When we first got a hold of Performix’s Ion, it was actually after the brand sent us the supplement’s facts panel. It was there that we noticed just like a few others that even though the pre-workout featured a proprietary blend, its doses didn’t look to be as high as we’re used to. With that said and like with most products we review, we cracked the supplement open anyway and gave it go. Much to our surprise and as you may have gathered from our updates on social media, Performix’s Ion is one of those rare products that’s a lot more than it appears. Of course being as skeptical and thorough as we are, we didn’t use Ion just the once and get out the pen and paper. Over the last week or two the pre-workout has been put to the test, compared to some of our favorites and used more than enough times to get a solid idea on it. Today we bring you the review that is actually the most surprising one we’ve done for a very long time.
The key thing we have to mention is that as stated earlier, we did not think Performix were going to deliver overly well on Ion. Like a number of fans expressed on social media, the ingredients in the supplement despite being in a proprietary blend, definitely don’t look like they’re at the doses we’ve come to enjoy. The brand’s one and only 3.714g complex is led by CarnoSyn beta-alanine, citrulline malate, betaine and creatine HCl, which when doubled totals 7.428g. As some figured out even if you just take a look at the first two on the list CarnoSyn and citrulline, and compare the doses that Jim Stoppani uses in Pre Jym, you’re already looking at 9.2g almost two grams more than Ion’s entire blend. That was enough to create concern for us, however didn’t alter our philosophy of not knocking a product until we’ve tried it.
Going off the assumption that Ion wasn’t going to be the greatest pre-workout we’ve experienced, jumping right to the maximum of two scoops only made sense. Much to our surprise about five or ten minutes after taking in the formula, we realized a build up to the maximum may not have been such a bad idea. Ion pretty much kicks in with no warning taking you from zero to 100 in about 60 seconds. One minute you will literally be thinking about what you might do for warm up, then the next shaking in your seat trying to find a car park or sprinting the rest of the way to the gym. Even though Ion lists a caffeine dose of 175mg or 350mg when using its two scoop maximum, that initial kick that doesn’t really wear off, is most definitely more powerful than what’s listed. We will touch on that later as we did get explanation on why it feels that way, but it is that massive hit of energy that starts it all off.
At times Ion can feel like it has a focus side to it, although with the energy having such a strong presence right from the get go, it is easy to confuse an enhanced amount of mental activity with the mind racing power of over-the-top energy. We did find that when you tone down the formula to one or one and a half scoops the balance is a lot more obvious, revealing a mild dose of focus that does help get your head in the right place. We also found that the light and at times unnoticeable effect is made equally as obvious when you’ve used the supplement a handful of times. You honestly won’t ever get used to the level of energy, but that kick start does become less violent where you will then notice the touch of focus doing its best to get you in the zone. As for a good description of the actual energy, for those familiar with pre-workouts it is definitely on the stimulant side. The hard hitting power of Ion would best be compared to the likes of Chaos and Pain’s Ferox, Pure Lab’s Turbo or possibly a much stronger version of Neon’s Volt. The product kind of takes you to a level of energy so strong where you can’t even imagine what normal feels like. It’s a lot heavier than a lift or a kick, more like filling you up with rocket fuel and giving you a destination that’s dangled in front of you that you need to hit in a hurry. As much as Ion creates an endless environment for your body to perform, there are other effects at play that help ensure you don’t die out too early in your workout.
