https://blog.priceplow.com/podcast/drew-peters-alpha-lion-065

Drew Peters is now the formulator for Alpha Lion, so we cover some of their supplements launched in early 2022 like SuperHuman Sport and SuperHuman Scorch

It’s time we caught up with Drew Peters, the new formulator (or VP of Scientific Affairs) at Alpha Lion, whose recently come out with a couple of unique supplements!

Drew has previously been on episodes 044 and 045 with other formulators, but this time, we got him to ourselves to talk about Alpha Lion’s new supplements.

In this conversation, we zero in on SuperHuman Sport, an athlete-based pre-workout supplement with under 100 milligrams caffeine, and SuperHuman Scorch, an enhanced thermogenic L-carnitine liquid.

Both of these supplements contain novel ingredents from NNB Nutrition, including RhodioPrime 6X in SuperHuman Sport and MitoBurn + CaloriBurn GP in SuperHuman Scorch.

We also get into the recurring topics of beta alanine and creatine in pre workouts, synthetic vs. natural caffeine sources, hydration supplements, and working as a formulator remotely.

Drew Peters is now at Alpha Lion

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EBBtn_Gdl_8

The SuperHuman Sport Label

In this podcast, we compare this to other “Sport” pre-workout supplements like Pre-Kaged Sport.

You can read more about Rhodiola in our article titled Rhodiola: The Salidroside-Powered Adaptogen of the Vikings and about RhodioPrime 6X specifically in our article titled NNB RhodioPrime 6X: The Strongest Rhodiola Extract (6% Salidroside).

The SuperHuman Scorch Label

You can read more about the key NNB ingredients in our articles titled BAIBA: Weight Loss Ingredient Generates Exercise in a Pill?! and Grains of Paradise: Fat Fighting Spice of the Goddesses.

The SuperHuman Hydration Label

In the video, we compare this to products like Ghost Hydration, which is naturally sweetened, another topic of discussion.

Synthetic vs. Natural Caffeine?

A recurring topic, some of the arguments against synthetic caffeine are discussed and linked in our article on PurCaf caffeine.

You can sign up for our Alpha Lion news alerts on PricePlow.com/alpha-lion#news

SmartPrime-OM is a novel omega-3 amplifying dietary supplement from Nutrashure, so we interview Dr. Hector Lopez to understand how it boosts EPA/DHA!Show notes at https://blog.priceplow.com/podcast/dr-hector-lopez-nutrashure-smartprime-064

Are you one of the tens of millions of Americans who have taken an omega-3 supplement? Are you a supplement formulator looking for a new innovation in the fatty acid / fish oil space that might actually improve health?

If so, read on… this podcast and series of show notes is for you.

Optimizing Omega-3 Fatty Acids with Nutrashure’s SmartPrime-Om

We sat down with Brandon Sojka, founder and CEO of Nutrashure (website, Instagram, news alerts), and Dr. Hector Lopez, a specialist in sports medicine and nutritional biochemistry, to discuss Nutrashure’s new ingredient, SmartPrime-OM, which is designed to help optimize the omega-3 levels of those who take it.

This is a novel, naturally-sourced dietary supplement ingredient technology that is one of the most promising things we’ve seen in years.

One of the many interesting things about SmartPrime is that it can raise omega-3 levels independently, without the use of other supplements – but it can also be combined with an omega-3 supplement for an even bigger effect size.

Watch the Video: SmartPrime-Om with Dr. Hector Lopez

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b43Qpulu7h0

SmartPrime Show with Dr. Hector Lopez and Brandon Sojka

Read more on the PricePlow Blog

https://blog.priceplow.com/podcast/ben-hartman-2-morphogen-nutrition-063

Nearly two years after his introductory podcast in Episode #033 titled The Rise of Morphogen Nutrition, Ben Hartman re-joins the PricePlow Podcast to talk about his major re-launch and re-brand!

We talk about the major changes since the last episode, dig further into the history of the brand, and show some of these interesting and semi-controversial labels below in our show notes.

If you’re interested in trying ten grams of L-tyrosine in a pre-workout supplement, then we have a treat for you!

Ben Hartman #2 on PricePlow

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36IQteIo7Nk

Morphogen has a tighter look!

