Ashwagandha, another Black Panther film? Unfortunately not. Ashwagandha, aka winter cherry, is considered a marvel in its own right due to the amount of health benefits it possesses. Ashwagandha is derived from the word “ashwa”, meaning horse, and “gandha,” meaning fragrance. It was once believed that consuming this root would provide one with powers similar to that of a horse. That’s not too far off. The benefits this root provides may not allow you to pull the Budweiser cart with your fellow Clydesdales but may provide protection to your heart, nervous system, hormonal action (increased testosterone), as well as provide better sleep, anti-inflammatory, anti-diabetic actions, and more.
You may be asking yourself, that’s all good and fine, but how does this root benefit me in a pre-workout? Let’s look at the research… According to Mikulska et al. (2023), Ashwagandha supplementation has been shown to significantly increase muscle strength and stimulate muscle renewal processes. This study involved healthy men consuming 300 mg twice a day for eight weeks. To put into perspective, Freight Train Pre-workout contains 600 mg per scoop potentially allowing you to obtain these results. Shenoy et al. (2017), in their study, confirmed that the group receiving Ashwagandha supplementation had significant improvements in several measures of cardiorespiratory endurance compared to the placebo. Finally, a study by Ziegenfuss et al. (2018), demonstrated that participants who took Ashwagandha had faster muscle strength recovery following a muscle-damaging exercise compared to the placebo group.
The benefits discussed above are just the tip of the iceberg. If you want to learn more about Ashwagandha see the list of research articles below and do your own research. With all these benefits, surely there are drawbacks to using Ashwagandha, right? Many studies have been performed showing the lack of evidence confirming its safety during pregnancy… if you're pregnant you should avoid this root. There are one or two case studies showing that this root was related to liver disease but each individual in the case study recovered without complications after withdrawal from consuming it. Like anything else in life, you need to make the determination if you are willing to ingest any herbal supplement and understand the benefits and risks of using it.
“Over the years, research has been conducted to investigate the various effects of Ashwagandha, and this research has shown it has multiple beneficial effects on different body systems.” (Mikulska et al. 2023) However, this research is ongoing and will be continually updated. Perhaps, the new marvel of the universe, Ashwagandha, can add improvements to your workout!
References/Disclaimer:
1 Mikulska P, Malinowska M, Ignacyk M, Szustowski P, Nowak J, Pesta K, Szeląg M, Szklanny D, Judasz E, Kaczmarek G, Ejiohuo OP, Paczkowska-Walendowska M, Gościniak A, Cielecka-Piontek J. Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera)-Current Research on the Health-Promoting Activities: A Narrative Review. Pharmaceutics. 2023 Mar 24;15(4):1057. doi: 10.3390/pharmaceutics15041057. PMID: 37111543; PMCID: PMC10147008.
2 Shenoy S, Chaskar U, Sandhu JS, Paadhi MM. Effects of eight-week supplementation of Ashwagandha on cardiorespiratory endurance in elite Indian cyclists. J Ayurveda Integr Med. 2012 Oct;3(4):209-14. doi: 10.4103/0975-9476.104444. PMID: 23326093; PMCID: PMC3545242.
3 Ziegenfuss TN, Kedia AW, Sandrock JE, Raub BJ, Kerksick CM, Lopez HL. Effects of an Aqueous Extract of Withania somnifera on Strength Training Adaptations and Recovery: The STAR Trial. Nutrients. 2018 Nov 20;10(11):1807. doi: 10.3390/nu10111807. PMID: 30463324; PMCID: PMC6266766.
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