About
C4 Original is a pre-workout made by Cellucor. It is designed to boost energy, raise muscular endurance, heighten focus and increase motivation during exercise.
The pre-workout contains caffeine, which Cellucor states could “support an increase in energy”. It also contains beta-alanine (under the Carnosyn brand name) to improve endurance. Meanwhile, creatine nitrate is described as an “advanced form” of creatine, which is said to boost muscle energy.
C4 Original also contains N-acetyl-L-tyrosine (NALT), which is said to improve focus and reduce stress. In addition, arginine is included to help enhance muscle pumps.
The product is – or has been – available in several flavors. These include “Frozen Bombsicle”, “Pink Lemonade” and “Icy Blue Razz”.
aleexz –
After taking this you’re not going to blow like a C4
—-Introduction—-
I am a college student that has been lifting for a few years and has become really interested in nutrition, supplements and food intake in our lifes.
—-Ingredient Profile—-
Starting from the top we got ourselves a 6.5 g scoop made of: – Beta-Alanine (1600mg): Half of the clinical dose, you will get the full effect if you double scoop. B-Alanine has been shown to enhance muscular endurance, specially being able to perform 1 to 2 reps more when staying at an hypertrophy range (8 to 15 reps). It’s remarkable to say that it’s Carnosyn Beta Alanine so it’s the highest quality available. – Creatine Nitrate (1g): The problem with this dosage is that it’s underdosed again, right dose would be between from 2 to 3g. Nitrate is supposed to aid creatine and get you more of a result combined with pumps and vascularity, as we know, creatine increases power output and has minor increases in lean mass and anaerobic running capacity. – Arginine AKG (1g): Standard pre workout dose is 3 to 6 g. Outdated nitrix oxide booster, most companies have moved to agmatine but it seems like Cellucor is still stuck in the past. – Explosive energy blend (321g) [Caff. anh. 160 mg, L-Tyrosine, Teacor Tetramethyluric acid]: Cellucor only disclosed the ammount of caffeine, which is 160mg. L-Tyrosine minimum dose is between 100 to 150 mg and Teacor min. dose is around 200mg. So one of them (or both) are severely underdosed. Caffeine is a powerful stimulant and it can be used to improve physical strength and endurance. It is classified as a nootropic because it sensitizes neurons and provides mental stimulation. L-Tyrosine is a mental booster, assists with mental focus and Teacor is very similar to caffeine except that you don’t build a tolerance to it as fast, you don’t crash as hard and you don’t get jitters. – Vitamin C (250mg): Good dose of vitamin C, it helps your body absorb those active ingredients. – B Vitamins (Niacinmide (30mg), Vitamin B6 (500mcg), Folate (150mcg), Vitamin B12 (20mcg): All of them help offset the “high” you get from the stimulants to ensure that you don’t experience any post workout bad mood or any post workout crash.
—-Taste/Mixability/Dosing—-
– It comes in a bunch of flavors: Cherry Limeade, Fruit Punch, Green Apple, Icy Blue Razz, Orange Burst, Pink Lemonade, Strawberry Margarite, Watermelon. I have tried some flavors, Watermelon tastes like a jolly rancher, same with green apple. Strawberry Margarita has a nice and refreshing taste to it. – Mixability is great across all Cellucor supplements so this isn’t different. You can mix it up pretty easily with a glass and a spoon. – Dosing is tricky, if you are not used to taking pre workout 1 scoop would be ok, if you are a regular using 2 scoops should do the job and 2 scoops is where the full dosages start to show up as well.
