While the widely known Jim Stoppani was rather quiet in the second half of last year, his efforts from January through to August basically guaranteed him a spot in our top 5 list of brands for 2014. It was the quality, consistency and popularity of each release that has earned Stoppani and his Jym supplements 3rd place on our list. You really can’t summarize the year without mentioning his name, as not only did he do some things we’d never seen before, but one of his products also managed to impress us enough to claim the title of #1 post-workout. For those that followed along you’ll already know what we’re talking about, and likely agree with him at least landing in the top 5. We’re now going to relive the ride and further explain why Jym was one of the best brands in 2014.
Like a lot of good companies last year, Jym had some momentum coming through from 2013 with the post-workout Post Jym already unveiled and highly anticipated. The supplement finally hit Bodybuilding.com’s shelves in late January where it went on sale for a little less than $35 for a 20 serving box. It was here Stoppani showed a bit of creativity splitting his formula up into two parts, flavored dextrose and active ingredients. The idea was that you can choose to leave out the carbohydrates, or even alter the amount to fit in with your nutrition program. It didn’t take us too long after Post Jym launched to purchase the product and get it in for review. We eventually came to the conclusion that the formula was without a doubt the best thing we’d used post-workout. It was and still is #2 on our recovery list, however it takes the #1 post-workout title due to the fact that the item above it is a nighttime supplement.
As good as Post Jym was, finally seeing a second product join the forever lonely Pre Jym. In March Stoppani unveiled his third formula, confirming the coming of a fat burner appropriately named Shred Jym. Initially not much was said about the supplement with all its details basically coming on launch two months later in May, with the product carrying a price around the same as Post Jym at $34.76. Sticking with his signature transparency and proven straightforward formulas, the contents of the supplement was actually not the most interesting thing about Shred Jym. The big surprise came three days after the arrival Stoppani’s third as Bodybuilding.com sold out. Stock numbers were not of course made public, although no matter what way you look at it selling out in three days is impressive. It was without a doubt a massive achievement for both Jym and Bodybuilding.com. As well as something we had never seen before outside of a direct release, with the fact that there was no sale on Shred Jym making it even more impressive.
Despite all the noise the Jym line was making with its three transparent products, the pedal was well and truly still down. A couple of weeks before Shred Jym arrived, Stoppani surprisingly revealed supplement number four for his range with Vita Jym. Continuing on with his purpose built formulas and 100% transparency, Vita basically gave fans another essential to add to their stack building towards the goal of needing nothing but Jym. While the multi-vitamin was officially unveiled in April it didn’t arrive until July, where we saw Stoppani unleash a little more than just Vita Jym.
After plenty of questions and comments, as well as hints dropped by the man himself. It was Pro Jym that joined Vita Jym for launch in early July. It was in this month that Stoppani finally covered all the major areas, making the Jym line the one stop shop for your month to month stack. Earlier we did say Stoppani was responsible for a few things we had never seen before in 2014. Not only was that referring to the selling out of Shred Jym in just three days, but also the transparency of Pro Jym. You can kind of count Grenade as the first to really detail doses of protein sources in a product, who last year released the 50/50 promoted Hydra 6 protein powder. Stoppani however took it one step further listing percentages and exact doses for each of Pro Jym’s three protein sources with 2.5g egg, 7g micellar casein, 7g milk isolate (5.5g casein, 1.5g whey), and 7.5g whey isolate. Others have followed in Stoppani’s footsteps since the launch of his fifth formula, proving that he truly is leading the way in terms of transparency.
Just when you thought the Jym range was done for the year, or at least due for a much needed break, it turned out there was still one more supplement to come. Soon after the release of Pro Jym, the testosterone booster Test Jym officially went on sale at the brand’s exclusive retailer Bodybuilding.com. Once again we were treated to another clinically dosed product, backed by a full detailed description from Jim Stoppani justifying each and every ingredient. As fans slowly became aware of Test Jym’s existence, interest did not die off seeing the testosterone booster go down the same path as Shred Jym selling out in less than a week. It was around this time that the Stoppani spree came to a halt, finally giving followers a chance to take all the action. Before the year came to a close we did get one more thing out of the Jym line and that was a separated Post Jym. The team behind the supplement decided to split it up into two separate tubs, introducing Post Jym Dextrose and Post Jym Actives in late September.
Though Jim Stoppani has been rather quiet on the topic of new supplements in the last three months, he could probably go silent for another three and no one would be upset. The effort that multiplied the Jym line by six last year left a lasting impression that deserves recognition. Launching a new product is not easy, let alone coming up with a competitive one. Stoppani did that on each and every occasion, even claiming the title for best post-workout with Post Jym. There’s no word on what’s in store next, although it is going to be extremely difficult to top the year Stoppani just had. With five supplements, two selling out in less than a week, one rated the best on the market, and Pro Jym the first dose detailed protein powder, the bar has been set quite high. The exciting part is of course that this time last year we didn’t see any of the above coming, proving that Stoppani could easily blow us all away a second time. Regardless of what’s coming we’re looking forward to whatever the trend setter has planned for 2015.
