Winter Gains with Mind & Muscle IntraFuse

[chuck box]

Hey all, Chuck Box here starting a log for a new intra workout powder from Mind and Muscle!

I want to give a thanks to the guys at Mind and Muscle for the logging opportunity, I'm stoked to be running this! The product is called "IntraFuse" and is marketed as a intra-workout drink, although directions say it can be taken both pre/post too. For my purposes, I plan on running this mostly intra but will probably tweak as necessary.

A little about me.. Currently sitting around 205 lbs at 5'11''. I recently (about a little over a week ago) got back from a deployment where I used very minimal supps and training was a little difficult to get in due to schedule. Still managed at least 3x a week lifting plus cardio as I was focusing on doing a cut. I went out weighing around 225ish pounds so lost quite a bit while I was out there.

I'm looking to slowly add some muscle on without getting sloppy- other supps I will be running are BLR Exotherm, 5% Nutrition 5150 pre, and an array of vitamins (zinc/grapeseed extract/fish oil/probiotics/selenium). Training is back on point now to my usual 5-6 day a week lifting schedule, mostly volume bb type workouts.

Used the product today for the first workout, see post below for the start!

 

[chuck box]

Day #1

Today was leg day, got to the gym after a full day of errands and dealing with the snow but had a good day of meals in.

Pre workout- 1 scoop 51/50

For the IntraFuse, I mixed one scoop in my big water jug with ice cold water. After several rounds of vigorous shaking, the product seemed to settle for the most part except some ingredients that floated on top in a foam manner- could be the leucine or glycerol, not sure.

Here is a pic of it after 20 min of settling..

Onto the workout..

I really haven't used intra's before so wasn't too sure what to expect. IntraFuse contains HBCD carbs and GMS, along with some aminos, so I was expecting some solid pumps/endurance.

About 25 min into the workout my legs were pretty swollen and veiny, almost like a "water" pump (GMS acting here I'm assuming) and the muscles felt much fuller. One thing to note though is the product is unflavored, so it was like drinking a very bland substance (no fault here, I actually prefer unflavored as you can add your own flavoring).

Had a great workout, great pump and some nice endurance. Only problem is what followed post workout.. I had some serious GI issues about 1 hr post workout, I'm talking like 5-6 major bouts of water diarrhea! LOL! Looking at the label, I see there is 10 grams of GMS, I'm thinking that's what caused the issue as its a large dose and I think I drank way too much water with it, thus causing the liquid colon flush.

Plan for the next workout is to do 1/2 serving pre, 1/2 serving intra with less water to see if the GI issues subside.

Initial impressions besides the GI cleanse post workout is this stuff is swaying me to be a believer in intra workout supplementation. I felt super full and pumped during the workout and less fatigued, big plus in my book!

 

[BEAST73]

Subbed1.

 

[puccah8808]

Heroooo....

 

[Marms]

Thanks for the link I am subd.

 

[double s]

Keep us updated

 

[chuck box]

Alright guys sorry for the delay in updates, been quite the New Year celebration the past week. Had a drive across country for a New Year's wedding so took a bit of a chunk out of training unfortunately. Anyhow, back on track today with the diet and training..

Day#2

After experiencing the stomach issues on the first time trying out IntraFuse, I decided to go with the split dosing today to see if it made a difference.

About 30 min prior to heading to the gym I did half scoop IntraFuse along with my pre mixed in about 16 oz water, put the other half scoop in a shaker and headed out.

Once I got to the gym and started stretching I already felt a bit fuller and had more of a dense/hard (not sure if that makes much sense ha) feel to the muscles. After a few warm up sets I moved on to my working sets and definitely started to feel the pump come on.

Had a great workout and felt nice and rested after taking almost a week off, workout went something like this;

Barbell Rows (primary lift)
Dumbell rows running the rack
Few variations of pull downs
Pullovers
Pull-ups
Few random cable exercises to hit the angles

Post workout I had the half scoop of IntraFuse with 12 oz water and sipped it on the drive home before hitting my post workout meal.

