Creatine is a nonessential dietary compound that is found naturally in foods like meat and fish. It is also produced in small quantities (~1g) within the body (liver) and stored in our muscle cells, where it's used to power high intensity muscle contractions. With the limited supply available, creatine supplementation has been shown to be safe and effective and remains one of the world's most popular sports nutrition nutrients.
A perfect supplement for many training attributes’ – whether you want to increase your strength, power, muscular effort/recovery, time to exhaustion, lifting volume and performance; all in relation to short-term, high intensity, repeated exercise bouts. Although creatine is viewed more as a supplement for the strength trainer, its use offers some training benefits to an endurance exerciser, for example acute dosage (3g of creatine per day) of less than 4 weeks during a speed training phase.
How should creatine be taken if I'm a beginner or new to creatine?
If you're new to creatine, your supplementation plan needs to be individualised depending on your desired outcome. Going back to the research conducted in this area supplementation durations range from 5 days – 6 months, all of which have shown positive changes,with a strength related training and supplementation cycle typically lasting between 6-12 weeks. For this two supplementation regimes are used:
1. Loading and maintenance: used for a rapid creatine uptake in the short term, helpful when gains are required in a short supplementation cycle, for example 4 weeks.
Load Phase* – Take 5g, 4 times throughout the day, for the first 5 days.
Maintenance – after the loading phase, take just 5g for the remaining supplement cycle if muscle size and strength is your goal. If you are just looking for strength/power/performance gains without an increase in size take a maintenance dose of just 1 x 5g per day.
2. Maintenance – this method is often favoured for a longer term supplementation plan, for example 1-6 months. For this method supplement with 3-10g creatine daily for the total period selecting higher doses if muscle gain is also required (6-10g) and lower doses if you are just looking for performance gains (3-5g).
How quickly does creatine work and what results should I expect?
If you're using a loading dose then you will start feeling the benefits within 5-7 days, for example an increase in muscle mass. As supplementation continues the other previously mentioned attributes will be achieved.
*In the first 3 days a reduction in urine production is a normal occurrence of this type of plan.
Some Creatine tips.
Some creatine comes in pure form, and other powders are mixed with sugar so you can create a sweet energy drink.
Avoid liquid creatine. Creatine begins degrading the moment it is mixed with water, so packaged liquid creatine is actually creatine waste. Manufacturers of such products are pulling a fast one on consumers.
Creatine has been tested in multiple studies and is considered safe to use, but since it is a supplement, it has not been formally approved by the FDA. Check with your doctor if you're taking medication or have a condition that might be affected by taking a supplement.
Some people like to take creatine right before a workout, but its effects aren't instant, so it doesn't actually provide an immediate energy boost for weight-lifting and other exercises.
If you want to take creatine on the go, bring a separate water bottle and store the creatine dry. If you premix it, the creatine will degrade.
Basing your dosage on Body Weight.
- Calculate your dosage for the first week. During the initial stage, your dose should be .35 g of creatine per kg of body weight. Divide the total number per day into easily consumable amounts.
- For example, if you weigh 68 kg (150 pounds), multiply that by .35 to find that your daily dosage should be 23.8 g. That means you should take just under 6 grams of creatine per dose, 4 times per day.
- Calculate your dosage for the second week. During the second week, taper off to a dosage of .15 g of creatine per kg of body weight. This time, divide the total dose into 2 or 3 easily consumable amounts.
- If you weigh 68 kg (150 pounds), multiply that by .15 to find that your your daily dosage should be 10.2 grams of creatine per day. You can divide that into two doses of 5.1 grams, or divide it into three doses of 3.4 grams. Choose the option that's most convenient for your lifestyle.
#BeastMode #iBenchOnline
