5 Best Pre-Workouts Without Caffeine (Incredibly Effective)

Half of the Pre-Workouts I tried did not work, some of them worked but gave me a big crash later, and many others were full of dubious additives and addictive stimulants. But man, is it satisfying when you strike upon one that is naturally effective and won’t make you crash later?

Most people think the last repetition of their set is the hardest one. However, the first repetition is harder for most people because they lack the determination to even begin their workout regimen. They may feel tired, lazy, or sluggish from their jobs or school and just won’t want to hit the gym.

For athletes, they use pre-workout energy powders to get around this hurdle.

Unleash the power, focus, and performance and bring a whole new intensity into your training with these 4 pre-workout powders that most women don’t know about.

a woman doing pull-ups

Before starting your workout, you prepare yourself so that the exercise goes well.

You wear appropriate gym gear, you make sure that your footwear is right for the job and firmly fastened, you probably make sure that you have a motivating playlist to listen to and there should always be a bottle of water to take care of your hydration needs.

But what about making sure that your mind and metabolism are ready for the activity that it is going to face?

What do you do about that?

The chances are that, like most women, you do absolutely nothing – but why not?

When you pay so much for a gym membership, shouldn’t you get the best out of it, and get the best out of yourself?

What Does A Good Pre-Workout Supplement Do For You?

When you’re looking to get in shape, nothing is worse than not having the physical or mental energy required to workout.

When your training sessions are going well, you’ll feel great, and you’ll find yourself continually making improvements with each session. When your training sessions are lacking; however, you’ll find yourself wondering if it’s really worth it.

A lack of energy not only hinders your athletic performance but also affects you mentally.

This, in turn, means that you’ll struggle to get motivated. Needless to say, a lack of motivation and a lack of energy will not give you the results you were looking for. This is where pre-workout supplements prove very useful.

A good pre-workout supplement will do the following 5 things:

Helps To Burn Fat

It is easier for women to gain weight than it is for men. Women also have a tougher time losing weight too.

But for anyone, weight loss depends on burning calories.

If you want to increase the effectiveness and results of your workouts, then you need to take pre-workout supplements before each one.

This will give you more energy to perform longer workouts and even additional workouts. This is how you burn calories quickly, especially if you’re a woman.

Increases Your Metabolism

Food isn’t everything when it comes to boosting your metabolism and increasing energy. The way your body absorbs the fuel you put inside of it matters too.

Every woman has a different metabolic rate. If you’re a woman with a slow metabolism, then burning calories takes a much longer time. Not only that, but building muscle takes longer too.

On the other hand, if you’re a woman with a fast metabolism, then building muscle and burning calories happens faster.

Either way, a good pre-workout supplement can increase your metabolic rate so that it burns more calories and accelerates muscle-building during intense physical activities or workouts.

Improves Focus And Concentration

A man or woman can strengthen their level of concentration by taking pre-workout supplements.

It is important to concentrate when you’re working out or exercising, especially if you’re doing complicated or risky workouts. If you don’t concentrate during a workout and then move the wrong way or lose your balance, then it could result in a serious injury.

After you’re done working out, you will still benefit from having better focus. Athletes tend to have trouble with their focusing abilities after playing a tough game or doing a strenuous workout.

By taking pre-workout supplements, their effects will last you well beyond the physical activities that you perform.

Relieves Muscle Soreness

Once people find the willpower to begin a new exercise regimen and start their first workout, they feel happy and proud of themselves. Unfortunately, they have trouble starting their second workout because they’re still sore from their first workout.

When you feel soreness in your muscles, your muscle tissue has suffered microscopic damage from your workout.

What you’ll want to do is reduce the soreness by supplying your muscles with readily available nutrients. That way, the damaged muscle tissues can be repaired and rebuilt.

My selection of the top 5 pre-workout supplements below is found to relieve and minimize muscle soreness. Your muscles will recover faster if you take this supplement. Then you won’t feel so much soreness, and it won’t be long before your muscle strength is fully restored.

Gives You More Energy

You need the energy to perform a good workout, burn fat, and see visible gains. Energy lets you perform your workouts more consistently and intensely. Women who take pre-workout supplements can boost their strength, endurance, and stamina in order to perform strenuous exercises and receive better results.

Let’s look at the effects of pre-workout supplements with stimulants and caffeine and why stim-free might be a better option to choose from.

Difference Between Stim And Stim-Free Pre-Workout

Pre-workout supplements are loaded full of stimulants, with caffeine being the primary ingredient in most of them. This hefty dose of caffeine in them can be anything up to 200-400 mg per portion, which is equivalent to 4-5 Red Bull energy drinks.

