The keto diet is great for fat loss. By cutting carbs from your diet, you all-but force your body to use fat for fuel. But, while that’s good news for fat loss, it can be a problem if you are an avid exerciser. Under normal circumstances, your body likes to use glucose for energy during exercise. Without dietary carbs, there is no glucose, and that means some exercisers find that they don’t have as much energy as usual.
Exercisers who find themselves low in energy often turn to pre-workout supplements to give themselves a boost (from women, beginners, and even vegans). Unfortunately, many of these popular powders and drinks contain glucose and other sugars. Yes, they’ll provide you with energy, but they’ll also kick you out of fat-burning ketosis.
The good news is that supplement manufacturers have realized that keto dieters need pre-workout supplements too. These products will give you the energy you exercise as long or as hard as you want while preserving ketosis.
Top 5 Keto Pre-Workouts
Perfect Keto make a wide range of keto-friendly nutrition supplements, from exogenous ketones to MCT oils and powders. This keto sports drink and pre-workout supplement has been designed to help you power through even the toughest workout and contains no carbs, sugar, starches, or fillers.
Key Features
- Contains ketones and MCTs for instant energy
- A source of caffeine for increased energy and mental focus
- Contains branched-chain amino acids to preserve muscle mass and speed up recovery
- Increases blood flow for increased energy, endurance, and performance
- Contains creatine – a well-researched exercise performance enhancer
- Only 50 calories per serving
- Sugar and carb-free
Perfect Keto Perform pre-workout supplement contains everything you need for a good workout. Loaded with proven performance boosters like MCTs, creatine, BCAAs, and caffeine, Keto Perform will increase energy while preserving and even deepening ketosis.
Pros
- Easy to use
- Proven ingredients
- Refreshing taste
- Mixes easily with water
- Keto-friendly
- Cost-effective alternative to buying lots of supplements separately
Cons
- Caffeine content may be problematic for some users and could interfere with sleep if taken at night
- MCT and exogenous ketones may cause stomach upsets in sensitive individuals
- Only 15 servings per container
Perfect Keto Perform pre-workout supplement is a good choice for exercisers who want an easy-to-use, all-in-one pre-workout powder.
Free from sugar and a good source of several keto-friendly performance enhancers, this product from Perfect Keto could be the key to getting a great workout on the low-carb ketogenic diet.
2. Kinobody Octane
Kinobody Octane is a calorie and carb-free pre-workout supplement ideal for keto dieters. It’s designed to not only increase your energy but also boost your recovery by replacing the electrolytes lost when you sweat. Available in six flavors, Octane contains three special ingredient blends to maximize workout performance.
Key Features
- Three ingredient blends boost your workout performance in three different ways
- Increases energy and speeds up recovery
- Boosts strength gains
- Reduces the effect of metabolic stress
- Improves stamina and endurance
- Increases mental focus and concentration
Kinobody Octane is more than just a pre-workout; it’s a sports drink too. While consuming it before a workout will undoubtedly increase strength and endurance, the presence of electrolytes means that your workout performance won’t drop off as you sweat. Octane contains three unique ingredient blends:
- Metabolic acceleration blend (thiamine (vit. B1), citrulline, biotin (vit. B7), and Siberian ginseng
- Neural alignment blend (caffeine and l-theanine)
- Electrolyte primer blend (sodium and potassium)
Pros
- Fast-acting
- Easy to use
- Proven, quality, natural ingredients
- Six great flavors: grape, lemonade, orange, watermelon, strawberry margarita, and Kino Colada
- Sugar, carb, and calorie-free
- Boosts mental and physical performance in three different ways
Cons
- Only 21 servings per container
- High caffeine content may leave some users jittery or unable to sleep
- Does not contain keto-active ingredients like MCTs or exogenous ketones and will not enhance ketosis
If you need a workout boost but aren’t concerned with increasing ketosis or treating symptoms of the keto flu, Octane by Kinobody can help. Its high electrolyte content makes it ideal for use both before and during intense workouts, and the three-ingredient blends work to boost energy in three different ways.
3. Sheer Strength
Sheer Strength Keto Pre-Workout is a watermelon-flavored supplement designed to boost both energy and ketosis. It’s all but calorie and carb-free and contains exogenous ketones to increase strength, stamina, and mental clarity while accelerating your metabolism for faster fat burning.
Key Features
- Contains BHB keto salts for energy
- Boosts circulation for more energy and endurance
- Supports weight loss through ketosis
- Contains natural colors, flavors, and carb/sugar-free sweeteners
As well as containing ketones, Sheer Strength Keto Pre-Workout also contains beta-alanine, a non-essential amino acid thought to reduce lactic acid production. It also contains beetroot power, which increases nitric oxide levels and opens up blood vessels for better circulation and less fatigue.
Keto Pre-Workout also contains caffeine, a well-known energy booster, and fat burner.
