It’s been about a month since I signed up for the FRS Healthy Energy Drink introductory program and have been writing about my experiences with this Quercetin-fueled elixir.  What interested me in this energy drink is that Quercetin is an ingredient that has shown some promise in early research and possibly can provide energy in a low-calorie package.

UPDATE: I wrote this log in real time so in reality it has been over three months since I started my FRS Energy Drink experiment. As of June 1, 2010 I am still using FRS and pay for the drink concentrate and chews with my own money every month.

I started using FRS Healthy Energy Drink back in early February and a couple of weeks ago my wife started using it, too.  Where I had a bit of an issue with the taste of the low-calorie orange flavor – sweetened with Sucralose – my wife says she doesn’t think FRS has a bad taste or aftertaste.  What I will say is that I do not have as much of an issue with the taste now that I’ve been using the energy drink for about a month.

I have used FRS before every workout I have done since February 9 and have found that under a wide-variety of circumstances, moods and workouts my energy levels have been sufficient to get me through the sessions.  As I’ve written before, I have used a variety of traditional and non-traditional foods and drinks to give me an energy boost for my workouts; Gatorade, Snickers, granola, food bars, carbohydrate gels and nuts.  I found that FRS worked as well, or better, than any of these items.

There are a couple of issues to consider with regard to my feelings that FRS was effective.  There is always the possibility that the Placebo Effect could be responsible for my feeling that FRS worked.  However, I have also used other products, some of which did and some which didn’t work.  So in my unscientific, anecdotal experience I feel that FRS did make a difference in my workouts.  Another factor to consider is that since I was taking FRS with the express purpose of writing a product review I paid more attention to how I felt and maintained a strict schedule and didn’t miss a dose.

The FRS Healthy Energy Drink is a viable option for people who are looking for a pre-workout energy boost without the calories and jitters that can come from using other brands of energy drinks.  After using the drink for a month, I recommend signing up for the FRS Energy Drink trial offer.

Last week I signed up for the FRS Energy Drink Free Trial and started using the orange flavored concentrate Tuesday February 9.  I will chronicle my experiences with this Quercetin and vitamin-fueled energy drink and post the details on a regular basis.  I will provide you with my observations and impressions of FRS Energy Drink and if I don’t like it, I will tell you just as if I do.

I have tried many energy products over the years and the only products of this kind that I found to be effective – and have used with any regularity – are a couple of different varieties of carbohydrate gels and even though it isn’t marketed as such, Gatorade.

I have also used foods such as granola bars, protein shakes, and all kinds of meal replacement bars before and during training sessions in order to keep my energy reserves filled.  My problem is that I do not love the feeling of having anything in my stomach beyond liquid, which is why I have used Gatorade and carbohydrate gel.

The pitch for the FRS Energy Drink appealed to me enough to compel me to sign up for the trial offer even though the research on Quercetin hasn’t served up any bona fides as to its effectiveness.  I’m looking for energy without the volume of food.

So the FRS trial package arrived at my gym last week – the 32 ounce bottle of the orange flavored concentrate, a bag of energy chews, a measuring cup and a metal, thermos-like bottle.  Included in the package was a bevy of informational/promotional materials that provide more info than you’ll probably care to know about Quercetin and FRS.  However, this is a welcome change from so many of the products that are advertised these days.

FRS comes in concentrate form, so I poured 2 ounces into the measuring cup, 6 ounces of water in the FRS thermos bottle with some ice chips and shook it up.  The concentrate has a pretty strong smell of orange and vitamins.  The flavor wasn’t too bad.  A little artificial tasting with a bit of an aftertaste, all in all better than other energy drinks I’ve tasted but not as good as Gatorade.

The instructions that came with the FRS advise that the benefits provided by Quercetin and the energy drink may not be evident from the first use, and I did not feel any overt boost from my first batch of FRS.  I also did not exercise on this day, so I cannot speak to any effects FRS may have had on my workout.

The second day of my FRS experiment we were hit with a blizzard and I wasn’t able to get to the gym.  I did, however, take my FRS a few minutes before I headed out for some snow-shoveling/snow blowing.  For what it’s worth, I felt totally energetic during this non-traditional, but totally functional workout.  There was at least 8 inches of snow on the ground and I have a lot of driveway and walkway to clear. Despite not having had anything to eat for 2 or 3 hours, I had no trouble getting the job done and felt good doing it.

It’s certainly too early to say whether or not my FRS experiment will be a success.  I’m a little concerned about the taste and I want to see how I feel when I use FRS immediately prior to a workout and as a refueling agent between the resistance training and swimming segments of my workouts.

I will report back to you after I get through the rest of the week, and two or three more workouts.  If you want try it yourself, click here for your free trial.  Please send me feedback through posting a comment so that other readers can benefit as well.

UPDATE: Please read my FRS Energy Drink Log, Part II

Quercetin is an antioxidant and one of the hot new nutritional supplements on the market today.  Touted as having a wide-range of benefits, it is the key ingredient in the new Lance Armstrong endorsed energy drink, called FRS.

There’s a lot of hype surrounding Quercetin.  According to the FRS website, Quercetin is a powerful antioxidant, “that been shown in clinical studies to deliver sustained energy, help promote improved fitness and support overall health.”

In fact, there have been only a handful of Quercetin studies that used human subjects and there is not a clear understanding of how it works or if it can improve exercise performance. There is a reason to believe that Quercetin acts in a way similar to caffeine and delays fatigue. Certainly this substance has given researchers a reason to conduct further studies, but at this point Quercetin is not a slam dunk.

FRS energy drink has gotten a lot of attention thanks to its arrangement with Lance Armstrong. And if you visit the FRS website and click on the “Science of Quercetin” link you will be given a little info and a video featuring Dr. Mark Davis, a researcher involved with a pro-Quercetin study.  You can do a search for Quercetin research on the website for the “International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism.” Davis was involved with the study titled, “The Dietary Flavenoid Quercetin Increases VO2 Max and Endurance Capacity,” that found Quercetin improved endurance without exercise training after only a 7-day period, in untrained individuals.

In my opinion, at this point in time there isn’t enough data to conclude that Quercetin is a panacea or can provide more, or “better,” energy than any of the currently available, cheaper products that are on the market.

FRS energy drink has positioned itself as the “healthy energy” alternative to other energy drinks that utilize sugar and stimulants like caffeine and its relatives as their main ingredient.

If you are in the market for an energy drink FRS Healthy Energy drink is worth trying.  get a free trial and make your own decision.  I have signed up for the FRS free trial and will see for myself if FRS energy drink delivers on its promises.  Even though I do not use an energy drink I have signed up for the FRS free trial and will see for myself if FRS energy drink delivers on its promises.

UPDATE: Read my FRS test log entry to see how my first experience with FRS went.