Creatine Monohydrate

Discussion in 'Health and Fitness' started by Drivenbyforce10, Apr 22, 2004.

  1. Drivenbyforce10

    Drivenbyforce10 New Member

    Does any one know anything about this mix? is it good and does it help at all?
     
  2. jroe52

    jroe52 Valued Member

    i would say there are much better alternatives. argued if there are side effects or not, its not healhty to have to much of one needed substance. creotine is found naturally in foods/the body but to take alot to see results might not be what your looking for.

    rumor has it, you have to continue its use to keep the gains or need it to lift at those levels...

    better alternatives?
    http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/sci/myomeal.html
    protein shakes/amino accids. these help build muscle, but reduce fatigue as well. after lifting your muscles need time to rest/rebuild and protein helps speed up this proscess. if you lack protein in your diet, you lack muscle reconstruction.

    nitris also works on this, using a amino acid that produces nox. if you didn't know amino acids also produce proteins. amino acids and proteins are important in keeping and building muscles. much more then temporary creotine results without protein.

    so maybe you can find something more rewarding for your body in the long run. this is my opinon... do some searches on www.bodybuilding.com
     
  3. YODA

    YODA The Woofing Admin Supporter

    Yes - it works.

    If you're old enough to be lifting heavy weights then creatine, used as directed, WORKS.
     
  4. Jax

    Jax New Member

    I use creatine in 3 months periods with a 1 month gap between, and damn does it work. muscle endurance increases straight away after loading up and your recovery time will go down aswell as building muscle faster :)
     
  5. jroe52

    jroe52 Valued Member

    but what happens if you stop buying supplements of creatine?

    at least protein is simplir because you could eat...

    1 yogurt for breakfest
    1 hard boiled eqq white and whatever else for lunch
    1 skinless chicken breast for supper

    and some other foods and get 100-200% of your protein to stay healthy or recover. add protein shake, and you can really get well rounded protein sources. what i fear is what happens if you take away the expensive creatine? do you notice a heavy backwards effect? it is much simplir to keep normal levels of protein then excessive levels of creatine.

    http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/creatine.html

    i wonder if you took creatine + protein to start, then get rid of the creatine intake after 1-2months but keep the good protein in take that it would be impossible for muscles to decrease because the protein would keep them ?
     
    Last edited: Apr 22, 2004
  6. Jax

    Jax New Member

    No i stopped for over a 6 month period around christmas and i didn't notice any bad effects. I also have prolabs protein shakes, so i get my protein and vitamins/minerals that way.

    If i ate what you listed i woudl die from starvation! i normally have about 3000 calories a day, but most of it is protein.. allot of carbs and a bit of fat.
     
  7. jroe52

    jroe52 Valued Member

    i ment as a staple for protein, from here add more foods to get more protein, minerals/vits, carbs, fat ect.
     
  8. YODA

    YODA The Woofing Admin Supporter

    Creatine isn't a replacement for protein.

    You still need good high quality protein - and what the shops sell as "real food" just doesn't deliver the easily assimilated hi-bioavailability protein that your body needs. By all means eat chicken (I prefer turkey), tuna etc - but top up your intake with a good quality whey protein isolate.
     
  9. Ad McG

    Ad McG Troll-killer Supporter

    I'm just about to start a cycle on it for about a month. I've heard too many good things about it, and very little scientific basis for the bad effects, especially in short term usage. I have a pot sat right in front of me.

    Many people actually get more muscle soreness due to the increased workload, and recovery time decreases. The idea that it speeds up recovery is scientifically unfounded. However, it simply takes careful planning and stready progression to mostly avoid this.


    If you come onto a forum with the intention of informing people with little knowledge on a subject, you should at least have some knowledge of what you are talking about which is nutrition in this case. I'm pretty sure I've seen you do this on other threads too. Leave it to someone who knows. Saying that someone should take complete protein supplements instead of creatine does not answer the question. You are simply recommending something else that helps with a different aspect of training. Creatine has a direct effect on your actual training, whereas protein supplements are a whole different ball game. If he already eats enough protein, then he won't need to take them. However, creatine supplementation would help to increase gains.

    As to this question, the answer is yes and no. If you stop taking creatine, you can keep the gains with regular training, but won't make gains as fast any more (you might see a slight loss in strength at the beginning, but it would be very small if anything). Keeping the gains wouldn't be purely down to protein supplements. You could take them whilst not training, but it would do nothing, you would pee them away. Only regular training along with proper nutrition could keep the gains.

    Drivenbyforce10 - My basic advice would be to try it out for a cycle of upto about 12 weeks, and see how you go. Make sure you drink a LOT of water, or get the trots. It's great for martial arts and strength training, as it mainly works on the anaerobic power side of things. Check out these articles:

    http://www.johnberardi.com/articles/supplementation/creatinecomb.htm
    http://www.sportsci.org/traintech/creatine/rbk.html
     
  10. Drivenbyforce10

    Drivenbyforce10 New Member

    My basic diet has been 4 servings of creatine monohydrate at least 3 normal meals a day (breakfast lunch and dinner) which all contain some sort of carbs/protein and 1 protein shake a day before work. I normally have 2 large snacks which i would probobly consider a small meal. Im just wondering if anyone else has used this creatine. Ive felt the difference after lifting without it and lifting with it. My muscles feel a lot more refreshed in the morning (maybe a result of the creatine building muscles faster). So its not like im taking JUST the creatine. I also drink the proteain shakes and have 3 healthy meals. So in doing all this i should be pretty good then right?
     
  11. YODA

    YODA The Woofing Admin Supporter

    4 servings of creatine per day? I assume this is the fisrt week? The so called "loading phase?"

    Just how much are you taking and how long have you been taking it?
     
  12. Drivenbyforce10

    Drivenbyforce10 New Member

    yes this is the first week ive been taking it......its been 4 days so i only have 1 day left of my 4 serving phase, and its 8 oz. of fluid to mix with the creatine. its not that bad at all. and after im done with my "loading week" it recommends only 1-2 servings a day.
     
  13. YODA

    YODA The Woofing Admin Supporter

    If a serving is 5g take ONE per day. If you'd rather then split it into 2 x 2.5g.

    Once you're tuned in to the effects try reducing the dose until you notice a drop in effect. I have great results with just 3g per day.

    Oh - and the loading phase is great marketting - makes you take a months worth in the first week. Brilliant :p
     
  14. Drivenbyforce10

    Drivenbyforce10 New Member

    are you saying that the 4 servings a day isnt needed?
     
  15. YODA

    YODA The Woofing Admin Supporter

    Yes - that's what I'm saying.

    You may not get that "quick fix" but long term it's irrelevant.
     
  16. Ad McG

    Ad McG Troll-killer Supporter

    Basically, if you continuously take creatine without cycle breaks, then there isn't really any need for any other loading phases after the first one. However, if you want say a short 6 week cycle, I would load 20-25g a day for 5 days. If you just take 3-5grams a day, it will take at least half of your cycle before you really notice the effects. Pointless if you ask me. The loading phase has been criticised for being a waste of money because it isn't needed etc., but most evidence points towards taking a short loading phase of a few days, 5 being the maximum, to allow you to make the most use of it during a cycle. Often, it's the doses after the loading phase that are over-estimated by the bottle instructions. You only need 2-4grams a day, not the 5+grams that is usually recommended.
     

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