Written by Garett Reid | NSCA, CSCS, CISSN, M.S.E.S.S
Fact checked by Andrew Lenau, ISSA CPT & Sports Nutritionist
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When you think of awesome workout supplements, it's likely protein powder, creatine, and caffeine are quick to come to mind. However, there is another dietary supplement that may not yet be on your radar - but should be.
A supplement that has gone somewhat unnoticed is a form of glycerol known as GlycerPump. Glycerol as a whole has not been promoted as much as other supplements, which is interesting considering it is packed with benefits. Research shows many performance gains from taking GlycerPump, making it one of the more unique sports supplements on the market. Intrigued? This post will give you all the details and then some, covering:
- What is glycerol and GlycerPump?
- Benefits of glycerol and GlycerPump
- Optimal dosing of GlycerPump
- How to use GlycerPump
What Is Glycerol?
You have probably heard of glycerol to some extent, as it is used in tons of products. Seriously. Glycerol is one of those products that seems to do it all, and its application is far and wide. And while it's used for a wide array of products ranging from sweeteners to toothpaste, we're going to focus on its effects as a pump pre-workout supplement in this post.
Names Of Glycerol:
A quick note on the different names of glycerol. It's can go by glycol, glycerin, and glycerine. Don't get confused by this. For all intents and purposes, it's all the same thing.
Mechanisms Of Glycerol:
Glycerol is a naturally occurring sugar alcohol trihydroxy which means "three hydroxyl group." Naturally, glycerol is a metabolite of lipid metabolism and is formed during the breakdown of triglycerides (fat) within the body¹.
Once broken down, it's distributed through the body's cells but does so in relatively low concentrations. Even at these low levels, glycerol is highly osmotic, meaning it draws in water.
This cell-hydrating property generated interest in the world of sports nutrition. Therefore, research began to see if glycerol induced hyperhydration within an athlete, which includes everyone from gym goers to top bodybuilders, and if so, what the effects would be.
Production & Evolution Of Glycerol Products
Glycerol production can occur through the triglycerides found in plants. To accomplish this, various processes can be used, including saponification or transesterification. While there are methods to produce glycerol synthetically, they are generally much more costly. Because of this, the production of glycerol generally occurs through natural processes.
GlycerPump's existence didn't happen by chance. Like all great things, its discovery took time and a lot of trial and error. Let's quickly go through its history as it will help illuminate its importance.
Glycerol's Initial Use For Super hydration
Adequate hydration is crucial for all athletes. In fact, we talk about it extensively in our post on what to eat before a workout, because it is vital to everything. Just a 2% drop in body weight from water loss causes a significant impact on sports performance, which can result in a loss of muscular endurance by 8.3%, loss of muscular strength by 5.5%, and a 5.8% loss of anaerobic power².
Sports researchers believed that if glycerol was able to induce super hydration, it would be extremely beneficial. This is why during the early days of supplementation, pre-exercise glycerol hydration for sports performance was the primary focus, particularly for endurance athletes. In this arena, there were many successful benefits of glycerol supplementation such as increased pre-exercise water weight, decreased water loss, cooler body temperatures, and longer exercise time to fatigue³.
During this time, there were two types of glycerol used. The type most often used was liquid vegetable glycerin (one of those big bottles you see), which is why you may see dosing protocols with really high numbers or even liquid measurements (ml).
The other was a glycerol powder supplement called glycerol monostearate (GMS).
What is Glycerol Monostearate?
Glycerol monostearate is a form of glycerol powder that is made by mixing glycerol and stearic acid, a natural fatty acid. While this made consumption easier, glycerol monostearate mixes were usually only 15-25% of actual glycerol.
After some time supplementing, athletes began to complain, reporting that glycerol monostearate would tend to clump up when mixing for consumption. This was due to the high concentration of fat caused by the stearic acid.
In addition, glycerol monostearate turned out to be a less stable form of glycerol and had a short shelf life. This led to glycerol monostearate supplements providing an even smaller percentage of actual glycerol caused by its degradation. And who wants to deal with degraded supplements when trying to tackle their tough workout split?
The Birth Of HydroMax
Researchers set off in an attempt to produce the first high-yield form of glycerol powder. The answer came when the powerhouse supplement company Glanbia created a form of glycerol called Hydromax.
Hydromax was a glycerol supplement that produced an astonishing 65% yield. This was significantly higher than all the older glycerol powders, thus crowning Hydromax as the superior form of glycerol supplementation.