—-Effectiveness—-
I’m gonna break it down based on the scoops I’ve taken: – 1 scoop: Like I said before, a lot of the ingredients in one single scoop are underdosed, in my case this resulted in low to mild energy, caffeine low content doesn’t give a boost and Teacor seems a bit compromised because of its low dosage as well. Strength was okay even though creatine content falls short. “Incredible pumps” don’t live to their own expectations, you may get a bit of a pump going but it’s NOT skin tearing like some other products. Focus is not there either. Endurance is ok, half the standard dose of beta alanine gives a bit of an edge when going for a long working set. However, if you have never taken a pre workout this is gonna give you an energy rush and a bit of focus. – 1.5 scoops: Things start to get interesting here, you start to hit almost the recommended dose on everything. Energy gets better, caffeine hits harder and TeaCor hits for longer. Definitely a strength and muscle power improvement, being able to hit one more rep always feels great. Pumps get a bit better but it’s nothing mindblowing, same as focus, no “tunnel vision” but you are slowly getting in the zone. Endurance increases as well and tingles come back if you’ve never taken that big of a dose. If you’re somehow used to taking preworkous this would be your starting point. – 2 scoops: Here is where the magic happens, but the magic comes with a dilema. If you take a 2 scoop serve you are gonna hit a clinical dose of almost every single ingredient. For me, this translated into a nice tingling feeling from Beta-Alanine that comes with a huge increase in muscle endurance and a huge decrease in fatigue. Pumps were bigger and harder, muscle power increased as well = more reps when going for new PRs. Vitamins had a huge role as I didnt experience any crash. BUT, you are hitting 320 mg of caffeine PLUS a huge dose of TeaCor and that is too much caffeine. Energy for me was clean, through the roof and long lasting (I have a high stim tolerance), focus, however, was severely compromised and nothing to write home about. Bottom line, if you are sensitive to caffeine and you hit 2 scoops you are gonna feel jittery and maybe crash. You have to find a nice balance between your stim tolerance and the right ammount of incredients that do the trick for you, here is where the incognita of the product lays.
—-Value—-
it all comes down to your tolerance, if you can only tolerate 1 scoop the value is great, it’s a cheap preworkout and available worldwide so its easy to get your hands on. On the other hand, once you start digging in the 1.5 scoops or 2 scoops the value decreases. Price varies between 19.99-29.99, if you double scoop it you are getting 15 servs for that price and it’s not a good value for money. It all comes down to your expectations.
—-Side Effects—-
I built tolerance to it so quickly that it started becoming ineffective after a few days plus it’s pricey for two scoops and focus wasn’t there. You have to play with the dosages if you want the right ammount of stims and right ammount of the rest of ingredients and you may not be looking to do maths every single day you want to take it.
—-Conclusion—-
Not the best product on the market nor the best effective. However, I WOULD recommend it if you want to get started in the world behind pre workout supplements as it’s a good start point. If you already know how this “world” works, skip this one and get a stronger/higher dosed preworkout.
BlakePullen –
Mainstream/Popularity doesn’t equal results
—-Introduction—-
My name is Blake Pullen and I am an Exercise Science major at Kennesaw State University.My current fitness goals involve a caloric surplus and “lean bulking” which is basically trying to put on about 1-2 pounds of lean muscle per month while limiting my fat gain as much as possible. I am also a supplement JUNKIE! Every single one of my friends has this pre-workout (most of which do not lift consistently), so I had to give the world’s most mainstream pre-workout a try
—-Ingredient Profile—-
For a workout that sells as good as C4 does I was definitely disappointed in the ingrediants. Everything is underdosed. The 2 grams of Beta-Alanine isn’t bad by any means, however, it is below optimal clinical doses of 3-3.2g. I still like seeing it in the label though, along with Arginine, Taurine, and a single gram of creatine. Calories: 5 Total Carbohydrate: 1g Calcium: 20mg Folic Acid: 250mcg Vitamin C (as Ascorbic Acid): 250mg Niacin (as Niacinamide): 30mg Vitamin B6 (as Pyridoxal-5-Phosphate): 500mcg Vitamin B12 (as Methylcobalamin): 35mcg Arginine AKG: 1g Beta Alanine: 2g Creatine Nitrate (NO3-T): 1g Explosive Energy Blend371mg – Proprietary Blends Explosive Energy Blend N-Acetyl-L-tyrosine, Caffeine Anhydrous (150mg), Velvet Bean (Mucuna pruriens) seed extract, (standardized for L-Dopa), TeaCor Tetramethyluric Acid
—-Taste/Mixability/Dosing—-
Unfortunately, I had the fruit punch flavor (it was on sale and I now see why) and C4 Fruit punch is my least favorite supplement flavor that I’ve ever tried. I don’t like fruit punch to begin with but the aftertaste in this blend made me feel like I was drinking medicine out of the cabinet. Taste 3/10 Mixibility was solid. I used my classic blender bottle shook for approximately 10-20 seconds and I never had any issues with clumping. Mix 8/10 Dosing: It was just too underdosed for my tastes. For all the hype and advertisements surrounding this product I was expecting a lot more before I even read the back of the label. 6/10 because it isn’t bad but it’s not great by any means.
