The Double-Dose Surge Project

Nutrition
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Surge Experiment - Day 1

I thought it would be appropriate to start my Surge experiment on a Deadlift Day. Barbell Deadlifts are one of the most taxing exercises both for our muscles and our nervous system; so the need of adequate recovery is essential.

I drank half of my original flavored Surge serving during my mobility warmup and my Javorek barbell complex. The other half was sipped throughout the rest of the training session which included DB Reverse Lunges, Bodyweight Glute-Ham Raises, and various Planks for abdominal work (along with 4x8 deadlifts).

I can’t say that I noticed an increase in energy at all, my training session seemed to go the same as usual. Nothing was different until the end of my session when I started drinking the Wild Raspberry Surge. This was trickier than I thought it would be. I had just finished sipping the first serving, the sweet flavor still lingering in my mouth.

Now, I’m used to drinking a lot of water, in fact I can drink a ton of water. But getting that sweet raspberry flavor into my stomach was downright hard. It wasn’t the amount of liquid that I had to consume, it was just so sweet. Within fifteen minutes though, I had it all swallowed. It’s an hour later right now and I feel a little sleepy, but not overly tired. I haven’t had an dizziness, headache, or any other sensitivity at all. I feel fine, just sleepy.

A day or two after most deadlift training sessions, I’m a little sore (more sore if I worked my way up to heavy sets of 3, 2, or singles) . I’ll update tomorrow on my soreness levels…

John A. Sifferman NSCA-CPT

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Workout 2

1 serving Surge
1/2 serving Spike (on drive to gym)

T-Bar rows 1 x 80 x 10
1 x 90 x 8
1 x 95 x 8
1 x 95 x 6

WG Pullups 4 x bw x 12,12,9,6
HS Shrugs 3 x 275 x 12*
Scarecrows 3 x 40 x 12,12,8
BW Dips 3 x bw x 25,25,22
Curls 3 x 94 x 8,8,7

1 serving Surge

Notes:
a.Alot of people are reporting that they feel full with the double dose but
I am actually hungry after my workout so the Surge really hits the spot.
b.My recovery from workout 1 has been great.I suspect it will be a little tougher on leg day.
c.I was dragging from a long day at work before I got to the gym,but my energy level was high once I started my workout.Don’t know if it was Surge or Spike.
D.I highly reccomend T-Bar rows done on the Hammer Strength machine that has the chest pad.When you do these you actually feel it in your back as oppossed to your arms.

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I give you guys all a lot of respect for doing this experiment! I can in no way drink Surge at the start or anywhere during my workout without burping it up and feeling like I weigh 300lbs. I can put it down no problem after my workout but during not a chance. Looking forward to more of your results.

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First Report:

This’ll be stream of consciousness, unfortunately. I had a whole host of things planned to say yesterday, but unfortunately my cable access went down as I was loggin on. So, I’m simply going to try to remember as many things as I can. I learned a few things since I got my Surge. Or, more accurately, solidified a few things I thought might be true.

First, I’ve found that there is something about a chins/dips superset that makes my stomach churn worse than lunges or squats. It was a worse than normal this time as I still had my preworkout Surge floating around my stomach, along with the during workout Surge I’d be slogging down. Nothing specifically due to the Surge itself being in my system at the time, just that I wasn’t expecting it. Anyway, it went great.

I have discovered that it is a little difficult to eat so soon after training with that much Surge in you. I felt sated even as I was starting my post workout solid meal, which doesn’t usually happen. As for training, I added approximately 40% more volume that normal for me, and I feel absolutely fine today (as well as yesterday’s aftermath).

There’s only a little twinge of soreness in my pecs, which is to be expected as I haven’t done dips in a long time and they generally hit my chest as well as my triceps (I was trying to make sure my shoulder was fixed from a previous injury). I find this strange, as I do them with a narrow grip and my bench presses never make me feel it in the chest.

