I will leave out the muscle gains / endurance / strength increase part
of creatine out of this article as I believe a lot has been written on the topic already.
There are possible safety concerns
with creatine supplementation that will be discussed later.
If you use
creatine in this way your muscles will have more energy, and you'll be able to squeeze more reps out of your sets.
The majority of studies indicate that supplementation with
creatine for prolonged periods of time using large doses are safe.
The idea is that, after
using creatine for a period of time, your body «gets used to it», so the gains and results disappear.
Health experts claim that it's not necessary to load
on creatine, but it can help you get faster results.
Give it a try, see if it works for you, and if it does, hey, then stay with it, and if it doesn't, stick with
creatine powder.
Some researchers even suggest that vegetarian athletes and vegan people can greatly benefit
from creatine supplements because of their habitual dietary deficiencies.
If you are eyeing for the
best creatine in the market, read this full review to know more.
For healthy people,
creatine doesn't have any dangerous side effects.
In fact, a good
creatine level will help your body gain extra focus that will last throughout the day.
The primary way
creatine increases muscle growth is by increasing the water content in muscle cells.
You have probably heard
about creatine as it is one of the researched and most effective supplements on the market.
However, taking it as a dietary supplement can increase
muscle creatine content by up to 40 % beyond its normal levels (4, 5, 6).
As I've stated, you're going to hear different stories and experiences with
creatine serum.
My question: At what performance level do supplements
like creatine become beneficial?
There is mixed evidence for whether
creatine works in the scientific literature.
* Based on cumulative wholesale dollar sales of all products
containing creatine from 1998 to present.
This means it provide slightly
more creatine per gram, but it doesn't necessarily mean it absorbs any more effectively.
On the flip side, however, a research done by several British scientists have found that it is unstable, and does not work as well as
regular creatine.
However, there was a positive effect:
creatine helped heal the injuries of players who had limbs in a cast.
They say
creatine also stimulates the manufacture of muscle tissues.
More
creatine stored in muscles means you can keep the explosive burst of energy for longer duration.
While capsules are a lot more convenient to consume, especially when you are away from home, they do not contain the amount of pure
creatine which is ideal for effective results.
If ask for my personal opinion, I will say that
pure creatine powder is better.
Several studies have shown
when creatine supplementation is used in combination with resistance training there was an increase in lean tissue mass and muscle strength in aging adults.
After that you go over to a maintenance dose of 3 - 6
g creatine per day.
So if you take
creatine make sure it is a trusted and tested brand.
Just make sure you have the right amount of
creatine before taking it — or things will get nasty.
If creatine was harmful to you, do you think all the government agencies, sports bodies, organizations and health groups would let it still be on the market?
While everyone will benefit from
including creatine supplementation in their diet, it is particularly crucial for vegetarians and vegans in my opinion.
In fact, a large amount of research shows
creatine improves muscle strength (7, 8, 9).
This means that the performance - enhancing effect of
creatine intake is recognized and supported in certain situations.
If you've added
creatine into your diet after starting a fat loss phase, you can expect the scale to go up.
Here's the complicated bit: There's a lot of contention about how
much creatine your body actually needs and when you need to consume it.
For those of you who have concerns about potential adverse effects of
adding creatine to your diet, its pretty simple but I'll spend a few sentences covering this none the less.
You can
find creatine in protein - rich foods like meat and fish.