Creatine, show me the way!

[vinh]

Hey i just brought creatine.... this is my first time.

$115 Cell tech creatine 20servings. <-- the guy told me that one is really good becauseit gos to the body stright away

$25 Creatine monohydrate

ok tell me the best way to take these and give me some mad ass effects

[peaker]

vinh are we talking aussies dollars here ? or you already converted our dollar to the US dollar.

I got myself some of the 100% monohydrate and mix it with glucose when i take it, 15 grams of glucose for every 5 grams of creatine. Maybe others will disagree but i think its a good way to go.

Dont waste your money on the celltech unless you have money to GNC for a container of sugar for 100+ bucks!

peaker

[bex]

.


Creatine is a hot topic today for almost any weightlifter. The benefits of creatine usage for some lifters are so fantastic, that it becomes somewhat mystical for newcomers. The purpose of this document is to explain the working of creatine in a non-technical way, to be a guideline for its use and to be a reference point. Lately, the 'gurus' are becoming increasingly annoyed by the repeated questions about creatine. As a result, incomplete or incorrect information is passed on. There already is a section on creatine in the supplement faq, compiled by Paul L. Moses, but this section is rather brief.




3. Introduction - what is creatine / what can it do for me?


As you probably know creatine (usually in the form of creatine monohydrate) is a supplement taken to enhance anaerobic performance. Creatine Monohydrate is a white, odorless crystalline powder, clear and colorless in solution.

From the Training-Nutrition FAQ:

[Creatine monohydrate is a popular new supplement that serves as an
energy reserve in muscle cells. Muscular contraction is powered by
the breakdown of ATP (adenosine triphosphate) to ADP (adenosine
diphosphate). When all the ATP is broken down, creatine phosphate in
the muscle donates a phosphate group to ADP, and further energy
reactions can occur. Creatine monohydrate is a precursor to creatine
phosphate. By supplementing with CM, CP levels in muscle apparently
are maximized, and more muscular work can occur, since there are
greater energy reserves to use.

Creatine also helps with resistance training by bloating the muscle
with creatine rich fluid. This allows for greater leverage and
requires the muscle to move less and lift more weight. While this may
seem kind of trivial, some researchers today think that one of the
stimulating factors of steroid use is water retention. Anabolic
steroids may actually work in part because of cellular fluid retention
in the muscles. The swelling action and the related stretching of the
cells may in and of itself cause a reaction which stimulates the
muscle cells to grow. So in some respects creatine might be as good
as steroids.

The good: Many people report increasing their lean muscle mass
between 6 and 10 lbs while using CM, though gains seem to stop after
that point. CM is nontoxic, even in large amounts.

The bad: Some people report symptoms including headaches, clenched
teeth, and the sound of blood rushing in their ears while using CM.
Creatines effects on blood pressure are an open question. Since it
has the effect of fluid retention in muscle, it might increase blood
pressure in the same way high sodium levels do, but this has not been
established or refuted. Also, it is expensive.]


In addition to this, one other symptom reported is stomach cramps. Reducing the intake of creatine lead to a reduction in severity of the cramps.

Creatine seems to be well studied in scientific research. (See Section 6 - Further Reading). Scientific evidence supporting creatine is there, but while some very good results have been reported, like a 20 lbs body weight gain in 6 weeks and strength increases, others have reported no significant gains whatsoever while taking the supplement. Like all supplements, supplementing creatine is useless if your body already has enough of it. Further supplementation is then not needed and just a waste of money. If however, you do not have the optimal levels of creatine in your muscle cells, then supplementation is a good idea which can really enhance your training. Some people get minimal or no effect from creatine. This is probably due to their already high creatine levels due to dietary intake or perhaps the efficiency/inefficiency that they produce ATP. If you take creatine monohydrate and don't notice any results in about 2 weeks it's a good bet that you're one of these people. Once you plateau, your muscle cells will probably be saturated with creatine and since the body loses about 1-2% creatine a day you should be able to get away with cycling on and off creatine to lengthen your results. Once you stop creatine supplementation and your body clears it 100% (about 2 month process) you'll probably be back at your old strength and muscle mass levels. Of course the gains in mental ability (I've done this beore I can do it now) and tendon/skeletal strength increase resulting from these heavier workouts will remain.

A word of warning for those that need to undergo a medical test while on creatine; Greg Cox (cox@comm.mot.com) reported:

[I recently went through a month-long hassle with a life
insurance company over blood test results which showed
elevated creatinine levels. This is a known side-effect
of creatine supplementation as described in the Training
-Nutrition FAQ:

"Creatine creates a byproduct called creatinine, which may
show up on medical tests. Creatinine is usually a sign of
kidney problems, but it is harmless as a side effect of
creatine supplements. In other words, this is a false positive
result."

While we (those who train and use supplements in pursuit of
muscular and performance gains) may be confident that this
is a false positive result, we are a small minority of the
population, and the insurance company and my personal
physicial were not confident that this was a false
positive. I ended up consulting with my personal physician
and taking another blood test in order to clear this up.
My advice from the experience is:

* Always make certain that you are drinking plenty of
water. This is especially important to help the
kidneys deal with the abundance of nutrients that
bodybuilders seek to keep in their blood.

* Consider dropping supplements such as creatine
monohydrate about a week before taking a blood test
for insurance or a physical. This is what I did
for my second blood test (along with increased water
intake), and the second test was "normal". Dropping
supplements briefly before a blood test may save
some hassle, is easier than trying to educate those
conducting the blood test about supplements, and should
not have a large impact on training progress.]



