A slightly anomylous post I know, but a while ago I was sent some Energex Plus capsules to try and review. I wanted to try them because as well as be interested in all of the meat, I am also interested in all of the herbs, supplements and healthy eating things. I might not follow them all the time, but I do find it all FASCINATING.
The Energex Plus capsules appear to basically be a herbal ProPlus. They are however sugar-free and as well as providing a caffeine hit, they also act as a supplement for 100% of your RDA of B vitamins. I was very intrigued as to what would supply the caffeine hit – I should have guessed it would be guarana. I think they are vegetarian, but you should double check that if its a crucial factor for you.
At the time that I received these in the post, I was going through a caffeine-free period, so didn’t take them. I was very run down and because caffeine (along with many other things) can inhibit your immune system, I put the coffee and tea away for a while.
However, now I have a dissertation to write, an overdue academic article and lots of other things to write, concentration is at a premium. I want to get it all done, but sometimes the voices start singing and the last thing you want to do is sit at a desk and do thinking and typing.
They are very big though … it’s the size of a finger joint. Having swallowed one, I can see how easy it would be to swallow a bit of finger!
To the verdict: having tried it on several occassions I can say that it does work and it does pep you up, but it is not for me. The first time I used it I was volunteering and inputting infomation to a database. I felt a bit blocked, so took a capsule hoping for a ‘lift’. I did have more energy, but very little attention-span. Not to be deterred, I tried it again whilst working at my desk and a similar thing occurred – my internet-distraction-ometer went through the roof!
I gave the issue some consideration. I think they key issue is that I’m probably not as tolerant of caffeine as I used to be, so a whole tablet is simply too large a dose for me. I put this hypothesis to the test and took a capsule at work (I am a shop assistant amongst other things) and the physical aspect of standing and moving seemed to counter-act the jitters.
Luckily there’s a neat line you can break, so you only take a half. Interesting that the inside isn’t green but pale brown, isn’t it? Green is a ‘friendlier’ colour.
To sum up, if you’re active and used to caffeine, these will probably make a great alternative to espresso/Red Bull/ProPlus or whatever else it is you use to keep awake and focussed. I think they are more effective than the caffeine tablets I took when I was studying for my finals. From a health perspective, I wouldn’t take them if you’re ill (you don’t want to go over the edge) and I’d think closely about how much caffeine you consume regularly before taking a whole one. All in all a good product that I think will work well for lots of people. You can buy it here for £8.95.
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I remember at my school, a friend that had become overly-tolerant of caffeine and other legal and not-so-legal stimulants desperately powdering and snorting an entire pack of pro-plus in an effort to stay awake through the upcoming exam. He stayed awake, but had to leave the exam in order to spasm vomit over a toilet for an hour. He was haggard and pale and shaking for the rest of the day and christened every bathroom in the boarding house, and from then to now I can’t have more than a singular cup of coffee every few days without fearing the same fate.
This is absolutely not a blog appropriate comment, but I’m bored and felt like over-sharing.
Absolutely! My Mum always mentioned my godmother doing a similar thing and giving herself caffeine poisoning at uni. URGH. I used to work for a Caffe Nero and we were allowed as much coffee as we wanted whilst working – that meant I was having like twenty espressos a day and after I moved away I couldn’t work out why I had migraines – turns out caffeine addiction! There are perils.