Ben is a big picture conceptualist who launched Morphogen on a desire to go all-in on formulas. He did that, but never went hard on label designs. With this next generation of formulas, that all changes, and it starts with the incredibly unique ALPHAGEN pre-workout supplement:

With ten grams of L-tyrosine, this one is definitely going to hit harder. But how will it feel? Only one way to find out!! Ben also explains why he used citrulline malate when most are using L-citrulline.

We also get into MORPHOCALM, which has a huge (and expensive) dose of phosphatidylserine combined with RhodioPrime 6X, a high-salidroside form of Rhodiola:

Excellent conversation from a very like-minded individual who has an extreme amount of talent!!

These show notes were posted at https://blog.priceplow.com/podcast/ben-hartman-2-morphogen-nutrition-063

https://blog.priceplow.com/podcast/dr-cameron-sepah-maximus-062

On February 2, 2022, we hosted Dr. Cameron Sepah of Maximus on the PricePlow Podcast to talk about male hormones and self improvement. This was an incredible episode covering a wide variety of health-based topics, and everyone is sure to come away with some new knowledge.

Meet Dr. Cameron Sepah

Cam, as we call him, competed as a track athlete. is a clinical psychologist, with a fellowship training in behavioral medicine, working at the intersection of psychology and medicine. He competed as a collegiate track athlete, racing in mid-distance to distance events. After his academic training (specializing in psychoneuroendocrinology amongst other fields) and publishing of several papers, he created Omada Health, an online weight loss program. All in all, he’s a clinician-scientist who’s treated people for over a decade. In addition, he’s an assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at the UCSF School of Medicine.

Maximus: Mind, Body, and Masculinity

Cam recently founded Maximus, a consumer telemedicine company for men’s health and hormone optimization. Using at-home blood testing and online coaching, Maximus has put together the King Protocol, which is a clinically-validated process to safely increase testosterone and vitality in men – even healthy and young men.

This is not testosterone replacement therapy — it’s testosterone restoration.

Prepare to learn about enclomiphene citrate

Jumping right to hormone optimization, Maximus utilizes enclomiphene citrate — the isomer from clomid that’s safer and more useful in men — to meaningfully boost testosterone levels anywhere from 1.5x to 2.5x. Combined with group health coaching for nutrition, exercise, sleep, and focus, alongside some adjunct supplements, Maximus is changing men’s lives at an astonishing rate.

The full show notes with timestamps are covered below – and we have a separate article detailing enclomiphene citrate.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M35bIYvPLwA

Our Discussion with Dr. Cameron Sepah of Maximus

Read more on the PricePlow Blog

https://blog.priceplow.com/podcast/2021-supplement-awards

Better late than never, it’s time to publish our 2021 Supplement Awards. Mike and Ben sat down to review 2021 at large, and then doled out a smaller batch of awards — all brand-based — compared to what we did for 2020’s year-end awards.

In general, 2021 was a continuation of 2020, but with some added wrinkles due to the ongoing supply chain issues. The brands that came ready to deal in 2020 were the same ones that kept momentum in 2021.

In addition, given the supply chain situation, this was not a great time to start a new brand, and few new ones were started – but one is definitely on our radar as a brand to watch in 2022.

Finally, we have a new award that we’ll continue to award in the future: MVP of the year! This will go to a person who contributed incredible talents to the industry, beyond what any single brand or product accomplished.

This is posted as Episode #061 on the PricePlow Podcast. Video and audio versions are below, with the details after that:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3LTqArSYgnM

There are five awards:

This year’s innovation of the year goes to Glaxon, hands down. Going through our Glaxon News page, you can see the numerous product releases, but also consider the new ingredients they brought to market too:

These products are all innovative due to these ingredients and beyond. We discuss specifics behind Wonder Collagen, Protos Whey, Goon Mode, Neuro 365 and more. Note that the above list is not all-inclusive – there are even more new ingredients in those formulas!

Looking forward, Glaxon is partnering heavily with GNC, who’s making major moves to push innovation forward. Since seeing Beyond Raw, we’ve become quite bullish on GNC, and are bullish on this partnership as well. More coverage to come on that in 2022 – but for 2021, the innovator is hands down Glaxon.

Further details can be learned in Podcast Episode #057: with Glaxon’s CEO Michael Bischoff and chief science officer / formulator Joey Savage.

