Sparta Hydra8 BCAA (Discontinued, Hurry and Get It!)

Sparta Nutrition’s entry to the amino energy game brings longer-lasting stimulant Theacrine and a whopping 8g BCAA!

We’ve covered the burgeoning energy aminos market here on PricePlow over the past couple of years, and for the most part, most of these products are about the same — a few grams worth of amino acids (hopefully primarily BCAAs) and a hit of caffeine (usually around 100mg).

But releasing the same thing as everyone else isn’t the way the crew at Sparta Nutrition handles product formulation!

Sparta has decided to enter the increasingly crowded amino energy niche with a unique spin on combining flavored BCAAs with stims in their new Hydra8 BCAA — an energy amino product that’s packing a hefty dose of 2:1:1 BCAAs along with Tasteless Teacrine.

All the details are down below, but first, take a moment to check the best deal and sign up for alerts from PricePlow:

Hydra8 BCAA Ingredients

Hydra8 BCAA is the first energy amino product to include the long-lasting energy booster Theacrine along with an impressive 8g dose of 2:1:1 BCAAs.

• 2:1:1 BCAA (8g)

  

  Hydra8 BCAA is extremely well dosed and should pack a punch with 120mg caffeine and 50mg yield of theacrine for long-lasting energy.

  Talk about a heaping helping of branched chain amino acids! Sparta Nutrition has crammed a sizeable 8g worth of 2:1:1 BCAAs into each serving of Hydra8. That means each scoop gives you 4g of mTOR activating leucine, alongside 2g each of Isoleucine and Valine.

  In addition to stimulating protein synthesis in the body^[1], BCAAs also provide and readily usable form of energy for your muscle to promote endurance and stamina during training. They’re also useful for accelerating recovery and reducing DOMS too.^[2,3]

• Glutamine (3g)

  Glutamine used to be billed as the ultimate fatigue-halting, recovery-boosting amino acid.^[4] However, when used in its free from state (as it is here), it really only helps support gut health.^[5]

  Basically, the stomach is greedy and takes all the glutamine for itself, which means little to none survives the pass through the stomach and makes it to the intestines where it can then be absorbed and utilized by your muscles for glycogen replenishment and recovery.^[6]

  Honestly, we have to wonder why companies still include the free form of Glutamine in products.. It’s really not all that useful and is just a filler more than anything. The alanyl glutamine (L-Alanine + L-Glutamine) form is superior in terms of stomach survival and true recovery enhancement.

• Citrulline Malate (1.5g)

  

  Have you Released the Kraken yet?!

  Citrulline Malate is included here to extend the initial nitric oxide boost from whatever citrulline / citrulline malate was contained in your pre workout. Including it in an intra workout helps ensure that your pumps and performance stay strong no matter how long your workouts may be.

  This dose is on par with what we’ve seen in a few other energy aminos on the market, names Scivation’s Xtend GO.

  But if you want a full pre workout dose of citrulline, you’ll want to check out Sparta’s Kraken pre workout (pictured).

• Tasteless TeaCrine 40% (125mg)

  Here’s where Hydra8 really stands out from the rest of the energy amino products on the market — the inclusion of 125mg of Tasteless Teacrine. Now, it’s important to note that tasteless theacrine isn’t true 100% theacrine, but a form that only 40% of the energy-boosting compound. That means each serving of Hydr8 provides 50mg worth of actual theacrine.

  This amount is OK in our eyes, as its purpose here is to prolong the energy boost from your pre workout (or just get you over the hump in the post-lunch afternoon). It will be really effective if your pre workout happens to include 100mg worth of theacrine, which we’ve found to be the dose where this ingredient really starts to shine.

  But for an energy amino supplement, this is a great caffeine-booster that will keep you riding high when the caffeine’s done doing it’s thing.

• Caffeine Anhydrous (120mg)

  

  Gotta love that caffeine. Some in the AM, some in the early PM!

  Providing the majority of the energy boost in Hydra8 is a strong 120mg dose of caffeine anhydrous. This is roughly equal to 1.5 cups of brewed coffee and will provide a noticeable increase in energy, focus, and alertness. Coupled with the 50mg worth of theacrine, Hydr8 should make for one sustained energy experience.

  Leave it to Sparta Nutrition to beat most other BCAA energy products out there – many include 100 or 110mg of caffeine plus the support ingredients… so Sparta has to out-do them, as they’re known to do (see the Sparta Kraken pre workout for an example)!

On the Formula

”Hydra8 is the perfect go-to for focus, hydration, focus, and energy. When formulating Hydra8, we wanted to give the scientific research-driven 2:1:1 ratio of BCAA’s at a whopping dosage of 8 grams, a ton of electrolytes [as electrolytes are vital for hydration], a kick and edge into the energized BCAA market with just the right amount of caffeine.

What really sets Hydra8 apart is the TeaCrine for focus and energy. TeaCrine has quickly become one of my favorite ingredients due to the positive data, results, feedback, and manner it synergizes with caffeine; overall, the most carefully crafted and novel energized amino product on the market.”

Flavors Available

Sparta nailed the Mango nectar flavor in HydraShred, can they do it again in Hydra8?

Hydra8 BCAA will be available just in time for the 2017 Olympia, and when it debuts, it’ll be available in 4 unique flavors:

• Tropical Punch
• Watermelon
• Green Apple Candy
• Mango Nectar

Sparta crushed it with their Mango flavored HydraShred fat burning drink, despite all of the stimulants they had to mask there — so we’re confident we’re going to have at least one huge winner out of this batch!

Takeaway

Open formula labels always go over well with us, and that’s what we’ve come to appreciate from Sparta Nutrition more than anything else. Hydr8 is a solid addition to the company’s expanding line of products, and the addition of theacrine is something that separates Hydr8 from all the other BCAA energy supplements on the market.