Creatine Monohydrate has the formula C4H9N3O2-H20. Creatine is the guanidine- derived, phosphorylated compound which maintains cellular ATP homeostasis in the higher animals.


Pharmacology

Creatine occurs in highest concentrations in skeletal muscle, followed by cardiac and smooth muscle, brain, kidney and spermatozoa. Strenuous exercise rapidly uses up cellular reserves of creatine phosphate to replace ATP, the only chemical that powers muscle contraction and relaxation. Creatine Monohydrate is a very bioavailable source of creatine, which can readily combine with normally abundant phosphorus stores to replace creatine phosphate. Six subjects performing 5 sets of 30 maximal contraction with one-minute recovery periods had greater peak muscle torque production in the final 10 contractions of set 1, throughout sets 2 to 4, and during the middle ten contractions of set 5 after creatine monohydrate supplementation for 5 days, compared to baseline performance and to six subjects taking placebos. They also had lower plasma ammonia accumulation, supporting the hypothesis of improved ATP replacement. No difference was seen in blood loctate levels. The body shows an adaptive response, building creatine stores in the muscles more rapidly when subjected to at least an hour a day of intense exercise along with frequent creatine-loading. "One hour of hard exercise per day using one leg augmented the increase in total creatine content of the exercised leg, but had no effect on the collateral.

Toxicity: None]




5. Proper usage


Of course, first read the label and any additional leaflets that come with your brand of creatine monohydrate.

Usually, the use of creatine is split into a loading and maintenance phase. During the loading phase, large quantities of creatine monohydrate are taken. Because the creatine only slowly disappears from the body, a maintenance phase in which less creatine is taken will still provide the body with adequate levels of creatine. For suggested duration of the phases and quantities see below.

It is recommended to drink lots of water while on the creatine.

[From the Training-Nutrition faq: Powder form is preferred over capsules.
Most users recommend a loading phase when first starting with CM. For 5 to 7 days, take a teaspoon (approx. 5 grams) 5 times per day. After that go on maintenance at 5 grams twice per day.]

Note: it is discouraged to use caffeine while on creatine; while creatine makes your muscles hold water, caffeine will do the opposite, thereby reducing the effects of the creatine intake.

Don't mix creatine with citrus juice. Orange, grapefruit, cranberry, in fact, most fruit juices have been most recently found to neutralize the activity of creatine monohydrate. The reason is the waste product creatinine develops. A lot of you put creatine on your tongue and drink it down with grapefruit juice. If you have taken creatine this way in the past, stop it now! You are not getting creatine, you're getting waste product.

Do mix creatine monohydrate with warm water--in a glass. This is the only way to ensure you're getting the full benefits of creatine in its dry form. Creatine does not have to dissolve to be effective.

Do be sure to drink a full eight ounce glass of good water 8 times a day. Creatine pulls water from other parts of the body to perform its work in cell volumization of the muscle. This is what makes the muscle larger and firmer. Replenish your H2O!




Recommendations:


Bodyweight Phase 1 (loading) Phase 2 (maintenance)
days 1-4 days 5 and on
65-74kg
143-163lbs 10g per day
(2x5g per day) 3g per day
75-84kg
165-185lbs 15g per day
(2x7.5g per day) 4g per day
85-95kg
187-209lbs 20g per day
(2x10 per day) 5g per day

[Billy Boy]

Creatine is something you need to play around with to find out what suits you.I personally do not load and maintain a dose of 5g a day and I never really cycle saying that though I have not used it for around 3 mths now and have not noticed any difference.

It is a good product just makesure you don,t get ripped off

[gorilla]

personally, i think just about ALL cell tech product, are a scam. Just stick with the basic good old CREATINE 100%. 10-15 g/day. You should be ok. But thats just my opinion.



gorilla

[KING P I G]

Creatine....i have used it in the past and really didnt get any resulsts, none that were noticable anyway....but maybe it helped with my recovery i dont know. All of these creatine maricle stories are a load of bs i think.

[peaker]

hey king pig, we have another aussie here, not many of us here welcome aboard

peaker

[Triple Plates]

Originally posted by KING P I G
Creatine....i have used it in the past and really didnt get any resulsts, none that were noticable anyway....but maybe it helped with my recovery i dont know. All of these creatine maricle stories are a load of bs i think.

Maybe you didn't use it or work out properly... cuz the first time i used was when i didnt know much about training/diet and i didnt gain much..... but now that i know how to train etc, creatine has helped me add weight and strength.

[vinh]

What happens if i take too much creatine? i suppose to have 20g a day loading up on my 3rd day and i forgot if i had4 or 3... ??


peaker and kingpig where in australia are yous from?

[Billy Boy]

It won,t do you any harm if you exceed 20 g by taking 25g Just don,t take a kilo at a time !! Personally I think loading is bullshit and never bother but I have done in the past and noticed nothing different.

[peaker]

vinh, i'm in melbourne

peaker

[TheGame826]

do what they said, just get some regular 100 percent pure creatine, and save your money. i wouldnt ever buy cell tech again

[vinh]

damit i went out early and slept over a friends house and just came back at 6pm now

thats 1 day and today without creatine... do i need to restart my load again? i was just on my 3rd day too

[bex]

No you dont have to reload just carrie on as normal....

[Billy Boy]

Bex is right carry on as normal it does,nt matter just take your daily dose