Apart from giving the jitters to many women, such a dose can keep you awake at night, particularly if your workouts happen in the evening.

Insomnia And Sleep

Pre workout effects on sleep

Sleep is vitally important for many physiological processes internally. It also makes us feel better and more energized the next day. If you lack sleep, the last thing you want to do is go and work out.

Pre-workout supplements containing caffeine are so powerful that they can cause anxiety and negatively impact your sleeping patterns, even if you consume them early on in the day.

The supplements I have chosen below are caffeine-free, which means that you needn’t worry about insomnia and disrupted sleeping patterns. You get the benefits of physical and psychological energy boosts without having to worry about tossing and turning all night because you’re still wired from the caffeine.

Crash And Comedowns

Pre workout crash

Another negative effect of pre-workout supplements is that they also provide pretty nasty comedowns, or crashes, a few hours after consuming them.

These crashes make you feel horrendous because you feel tired and lethargic, yet still wired and wide awake. It’s a similar effect to a sugar crash after experiencing a sugar ‘high,’ and it isn’t very pleasant at all.

Sure, once the stimulants are flowing through your body, you’ll feel energized and amped up, and ready to take on the world. You’ll crush your workout, but a few hours later, you’ll feel exhausted, foggy-headed, and won’t want to do anything other than sit down.

These 4 Stimulant Free Pre-Workouts below, however, do not provide any nasty energy crashes or comedowns, so you feel awesome when using them, and you feel awesome after having used them.

Shakes And Jitters

woman shaking after taking caffeine

When some women consume pre-workout supplements, because of the caffeine, they get the shakes and begin to shake and jitter, almost uncontrollably. This is because the caffeine content of these products is so incredibly high. Not only do you feel shaky and jittery, but you also feel slightly anxious and on edge.

Again, this doesn’t really sound too pleasant, does it? That’s because stimulants can be bad news, and if consumed in large doses, they can make life unpleasant.

My tried and tested Stim-free pre-workouts below, however, allow you to enjoy increased physical and psychological energy levels, without experiencing any shaking or feelings of anxiousness.

Avoid Caffeine Tolerance Build-Up

Have you ever wondered why some people can consume multiple cups of coffee fairly late on in the day, and still get a good night’s sleep, whereas others have one cup of coffee early in the day and they feel wide awake when they go to bed? It’s because some people’s bodies tolerate caffeine better than others.

The body has an incredible knack for adapting to things. The more caffeine you consume, the more tolerant of its stimulant effects the body becomes. This is bad news because your brain craves the caffeine’s stimulating effects, so to get those effects, you need to consume more and more caffeine as your caffeine tolerance increases.

Too much caffeine can potentially be fatal, so caffeine tolerance is the last thing you want. This is why some women start adding 2, 3, or even 4 scoops of pre-workout powder to their shaker bottles, or they sometimes combine it with caffeine-laden energy drinks.

Again, this is so dangerous. Caffeine-free supplements mean that you avoid caffeine tolerance build-ups, so you needn’t worry about getting more and more caffeine just so that you can get your “fix.”

Caffeine Withdrawal Symptoms

 A woman feeling tired and drowsy.

Caffeine is addictive. We just looked at how your brain craves the stimulating effects of caffeine, and we just looked at why increasing your caffeine intake is dangerous. If you resist the urge to consume caffeine; however, your brain craves it more, and you experience mild withdrawal symptoms.

Just as addicts suffer from withdrawal symptoms if they can’t get their fix, you will experience dialed-down symptoms if you don’t consume caffeine.

Common symptoms associated with caffeine withdrawal include:

  • Lethargy
  • Perspiring 
  • Headaches 
  • Irritability 
  • Stomach discomfort 
  • Shaking 
  • Heart palpitations 
  • Increased blood pressure 
  • Brain fog

It sounds incredible that a simple fitness supplement designed to help improve your health and fitness could cause all of the above, but caffeine is a very powerful stimulant.

Another key benefit of using stimulant-free supplements is that you do not suffer from any withdrawal symptoms, no matter how long you go between servings.

The benefits of this are as clear as day. Basically, you get to enjoy more energy in the gym, greater levels of motivation and focus, and no nasty withdrawal symptoms afterward. It’s literally a win-win situation.

Other Pre-Workout Supplement Dangers

The dangerous side effect of pre-workout supplements

Diarrhea is an unpleasant side effect associated with several pre-workout supplements full of stimulants. Look for ingredients such as DMAA, sodium bicarbonate, caffeine, arginine, and any artificial flavors and coloring and avoid them if possible.

