Creatine and Its Benefits
& Why YOU Should Be Taking It
Creatine… what exactly is it and what kind of benefits does it provide for the human body?
Now, it’s not something that’s going to pack on slabs of muscle overnight, but it’s a supplement that’s definitely worth being a staple in any stack. In fact, it’s one of the only natural supplements that are worth any actual time and money. The best part about it, though, is that it’s dirt cheap AND highly effective. In life, it usually doesn’t happen that way… but creatine is one of those rare exceptions.
There are just a few important things to keep in mind when selecting the correct creatine product and supplementing with it properly.
How It Actually Works
Creatine is something that’s called a phosphagen. Basically, it’s a compound that helps the muscles store more energy.
During intense exercise, the body rapidly utilizes and discards ATP. When this happens, muscular contractions become more difficult and everything just kind of goes downhill. This is when the body quickly metabolizes creatine into more ATP. In other words, it allows the user to store more energy which directly translates into faster recovery times and more contractile force.
Not only that, but it also causes an acute increase in intracellular water retention. This not only decreases risk of injury but it also makes the muscles appear much fuller and more ‘pumped’ throughout the day.
Okay, The Catch…
Here’s the irony, the human body is actually capable of producing its own creatine. Yes, that’s correct… so why do athletes even bother consuming this stuff?
Well, the problem here is that endogenous amounts of creatine are not significant enough to create any noticeable impact. This is exactly why athletes of all kinds choose to supplement with additional amounts in order to receive these benefits.
The catch here, is that there are several kinds and only one of them is clinically proven and backed by studies to be effective.
The Elusive Bread Winner
Most people assume that the more expensive the product, the better it’s going to work. Well, this couldn’t be any further from the truth (when it comes to creatine). All the hyped up, designer label, 50+ dollar creatine products have nothing but fillers and sugar in them.
On top of that, these companies then try and further elude the community by putting in ‘altered’ forms of creatine such as ethyl-ester, HCI, and malate. When really, there’s only one kind that an athlete need to concern themselves with.
That is creatine monohydrate.
What I Personally Recommend
Products that solely contain creatine monohydrate are all created equal. The only differences to be found are on the price tag and the overall number of servings.
Now knowing that, it’s not too difficult to find an affordable and effective creatine product. It just requires a little bit of searching, but that’s why I’m here- to make it easier. The product listed here is what I’ve been using for years with great success.
Dosing Creatine Properly
A lot of products claim that it need to be ‘loaded’ by doubling the dose (to 10 grams/day) for a week, but this is also false information. All that is needed by female and male athletes is one daily dose of 2.5 grams. It doesn’t matter when it’s taken, whether it be upon waking, pre or post workout, or even before bed. The only thing that can improve the efficacy of creatine is to consume it with a meal or a protein shake.
For recommendations on a quality protein powder, please check out my article here.