What is creatine and how does it work in the body. What are the potential benefits of creatine supplementation for muscle growth and athletic performance. Are there any side effects or risks associated with taking creatine supplements. How should creatine be properly dosed and used for optimal results.

What is Creatine and How Does it Function in the Body?

Creatine is a naturally occurring compound found in muscle cells that plays a crucial role in energy production during high-intensity, short-duration activities. It is synthesized in the liver and kidneys from amino acids and can also be obtained through dietary sources, primarily meat and fish.

In the body, creatine is converted to creatine phosphate, which serves as a rapid energy source for muscle contractions. During intense exercise, creatine phosphate donates its phosphate group to ADP (adenosine diphosphate) to regenerate ATP (adenosine triphosphate), the primary energy currency of cells. This process allows for sustained power output during activities like weightlifting, sprinting, and other explosive movements.

The Creatine-Phosphocreatine Energy System

The creatine-phosphocreatine energy system is particularly important for activities lasting up to about 10 seconds. It provides a quick burst of energy before other metabolic pathways kick in. By supplementing with creatine, individuals can increase their muscle creatine stores, potentially enhancing their ability to perform high-intensity exercises.

Potential Benefits of Creatine Supplementation

Creatine has been extensively studied for its ergogenic (performance-enhancing) effects. Here are some of the potential benefits associated with creatine supplementation:

• Increased muscle strength and power
• Enhanced muscle growth (hypertrophy)
• Improved high-intensity exercise performance
• Faster post-exercise recovery
• Potential cognitive benefits

Creatine and Muscle Strength

Research has consistently shown that creatine supplementation can lead to significant increases in muscle strength. A meta-analysis published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research found that individuals supplementing with creatine experienced, on average, an 8% increase in muscle strength compared to those taking a placebo.

Creatine’s Impact on Muscle Growth

Creatine may also contribute to increased muscle mass. This effect is likely due to a combination of factors, including increased training volume, enhanced protein synthesis, and cell volumization. A study in the Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise journal demonstrated that muscle fibers grow faster after creatine supplementation combined with resistance training.

Who Can Benefit from Creatine Supplementation?

While creatine is often associated with bodybuilders and strength athletes, its benefits extend to a wider range of individuals:

1. Strength and power athletes (e.g., weightlifters, sprinters, football players)
2. Endurance athletes looking to improve high-intensity performance
3. Older adults aiming to maintain muscle mass and strength
4. Vegetarians and vegans with lower dietary creatine intake
5. Individuals with certain neurological conditions

It’s important to note that while creatine can be beneficial for many, its effects may vary between individuals. Factors such as muscle fiber type composition, initial creatine stores, and overall diet can influence the response to supplementation.

Creatine Supplementation: Forms and Dosage

Creatine monohydrate is the most widely studied and recommended form of creatine supplement. It has a strong safety profile and is generally considered the most effective option. Other forms of creatine exist, such as creatine ethyl ester and buffered creatine, but research has not consistently shown them to be superior to creatine monohydrate.

Creatine Loading Phase

Many protocols recommend a loading phase when beginning creatine supplementation. This typically involves taking 20-25 grams of creatine per day, split into 4-5 doses, for 5-7 days. The loading phase rapidly saturates muscle creatine stores.

Maintenance Dosage

After the loading phase, a maintenance dose of 3-5 grams per day is generally sufficient to maintain elevated creatine levels. Some individuals may choose to skip the loading phase and simply take the maintenance dose, which will lead to a more gradual increase in muscle creatine stores.

Potential Side Effects and Safety Considerations

Creatine is considered safe for most individuals when used as directed. However, some potential side effects and considerations include:

• Water retention and weight gain
• Gastrointestinal discomfort (rare)
• Potential muscle cramps (though research is inconclusive)
• Interactions with certain medications

Is creatine safe for long-term use? Most research suggests that creatine is safe for long-term consumption, with studies following participants for up to five years without significant adverse effects. However, as with any supplement, it’s advisable to consult with a healthcare professional before beginning long-term use, especially for individuals with pre-existing health conditions.

Creatine and Athletic Performance: What Does the Research Say?

Numerous studies have investigated the effects of creatine on various aspects of athletic performance. Here’s a summary of key findings:

Strength and Power Output

A meta-analysis published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research examined 22 studies and found that creatine supplementation resulted in a 20% greater increase in strength and power compared to placebo groups.

High-Intensity Exercise Capacity

Research has shown that creatine can improve performance in high-intensity, short-duration activities. A study in the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism found that creatine supplementation increased work capacity during repeated bouts of high-intensity exercise by up to 15%.

Sprint Performance

Creatine has been shown to enhance sprint performance in various sports. A review in the Journal of Sports Sciences reported that creatine supplementation improved single and repeated sprint performance in team-sport athletes.

Creatine Beyond Athletics: Potential Health and Cognitive Benefits

While creatine is primarily known for its effects on athletic performance, research has uncovered potential benefits in other areas of health and cognition:

Neuroprotective Effects

Some studies suggest that creatine may have neuroprotective properties. A review in the journal Amino Acids highlighted creatine’s potential role in treating or preventing various neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson’s and Huntington’s disease.

Cognitive Function

Creatine supplementation may improve certain aspects of cognitive function, particularly in situations of sleep deprivation or stress. A study in the journal Psychopharmacology found that creatine supplementation reduced mental fatigue and improved cognitive performance during a demanding task.

Bone Health

Emerging research suggests that creatine may have positive effects on bone health. A study in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise reported that creatine supplementation, when combined with resistance training, may help preserve bone mass in older adults.

Optimizing Creatine Supplementation: Tips and Best Practices

To maximize the benefits of creatine supplementation, consider the following tips:

1. Consistency is key: Take creatine daily to maintain elevated muscle stores.
2. Timing: While timing is not crucial, taking creatine post-workout may be beneficial due to increased muscle blood flow.
3. Hydration: Ensure adequate water intake, as creatine can cause cells to draw in more water.
4. Combine with carbohydrates: Some research suggests that taking creatine with carbohydrates may enhance uptake.
5. Quality matters: Choose a reputable brand and look for third-party testing certifications.

Does creatine need to be cycled? Contrary to some popular beliefs, there is no scientific evidence suggesting that cycling creatine (i.e., taking breaks from supplementation) is necessary or beneficial. Continuous supplementation can maintain elevated creatine stores in muscles.

Debunking Common Creatine Myths and Misconceptions

Despite the wealth of scientific research supporting creatine’s efficacy and safety, several myths persist. Let’s address some common misconceptions:

Myth: Creatine is a steroid

This is false. Creatine is a naturally occurring compound in the body and is not a steroid or hormone. It does not work through the same mechanisms as anabolic steroids and is legal for use in sports.

Myth: Creatine causes kidney damage

There is no scientific evidence to support this claim in healthy individuals. Numerous studies have shown that creatine supplementation does not negatively impact kidney function in people with normal kidney health.

Myth: Creatine only benefits bodybuilders

While bodybuilders and strength athletes can certainly benefit from creatine, its effects extend to various populations, including endurance athletes, older adults, and even individuals with certain neurological conditions.

By understanding the science behind creatine and dispelling common myths, individuals can make informed decisions about whether creatine supplementation aligns with their health and fitness goals. As with any dietary supplement, it’s advisable to consult with a healthcare professional or registered dietitian before starting a creatine regimen, especially for individuals with pre-existing health conditions or those taking medications.

What It Does, Benefits, Side Effects, Creatine Monohydrate

Creatine can be a polarising topic in the world of health and fitness. Often associated with pumped-up gym-bros and bench-hogging swolediers, creatine’s reputation among the fitness world is varied. But is it justified?

It’s unlikely. That’s because you probably eat creatine every day — you just don’t realise it. When you eat meat — a delicious rib-eye steak, for example — your liver and kidneys take in the amino acids to make creatine, which is then transferred to your muscles as a form of cellular energy called creatine monohydrate.

The creatine supplements you’re likely to have seen work in a similar manner, with your body converting the supplement into creatine phosphate, feeding your muscles during explosive exercises such as plyometrics, sprints, heavy lifts and HIIT routines.

However, your capacity for the fuel that’s provided by creatine phosphate runs out at a rapid rate during this type of training, meaning that added creatine supplementation can give you more power for higher reps.

Similarly, creatine has been found to maintain and build muscle even with zero training. That’s according to a study from Canada’s St Frances Xavier University, which found that by gulping two 20g of creatine four times a week, test subjects maintained physical strength without even glancing at a barbell. But, is the fabled muscle-builder creatine suitable for your lifestyle? Utilise our guide, below, to find out.

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What Is Creatine?

Creatine helps you recover between sets. Which means a supplements’ value lies in boosting recovery speed, which in turn enhances the amount of work you’re able to do during a workout. Over time, this leads to faster gains in both strength and size.

Creatine has proven itself over the years to be one of the most effective supplements for improving performance during repeated bouts of intense exercise. As far back as the 1970s, Soviet scientists knew that creatine supplements improved performance, and it contributed to the USSR’s Olympic dominance through the 70s and 80s.

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What Does Creatine Do?

Combined with weight training, creatine slows the loss of bone mass as you age and could ease the effects of osteoarthritis, where joints become stiff and painful. That said, creatine, inevitably, has different effects on individuals.

The effects of creatine should be evident in a week in most using the supplement— with your training volume and strength increasing. Studies in the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise found that muscle fibres grow faster after creatine supplementation and resistance-based exercise.

That said, it’s not a magic pill. “Creatine monohydrate supplementation is not a magic powder that turns fat mass into muscle mass,” says Andreas Kasper, Performance Nutritionist at England Rugby.

“Dosing with creatine can help increase our muscles store of the metabolite, which is linked with repeated bouts of high intensity performance such as sprinting and lifting weights. When we resynthesise at a high rate, it means potentially we can exercise more readily (1) and may even have a higher intensity session with shorter rest periods required, which hypothetically would aid with hypertrophy (2). However, you still have to lift the weights and bigger muscles do not always equal increased strength.”

Really, it depends on your objectives. If you’re a thirty or forty-something Dad looking to top-up his strength levels, you’ll be getting enough creatine from a high-protein diet. If you’re a bodybuilder, athlete or CrossFitter looking for an added edge on your physique or your performance in high-intensity competitions or workouts, then creatine supplementation could work for you. Read on to find out why.

“Creatine seems to modestly improve upper body strength and lower body strength”

Creatine Benefits

When it comes to improving muscle strength, the US National Library of Medicine’s MedlinePlus labels creatine as “possibly effective”. “Analyses of this research show that creatine seems to modestly improve upper body strength and lower body strength in both younger and older adults,” it says.

It’s not all about an increase in muscle mass, though. Creatine also has some other benefits you might not be aware of. As anyone who’s ever pulled an all-nighter in the office knows, sleep deprivation has a negative effect on mental performance and mood. What you might not be aware of is that this is partially due to a drop in creatine levels in the brain.

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University College Chichester studies suggest that guzzling a creatine supplement can help to offset the decline in mental performance that normally happens when you’re short on sleep.

In another study on a group of elite rugby players, researchers from the UK Sport Council found that creatine worked just as well as caffeine at wiping out the effects of sleep deprivation on performance during a simple rugby skill test. So you might be better reaching for a shaker than your morning cappuccino.

Whether creatine improves performance in all sports depends largely on what aspect of performance you’re trying to improve. But if a lack of muscle mass is a limiting factor, creatine certainly has the potential to help you perform better. In many sports, though, there is an “optimum” muscle size, beyond which adding additional mass may be counterproductive. Naturally, bigger muscles don’t always translate to superior performance.

Away from the squat rack, creatine is also beneficial during short, repeated bouts of high-intensity exercise, like CrossFit and circuit training.

