About
BREACH is a BCAA/Intra-Workout manufactured by Redcon1. It is designed for muscle growth, repair and recovery, as well as hydration.
The product contains the three branched-chain amino acids (BCAA): Leucine, isoleucine and valine, which the brand website describes as “the building blocks for our muscles”. These are included at a ratio of 2:1:1 (leucine: isoleucine: valine).
BREACH also contains potassium and sodium. Alongside coconut water powder, glycerol and taurine, these electrolytes help to hydrate the user.
Unlike the related BREACH BALLISTIC, BREACH does not contain any caffeine or other stimulants.
DaSlaya –
This does not quite Breach the Average BCAA, but works as intended.
—-Introduction—-
38 years old and I lift 4-5 days a week. I use BCAAs for recovery, and often times (depending on the brand) finding myself needing 5-10g per day. I have had brands in the past where 5g were all I needed and others where 5g was not enough! I have been running a very heavy REDCON1 stack, so this is the first review of many to come on my run! Lets see if Breach lived up to the expectations I had set for it.
—-Ingredient Profile—-
Fully transparent label here, which is what we have come to expect from Supplement Companies these days. And in my opinion for a BCAA, you should not be throwing in too many prop blends unless its a special recovery formula. [u]BCAA (5g)[/u]: We get 2.5g Leucine, and 1.25g of Isoleucine and Valine. Pretty standard 2:1:1 ratio. Leucine plays an important role in muscle protein synthesis, while isoleucine induces glucose uptake into cells. The Valine in the red headed step child here, as more research is needed to even know what this does for you. Valine just takes some BCAA credit while the true workhorses are Leucine and Isoleucine. [u]Coconut Water Powder (1g)[/u]: This is here to give you some more hydration. Examine.com did a nice article on coconut water here https://examine.com/nutrition/coconut-water-overhyped-and-understudied/ All in all I like the addition here. [u]Glycerol (1g)[/u]: According to WEBMD glycerol is taken by mouth for weight loss, improving exercise performance, helping the body replace water lost during diarrhea and vomiting, and reducing pressure inside the eye in people with glaucoma. Athletes also use glycerol to keep from becoming dehydrated. So basically this is another hydration enhancer and I could not find dosage recommendations, but I think the presence here is just fine. [u]Taurine (1g)[/u]: Taurine is mostly used to reduce cramping caused by fat burners, like ephedrine. It also increases blood flow in diabetics. You do not want to exceed 3g of this daily, so 1g here is a nice dosage in case you are stacking this with other supplements containing Taurine. [u]Electrolytes (500mg)[/u]: 340mg Potassium and 160mg Sodium. These exist to keep you hydrated as well, we all know what electrolytes are. So with all the hydration support this makes for a great Intra-workout product. Pretty simple and common profile, but would like to see something added here like Astragin for delivery or instanized Amino’s to make it stand out in the saturated market of BCAAs.
—-Taste/Mixability/Dosing—-
[u]Taste:[/u] I bought the Tiger’s Blood flavor. Honestly I really cannot pinpoint what this tastes like, but I thought it was pretty good. It has a tropical taste to it, so was refreshing post workout and during the day. [u]Mixability[/u]: Mixed well with 8-10oz of water for me. There was always a little bit of grittiness to my shakes at the end, but I am finding that common to the REDCON1 products no matter which I am taking. No real issues here. [u]Dosing[/u]: So this is where I had to play with this a bit to get true effectiveness. I started out with 1 scoop post workout and 1 scoop on rest days. However, I was finding this to not be sufficient enough so I moved to 2 scoops on workout days. This is obviously a great intra workout product, but I had a different flavor of Cluster Bomb for Intra, so did not want 2 shakes. Plus I really like to get re-hydrated post workout. The directions state [i]”For maximum performance and hydration benefits, Mix (1) scoop of Breach with 8-10oz of Water and consume before, during, or after your training. For best results, consume (3) servings per day. On Non-training days, consume (1) serving upon waking.”[/i] So pretty broad depending on the individual, but we will talk effectiveness below.
