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Review of Amino Vital energy product
In the last couple of years, the market for energy drinks, bars, gels, tablets and powders has become incredibly watered down, to say the least. Where there once was only a drink invented by students trying to help the University of Florida Gators football team (hence the name Gatorade), there are now dozens of alternatives out there, all claiming to give you the nutrients and elements needed to keep you pedalling.
Amino Vital is a relatively new product to North America, but it is making huge strides thanks to aggressive marketing and more importantly, the fact it’s a solid product that lives up to its hype.
The product was invented in Japan and, under the corporate name Ajinomoto, was a huge seller in Asia. For years professional baseball teams there used the branched-chain amino acids (BCAA) drink to keep themselves hydrated and recovering properly. It’s hard to say exactly when or how Amino Vital first made its way into North America, but the common thought is that Japanese ball players on teams such as the Seattle Mariners brought it with them and shared it with their teammates.
In 2004, Ajinomoto USA was formed, and began to import the product into the US. Since then, the company has landed some huge sponsorship deals, including the role of official product supplier of the 2006 and 2008 US Olympic and Paralympic teams. In Canada, Amino Vital started making an appearance in 2005, and earlier this year it was picked up by the massive cycling distributor Cycles Lambert, making it easily available to everyone across the country.
So, what makes this stuff so different? Basically it’s all about science. There are 20 amino acids which serve as the building blocks for your body’s muscles and organs. According to Ajinomoto, “Scientists have learned that three linked essential amino acids—leucine, isoleucine and valine, called Branched—Chain Amino Acids serve as a critical source of muscle energy as well as nutrition for muscle repair.”
So, essentially, Amino Vital resupplies your body with the needed BCAAs that provide both short-term energy and long-term endurance and muscle-recovery.
Now with all that said, my chance to really try out the Amino Vital line of products came during the Summer Solstice 24-hour race in June. I had tried some of the drink on a few occasions during races last year where they were sponsor, but the 24-hour race was the first chance for myself and the rest of my 5-man team to really test the stuff out. We had at our disposal an unlimited supply of the Amino Vital drink, fast charge packets and fit bars in a chocolate peanut flavour.
The good
Put simply, this stuff works. Over the course of two days of riding, the entire team found that drinking the Amino Vital before and after our laps helped us feel more energized, reduced cramping and made recovery easier.
But there are other products on the market that do similar things. The difference is that Amino Vital actually tastes good. It has something of a lemon-grapefruit flavour that is easy on the tastebuds and the stomach. Remarkably, we also found the drink still tasted good even if it wasn’t terribly cold. Put it in a water bottle and while your regular water might taste like bathwater, the Amino Vital somehow keeps a cool flavour to it.
The fast charge packets are a powder version of the drink meant to be taken as a quick shot. It tastes similar to the old powdered candy you may have eaten as a kid and while it worked well, I still prefer something like a PowerGel.
As for the bars, I was thoroughly impressed. They have a texture similar to that of a Rice Krispy square with some chocolate mixed in. They have 190 calories with 1,000mg of amino acids, yet only two grams of sugar.
The bad
As is usually the case with this type of product, you get what you pay for. And if you want something as good-tasting and advanced as the Amino Vital line, you’re going to pay for it.
The smaller fast charge packets are around $2 each, the bars are around $3 each and the drink mix is around $1.60 per serving – depending on the size of course. Those prices aren’t THAT bad, but in general I feel like most of these energy/nutrient products are overpriced. Unfortunately that’s what the market is willing to pay for them, so that’s what they cost.
The other thing worth noting is when you mix up the Amino Vital you need to be sure you mix it well. The amino acids tend to float on the water (which looks rather nasty), so you need to shake it extremely well to get everything mixed properly and tasting good.
Summary
I’m sold. I’ve tried many, many different drink and supplement options and I’m now an Amino Vital diehard. I find the stuff tastes and works better than most of what is on the market. If you haven’t tried it yourself, give it a chance. It’s not as readily available as some of the other products out there, but now that Cycles Lambert is on board in Canada, it should really take off.
Manufacturer’s website: www.amino-vital.com
1. Posted by MarvinK | 5:31 pm, 24 July 2006
This is definitely the best tasting energy drink I’ve ever had. I’m not sure it works as well for during-ride endurance as it does for recovery. Accelerade tastes awful, but on an endurance ride I definitely thought it worked better at keeping me going–but Amino-Vital tastes good and does a great job for recovery.
LuckyVitamin.com has the best prices I’ve found… $17 for 480g.