During Podcast #057 linked above, Mike joked that his “brand of the year” was actually a person — a man whose products were all over Mike’s supplement stack, yet across several brands. Of course, a person can’t win brand of the year, but they can win MVP of the year.

That man’s name …

Read more on the PricePlow Blog

https://blog.priceplow.com/podcast/ryse-supps-tj-humphreys-nic-stella-060

Our first podcast of 2022 came with some excellent news: TJ Humphreys has joined Nic Stella at RYSE Supps. Many supplement industry veterans know TJ from his days as CEO and owner of ProSupps, but now he’s taken on a leadership role in Dallas, TX as President and Partner.

From a distance, TJ has been watching RYSE Supps punch its way into the space and then become a best-selling brand at a top retailer in the country (Vitamin Shoppe). This follows previous power moves where creative superstar Greg Helton also joined RYSE as VP.

In this episode, we first introduce TJ and then have him talk about his background. After that, we discuss the new stuff coming from RYSE (which includes an energy drink!), and then get into distribution and RYSE’s incredible social media strategy that’s taken them to the next level.

Video and audio versions are below, and then more details after that:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xXW_qflS2No

TJ Humphreys now at RYSE Supps

TJ’s been in the industry for over 20 years, starting at Lone Star Distribution (which was subsequently merged with Europa Sports). He started ProSupps in early 2012, coming out with the famous Hyde pre workout. It was eventually time for a new, more aggressive endeavor:

“I love to lead, I love to inspire, I love high-growth opportunities. Not afraid of challenges, not afraid of adversity. And thankfully, Nic has created a soft spot for me to land here, because he’s really done things well.”

— TJ Humphreys, RYSE President and Partner

Experience: “Dumb tax” is paid

TJ explains how much “dumb tax” he’s paid in his 20 years of learning experience – he’s become an expert in dealing with retailers, international sales opportunities, shipping, manufacturing, distribution, and more. This is the expertise that he can pass down to Nic.

At RYSE, Nic has created a rocket ship, and TJ is making sure he has the right people on the train, and a lot of it will be with his retail expertise. They already have meetings lined up with some major FDM (Food, Drug, and Mass Market) companies and are going in with a serious tailwind due to Nic’s incredible job on the web and in social media.

The trifecta of Nic, TJ, and Greg Helton covers numerous parts of the market, ranging across social media, retail, international, design, compliance, manufacturing, and supply chain.

New product development at RYSE

RYSE is putting out an energy drink (named RYSE Fuel on their social media page), and while TJ recognizes that many energy drink consumers are brand-agnostic, they can make a better approach through specialty stores first. This will eventually lead to larger energy drink sales at FDM — but TJ’s sure to note that major chains are already very interested.

RYSE’s collabs with SunnyD and Ring Pop (which are currently the top two selling pre workouts at Vitamin Shoppe) are definitely driving much of the international and big-business interest, but it’s important to note that these products are most often first popular at supplement-specific stores before major players get involved.

RYSE Fuel

Similarly, RYSE Fuel will first be driven by these flavor collabs – the SunnyD flavor will get its own unique can. It will have 200 milligrams of caffeine and 500 milligrams of CDP-choline, so it will definitely feel very good but not hit overly hard. The cans look incredible, just like RYSE’s supplements, so the retailers that have seen th…

Read more on the PricePlow Blog

At the end of 2021, we had Gerhard Hoermann of NuLiv Science on the PricePlow Podcast to discuss the novel ingredient developer’s back-half of the year, recent international travels, and what’s coming in the future.

Key takeaways from this discussion are that NuLiv Science has many more ingredients going above and beyond the ones we frequently cover here (such as the astragalosides and ginsenosides in AstraGin, Senactiv, InnoSlim, and Astrion), and NuLiv Science is doing a fantastic job building more content, as can be seen on their @NuLivScience page on Instagram.

Gerhard (commonly known as ‘G’ in the industry) kicks it off by talking about their recent trip to Germany, as well as SupplySide West. He explains that the American market (as seen at SupplySide West) is currently stronger for novel ingredients, while European markets are behind on technology, presenting more opportunity for innovation.