—-Effectiveness—-
I like to measure out my BCAAs by recovery and hydration. Recovery wise, this did aid me without a doubt, however, I did find myself still slightly sore the next day. Once I moved to two scoops a day on training days it did eliminate that soreness. However, just coming off trying out Ronnie Colemans Amino-Tone where 5g a day completely recovered me, I was slightly dissapointed here. Amino-Tone showed me that I do not need 10g of BCAAs a day, I have a high protein diet as it is. So yes, Breach does and will aid you in recovery, but not much more than your average BCAA out there with 5g of BCAAs. Hydration wise this worked great. After taking this I would have to hit the bathroom to pee almost every hour for a few hours. Annoying, sure, but seeing that clear urine (stating I am hydrated) after a heavy lift session is always a great feeling. Plus I do like getting that extra hydration boost in case I do not have time to chug 64oz of water. Overall, yeah its effective for what its designed to be, but does not stand out in my eyes. I would expect more from a company like REDCON1, meaning I would expect a BCAA product that was more than average.
—-Value—-
I actually got this as part of a buy 3 get 1 free deal. This was my freebie! This normally runs for $34.99 for 30 servings on the REDCON1 site itself and with the cheapest deal I could find for $27 on Amazon. For whatever reason you can actually get the Breach Ballistic (the one with caffeine) for $25, just find that weird since it has more ingredients in it. Anyways, with the Amazon deal it comes out to 90 cents a scoop. Not bad unless you have to take 2-3 scoops a day. Fairly average deal for an average product.
—-Side Effects—-
You may find yourself going to the bathroom a lot since you will be VERY hydrated after taking this.
—-Conclusion—-
I expected more from Breach, but this does work as intended. In the end, its your standard run of the mill BCAA product with some hydration support out there. It tastes great (as a BCAA should), so I would recommend this if you were thinking of trying this. There are other and better options out there, but it really depends on the consumer. I would like to see REDCON1 do something a little more to make this unizue, like add astra-gin or Instanized or fermented Aminos. This would also aid in the body recovering from the delivery of the Amino’s. If you have been considering trying this, then I say go for it, its great intra or post workout.
Clipper83 –
RedCon1’s Breach into the Intra Market.
—-Introduction—-
RedCon1 is a company I’ve been really into lately. I noticed they had the fastest growth in under 2 years out of any company I have ever seen. They quickly rose to the rank of #3 on SR, and I couldn’t figure out why. So, when Aaron Singerman himself sent me a tub of Breach to try out, I felt the need to write this review. I’ve used MRE in the past, and really enjoyed that product. So Breach was a great way to see what else they had to offer.
—-Ingredient Profile—-
First things first… no proprietary blends. Nice to see companies being more transparent these days. At this point, I can’t think of any product I’d willingly buy with a proprietary blend besides a legit bottle OG Jack3d, which at this point is a Unicorn. To start, you have 5 grams of a 2:1:1 BCAA ratio. That is the best ratio for companies to use in my opinion. Typically, many companies that use higher leucine ratios do that to save them money, as Leucine is the cheapest bcaa out of the 3. After that, we have 1 gram of coconut water powder. Great for hydration/electrolytes. 1 gram of Taurine, good studies for blood flow and some studies suggest it may be good for performance. Also, we have a gram of Glycerol Mono, which I am a big fan of. This ingredient really helps with cellular hydration and you see more and more of it in pre-workouts these days and for good reason. There are human studies on it, and I mostly get a longer lasting pump from it. There are also hydration benefits as well. It’s actually a great ingredient for an intra, especially for those who have longer high-volume workouts. I hadn’t seen this in other intra-workout products, so it was actually a way for me to test something new out. One thing I’d like to see here is an addition of EAAs. With new research showing that too many BCAAs without EAAs may be counter-productive. RedCon1 let me know that they are coming out with an EAA product in the near future, so that’s good news at least.