“Creatine serves as a fuel source for short-duration, high-burst activities,” says Jose Antonio, an associate professor of exercise and sports science at Nova Southeastern University. In other words, if you sprint, lift or do HIIT, the compound can help you take it up a level.

Research by Athletic Bilbao’s medical staff, for instance, showed that creatine improved performance in sprint bursts designed to mimic on-pitch activity. Players were divided into two groups; group one was given 20 grams of creatine per day for six days, while group two received a dummy supplement that had no effect. Creatine resulted in faster sprinting times, increased strength and also improved jumping performance. Unfortunately they chose not to assess the impact of a half-time orange.

Everything You Need to Know About Supplements

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Creatine Side Effects

Creatine supplementation can lead to 2-4lbs of weight gain in a week – your muscles retain water in order to heighten protein synthesis (the building of muscles). This, however, is nothing to worry about, especially for everyday athletes. “Creatine can increase water retention, which in some sports may lead to a negative effect on performance,” says Kasper.

“But this is predominantly sports that restrict weight either to compete (combat sports) of for performance such as endurance cycling/running or swimming where optimal weight ‘on-bike’ or ‘in-pool’ is vital.

Ironically, this makes the weight-gain from water retention can be a good thing, as studies in the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise found that muscle fibres grow after creatine supplementation and resistance based exercise.

Put simply, by supplementing creatine, you’ll gain weight. But the added weight will help your muscles feel bigger, fuller and stronger. As creatine contains zero calories, it has zero impact on your fat metabolism — so you can take it on a non-exercise day, too.

What about the claims that creatine users are more likely to get cramps? Well, if you believe the research, then you shouldn’t worry. A three-year study by Arkansas State University showed that 5g/day of creatine had no effect on the incidence of injury or cramping in a group of American footballers. In a retrospective study of 26 athletes using creatine for up to four years, US researchers found no difference in the reported incidence of muscle cramp or injury compared with creatine-free athletes.

There are also a few reports of kidney problems linked with the use of creatine. Again, these are mainly isolated case studies where someone with a pre-existing medical condition developed further health problems while using creatine. If you’re healthy and not taking a host of other supplements or medicines, you should be fine.

Elsewhere in the news cycle, creatine was once purported to increase your risk of testicular cancer. It was reported that researchers in the US had found a link between ‘muscle-building supplements’ and the cancer, but didn’t specify which supplements were spiking the user’s risk. The study had lumped together 30 varying pills and powders under the umbrella term of ‘muscle-building supplements’ and, according to examine.com’s lead researcher Kurtis Frank, the term was too “heterogeneous,” with “an astonishing amount of ambiguity” in terms of the test products and any hidden ingredients.

“Ultimately, this study does not offer enough evidence for current supplement users to change their habits,” says Frank. “However, this kind of study will spark interest in the topic of MBS and testicular cancer, spur more research and, hopefully, result in a better questionnaire that can be used to predict relative risk of various cancers.”

What Is Creatine Loading? Is It Safe?

Taking a superdose of 20,000mg of creatine for four or five days is safe but unnecessary, says nutrition adviser Chris Mohr. Research suggests that your strength gains will catch up after 30 days. For a consistent strength boost, go steady.

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Creatine: The Best to Buy in 2020

Creatine Monohydrate

Myprotein
myprotein.com

£7.99

Optimum Nutrition Micronised Creatine Monohydrate

Optimum Nutrition
amazon.co.uk

£16.95

Creapure® Creatine Monohydrate

Bulk Powders
bulkpowders. co.uk

£3.59

The Protein Works Creatine Monohydrate Powder

The Protein Works
amazon.co.uk

£3.31

When To Take Creatine

As with everything health and fitness, there are multiple camps when it comes to taking creatine: before, during and after a workout.

Creatine Before a Workout: Generally, the case for taking creatine during a workout is built on ATP (adenosine triphosphate) an organic chemical that contributes to cellular energy and muscle contractions. When supplementing with creatine, you’ll be taking on more ATP around your muscle cells. More ATP equates to more efficient muscle fiber activation and, obviously, better gains.

Creatine After a Workout: Thankfully, this is a more simple theory. After a workout, your muscles are depleted and are, essentially, gagging for a payload of nutrients to start repairing and building more muscle.

Creatine, Whenever You Want: Like a healthy amount of protein, there’s no real downside for taking a healthy supplement like creatine that encourages muscle growth and won’t derail your nutrition plan.

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How Much Creatine Should I Take?

“The literature recommends seem to suggest a ‘loading’ dose of 10-20g (5g dosages split throughout the day) for five to seven days followed by a 3-5g ‘maintenance’ dose thereafter,” says Kasper. “In reality, it is dependent upon the speed at which you are looking to load (3).”

“In my personal opinion, for someone new to taking creatine, I would suggest there is no need for a loading phase as you are more likely to suffer any gastro or other side effects – it will just take a little longer to get the creatine loaded into your muscles and experience any positive effects.”

But what ingredients should you be looking out for when purchasing creatine? “You need to be very careful with ‘pre-workout’ mixes as many of these contain ingredients with very little evidence or dangerous substances such as methylhexanamine (often seen on the label as geranium extract),” says Kasper.

“The main ingredients I would personally look for when choosing supplements to aid with gym performance and these would be caffeine, creatine and potentially beta-alanine.”

Creatine Monohydrate

Although “new and improved” versions of creatine pop up all the time, none have consistently proven themselves to be any better than regular creatine monohydrate.

A substance normally found in muscle cells, creatine helps your muscles produce explosive energy during exercise, such as HIIT or weightlifting. For years, athletes and sports people have taken creatine to gain an edge on their performance — to gain strength, size and muscle and improve exercise capacity.

A dose of 3-5 grams per day of creatine supplement for 30 days will raise creatine levels in the muscle just as well as a 5-day loading phase where you take 20 grams per day.

It doesn’t matter too much when you use it or what you mix it with. In short, creatine is a multi-purpose supplement that has a number of benefits for both physical and mental performance. It’s cheap, it’s safe and it works.

“No well-controlled clinical trials have shown that any other form of creatine works better than creatine monohydrate, and usually the other kinds are more expensive,”

Chad Kerksick, director of the Exercise and Performance Nutrition Laboratory at Lindenwood University. Seek out a product with credentials, such as the “Certified for Sport” label. Brands we like: Motion Nutrition, MyProtein and Maximuscle.

Foods High in Creatine

You would have to eat an “ungodly amount of meat” to reach a number achievable from supplementation, says Jose Antonio, an associate professor of exercise and sports science at Nova Southeastern University. That’s more than a kilo of beef or salmon a day, which would lumber you with eight times the recommended daily amount of protein. (Please don’t eat a kilo of meat in a day.)

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Steak: If you take care of your protein in the form of eating varied meats, you may already be close to hitting your creatine goal. Steak is one of the most creatine-dense, packing around 5g of creatine per kg of uncooked beef.

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Fish: Another food high in creatine is fish. Salmon and tuna are especially high in creatine, packing around 4.5g of creatine per .5kg of salmon.

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Egg Yolks: Cracking into eggs at breakfast will unlock just under 2g of creatine per egg, so it pays to have a cooked breakfast before the gym.

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(1) Hultman E, Bergstrom J, Spreit L, Soderlund K: Energy metabolism and fatigue. In Biochemistry of Exercise VII Edited by: Taylor A, Goll- nick PD, Green H. Human Kinetics: Champaign, IL; 1990:73-92.

(2) G.L. Close, D.L. Hamilton, A. Philp, L.M. Burke, J.P. Morton. New strategies in sport nutrition to increase exercise performance. Free Radical Biology and medicine, 98, 144-158.

(3) Hultman E, Soderlund K, Timmons JA, Cederblad G, Greenhaff PL: Muscle creatine loading in men. J Appl Physiol 1996, 81:232-237; Willoughby DS, Rosene J: Effects of oral creatine and resistance training on myosin heavy chain expression.Med Sci Sports Exerc 2001, 33:1674-81.

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Creatine Supplements: Usage and Side Effects

In their quest to run farther, jump higher, and outlast the competition, many athletes have turned to a variety of performance-enhancing drugs and supplements. Creatine is the most popular of these substances, believed to enhance muscle mass and help athletes achieve bursts of strength.

Part of the reason for creatine’s popularity might be its accessibility. Creatine powder, tablets, energy bars, and drink mixes are available without a doctor’s prescription at drug stores, supermarkets, nutrition stores, and over the Internet.

Although creatine is a natural substance, it hasn’t been well-studied over the long term. Researchers still aren’t sure what effects it might have on the body, although there is evidence that in the short term, creatinine is safe for high-intensity resistance training.

What Is Creatine?

Creatine is a natural substance that turns into creatine phosphate in the body. Creatine phosphate helps make a substance called adenosine triphosphate (ATP). ATP provides the energy for muscle contractions.

The body produces some of the creatine it uses. It also comes from protein-rich foods such as meat or fish.

How Is Creatine Used?

Back in the 1970s, scientists discovered that taking creatine in supplement form might enhance physical performance. In the 1990s, athletes started to catch on, and creatine became a popular sports supplement. The supplement is particularly popular among high school, college, and professional athletes, especially football and hockey players, wrestlers, and gymnasts. 

Creatine is thought to improve strength, increase lean muscle mass, and help the muscles recover more quickly during exercise. This muscular boost may help athletes achieve bursts of speed and energy, especially during short bouts of high-intensity activities such as weight lifting or sprinting. However, scientific research on creatine has been mixed. Although some studies have found that it does help improve performance during short periods of athletic activity, there is no evidence that creatine helps with endurance sports. Research also shows that not everyone’s muscles respond to creatine; some people who use it see no benefit.

Despite the popularity of creatine among young people, there has been very little research conducted in children under age 18. Of those studies, a few have suggested a positive effect but the overall evidence is inconclusive. In one study, teenage swimmers performed better after taking creatine; in another study, it helped high school soccer players sprint, dribble, and jump more effectively.

Researchers are studying whether creatine might also be useful for treating certain health conditions caused by weakened muscles, including:

How Safe Is Creatine?

Just because creatine is natural, doesn’t necessarily mean that it is safe. Supplements aren’t held to the same standards by the FDA as medications, which means you can’t always know exactly what’s in your supplement, or in what amounts.

Researchers still don’t know the long-term effects of taking creatine supplements, especially in young people. Adolescents who take creatine often do so without their doctor’s advice, which can cause them to take more than the recommended dose.

Although most healthy people can take it with no problem, creatine can, in rare cases, have adverse effects, particularly when used in excess. Side effects can include:

Taking the stimulants caffeine and ephedra with creatine can increase the risk of side effects.

Creatine isn’t recommended for people with kidney or liver disease, or diabetes. Others who should avoid taking it are children under age 18 and women who are pregnant or nursing. Also don’t use creatine if you are taking any medication or supplement that could affect your blood sugar, because creatine may also affect blood sugar levels.

Continued

If you do take creatine, drink enough water to prevent dehydration.

No matter how healthy you are, let your doctor know before you take creatine or any other supplement.

The Complete Guide To Creatine

Creatine is one of cheapest and most widely used gym supplements by casual gym goes and athletes alike – but there is also a lot of confusion and misinformation surrounding it’s usage, safety, efficacy, and effects on body composition. Here we are going to break down everything you need to know about creatine so you can find out if it might be something you want to use, or if you already are – how to use it most effectively!

What Is It?

Creatine is a naturally occurring non-protein amino acid that is found in muscle tissue, most commonly in red meat and seafood. It started to rise in popularity in supplement form in the 1990s. In the human body, creatine is combined with a high energy phosphate group to form ‘phosphocreatine’ AKA ‘creatine phosphate’ and then stored in your muscle tissue.

