Zip, by Femme Nutrition is a pre workout supplement for women that I tested last week during the first part of my Christmas vacation. In this comprehensive review, I’ll tell you exactly how each of my workouts went with Zip, and focus in particular on its effectiveness. I’m also going to go into detail on the flavor i.e. how does this pre workout taste? Is it the best tasting pre workout for women? All will be answered. Of course I’ll finish up with a breakdown of the label design, and conclude with an assessment of the overall value. Alright. Femme Zip review time. Let’s do it.
Not long ago I was checking out some video reviews from an Australian supplement retailer called ‘Massive Joes’ and I must say I was delighted by how funny (and kinda cute) the guys in the review videos were. Anyways they were discussing a review of a new women’s pre workout called Zip by Femme Nutrition, which is a new Australian sports supplement company. Since I am the queen of pre workout reviews, I knew I had to get my hands on some Zip and give a complete BPW test. I’m not going to tell you how I managed to finally get some of this pre workout, but let’s just say that it was an extensive process. If you are considering this product, you should hope that you are in Australia and can go grab some from the store. Ok enough jibber jabber let’s get to it.
Femme Zip Flavor Grade: B+
Ok so I got Zip just in time for me to make my triumphant return to my home gym. A place near and dear to my heart, and also just about the coldest place in the entire world. Before leaving for the gym, I settled down in my kitchen with my iPad, and started putting together my workout for the day. But first I grabbed an empty gatorade bottle and filled it up about 75% full with ice cold tap water. (I missed my iced tap water!). Then I dosed out 2 level scoops of Zip, and funneled them into my bottle using a rolled up newspaper. Keeping it gangsta. Some companies advise to never shake the pre workout but instead mix them up with a spoon or something, but I usually don’t pay those any heed. This was no different. I shook the crap out of it. Zip foamed up nicely and had a pretty pink tint to it that I liked. I was not sure what to expect with my first sip because I actually have no idea what passion fruit is supposed to taste like. But apparently it tastes like candy, because that’s basically what this pre workout drink tastes like. There was the slightest hint of fruity/tartness, but it was the most generic fruit flavor of all time. Like if you gave this pre workout to a hundred different people and asked them what flavor it was, you might get over 50 different answers. A hundred different answers. If that’s what real passion fruit tastes like, than I would be the most passionate passion fruit fan of all time. I kinda doubt it, but, hey. I’m giving Femme Zip a B plus for it’s flavor review only because to be completely honest, it’s very very artificial tasting. It’s sweet and it’s good, but almost everything loaded up with article colors and flavors is going to be pretty darn good. Plenty of time to perfect it in the lab, right? But in summary, good job with flavoring, Femme Nutrition. So Zip tastes the part- but does it work?
Femme Zip Performance Grade: A-
I’ll put it out there right from the start. This is a pretty solid pre workout for women. Is it on the same level as something like ATHENA or Cardio Cuts? No. But let’s be serious that’s the creme de la creme. While Zip didn’t floor me, it did end up exceeding my (fairly modest) expectations. As you know from reading my other pre workout reviews, testing these products is literally my speciality. You won’t find more in-depth analysis of these supplements anywhere online- or even close for that matter. End power trip. LOL.
So back to my narrative. I downed my passion fruit-flavored pre workout supplement in about five minutes flat, saving a few baby sips for my fifteen minute drive to the gym. On the ride I started to really feel some beta-alanine tingles come into play in my neck, forehead, and chest. My ears started tingling a little bit too. I used to really hate beta-alanine for this reason, but I’ve become so used to the sensation by now that I barely notice. As I was pulling into the gym I could feel a rush of energy come over my body, and I knew i could be in for a nice surprise.
The workout that I drew up was a split-squat-fest. Sound fun right? Right. It’s really not. Unless you’re into that kind of thing, which I am. Always trying to build up my skinny toothpick quads. Basically what you do is load up a bar on the smith machine with a 25 (or 35 lbs) plate on either side, get your butt in there and do split squats till the cows come home. Or until you do 15 reps each leg. Then you rest for 90 seconds, and do it again. And again. And again. And again. And again. Four more times. Say it with me, again, again, again. again! YES! You do 8 sets of this, and then you go sit in the corner and cry tears of joy. It’s a battle, give it a try sometime. So how did Zip do? Pretty darn good. Let’s be serious the last three sets are going to be a mental battle I don’t care who you are. But usually the last FIVE sets are a battle. And that’s a testament to how the pre workout for women performed. It really does give both energy and endurance, which is more rare than you would think. Overall it’s a very balanced pre workout that does what it should do, which is improve your athletic performance. That’s why I’m giving Zip a solid A minus on performance. Let’s take a quick peek at the ingredients and look under the hood at what powers this pre workout drink.
Zip Ingredients/Formula Grade: B-
An interesting thing about this Zip review is that I actually did not look at the ingredients panel before I completed this workout. During my workout I was thinking of what I would find when I got home, and surprisingly I was pretty wrong. I was anticipating all sorts of fancy stimulants and maybe even some creatine and betaine to fuel that endurance/strength. I found neither. I found a super simple formula in fact. This pre workout is essentially three things:
- ‘PureEnergy’ caffeine: I put this ingredient first because I do believe it might be what is responsible for the strong performance of the product, and also maybe why I was expecting something more complex. PureEnergy is a patented form of caffeine that extends the half-life and keeps you energized for longer. This was my first exposure to PureEnergy, and I might just be a believer now.
- L-Carnitine-L-Tartarate: This is the preferred form of the amino acid L-Carnitine, which plays a role in just about everything relating to your workout performance. Fat Burning, yep. Energy, yep. Muscle-building, yep. LCLT is one of the most popular sports supplements of all time, and it will be for years to come.
- Carnosyn Beta-Alanine: Everyone loves their beta-alanine, don’t they? Like I said, not a huge believe in it’s effectiveness as an endurance-enhancer, but it ‘let’s you know the product is working’, and that’s why you’re going to find it in 95% of all pre workout supplements. I’ve learned to take it. Just do the same.
In summary I gave this ingredient list a B minus because it’s not all that imaginative. It’s brutally simple. But at the same time, it works. It’s the equivalent of ‘just win’. With pre workouts, ‘just work’. And Zip does.
Femme Zip Packaging Grade: B+
The Zip pre workout gets high marks from me again in this review of it’s packaging. In a world defined by literally abominable design, Zip sets itself apart by being way less awful than some of it’s competition. It isn’t going to win any awards, but the pink and white is a nice departure from the black and hot pink that every other women’s pre workout adorns. The graphics themselves are kind of blocky and masculine, but at least they are original, and don’t try too hard to be girly. That’s what I appreciate most about this label design – it doesn’t go obnoxiously out of it’s way to scream ‘girls’ on it. Good job Femme.
Femme Zip Value and Final Score: B+
Ok, this is where it gets tricky. Online, Zip is priced at $69.95 MSRP. This is actually ludicrous for a pre workout- especially a 30 serving tub. They Do have it marked down to $50 on the website, and that is still on the high side in my opinion. If you are looking to try out Femme Zip, then I suggest finding it at a retail location in hopes that the prices will be less. If you can find this product priced at around $34.99, then I would 100% recommend giving Zip a try. It’s a solid pre workout that doesn’t try too hard, and tastes great.
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