Dehydration is also possible when using supplements with a heavy dose of caffeine. As well as making you feel woozy, dehydration can cause headaches, which are not great when you want to make your body work better!

So, if you want to help your body make the best of your exercise session, avoid the things that might make you feel bad or outright dangerous.

Look for supplements that give your metabolism and mind a healthy boost.

One of the best mind and metabolism boosters is Genius Pre. This nootropic-based pre-workout supplement can drastically increase your metabolic rate while boosting your focus and concentration without dehydration, headaches, jitters, diarrhea, or other nasty side effects.

As a rule, when using pre-workout supplements, you will be best off if you avoid supplements that contain any strong stimulants; just stick to the basics of boosting your energy and metabolism naturally.

Finding An Effective And Safe Supplements Wasn’t Easy

A woman looking for caffeine free pre-workout

Finding an effective supplement is a lot harder than you think. Big claims are hardly true, and quite often, you have to deal with a lot of let-downs before you actually find the one that works.

It is even harder when you are looking for a stimulant-free pre-workout as most of them are loaded with caffeine and other stimulants that can do more harm than good.

The good news is that stimulant-free pre-workout supplements DO EXIST.

The bad news is that most of these, which are made exclusively for women, are very weak or not effective at all. To find a stimulant-free pre-workout that works and actually delivers on its promise, I had to do a lot of research, talk to many top female athletes, and personal trainers, read hundreds of reviews, and try out the ones that were predominantly marketed for men.

So, below, you will find 5 top stimulant-free pre-workout powders out of 17, which I have also tried and tested myself.

These 5 that made the final list are really effective and also come with some great reviews and recommendations from many women. Don’t be put off by words like muscle pump, cell volumizing, muscle hypertrophy, and power & size. These pre-workouts are great for women and will help you to achieve that lean, feminine figure you have always wanted.

These 4 hand-picked pre-workout supplements below are designed to boost your energy levels and help you get in the zone and get mentally fired up for training.

4 Best Stimulant-Free Pre-Workout Supplements That Are Great For Women

Best stim free pre workout

These tried and tested pre-workouts below are a surefire way for great gym-smashing results with noticeable mental focus, accelerated weight loss, and female muscle pump but still remaining womanly, sexy, and feminine.

Best choice of pre-workout

1. Genius Pre Workout Powder – All Natural Caffeine Free With Nootropics 

 This caffeine-free pre-workout supplement is a strong winner. It is the most popular one among women in the fitness industry and also my personal top pick.

Genius Pre is the first-of-its-kind pre-workout that is clinically dosed and nootropic-based. The formula is based on clinically backed key performance enhancers, including doses of nutrients for the brain to create a powerful mind-to-muscle connection with absolutely no caffeine.


Genius Energy & Focus Bundle - Extended-Release Caffeine Pills & Blue Raspberry Pre-Workout - Natural Nootropic Brain Boost & Sustained Performance Stack
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Genius Pre Workout Powder, Blue Razz, and Genius Micronized Creatine Monohydrate Powder, Unflavored, All Natural Nootropic Pre Workout and Post Workout Supplement Stack
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Genius Pre-Workout Key Facts 

  1. Free of a proprietary blend.
  2. Free of caffeine.
  3. Free of banned substances.
  4. Full of powerful patented ingredients.
  5. First nootropic-based pre-workout.
  6. Clinically-backed doses.

Why SHOULD WOMEN Choose Genius Pre-Workout Powder?

Getting the most out of your workout begins before even working out, with a great pre-workout. The Genius pre-workout powder comes backed with the Genius Promise; it contains absolutely no dyes, artificial flavors, artificial sweeteners, or unnecessary fillers.

The product is a clean and pure sports supplement; nothing more, nothing less. The ingredients and dosage of the supplement have been clinically proven to offer real benefits.

What’s Inside Genius Pre-Sports Supplement?

  • Citrus Malate; is a precursor of nitric oxide that has been linked to improved blood flow and endurance. 
  • Betaine; is associated with increased focus and power output.
  • L-tyrosine; can help increase your focus and reduce the negative effects of workouts.
  • L-arginine; is another precursor for nitric oxide.
  • Alpha-GPC; is shown to help and improve cognition, power output, and production of Human Growth Hormone.
  • Taurine; promotes focus and improves recovery times.
  • HICA; can promote lean muscle mass, but the evidence to support this is weak.
  • Rhodiola Rosea; reduces exhaustion and can boost cognition.
  • ElevATP; boosts adenosine triphosphate, which in turn increases power.
  • Theobromine; works as a vasodilator and improves heart rate.
  • AstraGin; improves the absorption rate of all the other ingredients.
  • Toothed clubmoss; improves focus.