When the body needs to produce a large amount of energy quickly, such as in a heavy lift or a sprint, the phosphate part of the creatine molecule is split off and used by the body to help rapidly produce the large amounts of energy (ATP) that is required. The more creatine that is available, the more energy is able to be produced. This rapid production of energy when training enables greater high-intensity performances, giving greater stimulus to the body, and overall increases training adaptations (AKA ‘gains’).

The body synthesizes a small amount of creatine, which it also exists in the diet – the main sources being red meat and seafood. The only problem is that it is very difficult to eat enough whole food to significantly boost and maintain high levels of stored creatine. For example, you’d likely have to eat at least a kilogram of beef or fish per day, every day, to maintain the optimal intramuscular store of creatine!

When you supplement with the appropriate amount of creatine, the amounts stored in your muscles increase to reach a ‘saturation level’ which can provide you with high-intensity fuel for longer than you would be able to achieve without supplementation.

TLDR; creatine breaks down during exercise, and eventually runs out. It can be reformed to use again during rest but the more you have, the longer you can train at high intensity before fatigue. Better training = better results! Although some creatine comes from diet, its really hard to eat enough meat to saturate your muscles with creatine, so supplements are an easy way to do this.

Who is It Useful For?

Almost anyone! Creatine has been shown to: improve post-exercise recovery, play a role in injury prevention, modulate thermoregulation, assist rehabilitation, positively influence concussion, and even potentially play a role in spinal cord neuroprotection.

Creatine supplementation is most commonly thought of as a gym supplement that is beneficial to those doing weight training (Hint: it is) – and in this article, we’ll be focusing mainly on the performance aspect of creatine. However, it’s benefits go far beyond just those seen in exercise performance but we will save that for another time!

Dietary creatine only comes from animal foods: there is no ‘plant-based creatine’. However, creatine can be made synthetically in a lab and plenty of vegan creatine supplements exist! As it is not found in plant foods, vegetarians (and likely by extension vegans) have significantly lower intramuscular creatine stores than non-vegetarians, and therefore are likely to benefit even more from creatine supplementation than those consuming a balanced diet.

There is a large body of evidence supporting the use of creatine in training and many different sports. Studies have shown benefits in weight lifting (and general resistance training), running, soccer, swimming, mixed martial arts, cycling, American football, rugby league, and many, many other forms of sport and exercise:

Effects and Benefits! 

There has been strong evidence around for decades on how effective creatine is in improving fat-free mass and strength gains in the gym. Basically, if you’re already training and not using it – adding creatine to your diet and training will yield superior increases in lean body mass, and in exercises such as squat and bench press when compared to not using it.

To give you an idea, some of the specific benefits found when using creatine have been:

• Increased maximal power and maximal strength on single and repeat sets of muscle contractions (5–15%) found in exercises such as in bench press, squats, leg press, leg extension, chest press
• Increased single-effort sprint performance (1–5%) i.e. decreased sprint times (15-100m)
• Increased repetitive sprint performance (5–15%)
• Decreased recovery times
• Support significantly greater gains in strength, power, and body mass with no change in body fat percentage
• Increases vertical jump height and power output, reduces the decay in performance in jumping ability in sport (ie soccer, basketball, football)
• Increased time to exhaustion and work capacity to fatigue (i.e. you can go for longer)
• Increased intramuscular water storage i.e improve hydration status

Benefits aren’t just limited to males either. Females supplementing with creatine are just as likely to see significant gains in maximal strength, intermittent exercise capacity, and lean body mass. 

Another interesting side effect of creatine is that it has been shown to further enhance muscle glycogen supercompensation. That’s a fancy way of saying if you are carb-loading, you can load EVEN MORE carbs into the muscles if you load with creatine, during or better yet, before starting to carb-load. This could have some interesting implications for anyone who utilises strategies involving carb depletion for a sporting event, weight cuts, or is generally looking to carb load for a performance!

How to Take It?

Creatine is most typically taken in 2 phases: a ‘loading’ phase of 5 to 7 days, then a ‘maintenance’ phase of however long you want to use it for (i.e. Ever). These phases are designed to reach and then maintain peak muscle creatine stores.

Loading Phase

This phase lasts for 5 to 7 days. The goal here is to bring your muscle creatine stores up to reach a saturation point as quickly and efficiently as possible. Most research shows that taking 20-25g per day for 5 days will do this. Typically the aim is to take 5g of creatine 4 or 5 times per day.

You could take all 20g at once or 10g 2 times per day -this will depend on individual tolerance as some people are fine with these doses- but most of the evidence has come from smaller, more frequent serves. Occasionally some people may experience some gastrointestinal discomfort when taking large doses in a single sitting, so 5g doses are typically used to avoid this issue.

Maintenance Phase

This phase can essentially last for as long as you want (see ‘Side Effects’ below for more information on safety over time).

Basically, a small amount of creatine is degraded then excreted in urine each day. So, the body needs to replenish between 2–3 g of creatine per day to maintain creatine stores depending on muscle mass.

To maintain saturation levels, taking between 3 to 5g per day is sufficient to do this in most people. If you have a larger amount of muscle mass then you may want to aim towards the higher end.

Note: your body will still degrade creatine even on non-training days, so it’s best to continue your maintenance dose, even on rest days.

Slow Loading

If the idea of loading with large amounts of creatine in the first week is not appealing to you, studies have also shown that it is also possible to increase creatine stores and likely to reach peak creatine saturation by taking smaller dosages of 3g. Therefore loading is not necessary.

If you choose not to load, it still works it takes a much longer time to reach saturation levels – muscle creatine levels have been found to have increased by 20% after 28 days of 3g per day (rather than full saturation after 5-7 days if loading as above).

Do you need to deload or ‘cycle off’ creatine?

The short answer to this is no, you do not. Later in this article, I’ll go over side effects or long-term risks, but essentially there are minimal concerns with long term creatine usage.

There are various myths such as long-term supplementation will decrease your body’s sensitivity to creatine (not true), and that it will affect your body’s ability to synthesise it if you don’t cycle off (also not true). 

If you do want to cycle off, or if you stop taking the maintenance dose, due to the natural breakdown, and excretion of creatine your intramuscular levels will decline back to pre-supplementation levels after approximately 30 days.

This also means if you forget to take creatine occasionally during your maintenance phase, the normal 3-5g dose should be effective in topping your stores back up and you don’t need to go through the whole Loading Phase again.

A potential negative aspect of cycling off is the interruption of habit-forming behaviours. Everyone knows what it’s like to “fall off the wagon”, whether it be diet, training, supplements, getting 8 hours sleep – whatever!

It’s not uncommon for lifters to stop taking creatine and then continue to forget about it on a consistent basis. When you’re on a roll, it is often easier to maintain a good routine and we all know how hard it can be to rebuild those positive habits. 

Do you need to time creatine intake?

Short answer: not really. Creatine intake has been show to improve muscle strength and lean tissue mass more than nothing/placebo, regardless of timing.

However – the same study showed that creatine AFTER a resistance training session improved lean mass more than creatine before a session.

So, if you are really getting specific about timing, it is likely best to have it after training. An easy way to do this is in a water bottle or protein shake after your training session.

Consistently having it on a daily basis should be the main priority though. 

Loading creatine with carbohydrate?

There has been some research showing that taking carbohydrate alongside creatine during the loading phase can augment the uptake of creatine into muscle. However,  a significant amount of carbs are needed for this – approximately 100g per dose of creatine to see the most benefit. 

The numbers: creatine loading without carbs increases muscle stores by about 20mmol/kg. Adding 93g of carbs adjacent to each creatine dose was found to increase this by 60%, taking muscle stores to around 32mmol/kg. 

4 serves of ~100 grams of carbs per day, throughout 5 days of loading would add about ~2 kilograms of carbs and ~8,000 calories to your diet over this time. 

Practically, unless you need to increase your muscle creatine stores very rapidly, you will reach a point of muscle saturation over time anyway. The addition of so much simple carbohydrates to your diet might not be A) worth it and, B) tolerable.

Having creatine with protein (50g) and fewer carbs (47g) has also been shown to increase creatine uptake, and may be more realistic than carbs alone, but this is still a huge amount of extra calories 4x per day for 5 days. 

The take-away from this is that the exact protocol above is likely not a realistic option, but consumption of carbs (and protein) does help with creatine uptake.

If you’re having protein and carbs anyway, add your creatine in with it.

Are There Side Effects?

There is a mountain of evidence showing the safety of creatine at the prescribed doses, not just in males.

The main side effect people tend to associate with creatine is ‘weight gain’ or bloating from carrying water. Some people think creatine makes them look “puffy”, but this is not the case.

Creatine does have a weight gain effect, causing the body to hold additional intracellular water (detailed below). I’ve seen this in myself and many clients over the years with rapid weight increases of up to 2 or 3kgs. The scientific literature supports this, finding 1-2kg increases in lean body mass are typical during the first week/loading phase.

It is important to note that not all weight gained while taking creatine is due to water. With proper training the body lays down new muscle tissue (and more so with creatine), contributing to lean weight gain. If you are over-consuming calories, there is also the potential for fat gain regardless of creatine intake. 

The creatine stored in the muscle changes the intracellular osmotic pressure. This pressure results in a pulling movement, drawing water into the cell, where it is stored. This contributes to total body weight gain. Again: the water is stored INSIDE the muscle cell.

Cells have a finite storage capacity and once you are at peak creatine levels, water weight does not continue to increase nor does it just pile up in other areas of the body. Once the muscles are full saturated with creatine, no more can be stored, ceasing further movement of more water into the muscle -once the tank is full, it can’t hold more water. 

As the volume of the muscle cell is increased, the muscle cells themselves do swell, increasing the physical size of your muscles, but if you feel general “puffiness” or oedema-like fluid retention, it is not likely related to creatine. The only time this increase in weight may be a concern is in athletes who are competing in a sport with weight limits or power-to-weight ratio concerns.

Questions have been raised in marathons or ultra-endurance events where carrying an extra kilogram or two of water weight over such long distances may negatively impact performance.

Practically, this would likely depend on how long the athlete has trained with creatine…if someone has been supplementing for long periods of time, any intracellular water-based increases in weight would essentially feel normal. The extra water held with creatine also confers the additional benefits of ‘hyperhydration’ and more efficient regulation of body temperature in the heat. These effects may positively contribute to balancing any small weight gain effect in an endurance event.

It is also interesting to note that there is plenty of research suggesting that this increase in water weight is likely just a short term effect. Over the course of multiple weeks/months, the evidence actually does not make it seem like there is this longer-term impact on water weight that most people would expect related to this short-term impact. 

Studies show that short and long-term supplementation at various amounts of creatine (even up to 30 g/day for 5 years) is safe and well-tolerated in healthy individuals, and in populations ranging from infants to the elderly. In fact, the International Society of Sports Nutrition position states that “significant health benefits may be provided by ensuring habitual low dietary creatine ingestion (e.g., 3 g/day) throughout the lifespan”.

Can creatine cause baldness…not likely but here is the science:

• Dihydrotestosterone (DHT) is a normal hormone in the body that has overall androgenic effects, helping maintain muscle mass, and promoting sexual health and fertility (especially in males)…but: it is also the hormone that is linked with genetic male pattern baldness.
• Creatine has been shown to increase DHT. There has not been a huge deal of research into this specific area of creatine and hair loss but one study found an increase of around 50% of DHT levels when loading creatine.
• The study didn’t look at hair loss so there were no hair loss effects measured, and even with the 50% increase that was seen, those DHT levels were still in the normal natural rage.

