- Testers generally liked the taste of the product and found it easy to mix, although one complained that it was difficult to mix.
- Two thirds of the testers reported increases in strength during testing, usually ranging from mild to moderate.
- Testers who did cardiovascular exercise reported significantly increased performance.
- All testers reported an increase in pumps/vascularity, with some testers reporting the effect as mild, and others reporting it as extreme.
- Some testers reported increased rate of recovery and decreased muscle soreness.
Taste and mixability
"I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it mixed and how good it tasted."
-Tester 3
"I like the taste and it seems to mix very well."
-Tester 4
"As far as flavor goes, this stuff is easy to drink, with no bad aftertaste like arginine, and it doesn't make my stomach feel weird the way 5 g of creatine mono and dextrose/maltodextrin/sugar does. The product in my container was pretty clumpy, but no worries, because it instantly dissolves, even without stirring."
-Tester 5
"The product is extremely hardened inside the can. Lots of rock like particles of the product that take a while to dissolve."
-Tester 6
Convenience
"I will most definitely use it in the future. The convenience of dumping a scoop in my water bottle vs. measuring out all of the powders like I used to do is worth a lot to me."
-Tester 5
Strength increases
"My weights stayed the same, strength didn't increase."
-Tester 1
"Lifts are up ~6% from same workout last Tuesday, pumps are better too, and I'm putting in much less effort/exertion with better intensity."
-Tester 2, Day 8
"Week number two was very impressive. Not only was I walking around with an almost permanent pump and sense of muscle fullness, I also found my muscles were less quick to fatigue. I was able to lift heavier weights using the same slow tempo and high intensity!"
-Tester 3
"I have really yet to feel a strength kick in on this product yet – my lifts are pretty much the same but I do feel a little faster recovery (creatine) as I am used to with a good creatine product."
-Tester 4, Day 11
"My workouts were intense and I experienced particular strength gains in legs, tris, and chest."
-Tester 5
"Some decent strength changes in my barbell rows and shrugs. Again feeling like I have better stamina but not as much as I would have thought. Can't complain though."
-Tester 6, Day 11
Endurance and cardio
"After 20 minutes of HIIT, which usually brings my pulse up to 165, my pulse was at 133."
-Tester 2, Day 3
"I experienced increased pumps and endurance, particularly as my workout progressed. This allowed me to increase volume and weight substantially. I was also able to perform cardio much better, and no cramping."
-Tester 5
Pumps/vascularity
"My last days I tried to double up the dose. Two servings before I work out. With this I felt a big difference, my pumps were more hard and they lasted longer. I felt like I could workout for another two hours."
-Tester 1
"I did not notice anything extraordinary in terms of repartitioning or increases in vascularity. My vascularity did increase, but not nearly as much as when supplementing with glycerol 2 hrs pre-workout."
-Tester 2
"There is definitely some good vasodilation and muscle expanding properties to this stuff. A metabolic pump it is. This is definitely a way to keep the 'swole' look going. Vascularity has been awesome. My veins have been bulging out big time."
-Tester 3, Day 10
"Seems to have very little effects on my normal pumps in the gym but afterwards, incredible pump."
-Tester 4, Day 15
"My vascularity increased as well, possibly from less BF, but I began to see veins all over my upper pecs and my biceps vein finally came out of hiding."
-Tester 5
"Not much to report other than some decent pumps."
-Tester 6, Day 14
Soreness/recovery
"Didn't feel tired after the workout. Recovery was a plus. Didn't get sore."
-Tester 1
"Not nearly as sore as I usually am after a long week. The Metabolic Pump is definitely helping with recovery."
-Tester 2, Day 6
Body weight/composition changes
"Overall, I think 4-6 weeks would be a better time to guage any repartitioning effects from the product."
-Tester 2
"Over the course of 17 days I was able to drop 4 pounds and almost an entire % of bodyfat, which means I lost no LBM while in calorie deficit. Additionally, my arms and chest pumped up. I gained about .25" on my arms and .5" on my chest."
-Tester 5
"No changes in body measurements to report. They remain as they did at the beginning."
-Tester 6
Comparison with similar products and overall comments
"For me I don't think it worked as good as it claims. My weights didn't jump up and my vascularity wasn't as good as I thought it would be. I would score this product 3 out of 5. It helped but not as good as I thought it would be."
-Tester 1
"Overall, the strength increases are on par with plain-old creatine monohydrate, but the aerobic capacity gains were off the charts phenomenal."
-Tester 2
"I would definitely recommend MRM Metabolic Pump and would venture to say that it gives Swole or V12 a run for their money! If you like Swole or V12 give MRM Metabolic Pump a try."
-Tester 3
"In comparison to other products I think Swole and V12 gave me better in gym pumps as well as strength results than Metabolic Pump. I think I fall in the creatine non-responder realm and this product uses creatine monohydrate. Taste and consistency of the product were great, I believe that MRM makes a good product and I think for people who are thinking about adding an NO2 product along with their creatine – this product might do the trick for you."
-Tester 4
"In my experience, Metabolic Pump does what it's advertised to do. This product is like San V12 and San OX (citrulline malate) in one. I feel the ingredients work well in this synergistic combination."
-Tester 5
"I thought the product was less than average. I have honestly experienced much better results in my first two weeks of use of comparable products. For example I got much better results my first two weeks of SAN V12 and the original Swole. Also when I added straight arginine to Swole it was hands down much better than Metabolic Pump."
-Tester 6
Price
"At $30 for a two week supply, I think Metabolic Pump is a bit cost-prohibitive for most."
-Tester 2
"As you can see, you can get close to three weeks of product for about $30. I feel that if you get results like mine, it is certainly worth it."
-Tester 5
Other comments
"Often, due to my sleep apnea, my hands, feet, or limbs are somewhat numb when waking. Lately, they haven't been. The only thing that has changed is the Metabolic Pump added to my workout. This must be increasing circulation, a positive indeed."
-Tester 2, Day 4
"I do notice that it increases my alertness levels a bit more."
-Tester 3, Day 7
"I did begin to feel like I had a bit more energy towards the end of the first week."
-Tester 6
If you have any questions or comments regarding this article, please email dvdtlsn@bulknutrition.com.
No part of this article may be reproduced in any form without the permission of David Tolson or Mike McCandless.