How Does it Help Your Workout?

A combination of ingredients is combined in clinically effective doses to deliver the results any good pre-workout does. Improving power and strength output, enhancing levels of nitric oxide, boosting an effective nutrient flow throughout your body, preventing tiredness, and increasing your body’s cell communication.

How Does Genius Pre-Workout Stack Up to Other Pre-Workouts?

One of the first things you’ll notice about the Genius Pre-Workout is that this one is completely caffeine-free. It is powered by patented performance-boosting ingredients like AlphaSize, CarnoSyn, and ElevATP, all of which are manufactured with very strict quality control in place.

The ingredients are clean and pure and the best of their kind for what they do. CarnoSyn, for example, is the purest form of beta-alanine that can be found.

AlphaSize AlphaSize works to optimize the power of your muscles, improve agility, and prevent mental fatigue from creating a true connection between mind and body.

ElevATP This ingredient supports the growth of lean muscle and strength and boosts body composition and athletic performance.

CarnoSyn decreases the muscle burn of intense workouts and helps to prevent muscle fatigue. It lets you work out harder for longer.

AstraGin The other patented ingredients of Genius Pre are combined with AstraGin, which itself supports the absorption of vitamins, minerals, and amino acids. It ensures that all the other ingredients are absorbed and utilized properly in your body.

Ingredients in many other pre-workout supplements are hidden behind what is called ‘Proprietary Blends.’ This is because these supplements are mostly filled with caffeine and other very cheap and shady stimulants.

They also use performance enhancers that are often under-dosed. Genius Pre-Workout contains no caffeine at all and is filled with clinical amounts of important ingredients.

When taking Genius Pre, you can feel that the product was made with no corners cut or shortcuts taken.

2. KetoCaNa BHB Exogenous Ketone Stimulant-Free Pre-Workout Supplement

People who know me are probably surprised to find this pre-workout as my second choice since I am not a big fan of the keto diet. However, KetoCaNa is a great supplement, and it DOES WORK!

It provides 11.7g of Beta-Hydroxybutyrate (a ketone body) for each serving. There is a slight strawberry/lemonade flavor to make the supplement taste better. Each bottle has 32 servings and no artificial colors, sweeteners, and flavors. 

If you need to lower your carbohydrate consumption while boosting your energy, then KetoCaNa will be great for you to take.

One highly efficient superfuel is ketones, which energize your brain and muscles. When calculated for each unit of oxygen, ketones produce more energy than fat, carbohydrates, or protein. If you were to consume this ketone supplement, your body wouldn’t need so much oxygen. You’d also have better physical and mental performance.

Here is my little secret, you can boost your energy even more by consuming carbohydrates and taking this supplement together. Suppose you’re trying a ketogenic diet and need to feel more energized and less sluggish. In that case, KetoCaNa could be the right choice for you.


KetoSports New KetoCaNa GO (Fruit Punch) Single Serve Dietary Ketone Supplement for Physical and Mental Performance, Keto and Paleo-Friendly, Naturally Sweetened and Flavored 16 Stick Packs
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Key features include:

  • Pure Ketones
  • No Stimulants
  • Paleo and keto-friendly
  • Lactose-Free
  • NO Animal byproducts
  • Gluten-Free
  • NO Preservatives
  • Improves focus,
  • Increases mental performance,
  • Helps to control appetite
  • Supports weight loss,
  • Boosts energy
  • Improves athletic performance
  • Increases the levels of blood ketones

KetoSports was the first brand to create an energy-boosting ketone supplement. This pre-workout supplement supports low-carbohydrate diets, such as ketogenic diets. It helps you sustain your athletic performance and gives you the advantage of getting your energy from ketones instead of glucose.

3. AllMax Nutrition HVOL Stimulant-Free Pre-Workout Powder

Next on my list is AllMax HVOL. This stimulant-free pre-workout supplement is ideal for both men and women alike.

Recently, the ‘girls that lift’ movement has been gathering pace. More and more women are now lifting weights and sculpting their bodies than ever before. If lean muscle hypertrophy and a great figure are your main objectives, AllMax HVOL is just perfect.


ALLMAX Nutrition AMINOCUTS (ACUTS), Amino-Charged Energy Drink with Taurine, L-Carnitine, Green Coffee Bean Extract, Blue Raspberry, 36 Servings
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Key features include:

  • Stimulant-free 
  • Sugar-free
  • Boosts energy levels naturally
  • Promotes muscle growth and athletic performance
  • Increases vascularity
  • No artificial colors
  • 4 delicious flavors

This supplement was designed with mental focus and cell volumization in mind. Cells within the muscles are able to swell and expand in size as a result of this supplement, helping to provide impressive muscle pumps and increase the overall size of your muscles. 