This recovery from a 40% volume shift is a great sign. Granted, it is supposed to be a recovery week from low volume high frequency ME work, but I just feel better than I should, considering I have next to no tolerance for high(er) rep sets as I mentioned before. Sets progression is easy for me however.

db neutral grip bench (5x6 +3 main lift)
db row to chest
a1) chins
a2) dips
face pulls
tri pushdowns

4-5 sets of 10-15 reps for the rest. Now, I realize that this is not an extraordinary volume for most folks, but this represents a significant departure from my normal training style. My typical volume ranges only up to about 130-150 reps or so for all work on a day “high volume” like this. It would look something like

db neutral grip bench (1x5, 5x3, 1x1, 1x1 main lift)
db row to chest (5-6x3-5)
a1) chins (4x6)
a2) dips (4x6)
row variation (3-5x3-5)
tri pushdowns (3x6-8)

By all rights I should feel very sore today, but I don’t…

I noted some very strong pumps this workout. I almost never get serious pumps, both due to my low rep training and because I’ve just never felt extraordinary ones on the rare occasions I do go higher rep. This was different enough for me to write it down. I never get pumps on chins, even when I go to higher rep ranges on them. This was much stronger than I had ever felt before. As far as I can figure out, Surge is at least partially responsible for this. It may have been the complete change-up on rep ranges for training, but even so, this never happens on chins. The pumps were with me for the rest of the workout. It was the only supp I took all day besides some Alpha Male. The only other supps I’ve taken in recent weeks are Spike and Power Drive. Very weird b/c I wasn’t expecting it, but cool. Good so far,let’s see what tomorrow brings.

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Good reports so far!

A couple of notes and thoughts:

  1. Remember, Surge isn’t an “energy” drink. Yes, you’ll be properly fueled so you may notice good, consistent workouts without a bonk at the end, but Surge doesn’t jack you up like a Spike Shooter. I clarify that because I hear people saying, “I didn’t feel the energy.” Well, you really aren’t supposed to feel anything in that regard, although you may find yourself still feeling good at the end of your workout instead of being totally depleted.

  2. Feeling full / satiated: Interesting. Surge has a consistency of water. Doesn’t thicken up like a Metabolic Drive shake. Should have the mouth-feel of something like Gatorade, maybe slightly thicker, but not much. (I’ve seen some non-label-readin’ people mix it with milk in the past, but I doubt anyone is making that mistake here.)

So, I never get “full” from it. I’m ready to eat 15 minutes after drinking it. It’s like drinking water, not eating food… to me at least. Then again, I’m an FFB and it takes two meat-lovers pizzas to get me “full.”

So just make sure you’re using the right amount of water. Might want to play around with that - not too much, not too little.

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As my post above states, yesterday was day 1 of my Surge experiment - deadlift day. It was definitely a very challenging training session, so soreness should ensue!

This morning, I am sore in my hamstrings and glutes, but not as much as usual. There is definitely a difference in how sore I am today than when I am not on double Surge servings. So that’s good news!

On the other hand, I cannot say that this is a very big difference in soreness levels. This may be because it’s only day 1 and I literally shocked my body into drinking over 100 grams of maltodextrin within an hour. I expected to be even less sore than I am. On a 1-10 scale of soreness, I’m at a 4 right now. Usually, I’m at a 6, so there is definitely improvement.

Tomorrow is Day 2, and will come with an update. Happy training fellow Surge rats!

-John A. Sifferman NSCA-CPT

47 
 I admit it, until two days ago I was a Spike Shooter virgin.  Usually, with the tablets I like to take it about one hour before I train so that their effects coincide for maximum intensity, not so with Mr. Shooter.  I pulled out of the jobsite, popped the lid to my Spike Shooter about twenty minutes down the road and glanced at the clock to time the effects.

Initial taste, for an energy drink-- surprisingly good. Definitely better tasting than any of the bull, monster, or what-have-you energy drinks out there. But does it work? Freaking A dude!

