Why I Threw My Pre-Workout in the Trash (And Started Drinking Fungus)

Look. We need to have a serious talk about pre-workout powders because I am honestly sick of seeing people at my gym dry-scooping neon radioactive sludge that makes their skin crawl like they just walked through a spiderweb.

And yeah, I used to be one of those idiots.

Back in 2019 I was absolutely pounding this garbage. I'm talking two scoops of the blue raspberry "C4" knockoff right before doing heavy deadlifts, which, by the way, is a fantastic way to ensure your heart rate hits 180 before you even touch the barbell. But what choice did I have? I was working a miserable desk job until 5 PM, sitting in terrible Los Angeles traffic on the 405 for an hour and a half, and by the time I walked through the doors of my local 24 Hour Fitness at 6:45 PM I was practically a zombie.

I needed the caffeine. Or so I thought.

Then my friend Marcus—who is this bizarrely healthy dude that runs ultramarathons and eats literally nothing but venison and sweet potatoes—told me to throw my pre-workout in the actual garbage bin and buy a bag of cordyceps mushroom extract instead.

I laughed in his face. A mushroom? You want me to eat a fungus to help me squat 315 pounds? It sounded like the most Portland, Oregon hipster nonsense I had ever heard in my entire thirty-two years on this planet.

But Marcus was relentless. He gave me a little glass jar filled with this dark orange powder. The militaris strain, he called it. It smelled earthy. Like dirt after a heavy rain. Not exactly appetizing when you're used to artificial watermelon flavor, but whatever. I mixed three grams into a shaker bottle of water the next day and drank it on the drive to the gym.

Here is exactly what happened.

I didn't feel anything for the first twenty minutes. No jitters. No face tingling. No sudden urge to run through a brick wall. I was actually kind of mad, thinking Marcus had pranked me with expensive dirt.

But then I started my warmup sets. And then my working sets. And I realized something entirely weird was happening—I wasn't getting out of breath. Usually, by the fifth rep of a heavy set, I am gasping for air like a fish flopping around on a boat deck. But my lungs just felt... massive. Like someone had installed a secondary oxygen tank in my chest cavity while I wasn't looking.

I hit 315 for eight reps that day. My previous best was five.

So what the hell is actually going on here?

Well, if you dig into the research behind cordyceps for athletic performance, you find out that this weird little mushroom doesn't stimulate your central nervous system like caffeine does. Caffeine is basically fake energy. It just blocks the adenosine receptors in your brain so you don't realize you're tired, while simultaneously jacking up your cortisol and adrenaline. You are borrowing energy from tomorrow to pay for today, and the interest rate is terrible.

Cordyceps works completely differently. It actually increases the production of ATP—adenosine triphosphate—which is the literal molecular currency of energy in your cells. It also dilates your airways. More oxygen in the blood means more endurance for your muscles.

There's a famous story from the 1993 National Games in Beijing. A bunch of female Chinese runners absolutely shattered multiple world records, and everyone immediately accused them of taking illegal steroids. They were tested. The tests came back completely clean. The coach finally revealed their secret: they were drinking a soup made from turtle blood and Cordyceps sinensis. (We use the militaris strain now because sinensis is harvested from the heads of dead caterpillars in the Himalayas and costs like twenty thousand dollars a pound, which is frankly ridiculous).

Let's talk about the crash for a second. With standard pre-workout, you get a solid ninety minutes of feeling like a Greek god, followed immediately by four hours of feeling like you got hit by a bus. I remember sitting at my kitchen table at 9 PM after a heavy leg day, my hands shaking so bad I couldn't even hold a fork to eat my chicken and rice. My anxiety was through the roof. I couldn't sleep until 1 AM, and then my alarm went off at 6 AM, restarting the terrible cycle all over again.