The product contains Nitrosigine, which acts as a vasodilator within the body, allowing the blood vessels to swell and expand in size. This allows for more oxygenated blood to be pumped through the blood vessels and delivered to the cells, providing them with more oxygen and nutrients so your muscles can work harder. 

4. Stimulant Free Mental Focus Boosting Stack For Improved Circulation

Next up, I have ‘PumpMode’. Packed with ingredients to promote mental focus, elevate mood, and increase drive and endurance without increasing your heart rate.


EVL PumpMode Nitric Oxide Supplement - Nitric Oxide Booster Pump Pre Workout Powder with Glycerol and Betaine for Muscle Recovery Growth and Endurance - Stim Free Pre Workout Drink (Unflavored)
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Key features include:

  • Muscle pumps 
  • Natural energy
  • Stim-free
  • Sugar-free
  • Promotes mental focus and clarity
  • Boosts vascularity
  • Boosts immunity
  • 2 delicious flavors

Because it is a stimulant-free supplement, it needs to provide you with more energy in other ways. It does this thanks to its potent Nitric Oxide content.

The Pump provides Nitric Oxide, which dilates the blood vessels, allowing for more oxygenated blood to be pumped through them. Cells in your muscles are then flooded with oxygen and nutrient-rich blood, allowing them to work harder, look bigger and fuller, and become more pumped than ever. 

The Pump is also packed full of natural ingredients that help to lift your mood and promote increases in mental focus so you can get your head in the game, as it were. With ingredients such as Vitamin C, Pine Bark Extract, Hawthorn Berry, Bioprene, and many more besides, it’s rich in natural, stim-free ingredients to give you a workout like you wouldn’t believe. 

5. Next Generation Pre-Workout For Intense Focus, Performance, And Lean Figure

GAT PMP, or Peak Muscle Performance, is another well-liked stimulant-free pre-workout formula proving incredibly popular amongst many women.


GAT SPORT PMP (Peak Muscle Performance), Pre-Workout, 30 Servings (Blue Raspberry (Stim-Free))
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Key features include:

  • Stim-free 
  • Sugar-Free
  • Boosts the metabolism
  • Boosts circulation
  • Increased muscle pumps
  • Prolonged energy
  • Improved mental focus
  • Helps boost strength and endurance

GAT PMP provides users with a potent blend of natural, stimulant-free ingredients that have been proven to boost mental stamina and performance in a whole variety of different ways.

The supplement is rich in a number of B vitamins, including vitamin B12, Niacin, and Thiamine. B vitamins play a crucial role in the overall functioning of the metabolism. The stronger and faster your metabolism runs, the more energy you will produce, and the harder you can train in the gym, or anywhere else for that matter.

It also contains natural ingredients that help to enhance the production of Nitric Oxide, also known as NO. Nitric Oxide dilates the blood vessels and increases blood flow so more nutrients can be delivered to your muscles.

With powerful amino acids such as L-arginine and L-Citrulline, it’s easy to see why so many active females incorporate this supplement into their weekly training regimes.

Related article: Studies show that drinking Matcha Green Tea can increase your physical endurance by up to 25%. Drinking just one cup of Matcha half an hour before your workout can give you an all-natural increase in endurance and energy.

Read more about how Matcha Green Tea can help you with energy and weight loss.

2 thoughts on “5 Best Pre-Workouts Without Caffeine (Incredibly Effective)”

  1. I think not sleeping enough is my issue for sure and I am not surprised as I just checked my pre-workout, one scoop has the equivalent of 5 Red Bulls. That is a lot of caffeine, surely that can’t be good for me. I am surprised I can sleep at all. Yes, it seems to help with my workout tho, I have already lost some weight but I am a bit sceptical about the ones that have no stimulant in them. I might give one of them a try and see if it does anything. If not then I will add my own caffeine to it 🙂

    Reply
  2. Oh man, I love that #3 is sugar-free! I’ve just been using coffee as my pre-workout (I know, I know, bad me) because I can’t find one in my local vitamin store that doesn’t have sugar, and I just can’t handle the sugar and how it makes me feel. I find the older I get, though, the less I can tolerate caffiene, so it’s good to find a stimulant-free preworkout with no sugar!

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About Jen Evansy

Nutritionist, researcher, avid home cook, and writer interested in everything nutrition and food-related. Striving to inform, encourage, and inspire all the readers to make healthy and informed choices when it comes to cooking, food, diet, and nutrition.