While Hydromax improved the glycerol yield, the mixture still created various issues such as the difficulty of mixing and shelf life that was shorter than desired. This sent researchers back to the drawing board to create an even more stable form of glycerol supplement with an increased shelf life.
What Is GlycerPump?
It was through this evolution of conventional glycerol products that finally gave us the advanced form of glycerol known as GlycerPump.
While still providing a 65% yield of glycerol, GlycerPump utilized silicon dioxide in its mixture, which gave it improved stability. It proved to provide the ultimate shelf-stable form of glycerol, thus eliminating previous issues such as clumping or degradation.
As a result, GlycerPump supplementation encourages the utilization of more glycerol with every scoop. In addition, GlycerPump enhances cell volumization. Wondering what all that means? We'll talk more about it in a second, but a quick spoiler alert: It's good news for the back and chest workout you're going to take on at the gym later.
What Makes GlycerPump A More Stable Form Of Glycerol?
GlycerPump's increased stability was due to more than just silicon dioxide. Hydromax also used silica in its production.
This vast improvement in stability was derived from its proprietary (read: secret) method of spray-drying. Spray drying is the process of taking a liquid compound and converting it into a dry powder by applying hot gas.
While there had been many previous forms of glycerol supplements prior, none had attempted to use any type of innovative method when preparing it. GlycerPump did, and it paid off.
How Does GlycerPump Work?
GlycerPump turns your body's cells into ultra-absorbent sponges by increasing osmotic pressure. As a result, the cell's ability to absorb water is greatly increased, resulting in greater fluid retention and increased nutrient absorption³.
However, this extra fluid retention from GlycerPump is not the same as the puffy, bloating fluid retention you may be thinking of. Remember that GlycerPump sends extra fluid into the muscles, which means fluid retention occurs in your muscles. This is vastly different from fluid retention under the skin.
As a result, your muscles see an incredible level of cell volumization and muscle fullness. As the name implies, GlycerPump "pumps" you up as you put in the work building muscle.
Benefits Of GlycerPump
GlycerPump is capable of producing a variety of performance-enhancing benefits. Here are the most beneficial.
1. GlycerPump Supports Improved Hydration:
Above we just spoke about how the osmotic pressure increases caused by GlycerPump sends extra fluid into the cells. As a result, GlycerPump can be used to induce states of "hyperhydration."
Glycerol hyperhydration is often used in the endurance world, where it has resulted in various improvements, such as improved cycling endurance time. However, hyperhydration has a role in the gym as well, offering numerous benefits⁴. Glycerol perks include:
- Improves one ability to train in high temps
- Improves performance by way of mitigating dehydration
- Lowers thermal burden during intense training with high temps
- Increases exercise tolerance up to 24%
- Lowers heart rate during exercise
Any of these, or all of these, will contribute to a harder and more intense workout, whether you're aiming for muscle hypertrophy or muscular endurance.
2. GlycerPump Creates A Serious Pump And Vascularity:
The cell volumization muscle fullness caused by GlycerPump is the most sought-after benefit of its use as a pre-workout. This is one of the main drivers behind the development and production of GlycerPump.
Due to GlycerPump's ability to draw water into the cells of muscles, the lifter's muscles will become engorged with water. This is why it's important to drink plenty of liquid with your GlycerPump! Lifters will commonly report insane pumps and extreme vascularity, crucial for attempting a workout like the Rock's!
What makes GlycerPump even more effective is that its mechanisms do not interfere with other common pre-workout ingredients, including other pump-inducing compounds such as L-Citrulline.
3. It Improves Anaerobic And Aerobic Power:
GlycerPump's ability to invoke hyperhydration has been found to produce performance benefits outside hydration.
A study examined the effects of glycerol supplementation on aerobic and anaerobic power in both athletes and sedentary subjects³. After conducting various aerobic and anaerobic performance tests, subjects saw a significant improvement after supplementing with glycerol, especially with the anaerobic tests.
The mechanisms aren't quite clear, but a few plausible theories were put forth, one of which was that glycerol supplementation allows for greater ATP production. The other theory explained that hyperhydration alters the blood's osmolality and electrolyte concentration. As a result, the ionic gradient is manipulated in such a way that it delays the onset of either muscle or central fatigue.