Still noticed stomach issues about an hour after drinking the last serving, but not as intense as the first time. I'm thinking this dosing protocol might be helping those issues. Chest day is on deck tomorrow, can't wait to see how Intra performs on blowing up these pecs!

 

[double s]

Thank you for the update. Do you feel your Pre is sweeter with the intrafuse?

 

[chuck box]

Thank you for the update. Do you feel your Pre is sweeter with the intrafuse?

It makes it taste a bit different, not sure how to describe it but its not bad. I do mix it with more water though due to thickness

 

[chuck box]

Day 3 & 4

So hit chest yesterday and legs today, both solid workouts and although still trying to lift as heavy as possible I've been really getting into volume and really squeezing the muscles lately.

I know he gets alot of hate but Rich Piana talks about the pump/squeezing as key (been watching his videos lately) so its been a bit of an inspiration.

One thing to note on the IntraFuse is the vascularity really hit today during my leg session. I mean WOW, veins I've never seen in my calves were popping today and even my upper body was pumped up. I dosed 1 full scoop pre workout today and did another 1/4 ish during the workout mixed with some BCAAs

 

[chuck box]

Updates..

Workouts have been going well, missed a few this week due to weather and work schedule but still killed it overall this week during the workouts.

The stomach distress has been coming back with the IntraFuse, I was wondering if it was just me and my body but I gave my good friend/old workout partner a scoop and he experienced the same diarrhea issue post workout off one scoop. I'm still trying to find the best combo/dosing to mitigate these sides and so far the 1/3 scoop pre, during and post has given the least sides.

Vascularity and fullness is great though, I get a nice looking pump to the muscles and the pump does come pretty easy (within first few working sets).

 

[bhawks23]

Do you feel any stomach pain or distress when you're working out? Or is that something that only follows post workout?

 

[chuck box]

Do you feel any stomach pain or distress when you're working out? Or is that something that only follows post workout?

Typically it starts post workout I would say between 30-60 min after getting home. Luckily it doesn't hit during

 

[chuck box]

Past few days have been pretty good, I started carb cycling (my go to when I want to trim a little). Low days I shoot for around 150 grams and high days hover around 5-600 grams.

Today was a low day which fell on leg day.. bummer.. but the IntraFuse was a welcome addition to my carb count for the day. Went a little higher with dosing since carbs were centered around workout ( 1/2 scoop pre, 1 scoop post).

GI distress is still present, some days its not bad other days its more pronounced. I really think its the glycerol that is causing it, been searching around on the web to see if stomach issues are a common problem with glycerol.

 

[Marms]

Typically it starts post workout I would say between 30-60 min after getting home. Luckily it doesn't hit during

Good news is you make it home.

 

[double s]

Updates..

Workouts have been going well, missed a few this week due to weather and work schedule but still killed it overall this week during the workouts.

The stomach distress has been coming back with the IntraFuse, I was wondering if it was just me and my body but I gave my good friend/old workout partner a scoop and he experienced the same diarrhea issue post workout off one scoop. I'm still trying to find the best combo/dosing to mitigate these sides and so far the 1/3 scoop pre, during and post has given the least sides.

Vascularity and fullness is great though, I get a nice looking pump to the muscles and the pump does come pretty easy (within first few working sets).

Do 1/2 a scoop with 20+ ozs of water to keep hydrated. Let us know if this helps.

 

[double s]

Hello?

 

[chuck box]

Hello?

Hey, sorry been meaning to give the update!

I tried throwing in the extra scoop in the last few workouts, in turn varied up the pre workout dosage. Now it's looking something like;

1/2-3/4 pre
1/2 during
1/2 immediately after w/25 gram whey iso

So hovering around 1 1/2-2ish scoops total. Pumps are still great and seem to still last post workout for a few hours (more fullness).

 

[Marms]

Hello?