The rational interpretation of these findings is that while creatine has been shown to be safe at a range of dosages over a long period of time, it may increase DHT. At this point, there is no science to definitively say that creatine does or does not affect balding. Not all studies allow you to draw direct cause-and-effect high-level breakthroughs such as ‘fans make you cooler when its hot or humid’! 

Negative effects on the liver and kidneys are typically hearsay and conjecture, especially if you don’t currently have any issues with these organs. There is evidence in many populations, including athletes that taking creatine has zero long term detrimental effects on the liver or the kidneys. This study was done with dosages of between 5-20g per day for 3 months up to almost 6 years with no negative effects.

Creatine while cutting?

Yes, you can take it while dieting or trying to lose weight.

It will not cause you to gain body fat, nor want to eat more food. 

By now you know creatine contributes to weight gain through increasing lean muscle mass and intracellular water content. Creatine and fat gain is a completely different story. Fat gain, at its most simplistic level, is determined by the calories you consume vs the calories you burn.

If you eat more calories than you need, you will typically gain not only weight but gain it through storing body fat. Calorically, a few grams of creatine is not going to contribute to fat gain.

If you are gaining fat while taking creatine, your overall diet and caloric intake are likely what needs assessing.

There have been some anecdotal reports of people suffering muscle cramps, strains and tears but there is little evidence to substantiate any increased risk with creatine supplementation, and it is always possible these occur from exercise or activity regardless.

How Much Does it Cost?

Creatine is not an expensive supplement. When purchasing, I would recommend looking for “Creatine Monohydrate” which is the most common, and most well-studied form of creatine.

I have found it online or in supplement stores for as little as $19AUD per kg. Which at a generous 5g serving, works out to be 200 serves at 9.5 cents per serve (even less at 5.7 cents if you’re using 3g per serve). $19 every 6 months or so seems pretty affordable!

There are various other forms of creatine that you might see marketed including Creatine Hydrochloride, Buffered Creatine, Creatine Ethyl Ester, various forms of liquid creatine etc.

To my knowledge, there aren’t any real reliable studies that these other forms have any superior benefit over standard creatine monohydrate. They are typically just more expensive, and any claims to be better than creatine monohydrate are typically marketing hype and spin to help justify the higher price.

To Summarise:

Creatine is not an ‘essential’ nutrient – the body can produce it, and you are also likely getting some from dietary sources if you include meat in your diet. Is it 100% necessary to supplement creatine? No.

Is there a potential performance benefit to be gained across a wide range of sports and exercises with pretty much no risk and minimal cost? Yes.

If you are unsure about creatine or any other supplement or if it is suitable to you, it’s always a good idea to sit down with a dietitian that can help personalise your nutrition program.

All that being said, creatine is very cheap, very safe, competition legal supplement, that has a plethora of highly researched, proven benefits with very low risk to consumers.

Tyler has a Bachelor of Nutrition and Exercise Sciences and completed his Masters of Dietetics through the University of Queensland after moving away from a long career in the fitness industry. As part of his education he worked with dietitians at the Brisbane Broncos rugby league club, is currently working with the Qld Women’s Rugby 7’s team, and has continued to follow his passion for performance nutrition.

Tyler is a believer in ‘practice what you preach’. Outside of helping people achieve their goals through diet and exercise, he competes in powerlifting and loves experimenting with his own nutrition and diet to find the best ways to support various training and body composition goals.

What is Creatine, Are Supplements Safe

What is creatine?

Creatine is one of your body’s natural sources of energy for muscle contraction. Its name comes from the Greek word for meat. About half of the body’s supply comes from a carnivorous diet and about half is produced in the liver, kidneys and then delivered to the skeletal muscles for use. About 95% of creatine is stored in the skeletal muscle of your body and is used during physical activity. Creatine helps to maintain a continuous supply of energy to working muscles by keep production up in working muscles. Small amounts are also found in your heart, brain and other tissues.

Creatine is also found in foods such as milk, red meat and seafood. In a normal omnivorous /carnivorous diet, you consume one to two grams/day of creatine. Vegetarians may have lower amounts of creatine in their bodies.

Creatine exists in a steady state with a similar compound named creatinine that can be measured in lab tests as a marker of kidney function. It is passed out of your body in the urine. This means your body must release stored creatine each day to keep normal levels, the amount depending on your muscle mass. Although creatine is created naturally in your body, you must keep up your levels and do so through your daily diet.

Why do people take creatine supplements?

Professional and amateur athletes at all levels have been known to take creatine supplements to aid their workout routines and improve workout recovery. Creatine creates “quick burst” energy and increased strength, which improves performance but has little effect on aerobic endurance. Most people who use creatine supplements are male athletes and are mostly involved in power sports, such as football, wrestling, hockey and bodybuilding.

No matter your age or health condition, talk to your doctor or healthcare provider before taking creatine supplements.

Are creatine supplements recommended for athletes?

Creatine supplements are used by many athletes. The supplement is allowed by professional sports associations, the International Olympic Committee and the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).

Benefits have been reported in men and women, although most studies have been conducted on men. Some studies note that women who take creatine supplements may not see as much strength or muscle mass gain as men during training.

What are the potential benefits of taking creatine supplements?

Research shows that taking creatine supplements may:

• Improve your exercise performance.
• Help your recovery after intense exercise.
• Prevent and/or reduce the severity of injury.
• Help athletes tolerate heavy training loads.
• Increase your fat-free muscle mass during training.

Because vegetarians have lower intramuscular creatine storage, they may see greater gains from taking the supplements. However, it may take longer to build up levels in the muscles.

Several studies show that users experience less incidence of cramping, heat illness/dehydration, muscle tightness, muscle strains/pulls, non-contact injuries and total injuries/missed practices than those not taking creatine supplements. The effects appear to be sustained over time.

In addition, studies have noted that taking creatine supplements may aid in neurodegenerative diseases (such as muscular dystrophy, Parkinson’s and Huntington’s disease), diabetes, osteoarthritis, fibromyalgia, disorders of creatine metabolism or transport, aging, brain health and heart ischemia.

What are the side effects of taking creatine supplements?

Creatine is a relatively safe supplement with few side effects reported. However, you should keep in mind that:

• If you take creatine supplements, you may gain weight because of water retention in your body’s muscles. It will take seven to 28 days to see energy effects depending on how much creatine you already have in your body.
• It may be dangerous to take creatine supplements when you are actually dehydrated or trying to lose weight.

The International Society of Sports Nutrition recently found no scientific evidence that short- or long-term use of creatine monohydrate causes any harmful effects on otherwise healthy individuals. Nevertheless, always contact your healthcare provider before taking creatine or any supplements.

Is it safe to take creatine supplements?

Although creatine is present naturally in your body, taking additional supplements appears to be generally safe. However, keep in mind that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration does not regulate nutritional supplements. Creatine products that are sold in stores may vary in quantity of creatine supplement, quality and additional ingredients. Safety and purity standards are also not controlled.

Check with your healthcare provider about use of creatine supplements in children younger than 18 years. Not enough information is known about the safety of creatine supplements in pregnant or nursing women. If you have kidney disease, speak with your healthcare provider before using. Taking the supplement may make your kidney disease worse. Many medications can harm your kidneys. Always check with your provider if you take any medications – the combination of creatine supplements could damage your kidneys.

Doctors do not know the effects of creatine supplements on important organ systems, such as the heart, brain, kidneys, liver and reproductive organs, or the effects of combining creatine supplements with over-the-counter medications, prescription drugs, vitamins and energy drinks.

Where are creatine supplements purchased?

Creatine supplements come in a variety of brand names and products. The supplements are available over-the-counter at vitamin, drug, and grocery stores and online.

What is the most common type of creatine supplement?

The most common is creatine monohydrate, a dietary supplement that increases muscle performance in short-duration, high-intensity resistance exercises. Studies show that taking these supplements benefit athletes during strength training, notably weightlifting and cycling. Other forms of creatine have not shown added benefits.

Creatine – Mayo Clinic

Overview

Creatine is an amino acid located mostly in your body’s muscles as well as in the brain. Most people get creatine through seafood and red meat — though at levels far below those found in synthetically made creatine supplements. The body’s liver, pancreas and kidneys also can make about 1 gram of creatine per day.

Your body stores creatine as phosphocreatine primarily in your muscles, where it’s used for energy. As a result, people take creatine orally to improve athletic performance and increase muscle mass.

People also use oral creatine to treat certain brain disorders, neuromuscular conditions, congestive heart failure and other conditions. Topical creatine might be used to treat aging skin.

Evidence

Research on creatine use for specific activities and conditions shows:

• Strength, muscle size and performance. Oral creatine use might allow an athlete to do more work during reps or sprints, leading to greater gains in strength, muscle mass and performance. Creatine is often used by athletes involved in high-intensity intermittent activities that require a rapid recovery during training and competition.
• Injury prevention. Oral creatine might reduce the frequency of dehydration, muscle cramping, and injuries to the muscles, bones, ligaments, tendons and nerves.
• Rare creatine-metabolizing syndromes. In children with the certain creatine deficiency syndromes, oral creatine supplements might improve some symptoms.
• Cognition and brain health. Creatine supplementation might improve performance during cognitive tasks, especially in older adults.
• Sarcopenia and bone health. Creatine supplementation might help counteract age-related declines in skeletal muscle and bone mineral density.
• Heart failure. There isn’t enough evidence to recommend use of oral creatine as a heart failure treatment.
• Skin aging. Early research suggests that a cream containing creatine and other ingredients applied to the face every day for six weeks might reduce skin sag and wrinkles in men. Another study suggests that a cream containing creatine and folic acid improves sun damage and reduces wrinkles.

People who have low levels of creatine — such as vegetarians — appear to benefit most from creatine supplements.

Our take

Generally safe

Creatine might benefit athletes who need short bursts of speed or increased muscle strength, such as sprinters, weight lifters and team sport athletes.

While taking creatine might not help all athletes, evidence suggests that it generally won’t hurt if taken as directed.

Although an older case study suggested that creatine might worsen kidney dysfunction in people with kidney disorders, creatine doesn’t appear to affect kidney function in healthy people.

Safety and side effects

When used orally at appropriate doses, creatine is likely safe to take for up to five years. As with any dietary supplement, it’s important to choose a product that follows recommended manufacturing practices and subscribes to third-party testing to ensure the product’s quality.

Creatine can cause:

• Weight gain, generally as lean body mass

Creatine might be unsafe for people with preexisting kidney problems. However, further research is needed.

Interactions

Possible interactions include:

• Caffeine. Combining caffeine with creatine might decrease the efficacy of creatine. Use of creatine with a daily amount of caffeine greater than 300 milligrams might also worsen the progression of Parkinson’s disease. Further research is needed.

Feb. 09, 2021

Show references

1. Kreider RB, et al. International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: Safety and efficacy of creatine supplementation in exercise, sport, and medicine. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition. 2017; doi:10.1186/s12970-017-0173-z.
2. Creatine. IBM Micromedex. https://www.micromedexsolutions.com. Accessed Nov. 13, 2020.
3. Creatine. Natural Medicines. https://naturalmedicines.therapeuticresearch.com. Accessed Nov. 13, 2020.
4. Burke DG, et al. Effect of creatine and weight training on muscle creatine and performance in vegetarians. Medicine and science in sports and exercise. 2003; doi:10.1249/01.MSS.0000093614.17517.79.
5. Chilibeck PD, et al. Effect of creatine supplementation during resistance training on lean tissue mass and muscular strength in older adults: A meta-analysis. Open Access Journal of Sports Medicine. 2017; doi:10.2147/OAJSM.S123529.
6. Candow DG, et al. Effectiveness of creatine supplementation on aging muscle and bone: Focus on falls prevention and inflammation. Journal of Clinical Medicine. 2019; doi:10.3390/jcm8040488.
7. McMorris T, et al. Creatine supplementation and cognitive performance in elderly individuals. Aging, Neuropsychology, and Cognition. 2007: doi:10.1080/13825580600788100.
8. Dolan E., et al. Beyond muscle: The effects of creatine supplementation on brain creatine, cognitive processing, and traumatic brain injury. European Journal of Sport Science. 2019; doi:10.1080/17461391.2018.1500644.
9. Trexler ET, et al. Creatine and caffeine: Considerations for concurrent supplementation. International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism. 2015; doi:10.1123/ijsnem.2014-0193.
10. Simon DK, et al. Caffeine and progression of Parkinson’s disease: A deleterious interaction with creatine. Clinical Neuropharmacology. 2015; doi:10.1097/WNF.0000000000000102.