With the mushroom extract? None of that. Zero crash. Because you aren't spiking your central nervous system, there is no cliff to fall off. You just finish your workout, go home, eat dinner, and go to bed like a normal human being. It was such a bizarre feeling those first few weeks. I kept waiting for the crash. I kept waiting for the sudden exhaustion to hit me while I was driving home, but it never did. My energy levels were just consistently... good.

My girlfriend thought I was losing my mind, by the way. She saw me mixing this brown powder into a glass of water every afternoon and asked if I had joined a cult. I told her I was drinking fungus to make my muscles bigger. She rolled her eyes and went back to drinking her chemical-tasting pink lemonade amino acids. Three weeks later, after watching me breeze through a Saturday morning hike that usually left me panting on a rock halfway up the trail, she asked to try some. Now we go through a bag of the extract every two weeks. She literally won't go to her spin class without it.

I've also noticed a massive difference in my recovery time. This is something people don't talk about enough. When you use artificial stimulants, your body is under massive oxidative stress. You are pushing your engine past the redline, and you pay for it the next day with horrible DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness). The cordyceps actually helps clear lactic acid from your muscles faster. I used to be basically crippled the day after doing heavy lunges. Now? I wake up, my legs are a little stiff, but I can actually walk down the stairs without holding onto the railing for dear life.

If you are trying to figure out the best time to take mushroom supplements, the rule for this one is simple. Take it thirty to forty-five minutes before you plan on doing something exhausting. Running, lifting, cycling, whatever. If you are just sitting at a desk all day, you probably don't need a huge dose of it, although it does help a bit with mental fatigue. But the real magic happens when your heart rate goes up and your lungs start demanding oxygen.

Look, I'm not saying you have to completely give up coffee. A lot of people love mushroom coffee because it blends the two worlds—you get a little bit of caffeine for the immediate mental wake-up, combined with the sustained physical endurance of the mushrooms. But if you are using high-stimulant pre-workouts to force your body to exercise when it's exhausted, you are going to burn out your adrenal glands. I've seen it happen to a dozen guys at my gym. They start with one scoop, then two scoops, then three scoops, until eventually they are taking enough caffeine to kill a small horse and they still feel tired. It's a trap.

There's a lot of debate online about which specific type of cordyceps you should buy. You'll see a lot of companies selling "CS-4" which is a lab-grown fermented mycelium product. Don't buy that stuff. It's mostly starch and grain filler. You want pure fruiting body extract, specifically the militaris species. It has way higher levels of cordycepin, which is the active compound that actually does all the heavy lifting for your ATP production. Check the label. If it doesn't clearly say "fruiting body extract," leave it on the shelf.

And whatever you do, please do not dry-scoop this stuff. It tastes absolutely foul by itself, and inhaling a cloud of fine mushroom powder into your lungs is a really fast way to ruin your afternoon. Mix it with warm water. Stir it up. Chug it. It dissolves pretty easily if the water isn't ice cold. Some days I throw a little bit of lemon juice in there to cut the earthy flavor, but honestly, after the third time drinking it, you don't even notice the taste anymore. Your brain just associates that dirt-water flavor with feeling indestructible, so you start looking forward to it.

Throw the blue powder away. Get the extract. Try it for exactly one week. When you realize you can suddenly run an extra mile without your chest burning, or add another plate to your squat without feeling like your heart is going to explode, you can send me a thank you note. Stop letting supplement companies poison your nervous system with cheap stimulants. Your body deserves better fuel than that.

What the Research Actually Shows

Chen et al. 2010, Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine. Twenty elderly subjects, randomized controlled trial. Twelve weeks of cordyceps supplementation. VO2 max increased 7% in the cordyceps group versus no change in placebo. Lactate threshold shifted upward — more work before the burning starts. These are real, measurable physiological improvements.

Hirsch et al. 2017. Specifically on Cordyceps militaris — the species actually available in supplements, not the expensive caterpillar parasite. Fourteen days, healthy young adults. VO2 peak increased by 11% in the militaris group versus 1.3% in placebo. Time to exhaustion increased significantly. Large effect size for a two-week intervention.

