amount by half every week. If you make your own pre-workout, you can simply add the ingredients in half of the normal amount and drink it. If you use a store-bought supplement, drink half a bottle before each workout. As you taper it off every week, you will eventually reach a point when your body doesn’t require any supplement. At this point, you can stop completely.
You may feel some of the withdrawal effects, but they won’t be as drastic as they would be if you stop completely straight away. This way is easier in disciplining yourself and stay on your goal.