—-Taste/Mixability/Dosing—-
I had the Pineapple Banana flavor. It was more banana than pineapple by far. Some have compared it to banana runts. Since I have not had that in a very long time, I cannot really comment on that. Either way, the taste is very refreshing when you water it down, like I tend to do with all of my intra-workout supplements. It is not overly flavored either, which is nice. Well, with the addition of GMS, you can expect a bunch of grit. There was a noticeable amount of grit on the sides of my shaker cup. No surprises, but I wonder how much GMS I’m missing out on. One scoop during your workout mixed in water. Easy as it can be there.
—-Effectiveness—-
Breach was nice to run. The biggest benefit I got out of it was the hydration. I had no issues with cramping, whether it be during cardio or lifting. That is something I look for most in my intra-workout products. I tested this out with a pre-workout with no GMS added to it, and noticed that my pumps would last throughout my workouts just a bit longer. While I still recommend taking GMS pre-workout to let it absorb, if your workouts tend to be longer, sipping on GMS intra may be worth trying. BCAAs are great for anti-catabolic reasons, so getting a dose of it during your workout makes sense. I won’t really comment on recovery, as I feel there are too many factors that go along with that(sleep/overall nutrition/intensity for example).
—-Value—-
I’ve seen this for as low as $25 on Amazon, I’d give this product a 9/10 at that price. However, you’ll find this for $35 on most sites. Not the cheapest intra, but not the worst I’ve seen out there by any means. You have some electrolytes, glycerol, and taurine added to it. Taurine and electrolytes are simple add-ons, but glycerol mono kind of nudges the profile to an “above average” state, so I don’t mind paying slightly more than your typically BCAA with nothing else added to it.
—-Side Effects—-
None
—-Conclusion—-
RedCon1 has a solid product with Breach. While it isn’t too flashy as far as an intra goes, it still gets it right where it counts. A tasty intra-workout drink, that aids in hydration, performance, and pumps. While there are plenty of ingredients that could make this better, I’d consider Breach a staple if it had EAAs added to it. Give it a shot if you like long high-volume workouts. The longer lasting pump is great, and you’ll be less likely to cramp during that time.
Unheard0f –
A Breach of Muscle Soreness
—-Introduction—-
If somebody had approached me one day & told me I could only take one supplement for the rest of my life but continue my bodybuilding career, I wouldn’t hesitate to choose BCAA’s. Since my discovery of their benefits a few years ago, they’ve become a staple in my supplement stack and just an overall constant product in my life. I’m always switching up brands or exploring new flavors, especially since throwing 3-4 scoops into a gallon every single day isn’t the most cost effective way to do things, but I make due. When the chance came to try out one of Redcon1’s amino products, I jumped at the chance. Breach is a BCAA & hydration blend, and I just want to thank the people over at Redcon1 & here at SR for the chance to try this out via the Trooper Program. Containing your three BCAA’s & a few hydration ingredients in there, Breach is a super effective amino product. I can honestly say that you can notice the recovery improvements, but even more the endurance and hydration benefits of drinking it intra-workout. Only on off days did I drink Breach outside of the gym, and I did that upon waking as instructed on the bottle. I began with one scoop intra-workout and eventually up to two, and enjoyed the product so much I recently bought myself another bottle of a different flavor. What’s in here outside of your traditional BCAA’s? Let’s look deeper.