The mechanism: cordycepin (3'-deoxyadenosine), the primary bioactive in militaris, appears to upregulate SIRT1 and PGC-1α — proteins involved in mitochondrial biogenesis. More and better mitochondria means more efficient ATP production. This is categorically different from caffeine, which blocks adenosine receptors to make you FEEL less tired without improving energy production capacity. Cordyceps makes your engine more efficient. Caffeine just turns off the warning lights temporarily.

Who Should Switch and Who Shouldn't

SWITCH if: you're experiencing adrenal fatigue — the stimulant spiral where you need more caffeine each week just to feel baseline. You're getting heart palpitations or anxiety from pre-workouts. You can't sleep after evening training. You're training for endurance events where oxygen efficiency matters more than acute CNS stimulation.

DON'T SWITCH if: you're a competitive powerlifter where neurological drive genuinely improves maximal effort. You train very early morning and need caffeine for waking function. Your stimulant tolerance is healthy and you're not experiencing downstream negative effects. The two approaches aren't mutually exclusive — many athletes use cordyceps daily AND add coffee only for maximal effort sessions.

How to Stack Cordyceps With Other Supplements

Cordyceps + Lion's Mane: The classic energy-focus combination available in most mushroom coffees. Physical energy and oxygen efficiency (cordyceps) plus cognitive clarity (lion's mane). This is the most popular daily combination on ShrooMap.

Cordyceps + Beetroot Extract: Dual nitric oxide pathway enhancement. Cordyceps improves oxygen utilization efficiency; beetroot-derived nitrates dilate blood vessels to increase oxygen delivery. Hitting the problem from two angles simultaneously.

Cordyceps + Creatine: Different energy systems (aerobic vs phosphocreatine), no competition, combined benefit for mixed training athletes (CrossFit, soccer, basketball). Full protocols with timing and dosing are in our stacks guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does cordyceps take to work for athletic performance?

Measurable improvements in aerobic capacity within 2-4 weeks of daily supplementation. Acute effects — slightly better breathing on your first few sessions — within the first week. The bigger adaptations in VO2 max and lactate threshold develop over 4-8 weeks as mitochondrial function adapts. The Hirsch study was 14 days and showed significant results; the full mitochondrial adaptation takes longer. Don't judge it in the first week.

Can I use cordyceps before lifting weights, not just cardio?

Yes, though benefits are most pronounced for aerobic and endurance activities. For lifting, cordyceps helps with sustained energy during longer sessions and reduces cardiovascular fatigue that often limits workouts before the muscles do. Powerlifters doing heavy singles won't notice it as much as CrossFit athletes doing 20-minute AMRAPs where aerobic capacity becomes a major limiter.

Is Cordyceps militaris as good as Cordyceps sinensis?

For supplements, militaris is BETTER. Wild sinensis is nearly impossible to authenticate, costs $20,000/kg for the real thing, and has quality control nightmares. Militaris has 90x more cordycepin by weight and grows under controlled conditions with consistent quality. The research on militaris is extensive enough to stand on its own. See our full militaris vs sinensis breakdown for the complete analysis.

What dose should I start with?

1,000mg/day of Cordyceps militaris fruiting body extract for the first week, then move to 2,000-3,000mg/day. Pre-workout timing: 45-60 minutes before training. What NOT to buy: anything labeled "CS-4 mycelium" without specifying liquid fermentation — mostly grain starch with trace cordycepin. You want Cordyceps militaris fruiting body extract with verified cordycepin content. Browse quality options in our capsules category.

Where can I find quality cordyceps supplements?

Look for products in capsule or tincture form that explicitly state Cordyceps militaris fruiting body extract with third-party COA showing cordycepin content and beta-glucan percentage above 20%. Some headshops carry quality brands — ask about COA documentation before buying in person. Our buying guide covers where to find the best quality options across both channels.

