Best Pre-Workout for Cardio – Shifted icon Skip to content

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START FASTER. GO LONGER.

Cardio is hard. Really hard.

We all need cardio for maximum fitness, but you know how it goes.

Getting started can feel painful. And when you're in zone 5 or 6 and pushing yourself to your max, it can feel like death.

That's Where Shifted Comes in

Our Premium Pre-Workout helps take the pain out of cardio by:

- reducing fatigue (beta-alanine)
- improving mood (rhodiola, tyrosine)
- increasing energy (caffeine)
- improving blood flow (citrulline + nitrates)
- increasing muscular hydration (electrolytes)

Take the Pain out of Cardio

With over 14 ingredients custom dosed for sports performance and cardiovascular support, SHIFTED's Premium Pre-Workout gives you the tools you need to push harder with less pain.

Cardio enhancing ingredients include:

- Beta-alanine
- Taurine
- L-Citrulline
- Nitrates
- No jitter Caffeine
- Rhodiola rosea
- L-Tyrosine
- Theanine
- Alpha GPC
- Electrolytes (sodium, potassium)

Thousands of Cardio Fans Agree

We've sold SHIFTED Premium to thousands of cardio enthusiasts and have heard from people who use SHIFTED for all kinds of cardio activities including:

- Rowing
- Elliptical
- Treadmill
- Stair Stepper
- Spinning
- Running

Formulated by Experts

Shifted's Pre-Workout products are formulated by real academic researchers who study the latest in pre-workout ingredients. We only include ingredients proven to work in peer reviewed research papers.

Adam Gonzalez, PhD

Chief Scientifc Officer

A Quick Overview of Cardio and Pre-Workouts

Doing exercise can be one of the most exhausting activities someone can do, especially if it is cardio. Therefore, if you are new to the fitness world, you might want to know about the best pre-workouts for cardio.

Pre-workouts for Cardio

When cardio is mentioned, it means doing any activity that stimulates the cardiovascular system. For instance, aerobic exercise can be classified as cardio. After all, it will make your heart pump faster and your lungs breathe more quickly.

This is because, while doing cardio, the body uses oxygen as the main energy source. This means your body will be using your breath as it is fuel. This is why people with better lung capacity can run, jog, and perform physical activities for more time. 

A person with great endurance will be able to work out for thirty minutes without losing their breath; a person with no endurance could last up to five minutes. However, both persons can benefit from drinking pre-workout, extending their limits and reducing fatigue.

How Does Pre-workout Affect Cardio?

To understand how these supplements can assist you, consider how the heart, oxygen, and cells all function together. When you do cardio, your cells (from your cardiovascular system) require more oxygen to function correctly, and it is your heart's purpose to supply it.

As a result, the heart begins to beat more quickly to provide enough oxygen to the cells. This oxygen is supplied by your lungs, which is why you start to breathe quickly when you run. When you're done, your body will relax, and your heart rate will return to normal.

A supplement like a pre-workout provides you with extra energy to keep going with this process. In other words, it increases endurance and prevents muscular fatigue. For example, if you usually jog for 30 minutes before getting tired, a good product may allow you to boost that to 45 minutes.

Cardio Pre-workouts Benefits and Side Effects

These supplements can boost your training and make you last much longer than usual. In addition, it is said to improve your focus during workouts, making your muscles work efficiently so you can have a much more fruitful session.

However, while it can boost energy and endurance, it can also give you a bad post-workout crash. This is because many have 0.01 ounces of organic coffee, which might not sound like much, yet it can pump your body up for a long time.

The lousy thing comes when you feel a shaky sensation in your body during or post-workout. This can increase anxiety and produce an overall lousy experience. Therefore, it is not recommended to be used if you struggle with anxiety. Regardless of that, they are an excellent option to boost your cardio.

Intense Pre-workouts for Cardio

Nowadays, many supplements have a lot of ingredients and high levels of caffeine (among them Salt, Malic Acid, and Theobromine). These will help you have an incredible HIIT session without getting too tired.