Pros
- Easy to mix and use
- Suitable for use before and during workouts
- Sugar and carb-free so won’t disrupt ketosis
- Proven energy-boosting ingredients including exogenous ketones and caffeine
- Comes with a 60-day money-back guarantee
Cons
- Some users did not like the taste
- Only one flavor available
- High caffeine content may leave some users agitated or unable to sleep
- BHB salts may cause temporary stomach issues in sensitive individuals
High in exogenous ketones and caffeine, as well as lactic-acid buffering and blood flow boosting ingredients, Sheer Strength Keto Pre-Workout should provide you with everything you need for a good exercise session.
With less than one gram of carbs per serving, Keto Pre-Workout is very low-carb and keto diet-friendly.
4. BPI Sports
According to manufacturers BPI, Best Ketogenic Pre-Workout was the first pre-workout supplement designed specifically for ketogenic dieters and exercisers. It contains exogenous ketones and caffeine to give you the boost you need before hitting the gym or heading out for a run.
Key Features
- Contains BHB exogenous ketones for energy and fat burning
- Contains medium-chain triglycerides to enhance natural ketone production
- Provides 250 grams of caffeine per serving for increased energy and better mental performance
- Boosts endurance for longer, more productive workouts
- Encourages faster fat loss through deeper ketosis
Whether BPI Best Ketogenic Pre-Workout was the first pre-workout supplement designed for ketogenic dieters is up for debate, but there is no denying that the ingredients are tried, tested, and proven to boost energy. It also contains CDP-choline which, working alongside the caffeine, helps sharpen your mind as well as energizing your body.
Pros
- Proven, high-quality energy-boosting ingredients
- Designed to be keto diet-friendly
- Available in four flavors – apple pear, blue lemon ice, tropical freeze, and watermelon ice
- Only 40 calories per serving – all from MCTs
- Free from sugar and carbs
- Easy to use, blends with plain water
- High caffeine content will wake you up and give you energy even if you feel very tired
Cons
- High caffeine content may leave some users jittery, anxious, or unable to sleep
- Ingredients are listed as a “proprietary blend” which means it’s unclear how much of the active ingredients are in the product
- MCTs and exogenous ketones may cause stomach upsets in some users
- Contains milk ingredients which may mean it is unsuitable for people with lactose intolerance
BPI Best Ketogenic Pre-Workout contains MCTs, exogenous ketones, and caffeine – everything you need for an effective, keto-friendly, energy boost. A well-reviewed and popular product, BPI specializes in making keto diet nutritional supplements, and this product should not disappoint.
5. C4 Cellucor
Cellucor C4 Original is a sugar and carb-free pre-workout energy booster suitable for keto dieters. It contains several proven ingredients designed to increase both mental and physical performance. While it doesn’t contain any staple ketogenic ingredients, namely exogenous ketones or MCTs, it is still compatible with the ketogenic diet.
Key Features
- Contains vitamins, minerals, amino acids, creatine, and caffeine for mental and physical energy
- Calorie, carb, and sugar-free
- 30-day money-back guarantee
- Increases blood flow for greater endurance
- Boosts strength and mental focus
Cellucor has been making pre-workout supplements since 2010. They produce several different products, and C4 original is their most popular. It’s not as strong as some, containing only moderate amounts of caffeine per serving.
Because of this, it should be well tolerated if you are new to using pre-workout supplements. However, if you have used pre-workouts before, you may wish to try Cellucor C4 Ultimate or C4 Extreme, both of which provide double the energizing caffeine per serving.
Pros
- Boosts energy without disrupting ketosis
- One of five different pre-workout formulas by Cellucor
- Available in nine great flavors
- East to mix and use
- Widely available, well-reviewed, and a very popular product
Cons
- Caffeine content may be too high for sensitive users and could lead to disrupted sleep if used at night
- Contains artificial sweeteners sucralose and acesulfame potassium
- No keto-specific ingredients such as MCTs or exogenous ketones
C4 Original by Cellucor is not explicitly made for keto dieters, but that doesn’t mean keto dieters can’t use it. Containing no sugar or carbs, it is entirely keto-friendly and will give you a great calorie-free performance boost.
A popular pre-workout product, C4 Original will provide you with the energy you need for even the toughest workout.
Bottom Line
Going low-carb and keto can leave some dieters feeling flat, listless, and lacking energy for exercise. That’s a problem because exercise will enhance virtually every aspect of the ketogenic diet, from entering ketosis sooner to losing fat faster.
Pre-workout supplements can provide you with the mental and physical energy you need to power through your workouts. Some achieve this by increasing ketone levels with exogenous ketones or MCTs, while others boost your energy with caffeine, nitric acid, and other performance-enhancing ingredients.
If you are sensitive to the effects of caffeine or intend to exercise late in the afternoon or evening, high caffeine pre-workout supplements are not recommended. Too much caffeine at this time could keep you awake at night.
In contrast, pre-workouts that contain exogenous ketones and MCTs can help get you into ketosis after and may even help you beat the keto flu. On the downside, these ingredients can cause stomach upsets in some users.
Before you buy your keto-friendly pre-workout supplement, take a moment to check how it works so you can choose the right one for you. Armed with the best keto pre-workout, you can say goodbye to feeling too tired to exercise, and hello to more endurance, increased energy.
