What Does Creatine Do, And How Does It Work?

Creatine is one of the most researched sports supplements on the market. It gives you the majority of energy for short-term, maximum exercise such as sprinting a 100m or lifting weights. But, it is also one of the most misunderstood sports supplements. Some claim this type of supplementation is dangerous and unsafe, despite its widespread use.

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What Is Creatine?

Creatine is naturally produced in your body from amino acids - the building blocks of protein. It's also found in protein-rich foods, mainly meat and fish. But, you would need to eat a lot of meat and fish to obtain the right amount. This makes supplementing inexpensive and efficient way to increase intake.

How Does It Work?

Creatine helps to regenerate a molecule called adenosine triphosphate (ATP), your body's main source of energy. When creatine stores in your muscles are depleted, the production of ATP comes to a screeching halt and your energy is dramatically decreased. Supplementing with it increases the available fuel to power ATP, which can increase muscle strength, size and power output.

Who Can Benefit?

Supplementing with creatine is not just for bodybuilders; several types of athletes can benefit like sprinters, swimmers, and soccer players. Creatine supplementation also can help increase your strength, power, and muscle size making it useful for sports like football and hockey. But, this type of supplementation isn't effective for exercise and events lasting more than 90 seconds, for example, long-distance running.

How To Take Creatine

Creatine is supplemented through one of two ways. The first way is called 'loading.' The loading phase requires taking 20g in split doses for 5-7 days. Following the loading phase, 3-5 g of it is supplemented daily. This is called the maintenance phase. The idea of loading is to saturate the muscle cells resulting in faster results. Supplementing with 3-5 g, without the loading phase, is the other method. Choosing this route will get you the same results as loading, but it will take you longer to experience the full benefits of creatine.

Regardless of the method you choose, cycling is not needed. Cycling creatine means going “on” and “off” of it every couple of weeks. People who recommend cycling this supplement claim that it will maximize the it's effects and is needed to give your body a break. But the truth is, creatine cycling will not give you any added benefit over not cycling creatine.

When To Take Creatine

There are two general recommendations when it comes to supplementing with creatine. The first is to take it before your workout because it increases your strength. The second is to take it after your workout because it absorbs better.

According to one study, taking it after your workout is best. For the study, 19 male recreational bodybuilders were randomly divided into two groups. One group took 5 g of creatine before their workout while the other group took 5 g after their workout. For 4 weeks, the men trained 5 days a week and kept their protein intake similar.

At the end of the 4 weeks, researchers found that those who took it after their workout gained more muscle mass than those taking creatine before their workout. However, the benefit was insignificant. Meaning, the advantage of taking it after exercise could have occurred by chance.

The timing doesn’t seem to matter. This is because it has no immediate effects on strength or muscle size. Only when your body is fully saturated with creatine will you benefit from it. Therefore, take this supplement when it’s convenient for you, whether it’s in the morning, before your workout, after your workout, or at night.

Safety

Creatine is one of the safest sports supplements there is, yet many myths about it linger. The main concern is that it damages your kidneys. But there is zero data to support this notion. In fact, there are several studies showing that it has absolutely no effect on kidney function in healthy people. One study found no changes in kidney function between collegiate football players who supplemented and those who didn't for nearly two years. What's more is that another study showed no changes in kidney function for individuals consuming 10 g - twice the recommended daily dose - of it for 12 weeks.

Others claim that this type of supplementation can cause dehydration, injury and stomach cramps, however, to date there have been no studies showing that supplementation causes any of these issues.

The Best Creatine Supplements

If you're wondering what supplements to take then why not try one of the following:

✓Creatine Monohydrate - this is the most popularly used form, and it should definitely be part of your supplement stack.

✓ Creapure® - this is an extremely pure form of Creatine Monohydrate

✓ Creatine Ethyl Ester HCL - this is a highly available form, which has been attached to an ester salt to increase the uptake into the muscle and reduces water retention in comparison to creatine monohydrate.

Take Home Message

Creatine Monohydrate is perhaps the most inexpensive, safest, and beneficial dietary supplement there is. It simply works!