The highlight we always appreciate being a part of pre-workouts is intensity, where a supplement will decrease your rest periods without sacrificing your ability to perform. Sometimes it is difficult to understand if you haven’t had a product that features the effect at a good enough level, however when it does work you’ll know exactly what we mean. In some formulas it does get a little difficult as the balance of energy and intensity isn’t always great. It is those competitors that give you the energy and urge to keep going set after set, rep after rep, only to completely exhaust you half way through your workout. The supplement of today isn’t one of the products you’ll get that unfortunate side effect, as despite Ion’s energy being extremely hardcore and sometimes in the area of too much. Its power to restore your ability to perform at your best may play catch up in some parts, but will restore your energy efficiently enough to positively power you through an intense workout. The combination of the high octane energy and mild intensity, will have you effectively getting through your sets at a pace and level of performance that will shock you when you finish 10 or 20 minutes early. In other pre-workouts where we have seen these two effects work well and encourage a seemingly rushed session, you are sometimes left with the intention to do more. In Ion it is a bit different as once you’re finished due to the intensity, and focus that dies off early on in the experience, you won’t find you have that unnatural drive or interest in going any longer. The fact that the supplement delivers a very stimulant powered performance may have something to do with it, although for us we know what it’s like to have a product pushing you further, which isn’t what happens when you finish with Ion.
While the energy and intensity do dominate Performix’s Ion, so much so that you probably wouldn’t mind if that’s all that the supplement features. We did find that the pre-workout had a bit of pump weaved into it. Some of us were on the fence about it, however we did come up with a bit of an idea about what separated the opinions. As with most mild pump pre-workouts, or formulas that don’t really have pump as a star character. Ion’s artificial amount of pump that does bring the swole factor temporarily increasing the size of specific areas, won’t bring itself out on every occasion. We didn’t find it had much of a showing on hamstring, back and sometimes chest days, like we’ve seen dedicated pump competitors do convincingly. On the other hand when used with biceps or triceps, quad focused days, and as mentioned the odd chest day, the bloat will be more than noticeable. Despite all that Ion does have going on, when the pump comes into play it does only amplify the experience. The bonus effect creates a lethal environment where you’ll be wanting to lift heavy and hard, pump up your muscles as much as you can, and have trouble running down your energy enough to justify ending a set. Even though you won’t have much of an urge to keep going after you’re done, you will notice Ion doesn’t exactly drop off or fade away. The intense energy tones itself down, and the intensity obviously disappears when you stop working out. A lasting alertness however is present that wards of an immediate crash and will ensure you don’t go to sleep for another six hours. There are plenty of pre-workouts that warn users not to use them too close to bed time, which in the case of Performix’s Ion is indeed wise advice.
Earlier we did state that we had an explanation as to why with Ion its 350mg of caffeine didn’t feel like 350mg of caffeine. When we were initially met by the surprise performance of the product we had to get more information as things just weren’t adding up. The brand were more than happy to educate us on the science behind the supplement, that in short meant that due to the use of their Terra Beads technology, ingredients didn’t need to be at a certain amount to feel like what you’re used to at that amount. For example caffeine wouldn’t need to be at 400mg for you to get the effects of 400mg. For those after a full explanation behind the bead technology Performix probably do have one, but seeing as this information came to us after we tried Ion we felt no more explaining was necessary. The idea that the product didn’t need as high doses to deliver the effects you’d usually get, matched perfectly with the only conclusion we could gather based on the pre-workout’s performance.
The biggest lesson we can learn from Performix is something we learned a long time ago, and that is never judge a book by its cover. In the world of supplementation there are times where you can without a doubt guarantee a product is going to perform badly, although that didn’t turn out to be the story with Ion. We already figured there was something else to the pre-workout as its price didn’t quite make sense if the formula was under dosed. As we discovered by first using the supplement then digging deeper for an explanation, a lot of thought had gone into Ion and no dose was without a purpose. The unique concoction proved to be more than effective hitting a consistently held climax right in the beginning, throwing in a level of intensity that just manages to keep up and amplify the energy. As well as touches of focus and pump that can sometimes go unnoticed or on occasions amplify the whole experience. While we don’t always encourage turning a blind eye to a pre-workout’s formula, this is one of those times were you’ll want to. Even if we didn’t get an explanation on Ion’s technology from the brand, our review would probably be going the exact same way it is now. We more than expect people to mention price on this one, so for that if you are interested compared to what else is out there make sure you grab Ion for at least less than 35 to $40. With 45 servings or 22.5 maximums it packs a bit, and is definitely a good buy if you can get it with a BOGO or BOGO half price which would drop it to 25 or $37.50 at its current retailer.