.

Should I Take Creatine? – stack

Creatine has been a vital part of my training arsenal for years. It can provide a huge advantage with minimal side effects.

A natural amino acid most commonly found in red meat, creatine is also produced in small amounts by the liver, kidneys, and pancreas. Once in the body, it becomes a fuel source for short-duration, high-intensity activities such as weight training, sprinting and jumping. It also promotes muscular hypertrophy—the increase in muscle fiber that football players strive for.

The amount of creatine absorbed in the body through diet and produced naturally is very low, which brings us to supplementation as a means to increase available levels.

Should I Take Creatine?

Most studies on creatine usage show that supplementation boosts strength and lean muscle mass while increasing the intensity of short-duration activities like weightlifting and sprinting.

During high-intensity exercise, the muscles require readily available energy. Stored creatine can provide energy for the first four or five seconds of intense activity. With creatine supplementation, you are able to train harder and longer at a higher intensity. If you can squeeze out one or two additional reps or add 5 pounds to your max, you will get stronger.

Creatine will not improve endurance, however, so it is not particularly useful to athletes in endurance sports.

Creatine and Weight Gain

Weight gain up to six pounds is a common side effect of creatine supplementation. It occurs because creatine is osmotic—i.e., it pulls water into the cells in the process of increasing muscle protein synthesis, which can lead to further muscle growth and recovery.

Creatine and Safety

The biggest risk with creatine is dehydration, which can lead to muscle strains and pulls.

How to Use Creatine

The muscles can store only a limited amount of creatine, so you don’t need a “loading phase,” where you start with a larger dose, then scale back.

Start with 5 to 10 grams of creatine monohydrate per day. You can take it in the morning with green tea, or just before your workout. Some athletes prefer taking it with a protein or carbohydrate source to increase absorption. An increased insulin response will pull more creatine into muscle tissue.

I prefer to cycle on and off creatine in 12-week intervals.

Other Types of Creatine

An influx of new creatine products has hit the market in recent years. None of them is as effective as creatine monohydrate. In a 2009 study, researchers at Baylor University’s Department of Health, Human Performance and Recreation found that creatine ethyl ester is not as effective as creatine monohydrate at increasing serum and muscle creatine levels—nor is it as effective in improving body composition, muscle mass, strength, and power.

Tips for Taking Creatine

• Use only creatine monohydrate.
• Take 5 to 10 grams if looking to add mass. If looking for strength/performance benefits, stick with 3 to 5 grams.
• Mix creatine with green tea or take it with pre-workout nutrition.
• Cycle on and off creatine every 12 weeks or so.
• According to current research, creatine is safe in both the short and the long term.
• Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate! Most issues related to creatine supplementation occur because the user is under-consuming water.

Looking for more info on supplements? Check out these articles:

Trainer Q&A: Do I Need to ‘Load’ Creatine?

Q:  Do I Really Need to ‘Load’ Creatine?

A: Creatine is without a doubt one of the most popular and well-researched supplements on the market. By increasing the amount of energy available for short-duration, high-intensity exercise, creatine allows lifters to push themselves harder in the gym and ultimately can lead to increased strength and size gains following weight training. Not only that, creatine can help guys recover faster in between sets meaning they can attack the weights faster and harder than before. While most people agree that supplementing with creatine is effective in terms of improved performance, the actual dosage and supplementation strategy is many times up for debate.

In terms of taking creatine, certain methodologies differ on whether or not a “loading” phase is necessary for maximum gains. A typical loading phase would consist of a 7-10 day period of higher dosage before returning to a maintenance dose. Others recommend simply starting on a certain dosage and continuing that amount throughout the supplementation. Dr. Mike Roussell, nutritional consultant and expert contributor for a variety of health and fitness publications, argues that a loading phase makes creatine supplementation more effective from the start. According to Dr. Roussell, “It (loading) supersaturates your muscle creatine stores. You could not load but it would take a lot longer to reap the maximum effectiveness of creatine.” For most lifters, a loading phase will allow them to get a bigger benefit right from the start.

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In terms of how to load creatine, Roussell recommends a standard approach of starting with five grams taken five times a day for the first week of supplementation. After that week, lifters can back down to a maintenance dose of 5-10g per day. In terms of when to supplement, Roussell advises spreading your doses out throughout the day but also taking them with a meal including carbohydrates as insulin helps to transport creatine into muscle cells.

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Those worried about long-term creatine supplementation can relax. While creatine is one of the most popular supplements on the market, there’s no evidence to support the notion that cycling off is necessary. In fact, Roussell acknowledges that lifters can supplement with creatine on a daily basis with virtually no side effects. However, those taking creatine should increase water consumption as creatine is known to draw water into the muscle and make users more susceptible to dehydrate although those taking in adequate amounts of fluid shouldn’t be worried.

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Creatine is a popular supplement in the fitness industry because it works. When loaded properly, creatine can be extremely effective in terms of increasing strength and muscle size. To start supplementation and reap the biggest benefit, begin with a 5-7 day loading period before returning to a maintenance dose.

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90,000 benefits, principle of action, who needs it, how to take it?

Creatine monohydrate is a specialty food product for athletes. It is used to build muscle and increase strength. A set of muscle mass is provided due to the ability of creatine to retain fluid in the sarcoplasm, which gives volume to the muscles.

Attention! The supplement is not an anabolic steroid, although it may increase testosterone levels.It doesn’t count as doping either. Its use is authorized by reputable sports organizations.

The research results confirm the absence of negative consequences from the inclusion of creatine monohydrate in the diet of athletes.

Action

The main function of this supplement is to provide energy to the athlete’s body during periods of serious physical exertion. The effect of its use is manifested over time, with daily use.

One of the properties of creatine monohydrate is to reduce muscle fatigue by neutralizing acids synthesized during exercise. The total weight gain due to muscle mass with daily use of this sports nutrition product can reach up to 5 kg.

Daily dose for intensive training

With a weight of 70 kg in the body of an athlete, primarily in his muscles, there is 110-130 grams of creatine. To replenish its reserves, you must either take special supplements or consume animal meat.

The daily creatine requirement of an athlete involved in moderate sports is 2-4 g. This amount is contained in 500-1000 g of red meat. If, for one reason or another, you are unable to include that many fillets of beef or other red meat in your diet every day, or are a vegetarian, then you can take creatine supplements.

A key product for everyone involved in strength sports, in a convenient format – Instant Creatine – Siberian Super Natural Sport.Creatine in the form of monohydrate is rapidly absorbed, increases strength endurance, stimulates the increase in muscle mass, increasing the effectiveness of training.

Which one to choose?

The sports nutrition market offers a variety of creatine-based dietary supplements with various additional ingredients.

A “transport system” supplement is widely advertised. In fact, it is creatine with trace elements, carbohydrates and some vitamins.It is more expensive than usual, although it does not have any significant advantages. After all, creatine has an effect on muscles after it accumulates in them during regular intake, so the rate of absorption does not play a significant role.

How to take

For a long time, it was mistakenly believed that starting creatine supplementation should be done with high doses (up to 25 g per day) in order to “load”. At the moment, the recommendations have changed, since it was proved that such a scheme for the use of these dietary supplements has no advantages in comparison with a uniform distribution of doses.

Experts recommend taking 2-4 g of creatine monohydrate daily. It is advisable to use it together with a gainer immediately after training. However, creatine can be absorbed without carbohydrate support. After 2 months of intake, it is recommended to take a break of 1-3 weeks, otherwise the body “gets used” to creatine and the effectiveness of the intake decreases ..

High-quality protein, as well as slow carbohydrates, omega-3s and fiber – all this is contained in the Nutritional Cocktail Hazelnuts and Green Buckwheat from the YooGo line of operational nutrition.The balanced composition of each serving provides the body with vital nutrients and helps to keep you feeling full for a long time.

Creatine is often taken in conjunction with the BCA amino acids. Introducing the Siberian Super Natural Sport BCAA Complex, which provides muscles with nutrients, helps them recover faster, slows down catabolic processes and eliminates the feeling of overtraining.

Harm

The daily intake of small doses of creatine (up to 3 grams) is classified by medical organizations as an activity with a minimal risk of side effects for health.However, this sports nutrition has contraindications. They should not be taken by people with asthma and allergic reactions, women during pregnancy and those who have had surgery. Creatine can cause water retention, indigestion, cramps, so it is undesirable to use large doses for people with high blood pressure or acute intestinal diseases.

Creatine will be of little use in sports that require long-term endurance, such as marathon races, because other energy substrates are used in the muscles.Creatine is more useful in exercises where speed-power actions are needed, for example, weightlifting, wrestling, boxing.

Attention! It is recommended that you consult with your doctor before including such a supplement in your diet.

Use creatine as an additional support to your main meal and achieve great results.

90,000 what is it? What is it for and how to take it?

Creatine is a substance synthesized by the human liver and pancreas from the amino acids arginine, glycine and methionine.Creatine is one of the most important nutritional supplements for athletes. It is completely safe for the body and helps to gain muscle mass.

Why is creatine useful?

Creatine is a source of energy for muscle tissues to help them cope with stress more efficiently. With a low level of amino acids in the muscles, a rapid depletion of the muscles occurs, which greatly reduces the effectiveness of training.

The first signs of this: the appearance of a burning sensation in the muscles, followed by a feeling of severe fatigue.Scientists have also noted the positive effect of the supplement on the overall endurance of the body, accelerating metabolism and improving protein synthesis.

At the moment, creatine monohydrate is the most researched supplement by scientists, and its absolute safety has been repeatedly confirmed.

Sports nutrition with creatine allows:

• Increase strength and endurance;
• to form relief muscles without fatty layers;
• neutralize lactic acid;
• to maximally suppress the process of destruction of muscle tissue;
• to reduce the level of bad cholesterol in the body;
• to quickly restore muscles after training;
• to stabilize blood composition.

In addition, creatine is successfully used in the therapy and prevention of cardiovascular diseases, malignant tumors, and is a reliable protection of the nervous system.

How and When to Take Creatine?

For effective work, the substance must enter the muscle tissue as quickly as possible. And best of all, the body absorbs creatine when insulin levels rise to maximum. For example, immediately after waking up, after eating sugary foods, or an hour after training.

Creatine-based supplements can be mixed with gainers, protein shakes, and other amino acids. You can achieve maximum digestibility by combining it with high-carbohydrate foods: fruit juices, cocktails, sweets.

It should be noted that some manufacturers of sports nutrition have developed special creatine supplements with a transport system, which are absorbed by the body almost instantly.

How Much Creatine Should I Take?

A creatine supplement regimen is as follows:

1. For the first 5 days, you should take creatine 25 grams per day, dividing the meals into 5 times 5 grams each: in the morning and 20 minutes before meals during the day.This will dramatically increase the concentration of the amino acid in muscle tissue.
2. Then you need to take a supplement of 3-5 grams daily for 40 days. You can take it at your choice: both immediately after waking up and an hour after training.