Watch the full video and podcast subscription links are below, with details following:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZZUaZy_f4I

Talking novel ingredients with NuLiv Science

After covering Gerhard’s background in sports nutrition (he worked in retail and then in online media), he gets into the transition of working with NuLiv Science, who generally operates more behind the scenes. He now helps brands put the right ingredients into new supplements, providing them with an edge against their competition.

‘G’ tells us that NuLiv has a new ingredient coming in 2022, and it will get coverage here on PricePlow, so sign up for our NuLiv Science news alerts.

Don’t miss the NuLiv Science social media content

One of the things G has done incredibly well since beginning at NuLiv Science is to help drive and provide more content on NuLiv Science’s social media properties. They’re doing more behind-the-scenes content, new collaborative taste-testing and product breakdowns, and making it cooler to be talking about ingredient science.

Since most companies are already aware of AstraGin (absorption-amplifier – find our blog’s AstraGin tag page to see how many product articles have included it), NuLiv already has great relationships that are bolstered at conventions such as SupplySide West. However, it’s their team’s job to educate brands and consumers about their other ingredients.

More than just AstraGin: Other NuLiv Science Ingredients

Senactiv and InnoSlim both made a great push in sports nutrition in 2021, while Astrion and Verbasnol are getting more heavily into skin care. Beyond that, a highly underrated ingredient is Zylaria, which is a relaxing ingredient based upon xylaria with a few recent tweaks made last year.

As Mike mentions during the podcast, an easy way to test out the anxiety-relieving capabilities of Zylaria is in Avani Health Stress + Sleep Support, which has 1 gram of Zylaria with absorption boosted by both 50 milligrams of AstraGin and 10 milligrams of black pepper extract in two capsules.

A major mushroom supplier

Most users also don’t know that NuLiv has several mushroom based ingredients, such as CordycepsPrime, ABMPrime, ChagaPrime, ReishiPrime, ShiitakePrime, MaitakePrime, Cor…

Read more on the PricePlow Blog

On December 7, 2021, Ben sat down with Darin Decker and Michael McClane of Kaged Muscle, who had a lot to say about the future of the brand.

You may remember Darin from Episode #047, where we learned of the great things coming for the end of 2021. This episode takes things a lot further.

Right off the bat, for those who watch the YouTube video, we get to see the new Elite Series that comes with all new branding.

Kaged Muscle Becomes Kaged

The major announcement is that the team is shifting the branding from Kaged Muscle to simply Kaged. While exercise is still the epicenter of health and wellness, helping customers live their best lives is more than just building muscle. Simply put, Kaged is more than muscle.

The details are below on video and in our audio feeds (subscribe to the PricePlow Podcast with your favorite podcast app), and also be sure to sign up for our Kaged news alerts before checking out:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FygqwrAjFSY

The Kaged Background

Before getting into the rebrand, Michael takes us back through the inception of Kaged Muscle, where it was a “no-brainer” opportunity: they’d seen what brands were succeeding on Bodybuilding.com, some of which Kaged formulator Brian Rand had actually created (flashback to our 2016 article titled Meet the Man Who REALLY Formulated Pre-JYM). By partnering with Kris Gethin, there was perfect alignment in terms of their goals.

They decided to develop better supplements, accept lower profit margins, and use forward-thinking marketing strategies to make it come to life. The push worked, and over time, they were still able to sell in major stores, changing the retail landscape away from a period where only ultra cheaply made formulas could maintain profitability.

“We’re never going to launch a me-too product”

Michael explains that Kaged is never going to launch a product that doesn’t innovate. Innovation isn’t just in supplements, either – Kaged also has some of the best training programs in the industry.

Ben lists some of the recent supplements that, despite being in a “legacy” category, have been very innovative:

And of course, innovations like Pro-Biotic, the ioPea in Plantein, and CreaClear creatine monohydrate shouldn’t be forgotten either!

So what about their legendary pre-workout supplement, Pre-Kaged?

Meet Pre-Kaged ELITE

Two years in the making, Darin introduces Pre-Kaged Elite to PricePlow Nation. “More pumps, more energy, more focus”. Put simply, this label is bombastic. It is the epitome of it all.

For example, it has 10 grams of fermented citrulline, an insane dosage – especially given the recent supply chain crisis! There’s creatine, there’s nitrates, and far more with…

Read more on the PricePlow Blog

November 11, 2021 marked Glaxon’s second birthday, a day now celebrated as Goon Day! The team at Glaxon invited us to their world headquarters in Houston, TX so that we could participate in the activities and put together some incredible content regarding their new products.

