Frequently Asked Questions – answered!
Q. What is Olympus Health?
A. Olympus Health was founded by a small group of hard-training gym-addicts with regular jobs, families and modest incomes. Frustrated by the cost of protein supplements (even from the discount ‘bulk’ brands), the team began looking into ways to get what they needed at more realistic prices – initially, just for themselves.
Whilst ‘real food‘ is ultimately ideal, the irony is that those of us who hustle through busy lives, responsibilities and financial pressures have the most to benefit from the convenience and nutritional support offered by protein shakes and supplements.
So, we decided to bring protein to the people. This is our movement, and it’s growing – in more ways than one. Join us today.
Q. Can you really offer quality supplements at such low prices?
A. Yes. First and foremost, we all use our own products. We’ve put extraordinary (some would say ‘obsessive’) amounts of work into making sure that anything we produce delivers on the performance front, yet comes in at a price we think is realistic for everyone.
Taste and "mixability' are improving all the time, but for us, bio-availability and active ingredient content will always come first.
Lastly, we aren’t making big profit margins on our supplements. Whilst we obviously need to keep the lights on, we aren’t getting rich. As the movement grows, we’ll invest in the products and getting them into your hands. What we are making, is gains – mission accomplished!
Q. Is PRO-XL actually a whey protein product?
A. No. PRO-XL is a budget-priced multi-source protein supplement that combines whey concentrate, whey isolate, micellar casein and soy protein isolate. We don’t believe there is a better product out there at a similar price, period.
We've found soy protein isolate and whey to compliment one another, especially when it comes to providing an ideal ratio of amino acids for building, repairing or maintaining muscle tissue.
We’ve followed the latest research and made sure we’ve done everything to ensure that PRO-XL is optimised for people who put the effort in at the gym. It contains 3grams per-serving of leucine (proven to promote muscle growth, post-workout) and ideal quantities of branch-chained amino acids (BCAAs). It really does work, and we'll stand by that.
Q. Isn’t soy an inferior protein source, with contraindications for male athletes?
A. Not quite. Whole soybeans, as a stand-alone food item, are lacking or low in several key essential amino acids, particularly lysine, methionine, threonine, and tryptophan. However, they are a great source of others, most notably arginine and glycine (used by the body to synthesize creatine) and glutamic acid. Our PRO-XL, PREMIUM MASS GAINER and ALL-IN-ONE protein products contain soy protein isolate in combination with dairy-derived sources, to get the optimum amounts of all 22 amino acids found in human muscle tissue.
Whole soybeans also contain flavonoids or phytoestrogens which can act like female hormones in the human body. New research (on breast cancer prevention) has shown that these phytoestrogens bond to the receptors and exhibit a weaker effect than human estrogens – thus effectively lessening the hormonal effect. You can read more on this blog post.
In any case, we use a soy protein isolate that has had nearly all the biologically active elements (flavonoids) removed. In PRO-XL (with a 28-32% soy isolate content) the amount of phytoestrogens is negligible. Additionally, almost every whey supplement on the market – including ours and those at much higher prices – contain soy lecthin as an emulsifier, and many males consume huge amounts of protein powder per-year with no ill-effects.
Q. But isn't all soy genetically modified (GM)?
A. No. This is quite a common misconception. In fact, we only use soy protein isolate made from certified non-GM 'Identity Preserved' soybeans. We think it's worth it – even in a budget product – and even though it costs us a little more. Have a read.
Q. Where are your supplements made?
A. Our protein supplements are formulated, mixed and packaged in a purpose built facility in Ireland, with all main ingredients sourced nearby. Our pills and capsules are made in the UK, under rigorous quality-control and adherence to best practices. Despite the low cost of Olympus Health products, we don't cut corners or try and save money by buying and repackaging ready-made bulk-purchased supplements, from China or elsewhere. Everything is made in the British Isles and we keep a close eye on quality.
Q. Do you make a vegan/vegetarian protein supplement?
A. Not currently. Olympus Health BEEF PROTEIN and PROTEIN SHOTS contain animal products, and are NOT suitable for vegans or vegetarians.
PRO-XL, PREMIUM WEIGHT GAINER, REST, 90% WHEY ISOLATE, 80% WHEY CONCENTRATE, ALL-IN-ONE, DIET WHEY and MICELLAR CASEIN contain dairy products, and may be acceptable for vegetarians, but NOT vegans.
IBCAAs, BCAA 8:1:1 tablets, CREATINE MINTS, CREATINE MONOHYDRATE tablets and CREATINE MONOHYDRATE POWDER are also NOT suitable for vegan diets.
Q. Do you offer samples? What if I order 5kgs and don’t like the taste?
A. Not currently. Our focus is on low prices and great value to you, the customer. If you are concerned about the taste, sign up to our newsletter HERE (NB ADD LINK) and use one of our subscriber discount codes to order 1kg.
We don’t offer refunds on taste, as this is subjective, and we’re very much old-school, in that if a product works (and ours do) and aren’t unbearable (ours definitely aren’t) then you should use what you’ve got anyway and get your money’s worth, rather than waste it.
Q. I'd like to stock Olympus Health products at my gym / sports club, or make a bulk order for a discount. Can I do that?
A. Yes. In fact, we'd love to... you'd be helping us to get Protein to the People! Contact us via the site for a trade discount code for orders over £250.
Q. Will you sponsor me / my contest / my sports team / my body transformation / my recovery from injury or accident?
A. Possibly. We created Olympus Health to support hard-training, ordinary individuals and get them extraordinary results. We’d ask the following:
That you are an amateur athlete, or at least not sponsored already. Next, that you’ve used Olympus Health products for a while already, and already honestly reviewed the product, engaged with us through social media (Facebook, Twitter or Instagram) – and know what we stand for.
We’d also ask that you would be willing to write for our blog – so that other people training on a budget could benefit from your experience, tips and insights. This is a movement, after all!
Contact us via Facebook if all of the above sounds like you!