I drank it over the course of ten minutes, less than twenty minutes after that last sip I felt it settle, or should I say kick in. A little Queensryche jamming in the system and I was like a caged, Pavolian animal; inspecting the workout in my mind, twitching every time I thought about picking up a weight… but that is not what we are here for is it?

You came to gather notes about Surge did you not? To find a better answer, something closer to truth. Please, step into my lab with me…

German Volume Training (GVT). A word that strikes fear into the heart of muscle fibers worldwide. Ten sets of five rep super-sets with only ninety seconds of rest in between. Bent-over rows and flat, dumbbell presses back to back. (Or should that be back to chest.)

Stopwatch in hand, I begin. By the nature of the beast, the GVT weights are lighter than my usual schemes but with the superset aspect, my heart is really thumping after several sets. I can feel the lactic acid starting to build.

Between sets I sip upon my raspberry Surge and enjoy the curious stares from the onlookers. Then on the eighth set, I felt that twinge. You know the one I am talking about. That little tweak or pull of the muscle that lets you know for sure that you will be in some serious pain tomorrow.

Usually this occurs when you have had a little down time from the gym or a new rep/training scheme, and you take it too far, too soon. But of course I kept going, two more supersets, Shugart promised that the Surge could handle whatever I threw at it.

That little cramp told me, without a doubt, that I had him beat on this one; better luck on your theories next time Chris, but I was wrong. Oh yes, the day after my back and chest feel worked, but no soreness, nothing painful at all.

Two doses of Surge handled all that the GVT threw and more. See I cheated, not only did I switch up my training protocol, but due to a recent visit from a virus and waiting for my Surge project packet to arrive, I had refined from working out for the past ten days.

Sneaky, I know, but the point is the Surge intake during and after my workout prevented an unstoppable formula for DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness.) It is two days later and still no soreness.

Pump?  Now remember, I am coming from a rep scheme that never went over three, so the jury is still out on that one but yes, I received a very noticeable pump while I drank and trained.  Raspberry flavoring?  I have to be honest and say I prefer the original formula of Surge.

Do not get me wrong, the Raspberry tastes just fine, but the original flavor; well simply put, the original flavor tastes so good that it feels like it should be bad for you.

You and your double Surge may have won this round Mr.Shugart, but I still have fifteen more chances to test the limits of your theory. Until then, I bid you all adieu.

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[quote]Chris Shugart wrote:
Good reports so far!

A couple of notes and thoughts:

So, I never get “full” from it. I’m ready to eat 15 minutes after drinking it. It’s like drinking water, not eating food… to me at least. Then again, I’m an FFB and it takes two meat-lovers pizzas to get me “full.”

So just make sure you’re using the right amount of water. Might want to play around with that - not too much, not too little.
[/quote]

Yeah, I’m still not used to feeling “full” with it. The sated feeling does not occur with my previous whey/sugar combo. Just this.

I noticed it to a lesser degree when I was just taking 1 serving of Surge, but I really noticed it last workout. I’ll play around with the water level…and btw, you’re talking to a guy who is known for devouring the 5/5/5 deal in one sitting, by myself. I know exactly how you feel.

2 days post upper body workout–feel great, no soreness anywhere but my pecs, which feel a little amount at extreme ROM when I stretch.

Makes sense as I never train my chest, but great nonetheless. Leg day today. I’ll see what goes down, but remember I’m going to be maxing Monday so no uber-craziness, I want to be fresh for then.

After next week’s HF thing I’m going to go back to ‘traditional’ WSB training and push the volume to get a different report on it…

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lizard king,

Your last report read like a cheesy dime novel. I like it.

I like the raspberry flavor a lot, esp. as a change up from the normal taste. I’m also glad to see you noticed a pump as well.

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Hey, it ain’t easy being cheesy…

Being an old Tolkien head myself, I really dig your user name.