—-Ingredient Profile—-
My hands are becoming numb from applauding Redcon1 on their 100% transparent labels, and that was a huge plus to see here also on Breach. [u]BCAA (5g):[/u] We all know BCAA’s (Branced Chain Amino Acids) are essential for muscle recovery since that’s always the first thing we see about them, but they’re benefits for muscular endurance, preserving muscle tissue during dieting, and protein synthesis always seem to fall off in the conversation. In all of my research, I try to stick with products giving us at least 5-10g of BCAA’s in a serving, and with the recommended 15-20g a day for an active adult anything less is really just lazy dosing. With Breach, we’re getting a full 5g per serving, a nice 2:1:1 ratio. For those who don’t know, your three BCAA’s are Leucine, Iso-Leucine and Valine, Leucine always being the highest amount with Iso-Leucine and Valine trailing shortly behind. When are BCAA’s most crucial? I always try to take in a serving immediately upon waking up, I throw it into 20oz of water & drink it down while making breakfast. Intra-Workout is the most popular due to the muscular endurance and hydration benefits, but if you’re dieting and utilizing fasted cardio, BCAA’s are essential to get in to help prevent some of the muscular breakdown that happens when in a caloric deficit with consistent intense cardio. [u]Coconut Water Powder (1g):[/u] If you’ve never tried a product containing Coconut Water, you owe it to yourself to do so. Coconut Water Powder is incredible for hydration, and includes a bunch of electrolytes. Proper electrolyte balance leads to hydration, a big boost in muscular endurance & overall increase in energy expendature. Just for fun, use a standard BCAA product that doesn’t include coconut water (and that’s a lot of them), and the next day try one with. I promise you’ll notice a difference. [u]Glycerol (1g):[/u] Glyucerol is slowly gaining more traction in the supplement industry, seen in a wide range of products from Pre-Workouts, Post-Workouts, and everything in between. Glycerol has a number of benefits, ranging from muscular endurance, hydration and pump. Since Glycerol is rapidly absorbed by the body, one of it’s biggest benefits is the increase in muscle pump. We all know what a muscle pump is, and Glycerol has been shows on many occasions to increase plasma within the muscle tissue, leading to a bigger and more full look. On top of that, Glycerol also increases fluid intake to the muscle, and both of those uses lead to a large pump increase when taking Glycerol either pre or intra workout. [u]Taurine (1g):[/u] Acting similarly to Creatine, Taurine is an amino acid that can increase cell volume and allow the muscle to hold more water resulting in muscle fullness and a great pump. It’s tossed in here at the end of the ingredient label but combined with the Glycerol mentioned above, it turns this simple intra-workout into a little pump product as well, though I would say it has a higher benefit on muscular endurance, allowing you to give your A game from beginning to end. I have nothing negative to comment on when it comes to this ingredient label, a nice mix of endurance, hydration, and small pump increasers here outside of the just fine 5g of BCAA’s. Two scoops of this stuff amounting to 10g of total BCAA’s make this a killer intra-workout amino product.
—-Taste/Mixability/Dosing—-
[u]Taste:[/u] I was lucky enough to receive the one flavor I was interested the most in, that being Pineapple Banana. I didn’t enjoy it nearly as much as I thought I would, it doesn’t have a bad flavor profile, but to me it seems to be more of a desired flavor. There were times I really enjoyed it, and other times, mostly in the morning, when I would hate Pineapple Banana being the first flavor to hit my taste buds for the day. The flavor falls more towards Banana, with the Pineapple being more of an aftertaste. Overall not a bad flavor at all, but maybe having a different flavor around for the times I wasn’t feeling this would’ve been nice. [u]Mixability:[/u] For some reason there’s this misconception that BCAA’s should mix up really well, and I don’t mean you should be swallowing chunks of this stuff at a time, but there’s supposed to be this underlying graininess to your amino product if it’s done well. Breach is a bit grainy, and it’s noticeable over some other BCAA products I’ve had more recently, but nowhere near enough to turn you away from it. I’ve never experienced any clumping or powder sticking to the bottom of my bottles, this stuff even mixed well in a glass with a spoon, which was impressive. [u]Dosing:[/u] There’s many different ways to dose your BCAA product, people like myself tend to drink this stuff all day long while others prefer intra- or post-workout. On the Breach label, they first recommend one serving, or one scoop, pre, intra, or post-workout. For best results, they recommend up to three scoops a day. At three consistent scoops a day, you’re only going to get 10 days worth of product out of this. I started off with a single scoop a day, on non-training days first thing in the morning and intra-workout 5 days a week. On Sunday’s, I have a rest day where I take in no supplements so I was going through about six scoops a week. In my final week, I upped it to two at a time to see if I could notice any further benefits, and there were some, but I’d say the single scoop a day is perfect enough.