—-Effectiveness—-
I did receive a little jolt of energy that lasted for most of my workout. It’s definitely not the best thing I’ve ever had but it did the job… for MOST of my workout. I felt it leaving my system around the 1-hour mark so I was a little disappointed there as I look for pre-workouts to fuel me through my workout in its entirety. Thus the endurance aspect of this pre was also short-lived. The pump was almost nonexistent, that aspect of it made me feel like I wasn’t taking a pre-workout. It would be much better with more clinically dosed pump formula containing citrulline or another pump specific ingredient Effectiveness: 6/10
—-Value—-
You can currently get 30 servings of C4 Gen 4 for $15 at A1supplements.com At 50 cents per serving, I think that this is a very good value even with it being underdosed. It is very economical. Value 7/10
—-Side Effects—-
NONE, I wish i would’ve had Beta-Alanine tingles (I did after taking 2 scoops however)
—-Conclusion—-
C4 is an overhyped pre-workout that is best for beginners or people new to the world of pre-workout. It isn’t bad, It’s just not great! Overall is a 6/10 pre workout at an economical price.
mjtuf1 –
Basic pre workout, alittle under dosed and lacking of good pre workout ingredients, but good for beginners.
—-Introduction—-
I’ve been going to the gym for 9 years and have had great gains. I’ve used a few pre workouts over the years. This isn’t the best or strongest pre workout, and not the first I’d recommend to an experienced gym person, but this product is good for starters, who have never used a pre workout before.. Also, it isn’t super high in caffeine like I’ve seen in some other pre workouts.
—-Ingredient Profile—-
Vitamin C (as Ascorbic Acid) 250 mg 417% Niacin (as Niacinamide) 30 mg 150% Folic Acid 250 mcg 62% Vitamin B6 (as pyridoxal-5-phosphate) 500 mcg Vitamin B12 (as Methylcobalamin) 35 mcg CarnoSyn Beta-Alanine 1.6 g Creatine Nitrate (NO3-T) 1 g Arginine Alpha Ketoglutarate 1 g Explosive Energy Blend (N-Acetyl-L-Tyrosine, Caffeine Anhydrous (150mg), Velvet Bean seed extract, Theacrine (as TeaCrine) 425 mg This product lacks good pre workout amino acids, it is under dosed in both it’s beta alanine and creatine, and it has a proprietary “explosive energy blend”.. This product has 150mg of caffeine in it, which I like, because it’s not a super caffeinated pre workout.
—-Taste/Mixability/Dosing—-
I bought the fruit punch flavor.. It mixes pretty good, no problems there, and the flavor doesn’t taste that bad.. It’s not great tasting, but is tolerable. The dose is 1 scoop (6.5G).. Directions is to take 1 scoop in 4-6oz of water 20-30 minutes prior to training. If you build up a tolerance, you can take 2 scoops, but do not exceed 2 scoops in a 24 hr period according to directions.
—-Effectiveness—-
This isn’t as effective as other pre workouts, and I can’t say this gave me super workouts, but this to me was equivalent to taking a red bull or drinking a cup of coffee before the gym. This was good at helping me to wake up when I’m tired after working, or when I just woke up a bit groggy and am going to the gym. This helped wake me up more for my workouts. It didn’t give me as good a pump as other pre workouts, but it did increase my energy.
—-Value—-
I bought 60 servings for $40 at Costco. I never exceed 1 scoop so for me it’s a 2+ month supply for $40.
—-Side Effects—-
Just the tingling you get from the beta alanine.. I had this sometimes but not always. Other than that nothing else to report.
