Sally Sue: Hey Allan, I have a quick question for you.
Allan: Wassup Sally Sue, whatcha got?
Sally Sue: should I take creatine?
Allan: Abso-F*****G-lutely Sally Sue!
Dally Sue: But… why?
Allan: Well Sally Sue, I know you're not on the carnivore diet, so you're definitely not getting your suggested serving of creatine for the day, and I know you work out so let me elaborate a little if you have the time. Short answer, take it, it will make building muscle a little easier. It will make you stronger, AND, most importantly, it's one of the ONLY supplements that has been studied for decades and it has been proven to actually work.
Sally Sue: But I don't want to get too big Allan.
Allan: Sally Sue, we both know you don't have the discipline to "get too big", but anyways, let me continue explaining why you do want to take creatine.
In short, creatine works like this; your body uses ATP (adenosine triphosphate) as the main energy currency for every cell in your body. When you use your muscles,(working out) this causes your body to utilize ATP. When ATP is used, a byproduct is created and ATP is reduced to ADP (adenosine diphosphate). Supplementing with creatine, helps your body turn ADP back into ATP! Simple as that. More ATP so you can do more badass stuff!
So, how much creatine should you take? In order for creatine to do its thing, one needs to take about 3g-5g a day for the dose to be effective and for the body to sense there's increased levels of creatine in it. Many short and long term studies say creatine supplementation leads to about a 5% to 15% increase in strength gains. We do have to remember though, creatine doesn't work if you take it once, it works by bioaccumulation, which means that it needs to accumulate in your muscles in order to see and feel any effects. As for when to take it, it does not matter, because what we want to achieve is bioaccumulation and that will be achieved by taking it every day.
Let’s not fail to mention the importance that creatine supplementation plays in the methylation cycle… methyl-what?!? Yes… methylation. It’s a biological process that your body is going through constantly to support any form of genetic expression. When this process is impaired, it creates issues such as anxiety, insomnia, headaches, allergies, IBS, and muscle pain (just to name a few).
The raw materials that are needed for the methylation cycle are mainly vitamin B12, choline, and folate, all vitamins that you get from red meat. You can get an abundance of these vitamins from liver (but that’s a topic for another day). But here is the most important takeaway… 40% - 50% OF THOSE RAW MATERIALS ARE USED FOR THE ENDOGENOUS (inside the body) PRODUCTION OF CREATINE. Stay with me here… So if we give our body the creatine it needs through supplementation (i.e. 3g - 5g per day), you can free up those resources that your body is creating to be used for other purposes… such as improving your sleep, digestion, reducing anxiety, or relieving headaches. In other words, supplementing with creatine will help your body function better… which will help you feel better! And that’s always a good thing!
Oh… And, this is a big one, YOU SHOULD AND WILL gain some weight when you start supplementing with creatine because it will make you increase your intracellular water. You want this to happen because a better/more hydrated body is a happier body.
And another thing, you NEED to be drinking plenty of water every day if you are taking creatine, if not, you increase the likelihood of cramps, dehydration, kidney damage and a lot of other fun stuff, so, just hear me out on this one, try to shoot for a gallon of water a day, WITH SOME ELECTROLYTES, because it is COMPLETELY different to drink a gallon of water versus drinking a gallon of water that contains some sort of electrolytes. I have found 3 electrolyte supplements that I like, I swear by LMNT though, second would have to go to Redmonds electrolytes (they're always out of stock though) and last but not least, BPN electrolytes. All three brands have great flavors, the only thing that dings BPN though is the amount of sodium per serving (half the amount of Sodium Vs. LMNT), and ease of use would have to go to LMNT with their single serving packets as well. If you want to read a little more about the effect electrolytes have on your body, I wrote an article a couple of months back that you can go check out in my blog.
And what kind of creatine should you get? Well, there's 2 kinds, creatine monohydrate and creatine ethyl ester. While CEE is more expensive than CM, studies show they work very similarly so you're better off taking CM rather than the more expensive form CEE. So, most supplement brands use CM, so, buy the one that has 5g per serving, it should be pretty cheap for 100+ servings. Last time I bought creatine it was about $70 for 180 servings.
So, how long does it take to see/feel the results from taking creatine daily? Well, kinda depends, but about a week if you're just taking 5g a day every day. If you "load" on creatine though, which would be about 15-20g a day in 3-5g doses for about a week and then 3-5g every day after the first week, it could start working in as little as 24 hours. As for women, since they are smaller in size, 3g a day should do the trick with 15g of loading every day for the first week.
So, long story short, take the creatine! But i'm a dude… TAKE THE CREATINE! But im a chick… TAKE THE CREATINE! But I don't work out… TAKE THE CREATINE!!! Whatever you do or do not do, creatine Is ALWAYS your friend. Not only does it help for performance inside the gym, but it will help your body express its strongest and most dominant form as well! So, go ahead, start taking your creatine daily, and if youre feel like taking your life by the horns and getting to the next level, shoot me a DM so you can start getting some great training over at Sisu Athletik! Now go be a badass and DOMINATE your day!!
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