—-Effectiveness—-
As mentioned earlier, I was taking a single scoop upon waking up on non-training days, and a single scoop intra-workout on training days, and had a noticeable increase in muscle recovery. At the time I started Breach, I was also starting a more intense training style with more volume, and was surprised at the lack of DOM’s when the first week ended. I felt tight and sore, but not enough to be wincing in discomfort while at work or doing everyday activities, and nowhere near sore enough to have a negative impact on any other training days. I typically have issues when it comes to shoulder soreness that impacts a few other training days, but I doubled up Breach that day and had zero issues in the following days. I noticed some benefits when drinking a serving after waking up, it seemed to work as a perfect cure for that morning de-hydration, ridding of my dry throat after just a few sips. Usually with breakfast, I’m downing glasses of water to feel better and give myself the smallest boost possible, but with Breach I felt perfect after the 20oz and was content with just sipping on water normally instead of drinking it down like I was lost in the desert for a week. For the last week, I doubled up on my scoops intra-workout and noticed another big bump in hydration, but not so much with recovery. It didn’t seem to increase recovery further from the single scoop servings or endurance, but there is further hydration benefits at two scoops, obviously. If you can afford to do more than a single scoop I say go for it, but for most people a single serving a day should be more than perfect.
—-Value—-
The cheapest I found a 30-Serving of Breach was $19.95 through IllPumpYouUp, and the average asking price seems to be upwards of $35. At my local Vitamin Shoppe & GNC, it’s priced at a reasonable $29.95, which equals just about $1 per serving. I have zero complaints paying $1 per serving, even better if below that.
—-Side Effects—-
Zero Side Effects
—-Conclusion—-
In the muddled crowd of BCAA products, Breach stands out. 5g of total BCAA’s, with hydration & pump ingredients littered in there make this a pretty packed amino product, and one that tries to be better than most, and succeeds. The intra-workout benefits are awesome and when put against an equally priced, simpler amino product, I’m sure would come out on top for most people in the gym training hard and really looking to reap the benefits of their aminos. I went to the store and picked myself up a second bottle in the Sour Apple flavor which I’m really excited to crack open tonight and try out. If you’re looking for a great amino product that you can feel working and don’t want to break the bank, Breach is the way to go. I wanted to thank Redcon1 and The Trooper Program for sending me Breach!
dmf8625 –
3-2-1…..BREACH
—-Quick Summary—-
From the brand: Branch Chained Amino Acids are the building blocks for our muscle cells; without them, we don’t exist. But as we train, work, sleep, and just live our lives, they become depleted. Even if we eat consistently throughout the day there are still gaps that need to be filled to optimize our performance. This is where Breach takes the lead on muscle growth and repair. Alongside the BCAA’s found in Breach we included a vitamin and electrolyte mix so you stay hydrated and utilize Breach as an all-day muscle building and hydrating sports drink.
—-Introduction—-
Hello all. Full intro about myself can be found here in the forum: https://supplementreviews.com/forum/index.php?topic=35432.0 First off, another thank you to [b]Redcon1[/b] for their continued participation here on SR.com. Today I am going to speak about my experiences with their BCAA product BREACH. While on the outset, this may look like a standard BCAA supplement; one look at the label told me there was a little more to it with the added extras. While the recent conversations about amino products have mostly focused on EAAs being superior, most of those formulas are still heavily weighted with these three amino acids. My main focus while using this product was intra-workout consumption. Let’s see what, if any, difference it made in my training, recovery and hydration. Redcon1 also put together a nice FAQ page about this product that answers ten common questions a consumer may have (https://redcon1.com/pages/breach-faq).