Attention! If you don’t have a measuring spoon, remember that there are 5 grams of creatine in one teaspoon.

Like most amino acids, creatine is most effective when used as a course.Therefore, you should take the supplement as a course for 45 days, then take a break for about 4 weeks, and then resume taking it. If you do not take breaks, muscle tissue will get used to the increased dosage of the amino acid and stop responding to it.

Powdered creatine can be mixed with water. After taking the supplement, you can drink a glass of juice – this will have a positive effect on absorption.

Important! Choose additives in powders rather than ready-made solutions.The fact is that when in contact with water, creatine monohydrate is destroyed, and taking solutions will not allow the body to receive the required dose of the amino acid.

90,000 Creatine – what is it? What is creatine monohydrate for and how to take?

Creatine is the second most important sports supplement for mass gain (after protein). Regular intake of creatine monohydrate helps increase strength and also speeds up the rate of muscle recovery after exercise.An indirect effect of the intake is an increase in testosterone and growth hormone levels.

In fact, creatine is needed in order to reduce the use of glycogen stores in muscles – in this case, it acts as a source of additional energy, restoring the ATP molecule. Plus, in the first weeks of taking creatine gives an increase of 1-3 kg of weight (due to fluid retention).

// Creatine – what is it?

Creatine is a carboxylic acid that participates in the body’s energy metabolism.In turn, creatine monohydrate is a chemical compound that is a molecule of creatine and water. In its pure form, the substance is found in animal meat, and the monohydrate can be bought in the form of sports nutrition.

Studies have shown that creatine can increase strength in athletes and help them gain mass faster. It optimizes muscle energy use by reducing glycogen utilization. In practice, creatine adds 1 to 2 reps to heavy exercise and speeds up the rate of muscle recovery.

In addition, creatine is needed in order to retain fluid in the muscles, from which they become bulkier. In the first weeks of taking creatine monohydrate can increase the total body weight by 1-3 kg – however, the effect is maintained only with regular use of the supplement.

// Creatine – in short:

• participates in energy metabolism
• reduces the use of glycogen in muscles
• increases strength indicators
• makes muscles more voluminous

// Read more:

90 What is creatine for?

First of all, creatine is needed in order to provide the body with additional energy during active physical activity.Muscles first use the energy of creatine, and only then – other nutrients. Indirectly, it helps to increase testosterone and growth hormone levels.

Creatine monohydrate also neutralizes lactic acid produced during active strength training – this reduces muscle fatigue and accelerates recovery. Muscles from creatine become more voluminous, as it increases the amount of fluid stored in the sarcoplasm.

// Read more:

How to take creatine?

Creatine can be taken in two ways – with a loading phase or in a daily regimen.When loaded in the first week, the supplement is used 4-6 times a day, 5 g each, then a single dose of 3-5 g is needed. The daily regimen involves the use of 5 g of creatine daily. Both regimens give similar results2.

The advantage of taking creatine with a load is a faster formation of reserves in the body, and the disadvantage of the course is the high amount of the supplement used, as well as possible digestive problems (nausea, indigestion, diarrhea).

// Creatine course (with loading):

• 1 week – 5 g of creatine 4-6 times a day
• 2-8 weeks – 3-5 g of creatine once a day
• 9 -12 Week – Rest

When to Drink Creatine?

Studies show that creatine supplementation with fast carbohydrates increases muscle glycogen storage by 60% (compared to creatine monohydrate alone).Essentially, the effect is achieved through the production of insulin².

In other words, creatine is absorbed best during the carbohydrate window, and it would be ideal to take a gainer (protein-carbohydrate shake) and 2-4 g of creatine immediately after training. However, remember that the supplement will take effect gradually, only for 2-3 weeks of regular use.

// Read more:

How to choose the best creatine?

There are several types of creatine available on the sports nutrition market.Creatine monohydrate in powder, monohydrate in capsules, cre-alkaline in capsules, as well as creatine with a transport system. The advantage of the capsule form is that you do not need to mix the powder with water (and the monohydrate is practically insoluble in liquid).

Kre-Alkalyn is suitable for those who experience the side effects of taking regular creatine monohydrate (bloating, swelling) – otherwise the effect of the supplement is the same, despite the higher price. The same applies to creatine with a transport system – it has no additional advantages.

Creatine monohydrate: cons and harms

Creatine monohydrate is one of the most researched sports supplements, included in the category “minimal risk of side effects”. Regular use of doses of the order of 3-5 g of creatine per day is considered safe for healthy people.

Despite this, creatine may be contraindicated in the presence of a number of chronic diseases (primarily asthma and kidney disease), as well as in food allergies and diseases of the gastrointestinal tract.

In addition, the effect on the body with long-term intake of creatine is not fully understood. There are studies showing that after 6-8 weeks of continuous use in some people, cretin monohydrate can provoke the formation of toxic compounds in the kidneys ⁶ .

***

Creatine Monohydrate is a key sports supplement for increasing strength, weight and muscle volume. To achieve a positive effect, it is recommended to take 2-4 g of creatine daily, preferably after strength training and as part of a carbohydrate-protein shake.

Scientific Sources:

1. Creatine, An Article at Examine.com, ref.
2. Creatine Content as an Index of Quality of Meat Products, ref.
3. Buford TW, et al. International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: creatine supplementation and exercise, source
4. Effect of creatine and beta-alanine supplementation on performance and endocrine responses in strength / power athletes, ref.
5. Scientific Opinion on the substantiation of health claims related to creatine and increase in physical performance during short-term, high intensity, repeated exercise bouts, ref.
6. Creatine Supplementation, ref.

Continuing topic

Date of last update – April 6, 2019

Creatine monohydrate – what is it for and how to take it

Creatine (creatine monohydrate) is a natural substance necessary for muscle function.It comes from food and is produced by the body from amino acids, then it is carried by the blood and stored in the muscles. The body of an adult male weighing 70 kg contains 100-140 grams of creatine.

Discovery of creatine

Creatine was first isolated in the first half of the 19th century, and scientific experiments were carried out at the beginning of the next century, proving that regular use of the substance increases muscle strength. At the same time, “phosphocreatine” was discovered – the combined molecules of creatine and phosphate, which, accumulating in the body, improve metabolism.The most effective form of creatine was found to be its monohydrate – the paired molecules of creatine and water.

The triumphant march of creatine in sports begins in 1992 after the publication of a study by Swedish physician Erik Haltman. He proved that taking 20 grams of creatine monohydrate daily increases muscle creatine content by 20%. A year later, the authoritative sports medicine magazine published an article on the effective use of creatine by Swedish athletes. More recent studies have shown that for the result you do not need to take 20 grams of creatine, but 5-7 grams per day is enough.But the effectiveness of creatine has always only been confirmed.

Since then, creatine monohydrate has become a popular dietary supplement among athletes around the world. Creatine is not included in the list of prohibited doping drugs, which means it can be used in any competition.

It is important to remember that creatine is not an irreplaceable supplement – it is produced in the body from amino acids (glycine, methionine, arginine), so there is no need to get the creatine norm from dietary supplements.In sports nutrition, creatine is obtained chemically in laboratories, but there is nothing to worry about. The process that takes place in the body is reproduced in the laboratory and the same creatine is obtained, no less natural.

What is creatine for?

When making any movement, energy is spent, it appears from ATP (adenosine triphosphate) – a universal source of energy in the body. ATP in cells is always approximately the same amount, it is impossible to increase it, but it is possible to quickly recover costs.This function is performed by creatine, it helps maintain the level of ATP. Thanks to creatine, strength endurance and the effectiveness of strength training are increased.

Athletes

Creatine helps to withstand short loads at maximum intensity, therefore it is necessary for sprinters and strength workers. Effective in combat and game sports with frequent acceleration: football, basketball, hockey, etc.

In endurance sports (for example, long distance running) creatine is ineffective – it does not increase overall endurance.Supplemental creatine supplementation by endurance athletes is warranted if muscle strength needs to be increased. During training camps with a lot of strength training, creatine will have a positive effect.

For vegetarians

Meat is the main source of natural creatine, and its lack is harmful to health. Therefore, vegetarians are advised to take small doses of creatine to maintain health.

In medicine

Creatine is used in medicine for the rehabilitation of patients who have been motionless for a long time.

Benefits of creatine

• Increases strength endurance

Muscles can work on creatine phosphate synthesis for 6-15 seconds. By increasing the reserves of creatine in the muscles, the duration of explosive work is increased by 20-30%.

When switching from creatine-phosphate energy supply to glycolysis, acidification begins. But here, too, creatine helps out – it delays the moment of acidification up to 1 – 1.5 minutes.

• Increases muscle mass and strength

An increase in muscle mass and strength occurs indirectly due to an increase in performance.Creatine helps you work out longer, so your muscles grow faster. At the same time, it is important not to confuse edema with a set of muscle mass. Creatine retains water and enlarges cells. The muscle becomes “inflated”.

Important! The action of creatine, like any other sports nutrition, corresponds to the load. When working in the gym for mass, it will help mass recruitment. From a skier, athlete, cyclist, swimmer, creatine will not “roll”, but will accelerate recovery and increase muscle power.

• Improves muscle definition

Taking the drug allows you to improve muscle definition. This is due to both increased stamina in training and water retention – the more creatine in the muscles, the more it contains water and looks larger.

• Serves as a lactic acid buffer

The familiar burning sensation after exercise signals that lactic acid has accumulated in the muscles.Creatine can inhibit lactic acid production and reduce post-workout recovery time.

• Protects the cardiovascular system

Helps restore the heart muscle after a heart attack, with arrhythmias and ischemia. Promotes the restoration of blood vessels. Protects the heart muscle when working in oxygen-deprived conditions.

• Protects the central nervous system

Helps the development of the brain and the entire nervous system.Improves the conductive function of the nervous system and the contractile function of muscles, including the heart.

• Normalizes blood cholesterol levels

Creatine in food table

8

8

5

68

0 , 1

Product	Creatine content in grams per 1 kg
Tresca	3
Herring	6-10
Salmon	4.5
Tuna	4
Beef	4.5
Pork
Fruits, berries, vegetables, nuts	0.02

Which creatine is better?

More profitable and better quality creatine monohydrate in powder.Powdered creatine is almost always cheaper than capsules and tablets. Moreover, it is better absorbed. It is creatine monohydrate that is the most effective supplement of . The most studied form of creatine – all the effects and recommendations are associated with it. The rest of the forms of creatine are creatine monohydrate + something else. Many brands are trying to invent their own kind of creatine and present it as a scientific breakthrough. This is nothing more than marketing. None of these forms have shown better efficacy compared to monohydrate.

We prefer well-known and proven brands:

There are other good brands, but we trust them. By the way, it is at the top of most of the world’s sports nutrition rankings.

How to take creatine powder?

Methods of taking creatine are the same for all forms: tablets, capsules, powders. The main thing is to take the right dosage.

There are two main ways to take creatine

• With loading and maintenance phases.The loading phase lasts 3-7 days. During the first phase, it is necessary to take 0.2-0.3 grams of creatine per 1 kg of body weight – about 20-25 grams per day. The maintenance regimen lasts 20-25 days. During this period, you need to take 2 grams of creatine per day.
• Normal method without loading. 3-7 grams of creatine every day during the course. It is optimal to divide the dose into the number of meals per day. For example, 1 gram 4 times a day.

We recommend using the second method and taking monohydrate daily in equal portions .This will reduce the risk of side effects and save you money. Also, some studies have information that the body absorbs no more than 5-7 grams of creatine per day per day, the rest will be excreted by the liver and kidneys.

How much creatine to take?

There are currently no studies of long-term creatine intake, so it is better to take it in courses of 1 month. After that, take a 1 month break.