The Long-Term Benefits Beyond Performance

I've focused heavily on athletic performance because that's where the research is strongest and where most people using this as a pre-workout replacement want to see results. But cordyceps has documented benefits beyond the gym that make the daily supplementation case even stronger.

Immune function: cordyceps contains beta-glucans and polysaccharides that modulate immune function through similar pathways as turkey tail. Athletes who train hard are chronically slightly immune-suppressed — the acute immune suppression after a hard training session is well-documented. Regular cordyceps supplementation may provide a counterbalancing immune support effect that reduces the frequency of the "overtraining colds" that many competitive athletes experience during peak training blocks.

Adaptogenic effects: cordyceps is classified as an adaptogen, meaning it helps the body maintain homeostasis under various stressors. The same HPA axis modulation that makes reishi valuable for stress applies to cordyceps, though to a lesser degree. For athletes who are also dealing with work, relationship, and life stressors alongside training stress — meaning most humans — this adds another dimension of value beyond pure performance.

Libido and hormonal health: multiple animal studies and some human research suggests cordyceps supports testosterone production and overall reproductive hormone health. While I cautioned against buying it specifically for this purpose, the background benefit for people using it for performance may include modest positive effects on hormone markers over time. This is relevant for older athletes whose testosterone naturally declines with age.

Blood sugar regulation: cordyceps has shown blood-sugar-lowering effects in multiple studies. For athletes doing high-carbohydrate fueling protocols, this means more efficient glucose uptake. For the general population, this represents a metabolic benefit that goes beyond athletic performance and into general longevity territory. Note the caution for diabetics on medication — additive effect with diabetes drugs — but for healthy metabolic function it's a positive.

The combination of performance enhancement, immune support, adaptogenic properties, and metabolic benefits makes cordyceps one of the most versatile daily supplements available. The pre-workout application is just the most obvious entry point. Browse quality options in our capsules category to find products with verified cordycepin and beta-glucan content, or check if your local headshop carries COA-verified brands.

Closing Thoughts: Making the Switch Permanent

Here's what I've found after making the switch from stimulant pre-workouts to cordyceps-based supplementation: the transition is harder in the first two weeks and dramatically better after month two. The first week without your caffeine-and-stimulant hit feels flat — you're not getting the artificial arousal and urgency that pre-workouts produce, and the cordyceps hasn't fully kicked in yet. This is the window where most people give up.

Push through it. By weeks three and four, something different starts happening. Your baseline energy is steadier. You're not oscillating between artificially elevated states during workouts and depleted states afterward. Your sleep is better — which means your recovery is better — which means your training quality is better. The oxygen efficiency improvements start showing up in your session data: pace for effort, weights moved per minute, heart rate recovery. These are measurable. Track them.

By month two, most athletes I've talked to report they wouldn't go back to stimulant pre-workouts as their primary source of workout energy. The energy floor is higher and the ceiling, while not as artificially dramatic as a 300mg caffeine hit, is more sustainable and doesn't come with the crash. The question stops being "should I use cordyceps instead of pre-workout" and becomes "why didn't I do this sooner."

The honest caveat: if you have a specific very high-intensity event coming up — a race, a competition, a max effort testing day — there's nothing wrong with using a moderate caffeine dose (100-150mg) on that specific day for the neurological arousal benefit. Cordyceps and moderate caffeine aren't mutually exclusive. The goal isn't religious avoidance of caffeine; it's stopping the dependence on high-dose stimulants as your daily baseline energy source. Use cordyceps as your foundation; use caffeine occasionally as a top-up when the stakes are high enough to warrant it. That protocol is both more effective and more sustainable than running the stimulant spiral indefinitely.

For quality cordyceps options, browse our capsules category or check our militaris vs sinensis guide to understand exactly what you're looking for in a product. Headshops that carry functional mushroom brands are increasingly common; use our finder to locate one near you if you prefer to buy in person.