—-Ingredient Profile—-
As with every performance based (non-protein) supplement I have seen from Redcon1, we have full disclosure supplement facts for the active ingredients. The formula starts off with the dosage of the BCAAs at five grams using the industry standard 2:1:1 ratio. Five grams is the “common” dose that most companies consider to be effective. For me, this is the absolute minimum that I would expect in a product like this. That is because some of the newer brands to hit the market have products with increased doses from six grams up to ten grams per serving. For BREACH, we are off to an average start here. Here is a small excerpt about this ingredient from a GNC article: “BCAAs are the essential amino acids leucine, isoleucine and valine, which comprise around 35% of your body’s muscle protein. They’re “essential” because your body doesn’t make them on its own-you have to get them from food and workout supplements. Like other amino acids, they’re the building blocks of protein. But these particular aminos may also help preserve muscle glycogen stores, which fuel your muscles and minimize protein breakdown during exercise. Translation? BCAAs can help you get more out of your daily gym sessions.” (http://www.gnc.com/health-articles-tips/sports-performance/what-are-bcaas.html) Following the aminos, we receive a one gram dose of coconut water powder for hydration. Some products in this category have a larger dose of this ingredient while most have a much smaller dose, commonly ranging from 100mg to 500mg. “Coconut water powder is able to replenish lost micronutrients such as potassium, sodium, and chloride (Chavalittamrong et al., 1982). When added to a post-workout nutrition program, coconut water is able to aid in rehydration (Ismail et al., 2007) and provide the body with lost electrolytes. Non-exercise related, coconut water also has added health benefits such as lowering blood pressure (Alleyne et al., 2005) and lowering triglycerides and cholesterol levels (Sandhya et al., 2006).” Our next ingredient is a one gram dose of Glycerol. This is an ingredient I normally see if pre-workout supplements to help with the pump. There is a trademarked version of this ingredient (HydroMax) but it does not appear that BREACH uses it. Glycerol transforms your muscles into ultra-absorbent sponges that allows them to soak up extra water, creating a state of “hyperhydration.” This creates massive cellular swelling, which aside from improved performance, makes for some pretty sick “water-based” pumps as well. It is a little different to see this ingredient included in an amino product and that is one of the points that caught my eye and led me to claim it. We now move onto the ingredient Taurine, which is included at the one gram dose. Found in vast quantities in the brain, heart, and skeletal muscles, taurine is a semi conditional that provides multiple benefits to the hard-training athlete. First and foremost, taurine functions as a cell volumizer[1], encouraging your muscles to absorb extra water, which leads to improved hydration, stamina, and muscle fullness.[2] Since taurine is also present in the brain, it can enhance focus and reduce brain fatigue[3], helping you stay in the zone no matter how long you’re in the gym. For a little more information, check out this article: https://www.tigerfitness.com/articles/post/taurine-pre-workout-supplement We finish off the formula with 500mg of combined electrolytes (340mg potassium and 160mg sodium). Personally, I am a big fan of the potassium dosage as that is an electrolyte that myself and many others struggle to consume enough of. “Providing the counterpunch to sodium is potassium, the electrolyte that forms the other half of the electrical pump responsible for regulating electrolyte balance and neurotransmission.[2] Much like sodium, potassium is lost is vast quantities during intense exercise, setting you up for increased fatigue and cramping. Consuming sufficient potassium ensures sustained performance, mental clarity, and carbohydrate metabolism.” Our remaining ingredients are the fillers including flavoring, artificial sweeteners and stabilizers. A nice bonus is BREACH does not use any artificial colors, which are useless in my opinion. Each scoop of BREACH is 11.5 grams with 8.5 grams of that being the active ingredients; giving us a yield of ~74% “good” stuff with 26% being fillers. This is about average in my opinion when compared to similar products on the market. I would much rather see the ratio be at least 80% actives but I know companies need to make some sacrifices to achieve the desired flavor, mixability and stability of the product in the tub. If this product outperforms other amino acid products on the market, I can look past the lower than desired percentage of actives. After all, results matter!