When to take creatine?

No need to take creatine before training – the substance causes dehydration and disrupts the water-salt balance.It is also pointless to consume creatine in between exercises.

Creatine intake is not in any way tied to training, so take it simply before or after meals. Creatine is better absorbed with something sweet, so it’s best to drink the monohydrate with juice, protein, or a gainer. It is important that at least a glass of liquid enters the body with creatine.

Side effects of creatine

Do not take high doses of creatine! It creates an increased stress on the liver, kidneys, stomach and intestines.All side effects in healthy people appear after repeated excess of the dose of creatine.

• Fluid retention in the body

People with a tendency to edema should not take creatine, because it interferes with water-salt metabolism. Healthy people need to drink a lot of water while taking creatine to avoid dehydration – the muscles take water over themselves and the body does not have enough fluid.

• Stomach disorders

Due to imbalance in the water-salt balance, digestive disorders can occur.Excess creatine will not be absorbed in the intestines and will draw water onto itself, the result will be diarrhea. The reason is not in the quality of creatine, as many begin to think, but in its excess.

• Toxic effects on the liver and kidneys

Excess creatine remains circulating in the blood, passes through the liver and kidneys, creates a load on them. Potential harm can be caused by doses of 20 or more grams of creatine per day. For those with liver and kidney problems, it is better to stop taking additional creatine and get it only from food.With an additional intake of protein, you can help the body produce its creatine.

Where to buy quality creatine?

Creatine is the most popular sports nutrition. You can buy it at any sports nutrition store. We prefer to order creatine from the USA from iHerb.com . By the way, according to our promo code MIK0651 you will get 5% discount on your order, even if you have already ordered from this site.

Video about creatine

Video from the CMT channel of Boris Tsatsulin.

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Play sports, move and travel! If you find an error or want to discuss the article – write in the comments. We are always glad to communicate. 🙂

What is creatine for? | How to use?

Creatine, along with whey protein, has firmly established itself as the top selling sports supplement. Probably there is not a single athlete who has not heard of such a substance, and almost every exercising person has tried this supplement.Everyone has their own results from his reception – someone talks about their absence, and someone is delighted to talk about a significant increase in muscle mass, strength and endurance. So let’s see what creatine is for? What functions does it perform in the human body, how and when to take it, and what result can be expected.

The most studied form of this substance is creatine monohydrate. Studies comparing the effectiveness of different forms of creatine have not found any benefits for other forms. ¹

What is creatine for?

Participates in energy exchange

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Its first and most important function is participation in energy metabolism, more precisely, in the ATP exchange cycle. However, it has been found that in addition to restoring ATP molecules, creatine is also involved in neutralizing acids that are formed during exercise and lower the pH of the blood. A decrease in the pH of the blood is manifested by a feeling of fatigue and a decrease in muscle performance.

The substance also activates glycolysis to some extent, that is, the breakdown of glycogen. Glycogen is a long-chain complex carbohydrate found in muscles and the liver, and creatine, during physical work, promotes its breakdown into glucose, which also increases energy metabolism in the body.

It is logical to assume that by increasing the energy capacity of the body and increasing the number of active ATP molecules in the muscle, creatine has a direct effect on muscle strength. It was found that taking this supplement allows you to increase strength indicators, sometimes up to 15% of the initial data in a single effort. ²

Here it should be clarified that the effect is most indicative precisely in a one-time or low-repetition mode of exercise, since the energy supply system based on creatine works actively for several seconds, then oxidative processes associated with carbohydrates and fats are turned on. But these few seconds of increased physical strength give that necessary stress load on the muscles, which allows you to increase the overall strength potential, increase the so-called one-time maximum and, as a result, allows you to work more in a multi-repetitive mode.

Promotes muscle growth

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Another significant property of this substance is its effect on muscle mass, more precisely on its increase. When taking a supplement, there is often a rapid increase in muscle mass. There are cases when there was an increase of up to 5-6 kg in one month of admission. But here it must be remembered that all rapid weight gains are mainly due to water, since quite a lot of water rushes into the muscle cell along with creatine. ³

This is due to the fact that the creatine molecule binds to several water molecules and transports them to the muscle cell. Further, when the cell wall begins to stretch and become more permeable, it becomes easier to penetrate not only creatine and water into it, but also carbohydrates, amino acids, minerals, and so on rushing after them. Due to this, the muscles recover faster, which means they grow faster. At the same time, muscle growth does not occur as fast as filling with water, and this must be understood, since with a sharp change in training or nutrition, most of the kilograms gained during the period of creatine use begin to disappear.And do not forget about another very important factor – this is the individual sensitivity of the body to creatine. About 85-90% of people show good results when taking it, the remaining 10-15% either have no result, or it is insignificant, and some also have side effects – for example, diarrhea and flatulence.

Affects muscle relief

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Most of the people who have taken creatine, in response to this statement, will say that it “floods”, but there is no relief.However, by filling the muscles with water, they become more elastic, voluminous, and, therefore, potentially more prominent. But just potentially. When taking this supplement, do not expect outstanding relief, as it carries water along with it, and water penetrates not only into the muscles, but also into the subcutaneous tissue. It should be understood that if there is a significant layer of fat between the muscles and the skin, then this relief will not be noticeable.

Increases testosterone secretion

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Currently, there is data showing a slight increase in the secretion of testosterone, insulin-like growth factor and growth hormone when taking creatine.An example is the results obtained in the course of research on the effect of this substance on performance, power, strength and hormone levels in athletes. The results showed an increase in total blood testosterone concentration after creatine supplementation. ⁴

It is still difficult to say whether this is a direct effect or indirect, through an increased load on the body, which a person receives with an increase in strength capabilities, but an increase in the level of these hormones is noted.Again, it is difficult to determine the exact percentage of the increase, since according to the data of various studies, a wide range was obtained – from insignificant 3-5% to significant 20-25%. Of course, in combination with creatine with substances that increase the level of these hormones, this percentage in theory should be much higher, but here the difference is insignificant and does not significantly differ from the effect of the same tribulus. But there is influence on muscle growth and strength, and there is synergy here!

Prevents muscle spasms

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This substance may protect your muscles from cramps.A 2002 study by Taiwanese scientists showed a 60% reduction in the likelihood of muscle cramps when taking creatine. ⁵

How to take?

It depends on its shape. Creatine monohydrate is taken according to two schemes: according to the first scheme, which includes the saturation phase, it is taken 4 times a day, 5 g at regular intervals in sweet water or juice, and then 5-10 g in one or two doses. The second option involves taking 10 g in two doses daily, for one to two months.The main thing is to choose a powder or encapsulated version, and not ready-made solutions, because creatine monohydrate begins to break down at the first contact with water.

Since creatine draws water into muscle tissue, it is necessary to consume a large amount of water when taking it. In order to ensure the desired effect, half a liter of water should be added for every five grams of substance per day. If you choose a different form, for example, creatine ethyl ester, then in this case the loading phase of saturation of the body with creatine is not so important and necessary, and the dosages are also different.Therefore, it is imperative to adhere to the recommendations of the manufacturer or a sports nutrition expert.

Combine this supplement with carbohydrates: absorption is significantly improved in the presence of insulin as well as when consumed with proteins. ⁶

Another tip: On workout days, take creatine before or immediately after exercise. According to research conducted by Australian scientists from the University of Melbourne, this intake time allows you to build more muscle and develop more strength. ⁷

Other properties

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There is evidence that the intake of creatine slightly reduces the level of bad cholesterol and sugar in the blood, reduces fatigue, has a positive effect on the central nervous system in conditions of lack of oxygen, that is, when working with weights, and also has a slight anti-inflammatory effect.

Conclusion

Creatine has a number of beneficial properties and at the same time is one of the cheapest and safest products.Follow the recommended dosages, and you will feel all the positive properties of this wonderful supplement, you will be able to build muscle mass, increase strength and increase the overall endurance of the body.

Translator, editor and proofreader: Farida Seyidova

90,000 Who Needs Creatine?


1. Creatine for athletes

The main value of creatine appears to be related to the enhancement of short-term athletic performance, for example, in sprinting, cycling, sprinting, strength sports and, of course, in bodybuilding.Creatine is suitable for sports that require jumping, speeding up or finishing jerks. In the jerk phase, the intensity of the load is so great that during it, creatine phosphate (phosphocreatine) is also used as an energy source. Supplementing athletes with creatine can also benefit when high-intensity exercise alternates with lower-intensity exercise or rest. Team sports such as basketball, football, hockey, as well as martial arts, tennis, athletics and sprint running are also characterized by short explosive muscle contractions followed by short rest or recovery periods.

Creatine appears to help maintain a high level of rapid energy supply to the body. It also prevents the build-up of plasma ammonia, which would otherwise slow down physical activity.

2. Creatine for muscle gain

Supplementing with creatine can help an athlete train harder for a longer period of time. In turn, the increased intensity of muscle training generates faster muscle growth and strength.For example, in a study conducted among bodybuilding enthusiasts by Conrad Earnest and his collaborators at Southwestern Medical Center and Cooper’s Clinic in Dallas, Texas, athletes increased their lean body mass by an average of 1 in just one month by taking additional creatine. 6 kilograms.

According to a Swedish sports physiologist, creatine allows weightlifters to achieve an increase of 2.1 kg (or more) in muscle mass. Practical experience has shown that increasing the total pool of creatine can contribute to body weight gain.Many athletes supplementing the diet with creatine have noted an increase in water retention within muscle cells. This increases the volume of the cell. Muscle tension, called muscle tone, is improved and the muscles are better trained. A strength sports athlete weighing 75 kg can increase his weight by 2-4 kg. After stopping supplemental creatine intake, weight gain decreases again due to increased excretion of water. But due to better performance during training, some of the real gain in muscle mass remains.At the same time, in power sports, there is an improvement in the “spring” properties of muscles and their ability, therefore, to overcome large weights!

3. Creatine for Vegetarians

Since vegetarians do not consume meat, which is the main source of creatine, it is especially recommended for them to take additional creatine. And here there is a problem not only of sports achievements in bodybuilding, but also of health.

4. Creatine for weight loss

In 1994Anthony Almada and colleagues conducted research at the University of Texas for women. The main goal of the research was to demonstrate that the increase in body weight with the use of creatine occurs exclusively due to the increase in “lean” muscle mass and that the intake of creatine leads to an increase in strength. The research results were published in the journal “Acta Physiologica Scandinavica”. Over the next four years, at least twenty independent university studies were conducted, which showed that the use of creatine monohydrate improves training results, strength indicators, recovery rate, speed, and, as a result, accelerates the loss of fat reserves.

5. Creatine for maintaining physical fitness

You have already read about all the positive qualities of this supplement, and given its almost complete safety, you simply cannot refuse all the benefits that creatine can give to a healthy person in order to be in good physical shape , high vitality and intellectual activity.

Creatine: age and gender

Creatine use is associated, as a rule, with the male half of the population in the age range from 18 to 35 years.Scientific studies carried out in groups with this composition clearly confirm both the effectiveness of creatine and its safety. However, the effects of creatine on children, the elderly, and women have been much less studied. In theory, there is no compelling reason to believe that creatine’s primary mechanism of action varies by age or gender. However, minor differences may occur, and their details and reasons will be discussed below.

Creatine and children

Is creatine safe for young people is one of the questions that most often comes up on forums.Many scientists agree that it is better to postpone the use of creatine until the end of puberty. The rationale behind this is mainly that the long-term effects of creatine supplementation are still not well understood. In other words, if long-term side effects of creatine exist, then younger athletes who use it in their practice will be more susceptible to these adverse reactions than adults. Moreover, light has recently been shed on a previously unknown mechanism of creatine’s effect on cellular metabolism and anabolism, and it is not yet known whether the danger of such a mechanism for children can be completely denied.

