We mentioned on our Monday podcast that the remaining two brands in our top five of 2014 both started with the letter “M”. While you are going to be left wondering who will be taking the title for another two days, we are here to announce that Muscle Elements is the “M” brand landing at number two on our list of top five brands of 2014. Of all the companies that set out to do big things last year, Muscle Elements was one of the few that did so throughout the year, consistently surprising us and delivering on their promise of top quality supplements. We did of course introduce the brand all the way back in September of 2013 in an Olympia preview. Although unfortunately due to a few unforeseen issues they were pushed back a few months. Despite being down and out for more than half a year they came back better than ever, one of the main reasons why they’re in at number two on our top five list for 2014.
It basically all started in May, where we were already creeping up on the half way mark for the year. Muscle Elements made the big announcement that they were finally ready to launch their previously previewed range of products. In total the brand released four formulas, one more than what we were originally told about. The supplements were the pre-workout PreCre, the pump infused amino AmiNO Flow, and the two fat burners, the stimulant powered 212 and stimulant free LeanWorks. Soon after they arrived, it was all go from there over the next six intense months.
Not too long after Muscle Elements made their launch announcement, we posted a review of one of their three originals AmiNO Flow. The brand had already sent us a bottle before releasing the news, which was basically all we were waiting for since we didn’t want to review something you couldn’t purchase. For those that caught the review, the two category product proved to be so good we had no choice but to rank it on our top 10 list of recovery supplements. Being a pump infused amino it was of course going to have trouble against all the heavy hitters we rope into that category. AmiNO Flow however was placed third overall giving it the highest position of any cocktail, and the title of #1 amino. Since its earning of the spot, nothing in the area of recovery has really come close to knocking it down, let alone anything in the same league such as another amino cocktail. The product was our first taste of Muscle Elements and one that really set the bar, letting us and everyone know that they weren’t just going to be another brand.
In the next few months it was all growth, that had to have come from endless amounts of effort from the Muscle Elements team as they literally started popping up everywhere. The first stockist was none other than Marc Lobliner’s Tiger Fitness, listing the range only two weeks after they announced the launch. We then saw the brand head into a number of other locations leading up to a partnership with the Vitamin Shoppe, and finally finishing off the year by hitting Bodybuilding.com in November and confirming a deal with GNC. The more retailers a brand gets the bigger their audience, something you can see Muscle Elements definitely did, although don’t think for a second it was all distribution and expansion for the year.
Not too long after we reviewed our still number one ranked amino, AmiNO Flow, we got a hold of the brand’s pre-workout formula PreCre. Being a full dose supplement with almost every heavy ingredient in the mix, we already knew the product was going to be something different, more so when we first laid eyes on its 48g maximum serving. As expected PreCre packed that classic long-lasting, powerful punch you tend to get with less stimulant based supplements, delivering a true performance enhancing experience. The results of the review were so impressive, we were forced once again to add another Muscle Elements product to our rankings. PreCre’s performance landed it a place on our top 10 list of pre-workouts, which today even after all the competitive entries from 2014, the supplement is still on.
Before we get into the biggest thing for the year from Muscle Elements, the very young brand did manage to keep new apparel coming throughout 2014. It all started with their white and orange stock tees, then at a relatively steady pace moved to 1″ wristbands, the Truth tee in September, the gray and orange PreCre supporting shirt, then finally something for their female fans with women’s tanks. To this day Muscle Elements continue to give followers more and more clothing and accessories options to show their support, suggesting it is an area they’ll continue to focus on.
Even though we have already gone over quite a bit, especially since we’re talking about a company that really only had a hand in half the year. Muscle Element’s biggest achievement and industry first move is something you just can’t forget. We are of course talking about the Truth. It all basically began as a teaser of something the brand were working on for launch right before the Olympia. Clue after clue came in, hinting and suggesting a number of things with nothing concrete enough to know exactly what Muscle Elements had coming. Eventually the Truth came out a week later than originally intended, revealing two major moves by the still very young brand. The first part was what Muscle Elements called the Truth Standard, where the brand announced they would be the first company to go from proprietary to transparent for a current supplement. In the months to follow Muscle Elements delivered on their promise releasing detailed facts panels of two of our favorites AmiNO Flow and PreCre.
The second part of Muscle Element’s the Truth movement was the unveiling of a protein powder coincidentally called the Truth. The product was confirmed to be about as high end as you can get rattling off highlights such as all natural, no hormones, no amino spiking, and zero artificial colors, flavors and sweeteners. Further more the Truth marked the second time we’d ever seen a brand list doses of a supplement’s protein sources confirming 9g of whey concentrate, 6g isolate, and 4.5g each of micellar casein and milk isolate protein. Before the product went on sale we were even given a pre-release sample of the Truth. Proving yet again that Muscle Elements are not to be messed with when it comes to supplements, making an all natural formula more than bearable. Just over a month and a half after the brand officially unveiled the Truth the protein finally went on sale, giving us a chance to try and get it in for our Stack3d Certified program. Muscle Elements of course agreed resulting in one last surprise for the year. The lab results didn’t come in until early last month, but when they did the numbers blew us away with not only zero signs of free form amino acids, but 4% extra protein per serving.
With all that went down we really had to include Muscle Elements in our top five for 2014. They may have been late to the game kicking things off in May, however that didn’t seem to phase the brand one bit. In the months after they arrived, Muscle Elements did more growing and releasing than we’ve seen most brands do in about a year or two. Given that they were a very new name, it is still impressive knowing how far they’ve come in such a short amount of time. On top of all the partnerships Muscle Elements pulled together, they still managed to produce two hit supplements which are also the only two we’ve reviewed from the brand. Except of course for our taste test of the Truth. Currently sitting with a score of two from two right now, you can’t help but get excited about what Muscle Elements have in store for us this year. With two top tens and an industry first under their belt, as well as a reputation only a handful can match, the sky is the limit with almost twice the amount of time the they had last year in 2015.
