I Am God is a pre-workout from Insane Labz. The supplement comes in four flavors – Apple, Fruit Punch, Drink Ye All Of It (Grape), and Thou Shalt Not Covet (Orange).
This product claims to give you:
- “The most powerful pre-workout ingredients known to man”
- “More than a quick buzz”
- “Insane focus” in the weight room
- Energy without crashes
At $59.95 for 25 servings, this is one of the most expensive pre-workouts we’ve come across. With this in mind, we’re expecting godlike results…
About the Company
The Insane Labz website promises an About Us section that isn’t “your normal corporate bs page.” But while this sounds like we’re in for a pleasant change from the norm, it still doesn’t tell us anything about when the company/brand started.
Instead, the actual About section reads like self-obsessed ranting – did the guy who wrote it have too much pre-workout beforehand? Who knows.
After digging a little deeper, we find CEO, Dustin LeBleu, runs 30 different variants of the Insane brand – these include Insane Clothing, Insane Music, and Insane Filmz.
Now – we strongly believe devising great supplements takes a lot of time and energy. But as the CEO seems to spread himself very thinly with so many ‘insane’ projects on the go at once, we suspect the quality of Insane Labz’s supplements may suffer – but we hope not.
The Ingredients and How They Work
Looking at the I Am God label, the first thing we notice is that it places its key ingredients in a large I Am God™ proprietary blend.
Note: Proprietary blends are sub-formulas which list ingredients, but not doses.
We’re on a crusade to stamp out proprietary blends. They allow shallow marketers to use minuscule amounts of key ingredients and fool consumers into thinking they’re buying a better product than they actually are.
See for yourself:
Creatine Monohydrate
Creatine Monohydrate is arguably one of the best-tested ingredients around. When ingested, your body uses Creatine to produce adenosine triphosphate (ATP), a vital fuel for your muscles.
Numerous studies show Creatine supplementation increases strength and lean mass, while also reducing fatigue in the weight room.
However, you need at least 1000mg of Creatine to take advantage of its benefits. And because Insane Labz uses a proprietary blend, the amount in I Am God is likely to fall some way short of the optimal dose.
Beta-Alanine
Beta-Alanine arouses mixed feelings in users – although we tend to lean more towards the anti-Beta-Alanine camp.
Granted, some research suggests the amino acid improves muscular endurance and can help users gain lean mass.
But on the other hand, Beta-Alanine can also cause flushing, itching and tingling sensations (paresthesia), which can call an abrupt halt to your workout. Some users compare paresthesia to the feeling of “bees crawling across your body.”
L-Taurine
The description on the Insane Labz website says Taurine has been “scientifically proven to protect your muscle and performance.”
But while Taurine is understudied, the available research strongly suggests Taurine does not reduce muscle damage/soreness.
In addition, the organic acid only shown improves exercise in middle-aged subjects with heart conditions. There’s no evidence it does the same for younger, or otherwise healthy, people.
L-Tyrosine
L-Tyrosine is an amino acid shown to improve mood and cognitive function in people under acute physical stress. It works by helping the body produce catecholamines like dopamine, epinephrine and norepinephrine.
Caffeine
Caffeine is a popular stimulant – in fact, its use is so widespread that around 90% of American adults consume it every day. And this comes as no surprise when you consider the stimulant is both safe and highly effective – at the right dose.
Caffeine is shown to not only boost focus and alertness – it also improves power output, running capacity and reaction times, all of which makes it a perfect pre-workout ingredient.
The optimal dose of Caffeine in a pre-workout is 150-200mg. Any more than this in one go and you risk feeling jittery; any less and you may not get the results you want.
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Betaine Anhydrous
Despite its presence in a lot of pre-workouts, Betaine is a useless ingredient for this purpose. Research shows the Choline metabolite does not improve aerobic capacity, power output or the perceived rate of exertion.
But worse – Betaine can also cause Fish Odor Syndrome – a condition characterized by fishy breath and body odor.
Dimethylethanolamine (DMAE)
The guys at Insane Labz say they include Dimethylethanolamine (DMAE) for its supposed ability to improve focus and memory, while also reducing fatigue.
But the truth is DMAE is seriously undertested. The single study we found suggests the molecule has no effect on cognition. As a result, we’re disappointed to see DMAE in this supp.
There are also safety concerns about DMAE. Early research suggests it may be teratogenic and may cause defects in unborn infants as a result.
For these reasons, we recommend staying well away from this potentially useless and unsafe ingredient.
Juniperus Communis
Juniperus Communis (or common Juniper Berry) is said to aid fat loss, boost energy levels and treat joint and muscle pain. However, there’s no scientific evidence to support these claims.
Rauwolfia Vomitoria Extract
Rauwolfia Vomitoria is increasingly common in many supplements – but we’re not sure why. It’s touted as a treatment for everything from high blood pressure to diabetes and insomnia. But there’s very little science to back up these claims.
Despite suggestions Rauwolfia Vomitoria could induce fat loss, this is conjecture based on its chemical structure, rather than actual clinical trials.
In addition, WebMD lists Rauwolfia as “POSSIBLY UNSAFE when take by mouth.” Potential side effects include shakiness, slow heart rate, and low blood pressure, all of which make Rauwolfia another ingredient to avoid.
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Side Effects
I Am God uses ingredients that raise multiple concerns about side effects. When taking this pre-workout you may experience:
- Flushing, itching and tingling (Beta-Alanine)
- Anxiety and jittery feelings (Caffeine – in doses over 200mg)
- Fish Odor Syndrome (Betaine)
- Nausea (Rauwolfia)
- Birth defects (DMAE)
- Low blood pressure (Rauwolfia)
- Slow heart rate (Rauwolfia)
Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Creatine Monohydrate can boost strength and lean mass
- Beta-Alanine may increase muscular endurance
- Caffeine can improve alertness and power output
Cons:
- Proprietary blend – can’t tell how safe or useful the product is
- Beta-Alanine can cause paresthesia
- Betaine can make your breath and sweat smell like rotting fish
- Rauwolfia is potentially useless AND unsafe
- Not enough proof DMAE has any benefit as a pre-workout ingredient
- DMAE may cause birth defects
- Doesn’t contain any ingredients to enhance muscle pumps
- High price – ingredients don’t live up to premium cost
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Conclusion
Despite its lofty claim to produce a ‘divine’ formula in I Am God, it’s an understatement to say Insane Labz have failed to produce anything special here. In truth, I Am God is not a good product – the claims to be much more than “normal” fall flat at every turn.
Like so many other pre-workouts we’ve tried, I Am God contains one or two ingredients and a bunch of other either useless or potentially unsafe ones.
Sure, we see Caffeine and Creatine in the very best pre-workouts for a reason – these are key ingredients. But it’s always disheartening to see them alongside the likes of Betaine (which can cause fishy breath) and Rauwolfia (which may cause a series of side effects).
And then there’s the proprietary blend – a shallow marketing trick used to hide inadequate products. When you pay a premium price for a pre-workout, you have the right to expect much more.
Our verdict
In case you haven’t already guessed, we do not recommend the I Am God pre-workout. Instead, we advise looking for an alternative with a clear list of key ingredients and their doses.