After a day of filming videos, drinking unique supplements, and training, we came back to record a podcast with Glaxon CEO Michael Bischoff and Chief Science Officer / Formulator Joey Savage.

A Goon Day to set the standard

This was one of the most fun recordings we’ve ever done in PricePlow history. The session went three hours long, and we came away with some incredible laughs, new product explanations and teasers, ingredient insights, industry inside information, and a ton of supreme knowledge from Joey himself.

The audio feeds are below, followed by two YouTube videos:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4L4Omvcw0S4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pFxVo8ZbYJk

A podcast for the ages

There’s too much to list here, but in this video, we:

You can also see our video where Joey explains Glaxon’s upcoming products for the end of 2021.

Overall, it was a wild, fun, and entertaining day capped off with an incredible conversation. Since this podcast, we’ve come out with so much more Glaxon content that you can find on our Glaxon News page – sign up for alerts there so that you don’t miss the latest happenings.

As always, subscribe to the PricePlow Podcast feeds and leave a review on iTunes or your favorite app!

In Fall of 2021, we hosted Jamie Giovinazzo of Eat Clean Bro on the PricePlow Podcast. Eat Clean Bro is the fresh meal delivery company based in the Northeast that Jamie founded, and is going through monstrous growth.

In this episode of the PricePlow Podcast, we talked about Jamie’s story from humble beginnings, food quality and craftsmanship, entrepreneurship, and fame. This was a strong and passionate discussion, and of all of the business owners we’ve talked to, none seem to love their business and their customers as much as Jamie – and that says a lot given the intense industry we deal with.

You can watch on YouTube or listen to the discussion on our audio podcast feeds below, and as always, sign up for PricePlow’s Eat Clean Bro news alerts so that you get notified anytime new meals are developed, but you can also head right on over to EatCleanBro.com and see what’s new on their homepage as well!

If you’re new to Eat Clean Bro, see our introductory article titled Eat Clean Bro: Fresh, Healthy Meals Delivered… Fresh!

Talking Eat Clean Bro with Jamie Giovinazzo

“New Jersey is the epicenter of bro”, but Jamie tells us that they also have a kitchen in Atlanta, GA and are looking at Boston and Washington DC expansion. Jamie discusses where he operates in a way where he puts other people first, and it breeds cooperation, loyalty, and appreciation.

Jamie nearly has “celebrity status” because he knows so many people in the Northeast, but of everyone he deals with, he’s easily the most relatable person. He shares his rather strong opinions about social media, but tries to “bring people back to earth”.

From humble beginnings

Jamie discusses that he’s learned from mistakes,

5:27:

“I’ve seen the rise and fall of many great entrepreneurs, and over the years, the most apparent trait is the ego. When you start feeling invincible, that’s usually when you fall the hardest. I’m very aware – I’m not invincible.”

— Jamie Giovinazzo

A company to support

6:30:

“We make every single meal in-house… There’s a lot of national meal brands that do not cook the food, they outsource, they use copackers to make their food, they outsource their customer service wherever they can get it the cheapest, and they’re literally just a marketing company hammering coupons and they’re collecting customer information, and they’re taking that data, and that’s the data they’re using to sell to bigger companies who want that information…

And really what I’m getting at man, is I’m trying to be relatable and trying to encourage people and trying to get people to understand the real entrepreneur grind and to support your local entrepreneur and support local.”

— Jamie Giovinazzo

Customer service: a real human on the phone and live chat

8:20:

“I always tell people about the customer service. When you call, there’s no ringtone. There’s no ‘please press 1 for sales or press 2..’ dude.. You call, we pick up the phone. If you’re calling, chances are, you want to talk to somebody.

I mean come on, any business that has that f’in ‘press this or press that’, and they’re not even that busy, I’m like come on man, somebody just answer the phone, why do I gotta press these buttons…

…So when you call Eat Clean Bro with one or two rings, there’s a real person who answers the phone, and our live chat is the same way.”

— Jamie Giovinazzo

Food cooked from scratch

9:08:

“I don’t know if I do a good enough job promoting the t…

Read more on the PricePlow Blog