Hi

 

[chuck box]

So for some updates.. been dosing as described in last post so nothing new on that front.. but I am about midway through the bottle (I think) so wana give some thoughts;

Overall adding these carbs (HBCD) to my intra workout has been pretty eye opening. I've used vitargo and waxy maize in the past (mostly for pre) and both were decent, although waxy maize made me bloated as hell. Vitargo was just outrageously expensive!

HBCD really do seem to meet the claims as a better carb, as I've experienced zero bloating and the pumps/fullness are crazy (although I know Hydromax contribute too). Endurance is up too and I think overall I'm liking the addition of a drink during my workout.

Side note about the addition of Hydromax in IntraFuse.. unfortunately I think I just have a sensitive stomach when it comes to the glycerol, the research I did points to this as the culprit of the stomach issues. I am also the same way with F95, can't stomach it at all, if that gives you and idea.


Workouts are going great and I'm looking bigger during them so possibly adding some size on!

 

[chuck box]

Alright so workouts past few days have been pretty good.. Been a little slammed with work so didn't get in as much as I wanted to but made the sessions count.

Been adding cardio in the mornings (fasted) and right after I do about half a scoop of IntraFuse with some BCAA's before I start making breakfast.

Noticing some harder contractions in the gym lately and a little more vascularity especially when hitting arms/shoulders. Could be due to the increased cardio.. I've been out of pre workout since about a week ago so just been running the IntraFuse solo pre with half a tab of NoDoz (100mg caffeine) as I am going to go low on the stims for now.

Really not noticing a dip in energy/endurance without the pre workout especially with the IntraFuse. I would be curious to see how something non-stim like agmatine or nitrates would stack with IntraFuse pre workout.

 

[chuck box]

So bit of a rough past few days.. Sat morning I came down with a stomach virus type deal that put me out of commission till monday morning.. Was throwing up alot so missed meals and training both Sat and Sun! Not good, but Sun night was able to eat dinner and get some good rest.

Monday had a great chest workout though being back at it, was ready to tackle the week then unfortunately big snow storm hit that night and Tues couldn't make it to the gym as it was closed for the storm.

Made it in today though and killed back. Been throwing some crystal light packs in with IntraFuse during workouts to get some taste going as the unflavored has been getting bland lately, seems to do the trick though.

Looks like I have maybe about 1/4ish of the bottle left so should last me to the end of the week banking I get all my sessions in, wana make this week count good since I had a bit of a setback with the sickness.

 

[Marms]

Hows it going?

 

[chuck box]

Hows it going?

Yo! All is good, finished up the bottle over the weekend and writing the final review, should be up soon!

Gona try and put one on the M&M site too

 

[chuck box]

*FINAL REVIEW*

Alright guys time for the final review.. Bottle is completely finished up.. Stretched the last bit over the past week (threw like 1/4 scoop during workout for the hydration effects). Once again a big thanks to Mind and Muscle for letting me log this product and experience what an intra workout has to offer.

Prior to using the product I never really used an intra specific supplement, sometimes would use BCAA's w/gatorade or maybe a little Vitargo here and there if its on clearance but nothing consistent. I used IntraFuse in a variety of ways- pre, intra, and post. Mostly I used it intra but found the pre workout effects to be great too.

PRICE (5/5)- Ok the log was sponsored yes, but if you go to M&M site you will find the price (not sure if I can post it here) to be pretty reasonable especially considered how expensive HBCD is just by itself. IntraFuse also contains BCAA'S and HydroMax.

TASTE (3/5)- The taste is unflavored and by itself it definitely isn't the most desirable thing to drink. But, throw in some crystal light or whatever flavoring of your choice and it masks it pretty well. I would like to see M&M come out with a flavored version in the future. Overall though not too much of an issue but its just the convenience factor of having to add your own flavoring.

