Creatine as a Food Supplement

A lot of substances that are not banned and are not considered doping are not even very beneficial, on the contrary, banned substances in the category of medications and hormones often pose a health risk to the users. Large variety of food supplements that are used in the sports area are not really proved by the scientific research to be useful. But there are food supplement that both do not pose any health risks and they are demonstrably effective - and one of them is creatine!

One has to wonder that only 150 years after creatine was discovered in meat, it happened to be a topic for sportsmen. In the beginning of the 90's, specifically after the Olympics in Barcelona in 1992, the demand for creatine sharply increased and became one of the best-selling food supplements. Based on conclusive arguments that it improves sports performance, is not harmful to human's health with any dosage, and - the most important thing in sports - its use is not regulated.

To maximize the benefits of creatine as a food supplement, we need to follow some rules:

1. one dose should not exceed 5 grams
2. after mixing creatine with water it is necessary to consume it within a few minutes (because it gradually turns into an ineffective creatinine)
3. it is important to use creatine with sugars, ideally with high glycemic index (the higher GI, the higher the level of insulin, because blood sugar spikes rapidly)

How does creatine get to the muscle?

The third point needs more of our attention. Creatine is literally "pushed into" the muscle cell by a hormone insulin. And as we know, secretion of insulin is a reaction to hyperglycemia (increase of blood sugar), and the role of insulin is to restore back to normal condition by transferring glucose from blood to muscle cell - the synthesis of glycogen. At the same time, creatine is transported to muscle cell, too. The "trigger" for insulin is mainly simple sugars (glucose), but it is also possible to use the starch maltodextrin. It is recommended to mix it in a 100% fruit juice, but naturally the ideal combination is with gainers (Regener, Mass Core). The recommended carbohydrate amount is several tens of grams (40 to 100 g).

Dosage of creatine

The perception of the ideal dose of creatine has changed and evolved over time. When creatine started to be used, the recommendation consisted of two phases - loading and maintenance. Before we get to explain this method, it is important to mention that it has been valid till today. Especially when we need to very quickly (in a matter of a few days) to saturate our muscle cells with creatine to the maximum.

The loading phase takes on average 5 to 7 days and based on professional studies the daily creatine dosage is 20 to 30 grams a day. This amount needs to be split into minimum 4 doses, ideally in the morning, before workout, after workout, and in the evening. However, there can be more doses, since some professionals suggest to split the dose and amount based on the body weight - 0,3 g creatine to 1 kg body weight (for a 80 kg bodybuilder this means approx. 24 g in total).

The maintenance phase, that follows directly after the loading phase, lasts several weeks and suffices with a fraction of creatine doses - approx. 3 to 5 grams a day (sometimes explained as one tenth of the amount from the loading phase). After end of supplementation of creatine, a break for 3 to 5 weeks should be implemented.

Creatine cycles

Nowadays, recommended dosage of creatine is in between 3 and 5 grams per day for 6 to 8 weeks, always after workout with carbohydrates as explained above. This is based on studies that have proved that maximum saturation of creatine remains the same after 4 weeks as it would be after the loading phase. This means that you can save up to 100 g of creatine during loading phase and mainly you prevent high loss of creatine in the form of creatinine and therefore the overload of kidneys. Again, it is necessary to discontinue the supplementation by minimum one month. Chronic dosage of creatine would lead to lower and lower effect, till the use of creatine would be completely wasted. In the sports terminology we call these "creatine cycles".

What are the results of creatine supplementation:

1. Physical performance improvement
   This is valid mainly for interval and strength trainings, and for sports with intermittent periods of high-intensity exercise. This is given not only by a higher level of creatine phosphate in muscles, but also the speed of resynthesis of creatine phosphate after physical performance is increased - and therefore the speed of recovery.

2. Body weight and muscle strength increase The increase of body weight and strength by several kg is mainly caused by the increased volume of water in muscle cells, but also the stimulation of protein synthesis is expected, and therefore increase of muscle mass. After stopping the supplementation, the body weight decreases partially by losing water, but the effect of increased muscle mass thanks to the intensifed and enhanced workout remains! The experiments proved also the strength improvement, that are naturally linked to the quality and intensity of the workout.

3. Positive effect on human health This is the least known and promoted creatine effect. Regular supplementation of creatine might decrease total levels of cholesterol and increase the ratio of HDL (the "good one") cholesterol. It has the same positive effects on decreasing the levels of triglycerides (fats) in blood. Creatine improves brain functions, especially memory. Despite many rumours, no harm to human health by creatine use has ever been proved.

What about combining creatine with other food supplements?

Nothing really stands in the way. As already mentioned before, the ideal combination is with gainers, or also protein concentrates (for example 100% Whey Protein, Mass Core), and mainly BCAAs (BCAA 2:1:1 Caps). It is also suitable to be used with nitrogen oxide producers (Arginine or Arginine Max Caps). Basically, no combination is regulated and many of them come up with a synergistic effect.

We have perhaps gathered enough sufficient reasons, why use of creatine monohydrate is for improvement of your performance in body-building, and also in other sports, vital. But there is one more we have saved for the end: the ratio of price to effectiveness is absolutely unbeatable compared to other supplements - you get more bang for the buck, and that is exactly what you can expect from creatine.

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