—-Taste/Mixability/Dosing—-
Taste >> There are currently six flavors available for this product and I received the strawberry kiwi flavor as requested. Unlike some other amino acid products I have used, this flavor was not “punch you in the mouth” strong. When mixed with the recommended amount of water, it had a nice refreshing taste of both strawberry and kiwi (as you would expect from the flavor). There was also a slight undertone of coconut towards the end, likely because of the coconut water powder. Since the flavor was not too strong in the beginning, this was not an amino product that could be watered down multiple times like some others. Overall, I enjoyed it but wouldn’t mind if it was a little stronger so I could water it down at least once while still receiving some leftover flavor for my water. Mixability >>This is where the product struggled a little bit during my use and the amount of water used did not change this. I started with the recommended eight to ten ounces for one scoop and there would always be some debris left on the sides of my shaker cup. Then if left to sit, there would also be some product that would settle at the bottom. Not sure if it was the coconut water powder, the glycerol, some aminos or a combination of them all. I also increased the amount of water used a few times to see if that would improve mixability, but it did not. This issue was mainly solved with a quick shake in between sips. Dosing >> This product is billed as a one scoop product that can be taken any time of day. When BCAAs were first introduced to the market, much of the research showed their benefits when taking during training (intra-workout). That is how I used this product throughout the entire tub, except on a few occasions where I used it during other sports activities.
—-Effectiveness—-
After using the entire tub, the best way I can describe this supplement is solid. To me, it is an average BCAA/intra-workout product for those who do not use a carb based or stimulant containing intra. There was never a WOW moment while using this during my workouts, good or bad. As mentioned, the BCAA dosage is on the lower end when compared to some others on the market but that did not seem to affect my muscle soreness or recovery. I am not prone to cramping during my workouts and never did while using this product either. I enjoyed the peace of mind knowing I was getting in some extra electrolytes from each scoop along with the possible health benefits from the coconut water powder. I did not notice any significant change when it came to endurance during my workouts when compared to similar products or any cellular swelling from the Glycerol or Taurine. With no side effects experienced and a pleasant taste, this was a product that I looked forward to drinking during each workout and would be interested in trying the other flavors as well. The other times outside of the gym when I used this supplement was during rounds of golf. With being in the heat of summer, spending four plus hours outside in 90*+ heat can really zap my energy and performance on the course. That normally starts about half-way through my round (even sooner if I am not playing well LOL). Instead of my normal energy bar or sports drink, I would take a scoop of BREACH. This is where I believe the hydration aspects of this product were more beneficial. I would sweat much more and for longer when compared to my time spent in an air conditioned gym. One to two scoops of BREACH throughout the round kept my body feeling good, performing as it should and gave me the energy to finish the round without the need for stimulants.
—-Value—-
As with all Redcon1 products that I have seen and tried, prices can and will fluctuate across the web and your desired flavor may have an effect as well. Each tub includes 30 servings and I have seen tubs pop up on eBay for as low as $19.99 with free shipping. As of now, Amazon has the Watermelon flavor listed for just under $19 but the Tiger’s Blood for almost $35. This is a perfect example where shopping around will definitely benefit you with this product. IllPumpYouUp.com currently has four flavors listed on their site for $19.95. If you want the selection of all the available flavors for the same price, you will have to go to websites like Muscle and Strength or directly to the Redcon1 site. If purchased from their site, you can pay for your supplements using an interest free payment plan that will spread the cost out over eight weeks. RedCon1 also seems to run some great sales and promotions at least once per month, so be on the lookout for those. If you follow a website like PricePlow, they will always notify you when a promotion gets started.
—-Side Effects—-
I did not experience any negative side effects during my use of this product. The only issues I could foresee for others would be if you are allergic to coconut or you know your body does not react well to glycerol. There are no artificial colors included as well, which is always a positive in my book.