—-Conclusion—-
If you’re either new to the gym, or new to pre workouts, this is a basic pre workout that’s good for 1st time pre workout users.. This is a good pre workout to START with, get used to, and then move on to something better… or for my case, the opposite.. I’ve used better pre workouts, and have used pre jym for a while, and I then switched back to this pre workout, to get on something weaker, and make the transition to not using a pre workout anymore for a while. This is the last pre workout I used, as I wanted something alittle less, to slowly back off pre workouts. I currently am not using a pre workout, and am doing just fine without one, as I’m taking alittle time off from pre workouts. The value on this product isn’t bad, $40 for 60 servings is cheaper than a lot of other pre workouts, so it’s not a bad value, however, you’re also not getting much in this pre workout, so it’s a good value in terms of price vs. the price of other pre workouts, but in terms of what you’re actually getting in this product, 60 servings for $40 is the limit in my opinion, this product should maybe be alittle cheaper than that for what you’re actually getting. But I wouldn’t pay $1 over 40 for this product, and I’d only pay 40 for it if it was atleast 60 servings. I DO like that this product isn’t loaded with caffeine, as I’ve used other pre workouts with more than twice the caffeine of this product. To end this off, good product for beginners, good gate way pre workout to other better stronger ones.
saab –
n/a
AgeIsANumber –
No jitters or tingle, which is fine for me! Might be more of a firecracker than a C4 explosion if that’s what you’re after.
—-Quick Summary—-
C4 is a safe if not overwhelming choice for someone looking to try a pre-workout.
—-Introduction—-
I’m new to writing supplement reviews, though I’m not new to trying supplements or to working out. I’ve trained for general wellness and slow strength gains for about 15 years. I was the kid that was super-skinny growing up and have made a good amount of slow progress over the years. I’ll never be mistaken for the biggest guy in the room, but I’ve not gone down any sort of needle-based route to shortcut any success either. I take various vitamin supplements and, from a workout perspective, I’m usually taking some combination of a pre-workout, creatine, BCAA and having a post-workout protein shake.
—-Ingredient Profile—-
While not going through the entire label, there were indeed a couple of things that I noticed. First, a 6.5g serving (one scoop) contains 1.6g of CarnoSyn Beta-Alanine. I noted above that I didn’t get jitters or tingles with this and this dosage might explain why. WebMD suggested 3.2-6.4g when mentioning dosing of beta-alanine so, as other reviewers noted, it would be easy to argue that you’re getting short-changed here. I also noticed 150mg of caffeine anhydrous in a serving. Some people are very sensitive and/or opinionated when it comes to caffeine-based supplements. Critics are going to say that this is a low dosage. Advocates would simply say that this is a safe dosage. I don’t drink a ton of caffeine during the typical day, so I’m fine with this amount even though others may say that it’s too low for their liking.
—-Taste/Mixability/Dosing—-
There are probably a dozen or so flavors of C4 out there now. I’ve only taken the fruit punch (which is fair) and pink lemonade (which I would prefer of those two) in terms of taste. I’m not one to sip on a pre-workout, so I personally wouldn’t discard a pre-workout on taste alone unless it were horrible! The packaging suggests one scoop with 6oz water, I typically take most of a scoop (maybe over 3/4, usually just short of 100% full) with 8-10oz water and I often mix in some flavorless creatine as well. I’ve never had any issues with getting it to mix easily with a few vigorous shakes in a water bottle. If you’re using a shaker or blender, mixing should be very easy. I’m not a two-scooper, so you may have to check other reviews for feedback there.
—-Effectiveness—-
As noted earlier, I don’t get the jitter/tingle effect… which is fine with me as I’m not usually after that. I’ve gotten pretty accustomed to taking a pre-workout and I do think that I get some added energy and focus when taking this product. I’m often trying different products and if I’ve had a bad experience with one, I come back to C4 as somewhat of a baseline. If you’re looking for a product that makes you want to bend a bar in half or run through the wall, this is [b]not[/b] that product. Again, I can’t speak for those who like to double up the suggested dosage, but a single scoop is enough for me to know that I took something to help me through a workout.
—-Value—-
Like most of you, I buy it when I can find a decent deal and I usually go with the 60 serving size when purchasing. As of this writing, one of my favorite sites has C4 in the $40-42 range for the 60 serving size. I see that as a pretty good value for those in the single-scoop camp.
—-Side Effects—-
I’ve not experienced any side effects that I can quantify. In fact, I’ve attributed too-frequent kidney-flushing bathroom trips to other pre-workouts and I’ve not noticed C4 giving me any problems there.
—-Conclusion—-
If you’re shopping for “C4” in the expectation of an explosion, you’re probably going to be disappointed. If you’re thinking of trying it out simply because it’s a well-known pre-workout that has a generally good reputation for being safe and somewhat effective, then I’d say that you’ll be pleased.