Regardless of how it works, GlycerPump yields greater aerobic and anaerobic power. You'll probably even have enough energy left to tack on a tough workout finisher.
4. GlycerPump Can Be Used As An Energy Substrate:
Studies have found that when exogenous glycerol supplements, such as GlycerPump, are taken in proximity to exercise, it can contribute to a greater energy yield⁵. This comes from glycerol's structure as sugar alcohol, allowing it to act as an additional energy substrate.
GlycerPump Pre-Workout Supplements
GlycerPump is much like the form of creatine known as Creapure. Rather than a specific brand, GlycerPump is a highly concentrated form of glycerol powder that is bought and used in various glycerol pre-workouts and sports supplements for use before any tough workout, including cardio, HIIT, and weight lifting.
This allows supplement companies to utilize GlycerPump how they want. For example, it's easy to find GlycerPump sold in various forms, including capsule form in which servings of powder are sold in capsule shells, pure GlycerPump powder sold by itself, and as part of a multi-ingredient pre-workout formula.
In addition, supplement companies can use as much, or as little, GlycerPump as they want in their product. That's why it's important to always check the dosing, as it's not uncommon for supplement companies to under-dose the amount of GlycerPump they use.
Ideally, you want a supplement that delivers 2.5 grams in every dose. This seems to be the optimal dose for most individuals to maximize results with no side effects.
When taken 20 to 30 minutes before your workout, this dose is going to give you the maximal benefits that glycerol has to offer.
How To Use a GlycerPump Supplement
With a pre-workout that has GlycerPump, beginners and advanced users alike will experience a satisfyingly intense pump and fullness in their muscles.
Because GlycerPump is rapidly absorbed into the body's cells, timing its consumption is easy. Take the pre-workout supplement approximately 20 to 30 minutes before you're ready for the gym, and you're all set. With crazy energy, laser focus, and incredible strength, you'll be able to reach any fitness goal you set, whether it's body recomposition, bulking, or achieving progressive overload every time you hit the gym.
If you want to increase the size of the pump and the hydration effect, you can experiment with drinking more water, as this will further increase the osmotic pressure.
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GlycerPump: The Dietary Supplement You Need
GlycerPump, and glycerol in general, is a one-of-a-kind dietary supplement that can produce benefits that are impossible to replicate. Many people aren't even aware they can become hyperhydrated.
When dosed in the correct amount, GlycerPump will produce a workout you never thought possible. Take 20 to 30 minutes before your workout, and visualize GlycerPump transforming your muscles into fuller, larger, tighter versions of themselves with an accompanying intense pump.
Sounds like a lifter's dream come true!
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References:
- van Rosendal SP, Osborne MA, Fassett RG, Coombes JS. Guidelines for Glycerol Use in Hyperhydration and Rehydration Associated with Exercise. Sports Medicine. 2010;40(2):113-129. doi:10.2165/11530760-000000000-00000
- Sawka MN, Cheuvront SN, Kenefick RW. Hypohydration and Human Performance: Impact of Environment and Physiological Mechanisms. Sports Medicine. 2015;45(S1):51-60. doi:10.1007/s40279-015-0395-7
- LYONS TP, RIEDESEL ML, MEULI LE, CHICK TW. Effects of glycerol-induced hyperhydration prior to exercise in the heat on sweating and core temperature. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise. 1990;22(4):477???483. doi:10.1249/00005768-199008000-00010
- Montner P, Stark DM, Riedesel ML, et al. Pre-exercise glycerol hydration improves cycling endurance time. International Journal of Sports Medicine. 1996;17(1):27-33. doi:10.1055/s-2007-972804
- Patlar S, Yalçin H, Boyali E. The effect of glycerol supplements on aerobic and anaerobic performance of athletes and sedentary subjects. Journal of Human Kinetics. 2012;34(1):69-79. doi:10.2478/v10078-012-0065-x
- Montner P, Stark DM, Riedesel ML, et al. Pre-exercise glycerol hydration improves cycling endurance time. International Journal of Sports Medicine. 1996;17(1):27-33. doi:10.1055/s-2007-972804
- Burelle Y, Massicotte D, Lussier M, Lavoie C, Hillaire-Marcel C, Péronnet F. Oxidation of [13C]glycerol ingested along with glucose during prolonged exercise. Journal of Applied Physiology. 2001;90(5):1685-1690. doi:10.1152/jappl.2001.90.5.1685
Garett Reid
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