However, one of the most significant downsides of these products is that many of them can contain traces of peanuts, milk, soy, and wheat. This makes these products non-vegan, non-gluten-free, and unsafe for people with peanut allergies. Therefore, you need to consider this before trying them.

Also, these products have lots of caffeine and other stimulants that will put you in an accelerated state. While this is good while working out, it can affect the rest of your day, and you can experience a bad post-workout crash

Bulking Pre-workouts for Cardio

Lastly, bulking supplements are a great way to enhance your endurance while trying to bulk. For instance, these products can help you have a great HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training) session while improving muscle growth.

Also, they can help delay muscle fatigue, which will allow you to increase the total repetitions you can do on specific exercises. However, a downside of these products is that their taste could be more pleasurable. Therefore, as long as you don’t mind a lousy flavor, they are a good alternative.

The Most Effective Cardio Pre-workout

Shifted is a pre-workout that will help you push your records with the help of natural ingredients. They will give you much more energy, and you can complete your workout without feeling completely exhausted.

Additionally, since it is vegan, non-GMO, and free of chemicals, it is gentler on your digestive system. As a result, it will not cause you to feel heavy or fatigued after your workout. On the contrary, it will boost your blood flow, strength, hydration of your muscles, and general mood.

Here you can see what this product contains

  • No sugar
  • No carbohydrates
  • No proprietary blends
  • Beta-alanine (Amino Acid)
  • Betaine Anhydrous (Amino Acid)
  • L-Citrulline (Amino Acid)
  • Nitrates
  • Caffeine with Theanine, an amino acid that prevents the negative effects of caffeine
  • Rhodiola Rosea (Plant)
  • L-Tyrosine (Amino Acid)
  • Electrolytes (Potassium and sodium) 
  • Creatine
  • No additives

Related Questions

Here are some frequently asked questions about cardio pre-workouts.

What Should I Eat Before a Cardio Workout?

An hour before your cardio workout, you can eat fruits such as bananas, strawberries, and mangoes. Also, you can eat cereal, nuts, greek yogurt, and raisins. You can do a smoothie with some of these ingredients to make it better. However, do not eat any food within 30 minutes of your workout.

Is Pre-workout Hard on Your Heart?

Yes, pre-workouts can increase your heart rate and be hard on your heart. After all, most contain lots of caffeine, which can increase your blood pressure and heart rate. If you have underlying heart problems, it is recommended that you not ingest any of these products. We recommend everyone consult their doctor before using a supplement.

Should I Drink Pre-workout on an Empty Stomach?

Drinking pre-workouts on an empty stomach tends to magnify their effect but can also cause digestive problems. If you have a high sensitivity for caffeine, drinking this on an empty stomach will increase this sensitivity, making you feel jittery and anxious.

Conclusion

Regarding cardio, pre-workouts are a great option to boost your endurance and enhance your performance. However, you should always be careful about what you drink and make sure not to overstimulate and get into a state that makes it hard to get the job done.

What The Ingredients do

If you're curious about what each of the ingredients does to improve cardio workouts, look no further. Below, we go into detail about the cardiovascular impact of each pre-workout ingredient in our Premium Pre-Workout product.

Beta-alanine

Regular supplementation with beta-alanine can increase muscle carnosine concentrations by 20-80%. This in turns acts as a buffer against fatigue.

Nitrates

Nitrates allow for nitric oxide production via the nitrate pathway. This increases blood flow and improves muscular performance and power output

L-Citrulline

Amino acid that supports nitric oxide production through the arginine-nitric oxide pathway. It improves muscular function and decreases fatigue by increasing blood flow.

Rhodiola Rosea

Rhodiola rosea is an adaptogen native to Arctic regions where endurance is critical. It makes hard training sessions more tolerable and enjoyable, delays fatigue and boosts performance.

L-Tyrosine

Tyrosine is an amino acid that helps replenish neurotransmitters. It helps give you that feeling that you can conquer anything with enough drive.

Electrolytes

Electrolytes are essential to almost every cellular process. Keeping electrolyte levels up during cardio will help you last longer and push harder.

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