What is it?
Creatine is a substance that is found naturally in muscle cells. It helps your muscles produce energy during heavy lifting or high-intensity exercise. About 95% of your body’s creatine is stored in muscles in the form of phosphocreatine. The other 5% is found in your brain, kidneys and liver. When you supplement you increase your stores of phosphocreatine. This is a form of stored energy in the cells as it helps your body produce more of a high-energy molecule called ATP. ATP is often called the body’s energy currency. When you have more ATP your body can perform better during exercise.
Numerous Scientific studies show creatine supplementation causes:
Increased muscle mass
Increased strength
Improved exercise performance
Reduced protein breakdown
A number of benefits shown in neurological diseases
How much Creatine do we need?
Many people who supplement start with a loading phase, which leads to a rapid increase in muscle stores of creatine.
To load with creatine take 20 grams per day for 5–7 days. This should be split into four 5 gram servings throughout the day.
Following the loading period take 3–5 grams per day to maintain high levels within your muscles. As there is no benefit to cycling creatine you can stick with this dosage for a sustained period of time.
If you choose not to do the loading phase, you can simply consume 3–5 grams per day. However it may take 3–4 weeks to maximize your stores.
Since creatine pulls water into your muscle cells, it is advisable to take it with a glass of water and stay well hydrated throughout the day. This may lead to an increase in body weight due to this increased water weight.
Verdict:
At the end of the day Creatine is one of the cheapest most effective and safest supplements you can take. It supports quality of life in older adults as well as brain health and exercise performance. Vegetarians who may not obtain enough creatine from their diet and older adults may find supplementing particularly useful. Creatine monohydrate is likely the best form. I would also add that weight lifters or explosive athletes may benefit most from supplementation due to its shown performance enhancements for muscle strength and power.
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