51

Well thanks to Lizard King I am now afraid to try Spike Shooter for fear that I may become so helplessly addicted that I buy out the entire supply. Seriously, I like your writing style. As a college student who spends multiple hours a day sifting through dry business texts, I find your posts refreshing. So while I may be afraid to try Spike Shooter, I am definitely alright with my quickly developing double-Surge addiction.

In short, this whole week has been awesome, both in and out of the gym. Aside from the slight soreness after heavy leg day (which as I mentioned earlier was much less than usual) there has been virtually no soreness all week, a marked increase in recovery for me. Vascularity is up and the pumps have been great, not quite Arnold “Pumping Iron” great, but pretty damn close.

I have also noticed that I maintain a “pumped” look and feel longer than usual. I love going into work after lifting, just feeling huge and vascular, it’s great. My boss told me that I was getting “kind of veiny” yesterday (Thursdays are upper body supersets) and it completely made my day.

One thing I can’t stop thinking about though is whether or not my body is experiencing some sort of Hawthorne (placebo?) effect. Are these great pumps, vascularity, and increased recovery all thanks to the surplus of amino acids, glucose, and maltodextrin flooding my system (probable), or is it because deep down in my subconscious I WANT them to occur (possible)? Or is it a mixture of the two, working together to produce greater results than either alone could produce (likely)?

That probably goes beyond the scope of this experiment, but the psychological/physiological connection is something that I find extremely fascinating.

Anyways, this project is great and I am glad to be a part of it. Can’t wait 'til my next heavy leg day.

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had my 3rd workout on the double dose today. the second was on wednesday when I did a high volume/high rep/no-minimal rest leg workout. I definitely went at a higher intensity then I usually do… lots of grunting and face making (well, for a girl :wink: ) I also tried that exercise that was posted here a few weeks ago with the cable and belt—squatting while standing on a bench… not only did I feel it in my quads but I got to sit nice and low and had a ton of glute involvment. I like it! (sidenote— I used to have the nickname ghettobooty----and was proud of it—but then I dieted down for my first figure comp. and came to the realization that my ghettobooty was mostly fat! cuz I lost it! —so I’ve been working hard to get my “ghettobooty” back.)

as for soreness -the legs are fine except for going up and down stairs… when I do that my bum and quads get all fired up.

Today was heavy upper body—re: shoulders and back. I did lots of strict overhead pressing (barbell and dumbbell),barbell rows, plate loaded seated rows, push presses, cable shoulder presses and cable pull downs. Followed up with some sprints on the treadmill— 30 sec @10mph 60 sec at 3mph , 8 times. on an incline of 5.

I wasn’t feeling incredibly strong today but not weak either… (mind you…I am dieting…so sometimes this will happen…) bb sh. press was 3sets of 65lbs for 8 reps and 4 sets of 75lbs for 5-6reps. bb rows were 95lbs for 8-10…4 sets. --just to give you and idea of what I’m doing–

FYI-- I personally dont feel full after drinking the double dose of Surge. I dont feel like eating directly after but within and hour- 90 mins I’m ready to eat my post/post meal.
I’d have to agree with sifferman about the raspberry—it’s super sweet. the first time I drank it was not fun but I’m getting used to it and mix it with the regular.

dave-- since you’re obviously very interested in science… I’m hoping to get some pics up this weekend. --I’m one of the only losers left that has yet to get a digital camera. Going to try to borrow my grandparents to track my progress. (yes, i know–the grandparents are more advanced then me…sad.) so stay tuned!

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[quote]lizard king wrote:
Hey, it ain’t easy being cheesy…

Being an old Tolkien head myself, I really dig your user name.

[/quote]

Haha! Yeah, I’ve read the books so many times I could probably recite them from memory. Hey, us nerds got to stick together.

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I’m two workouts in to the double dose protocol. Took my second round yesterday for my first day of Waterbury’s SFM.

I had an easier time getting the drinks down. I’m even learning to tolerate the Raspberry flavor. I know Chris said earlier to watch how much water you add to them. I use 32 oz. for each drink. Recovery is still good.