On the other hand, should children go beyond their natural strength indicators at all? Let me remind you that creatine supplementation primarily increases the strength of muscle contraction during a short period of physical activity. Given this, some experts are concerned that excessive mechanical stress on the not yet fully formed skeleton can lead to deformations and displacements of bone elements.

Therefore, creatine supplements can only be used safely after puberty.The onset and rate of puberty are determined by the interaction of constitutional factors and environmental influences. The age range of puberty is subject to wide individual fluctuations and (taking into account the acceleration processes) fit into the period: in girls – from 8-9 to 16-17 years, in boys – from 10-11 to 19-20 years. In girls, the end of sexual development can be considered the moment at which the regular menstrual cycle begins. In boys, it is not possible to clearly fix the moment, therefore, one should focus on secondary sexual characteristics.By the time they are fully formed, you can safely start taking creatine.

Creatine and the Elderly

Muscle phosphocreatine levels decrease with age, partly explaining the decreased strength and predisposition to fatigue seen in older adults. Creatine supplementation can stop these unwanted age-related changes. This view is supported by several recent studies showing improved health and strength in people over 50 who used creatine.It is also important that the effectiveness of creatine supplementation increases with age.

Oddly enough, after 70 years, the effectiveness of creatine supplementation begins to drop dramatically. This may be due to a concomitant decrease in endogenous anabolic hormones, a selective reduction in the number of muscle fibers of the second type, which are the main consumers and implementers of the action of creatine.

Don’t worry about this, however, as it can be easily avoided through regular exercise.An active lifestyle will maintain high levels of anabolic hormones and prevent the loss of type II muscle fibers.

In addition, it was found that creatine prevents the development of certain mental and neurodegenerative diseases of the elderly, reduces the risk of coronary heart disease, and improves DNA methylation. Many scientists devote a leading role in aging to a decrease in the activity of the DNA methylation process.

Nevertheless, it must be remembered that creatine in rare cases can slightly increase blood pressure.Hypertension is a real concern in older age, so be sure to monitor your blood pressure when you start taking creatine supplements.

Creatine and girls

Several recent scientific studies have examined the effects of creatine on the female body at different levels of physical fitness. These studies showed that although creatine increases strength in women, the effect is less than in men participating in the same studies.Creatine supplementation was more effective due to higher testosterone levels.

Thus, creatine can be recommended for women, especially when losing weight. When losing weight, creatine supplementation will increase the intensity of your workouts, and, therefore, accelerate the process of breaking down fat. In addition, creatine will preserve muscle mass as much as possible, which begins to be actively lost during fasting. From here it becomes clear that creatine is useful not only for gaining muscle mass, but also for the formation of a beautiful female figure.

Buy creatine at atleticshop.ru

90,000 Creatine. Frequently asked Questions!

06.05.2016

Learn about creatine, how it works, where it comes from, how it is used and more!

What is creatine?

Creatine is a nutrient naturally present in our body. This is a combination of 3 amino acids – arginine, glycine and methionine. Creatine helps provide muscles with the energy they need to move, especially for fast, intense movements.Muscle contraction is mainly due to the energy of ATP (adenosine triphosphate).

ATP is enough to energize muscles for just 10 seconds. More ATP is needed for this system to continue working. Creatine phosphate gives up its phosphate groups to the ADP (adenosine diphosphate) molecule, thus reducing ATP. The increased supply of creatine phosphate to muscles helps increase the rate at which the body can synthesize ATP molecules.

Cleavage of creatine.

This process improves the muscle’s ability to perform work and makes energy consumption more efficient. Research shows that creatine can help increase training intensity and subsequent recovery. It is able to pass through the wall of the gastrointestinal tract (stomach) and enter the bloodstream unchanged, and then, when it enters muscle fibers, transforms into creatine phosphate (CP).

What is Creatine Phosphate?

Creatine phosphate is an organic substance present in muscle fibers, which is broken down into fractions with the help of enzymes for the subsequent synthesis of ATP.

What is adenosine triphosphate (ATP)?

ATP is an organic substance found in muscles, which, after enzymatic breakdown, provides energy for muscle contraction. Creatine increases your body’s ability to synthesize protein in muscle fibers, which helps increase muscle mass. (Creatine enhances cell hydration. With enough water, muscle cells become more permeable, allowing more amino acids to enter them.)Increased production of contractile proteins (actin and myosin) enhances the muscle’s ability to exercise. In summary, creatine helps you do more reps at your chosen weight.

This will increase the time of muscle tension and thus increase the number of muscle fibers involved, which in turn will increase the number of stimulated muscle cells. It also makes your body stop using another energy system called glycolysis, which is a byproduct of lactic acid.Lactic acid causes a burning sensation felt during exercise.

Does this mean I can lift more weights or run faster?

Indirectly, YES! Directly – POSSIBLE! Creatine doesn’t make YOU stronger or faster, YOU make YOU stronger or faster. Creatine allows you to train harder and recover faster.

If you are recovering better, you will be in a fresher, more rested state before starting the next set and as a result derive more benefit from such training than you would otherwise.Let’s take a bench press as an example: before taking creatine, our athlete, let’s call him Maximus, did 4 sets of bench press.

His goal was to train with a weight of 100 kg in 4 sets of 8 times each, but usually he did sets of 8, 8, 6 and 4 times, respectively. By the 3rd and 4th sets, his muscles were already fatigued, and as a result, he could not reach his goal. If Maximus starts taking creatine, he will most likely notice an improvement in recovery, significant enough to accomplish his intended goal of doing 4 sets of 8 reps each.

Further, if Maximus continues to take creatine, eat right, train hard in an intensive mode for 12-16 weeks, he will be able to increase the weight used for bench press to 110 kg in 4 sets of 8 times each. At the end of the day, remember – you must carry out the appropriate load! Use creatine to progress, not stand still.

What are the natural sources of creatine?

You are probably asking: “Why do I need creatine if it is already naturally present in my body?”Well, the reason is that most people only get 1 gram of creatine per day from their food.

This, together with another gram, synthesized endogenously, adds up to a relatively insignificant amount of 2 g of creatine per day. If you eat a lot of red meat, you shouldn’t expect exceptional results from a creatine supplement (400 g of beef contains about 2 g of creatine, and the same amount of herring – 4.6 g. More than 2 g of creatine is found in 400 g of most species fish).

Vegetarians will notice the maximum result in this case. Vegetarians synthesize this substance in the same way as their “carnivorous” counterparts; they rarely replenish their muscle creatine stores to capacity, as they avoid eating nutrient-rich foods such as beef.

This is why they respond very well to creatine. Creatine supplements are suitable even for strict vegetarians, as the product is synthetic and not made from animal materials.

Can creatine be toxic with prolonged use?

To tell you the truth, nobody knows this. Although our bodies only produce 1 to 2 grams per day, chances are high that your body can handle taking 5 grams or more per day. Anyone weighing more than 90 kg can take 10 g without fear for their health, provided that they drink enough fluids (to avoid cramps). Some athletes have taken up to 20-30 grams of creatine per day since it became widely available in 1990.

Is creatine safe?

Yes, creatine is a natural amino acid found in the human and animal body. The human body contains 100-115 g of creatine in the form of creatine phosphate. In studies, there were no side effects from taking creatine when the recommended doses were followed.

Are there any side effects of taking creatine?

Creatine is so effective in delivering water to the intramuscular space that it can cause muscle spasm side effects.This usually happens when too little water is consumed while taking creatine.

Muscle cramps, tension and tearing are all anecdotal stories that are not supported by scientific facts. Creatine removes water from your internal organs, so if you take large amounts of it without water, mild stomach cramps may occur.

How to avoid this? Just drink 0.5 L of water with each dose. Water means a lot to the health of an athlete, and most of us do not drink enough water.Ideally, we should drink 2-2.5 liters of water per day. This will only be beneficial and will also allow you to get the best results from taking creatine monohydrate. The additional amount of water helps to maximize the effects of this substance.

When is the best time to take creatine?

For best results on workout days, take creatine after exercise. It will not cause nausea and, moreover, will make the best possible replenishment of used up supplies. If you want to take more on your training day (i.e.e., 10 g), take half the dose before training, and the other half after.

How much creatine should I take?

The following doses are recommended:

• ? 63 kg = 5-6 grams per day to keep fit
• 63-75 kg = 6-7.5 grams per day to keep fit
• 75-90 kg = 8 g per day to keep fit
• 90-109 kg = 8-10 grams per day to keep fit
• > 109 kg = 10-12 g per day

How to take creatine

You can find many different recommendations on how to take creatine.Studies have shown that your cells absorb 60% better creatine when you combine it with a monosaccharide base like grape juice (rich in natural glucose).

Raising insulin levels will promote the entry of creatine into cells. Never take creatine with orange juice! It easily negates all the positive effects due to acidity.

This topic is currently the subject of controversy, but perhaps the best way is to take creatine monohydrate with warm water; you can add simple carbohydrates if needed.If you are prone to indigestion, cranberry juice is recommended to alleviate the discomfort.

• Creatine compounds. Theory tells us that in order to get the most out of your creatine intake, you need to consume it with simple carbohydrates. The idea is that such a measure causes a rise in insulin levels, which will cause creatine monohydrate to quickly travel to your muscles. The main ingredients of all “transport” compounds are creatine and dextrose. If we take an imaginary container with 1000 g of such a substance, then it will contain 200 g of creatine and 800 g of dextrose.Some will be represented by other substances, such as glutamine, etc., but frankly, they are not enough to significantly change the picture.
• Why Use Transport Connections? In today’s fast moving world, this is just for your convenience. The price of such drugs is higher, but any convenience, be it food or drink, is always more expensive!
• How much do they cost? Containers weighing 1 kg are sold in stores at prices ranging from $ 28 to $ 40.$ 40 is just a mockery. At the most, 1 kg is enough for a month.

Tip: You can buy these drugs if you like, but only use them on training days. On non-workout days, only take regular creatine monohydrate (MC). If the idea is to get MK to the muscles, then the best time to take it is probably either pre-workout or during workout.

Should I go through the Creatine Boost phase first?

No, this is not required.Taking as little as 3 grams of creatine per day for 28 days has the same creatine saturation effect as 6 days of booster. Thus, if you decide to take creatine, it will take you about a month to reach normal muscle creatine levels.

The use of large doses of creatine, such as in the phase of increased intake, does not lead to inhibition of the synthesis of this substance by the body itself after you stop using it.

Will I lose weight or muscle mass if I stop taking creatine?

There is no reason to expect loss of muscle mass.However, you will still lose a few pounds, as creatine saturates cells with water, as opposed to the bloating caused by sodium intake.

Does creatine cause water retention in your body?

No. Creatine absorbs water from the body to do its job. There is a difference between the increase in cell volume due to saturation with water and water retention. The increase in cell volume leads to more water in the cells, making the muscle larger and harder.Water retention, the process that makes muscles look smoother, takes place outside the muscle fibers.

How does creatine help muscles grow?

Strength training is required to achieve an increase in natural muscle strength, increased tissue growth, or improved athletic performance. Muscle growth occurs when they perform an increased load. Without resistance exercise, your muscles will remain small in volume.

Creatine promotes strength training by restoring the energy-carrying ATP molecule.Creatine also inhibits lactic acid production, allowing you to exercise for longer. As you know, lactic acid is one of the main causes of muscle fatigue associated with exercise.

Pure creatine monohydrate. Increases strength performance and accelerates muscle growth!

Pure creatine monohydrate!
Increased endurance and training efficiency!

A mixture of five types of creatine!
Stimulate muscle growth for a strong, well-defined physique!

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