I try not to take a pre-workout unless I really have to. Over time, I've noticed that if I take a pre-workout routinely, my body becomes dependent on that "rush". So whenever I have to go in for a simple ab workout or another simple accessory workout and don't take the supplement, I find that I struggle through it. So depending on how much sleep I got the night before or how much I've eaten that day, I'll take a scoop or so of my pre-workout (White Flood, usually).