I checked my bodyweight yesterday and I’m still at the same weight I was at the beginning of last week, so I’m definitely not putting on fat (also judging by mirror and how clothes fit). I will be measuring body comp again Sunday morning.

So far, so good…tomorrow is Rd. 3!

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Workout #3

1 Serving Surge
1/2 serving Spike

Front Squats 1 x 165 x 10
3 x 185 x 8,8,6
Leg Press 1 x 5(45’s each side) x 12
3 x 6 x 12,11,10
Leg Extensions 1 x 125 x 8/6/4-drop
1 x 125 x 10/4/4
1 x 125 x 8/6/2
Donkey calf raises 1 x stack x 20
1 x stack x 18
1 x stack x 15
Hammer Strength ab crunch
1 x 50 x 12
1 x 50 x 9
1 x 50 x 8

Notes
a.Stomach felt slightly queasy while doing leg presses.Felt better afterwards.
b.Slight soreness in upper back from yesterdays w/o.

c.I plan on working out tommorrow.I usually don’t work out more than 2 days in a row but i’m looking forward to working out.I need to make a mental notr to myself not to overtrain.

d.I have not tried the Rasberry Surge because…the original tastes so good.I will try Rasberry flavor tommorrow.I have to go i’m starving!

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I just got back from Denver on Thursday where I cranked out two upper body workouts. Since I’m having a crazy weekend with my son packed with basketball and baseball practices along with coordinating a birthday party for him I decided to do my leg workout on Friday.

That means I’ve had four strenuous workouts in a week. I’m use to doing three intense workouts per week. Regardless, I’m experiencing little to no soreness and my recovery seems to have greatly improved since doing the double dose protocol.

I have to admit that I’m not a big fan of the raspberry surge. It’s too sweet for my taste. I’ve been mixing the regular and raspberry together in order to get the raspberry surge down.

I also have a hard time consuming two doses of surge during and after my workout. I usually experience nausea after my workouts. This has made it difficult to consume over 700 calories of Surge. However the benefits I’ve experienced thus far has made it more than worth it.

I banged out 3 sets of 8 reps for 315 lbs on the squat yesterday with 2.5 minutes rest in between. This is also a new PR for me. Also consider that I had one day less of rest from my typical schedule. My strength continues to improve each week which is pretty exciting.

Next week I’ll switch back to 5 sets of 5 for squats and I’ll see how I do.

My bodyweight has been fluctuating from 206.5 lbs to 209 lbs in the morning the last few days. My strength is going up. My weight is going up. My pants are fitting the same. I’m definitely gaining some muscle. And this progress I’m experiencing now is following a plateau that I hit after obtaining some of the best muscle gains I’ve made over the last few months.

It will be interesting to see how much further I can go over the next couple weeks.

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Good job on the new PR, Randman!

58

Nice going randman.

Ok, so nothing really to report on the front for Surge experiment. The last workout before my test Monday was…nothing, really. Nothing worthy of report. I’ll be reporting all next week and then as I go back to normal WSB. I’m kicking around the idea of throwing more strongman style days in to work on conditioning. If I decide to do it, that should be a great test for double dose Surge, if I can keep it down. We don’t have anybody doing strongman in this experiment do we?

59

I am not in the project, but I do a double dose of maltodextrin/dextrose/gatorade/protein powder for my workouts. I fill up one nalgene with 50g malto/50g protein and the other nalgene with 10g gatorade/75 g dextrose. its 65 ounces of liquid so plenty of water. However, I experience the same problem of being full after a workout and have trouble finishing the workout drink.

what do you think is too much liquid for one workout?

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[quote]Hawkson101 wrote:

what do you think is too much liquid for one workout?[/quote]

In my opinion, it’s whatever makes you sick or uncomfortable. Some people just can’t deal with certain things during a workout. As long as you’re not getting dehydrated, you’re probably ok.