—-Conclusion—-
In the end, the decision to purchase this supplement is going to come down to price for me. Unless you are a person who really looks out for one or more of the added extras (ie: Coconut Water, Glycerol, Taurine), this would not be my top recommendation but still an option. As I mentioned in the effectiveness section, there was never a WOW moment while using this that would move BREACH to the top of my list. I know that may be an odd statement to make for a BCAA/intra-workout product but we supplement junkies can always hope, right? It has a transparent label, good flavor, no issues with the powder itself, no side effects and can possibly be found at a reasonable price plus no artificial colors! In school, BREACH would pass the test but it is not on the honor roll. Once again, thank you to [b]RedCon1[/b] for being a part of SR.com and sending this product out to me. [b]Thank you for reading my review and let me know if you have any questions.[/b]
Cray –
EYE OF THE TIGER BLOOOOOOD
—-Quick Summary—-
A quality BCAA with a robust support profile at an excellent price point. Can’t go wrong this option.
—-Introduction—-
As I’ve written in other reviews, I’m a fan of consistently supplementing BCAAs for overall health and recovery. I try to ensure I’m ingesting 5-10g of BCAAs every morning during my fasted window, regardless of whether I work out or not. I prefer simpler BCAA products that are not prop-blend complexes but do include hydration support. Breach checked all those boxes and already had some really positive reviews, so I opted in for a tub.
—-Ingredient Profile—-
For most of my BCAA supplements, I am primarily concerned with the actual dosing of BCAAs. 5g of essential BCAAs per serving has been clinically proven to be the minimum effective dose for an average-sized human. Breach includes that standard 5g at a 2:1:1 ratio. I personally don’t have a preference when it comes to BCAA ratio, so long as the profile includes at least 1g each of isoleucine and valine. I’m happy with 5g, but I wouldn’t mind a slightly higher dose. VMI’s Aminogex is a very similar product and includes 7g per scoop. Breach also includes a solid dose of the electrolytes potassium and sodium, as well as 1g each of Taurine and Coconut Water Powder. A good, disclosed profile that’s not too flashy but effectively hits all the targets.
—-Taste/Mixability/Dosing—-
I requested and received the Tiger Blood flavor, which I very much enjoyed. It tasted like a mix of coconut with a tropical citrus punch. Very different from anything else I’ve ever tried, but delicious none the less. I generally dosed one scoop per day in 32 oz. ice water and sipped either preworkout or throughout the morning. Mixability was not a problem. No clumping or foaming at all.
—-Effectiveness—-
I personally can’t tell the difference between most BCAA products. I do notice a difference in my general recovery and the amount of DOMS I experience when I’m taking a BCAA versus when I’m not, but not usually between individual supplements. I’d rate Breach as slightly above average compared to with most other intraworkout products I’ve reviewed recently as it provided solid recovery, good intra-workout support, and decreased DOMS. I will say the hydration support in this product noticeably battled fatigue and kept me going strong well into my workouts, while also making sure I wasn’t too beat up the following day. I’ve had a nice run of quality BCAA products that have kept my DOMS low despite me getting into the gym 4-5 times a week, and Breach kept that streak alive.
—-Value—-
Most solid BCAA supplements will cost you around .80c per serving. Some of the flashier products with broader ingredient profiles will run you closer to $1.00 per scoop. The price of Breach is all over the place, but I’ll Pump You Up currently has it for just under $20. That’s a steal! At only .66c per serving, Breach is one of the more affordable products I’ve seen on the market lately. Combined with the fact you’re getting a solid, well-dosed product that tastes great means this product earns a high Value rating from me.
—-Side Effects—-
None.
—-Conclusion—-
Breach was my first experience with RedCon1 as a brand, and I was absolutely impressed. I look forward to trying more of their products and would absolutely recommend Breach as a quality intra-workout BCAA supplement.