The Supplement

SizeOn Pre-Contest by Gaspari

SizeOn from Gaspari Nutrition has been around for quite awhile as one of the few intra workout (drink while you workout) supplements on the market, but now that product category has become more popular with products from competing companies like BSN (Volumaize) and MuscleTech (IntraVol).  SizeOn has redone their original formula and it's now available as two separate products - Pre-Contest and Maximum Performance.  Pre-contest, which is the product I'm reviewing, is the low carb/trying-to-diet formula while Maximum Performance is for those looking to bulk up a bit as it contains more calories and carbs.  To sum up SizeOn, it's an amino acid product on steroids.

The Claims

• Promotes Maximal Muscle Volume
• Accelerates Protein Synthesis
• Initiate & Sustain Myogenesis and Muscle Recovery While You Are Still Training

The Nutritional Facts

My Opinion

In three words: "I love it."  First off, it tastes great.  I had the fruit punch flavor and loved drinking it while working out.  It had kind of a dull taste to it, but for a supplement, I thought it tasted great.  More importantly, it has an awesome ingredient profile.  It mainly consists of:

1. Protein Synthesis Acceleration Matrix - fancy name for amino acids
2. OsmoDrive Advanced Hydration Complex - ingredients to help keep you hydrated which helps with cramping.  L-Taurine and Sustamine^TM (L-Alanyl-L-Glutamine) to name a few.
3. PhophoDrive Endurance Complex - different mixtures of creatine to help keep you going

Beyond those 3 compounds, SizeOn also contains various vitamins and minerals, as seen above in the nutritional facts, while having only 2g of carbs per serving, which is great if you're taking it while trying to lose weight or preparing for a show.

Each bottle contains 24 servings which is exactly enough to last one month if you work out once a day, six days a week.  You can take it during cardiovascular activity, but I'd recommend just taking it during weight training.  The way I look at it, this keeps your body in an anabolic state and helps assist with growth and recovery before your post workout nutrition (carbs and protein). 

Since it's meant to be a month's supply, it's a little more on the pricey side since I got it for about $45 on bodybuilding.com.  That's more than $1/day for this product and I'm not sure it's fully worth it unless your training really depletes your body and you need every edge you can (naturally) get. 

If you're the type that likes to lift weights and then follow it up cardio, I highly recommend an amino acid supplement of some sort and SizeOn PreContest is the Cadillac of amino acid supplements.

Does It Live Up to Its Claims?

While taking SizeOn, I could notice a difference in my recovery time and in my strength.  I was able to lift the same heavy weights I was lifting, only I was on a reduced calorie diet while taking SizeOn Pre-Contest.  I usually drink water while lifting, but the added creatine, vitamins, minerals, and amino acids did seem to help keep me going while working out on less calories.

As usual, I don't do any actual scientific studies when determining if it truly lives up to its claims, but the claims I listed above, it does live up to.  SizeOn contains protein and amino acids which do assist in protein synthesis, which ultimately helps with muscle recovery and since you take it while you train, the process begins in the weight room instead of afterwards.  The combined ingredients also help to assist in muscle volume and amino acid levels as the creatine helps to push water into the muscle cells, therefore creating more volume.

My Rating

• 4.5 out of 5 (or 9/10 on a 10 point scale)

Since it's higher in price, I took off 0.5 from the score since I think that'd detract a lot of people from buying it.  I'm a believer that you get what you paid for and this product fits that mold.  Supplement costs already stack up after you buy the basics (protein powder(s) and vitamins) so this would be a luxury product on my wallet, but I don't think you'd be disappointed in trying it out.

Similar Supplements

• Volumaize by BSN
• IntraVol by MuscleTech
• Power Shock by VPX

Quick Review

*I only rate flavors I've tried

If you've tried SizeOn PreContest, let me and anyone else who reads this know and leave a comment below!