PERFORMANCE (5/5)- I will say I am a believer in HBCD as a carb source now, it really is impressive. Zero bloating and digests very fast and you can really feel it "fill" the muscles up. Pumps were outstanding and I felt so full and vascular during my workouts (contribute some of this to the glycerol). Besides the pump and visual effects, I noticed endurance was increased and I could squeeze out more reps per set than usual. On low carb days it really shined as sometimes it was my only allowance for the day and it was well worth having IntraFuse as my only carb source; taken pre/intra on those days it didn't feel like it was a low carb day at all. So as you can tell, very impressed with the performance enhancement IntraFuse provided.

SIDE EFFECTS (2/5)- The downside of IntraFuse, as least for ME was the side effects. I got some substantial GI issues from the product post workout, ranging from mild to pretty bad some days. I think I pinged it down to the glycerol that affected me, as through researching it seemed like the only ingredient that would cause this. Again this was personal but I did have a friend try it and he had diarrhea also. So if you have a weak stomach you might experience this side effect, but if you don't then you should be good to go.

Overall, pretty good product to use during your workout. It made me want to experiment more with intra workout supplementation and I think if anything most people could use it for a month as a plateau buster if they don't currently use an intra. Final review, I give it a 4/5 based purely on value and performance, if I took the sides into consideration more it would be lower but I really think it was an individual thing. Keep up the solid products Mind & Muscle!

 

[double s]

*FINAL REVIEW*

Alright guys time for the final review.. Bottle is completely finished up.. Stretched the last bit over the past week (threw like 1/4 scoop during workout for the hydration effects). Once again a big thanks to Mind and Muscle for letting me log this product and experience what an intra workout has to offer.

Prior to using the product I never really used an intra specific supplement, sometimes would use BCAA's w/gatorade or maybe a little Vitargo here and there if its on clearance but nothing consistent. I used IntraFuse in a variety of ways- pre, intra, and post. Mostly I used it intra but found the pre workout effects to be great too.

PRICE (5/5)- Ok the log was sponsored yes, but if you go to M&M site you will find the price (not sure if I can post it here) to be pretty reasonable especially considered how expensive HBCD is just by itself. IntraFuse also contains BCAA'S and HydroMax.

TASTE (3/5)- The taste is unflavored and by itself it definitely isn't the most desirable thing to drink. But, throw in some crystal light or whatever flavoring of your choice and it masks it pretty well. I would like to see M&M come out with a flavored version in the future. Overall though not too much of an issue but its just the convenience factor of having to add your own flavoring.

PERFORMANCE (5/5)- I will say I am a believer in HBCD as a carb source now, it really is impressive. Zero bloating and digests very fast and you can really feel it "fill" the muscles up. Pumps were outstanding and I felt so full and vascular during my workouts (contribute some of this to the glycerol). Besides the pump and visual effects, I noticed endurance was increased and I could squeeze out more reps per set than usual. On low carb days it really shined as sometimes it was my only allowance for the day and it was well worth having IntraFuse as my only carb source; taken pre/intra on those days it didn't feel like it was a low carb day at all. So as you can tell, very impressed with the performance enhancement IntraFuse provided.

SIDE EFFECTS (2/5)- The downside of IntraFuse, as least for ME was the side effects. I got some substantial GI issues from the product post workout, ranging from mild to pretty bad some days. I think I pinged it down to the glycerol that affected me, as through researching it seemed like the only ingredient that would cause this. Again this was personal but I did have a friend try it and he had diarrhea also. So if you have a weak stomach you might experience this side effect, but if you don't then you should be good to go.

Overall, pretty good product to use during your workout. It made me want to experiment more with intra workout supplementation and I think if anything most people could use it for a month as a plateau buster if they don't currently use an intra. Final review, I give it a 4/5 based purely on value and performance, if I took the sides into consideration more it would be lower but I really think it was an individual thing. Keep up the solid products Mind & Muscle!

Chuck - fantastic review, aside from the GI Distress, we appreciate the honest and glowing review. Enjoy your weekend.