Using Taurine Pre- and Post-Workout: Effective or Useless?

Bigger Stronger Leaner Christian Thibaudeau Coaching
1

Hi Everyone, Coach,

Any thoughts on adding Taurine to your pre-workout cup of coffee? The reason being to enjoy the benefits of adrenaline for the workout without getting overly amped up?

I believe this might be especially beneficial for the type 2’s and 3’s out there as they are more prone to anxiety and cortisol spikes before, during or after the workout. As Christian has explained many times, being too amped up for hours on end can be detrimental to recovery and drastically slow down muscle growth or fat loss.

I’m currently using 1g of taurine in a cup of coffee pre-workout and 1g of taurine with 3g of glycine en magnesium chloride (topically) post workout.

Is this the right approach or do I need to make some adjustments?

Thanks

2

I honestly have never used taurine this way or had clients do it this way. The closest I’ve seen was steroid-using bodybuilders who would take taurine pre-workout at up to 3g to decrease the excessive pump that comes from some steroids like dianabol. They didn’t report any workout crash so I’m guessing 1g of taurine added to your coffee should be fine.

3

Thanks for taking the time coach, really appreciate it!

Is there a correlation between taurine and decreased pumps? If that’s the case, then perhaps another solution might be better? I thought you said type 2B’s greatly rely on mind-connection and muscle pumps for motivation.

I’m usually a type 2B but I can very easily switch to a type 3 in times of high stress and because of my anxiety issues due to past trauma’s (overuse of stimulants, bad sleep etcetera)

The only reason I’m adding it to my coffee is to prevent getting anxious during or after the workout. As you mentioned, type 2B’s and especially type 3’s need to focus maximally on recovery.

Based on your answer, I’m guessing using taurine pre-workout would not be your go-to option. Would it be better to just leave it out and use a high carb breakfast instead to optimize neurotransmitters for the workout?

Thanks

4

I take 4g of taurine when taking caffeine or else I feel like I’m on crack. Also, I take it post workout to reduce cortisol. I’ve never seen it diminish my pumps. However, I take 10-12g of citrulline malate so that may be why I still get pumps.