The Mystery of the Creatine Supplement

Today it seems that everyone is into fitness and trying to live a healthier lifestyle. No matter what your level of fitness is, whether you are an body builder, fitness expert or just beginning, I'm pretty sure you know about or at least heard of methyl guanidine-acetic acid. Ok, maybe if your a chemist you know that methyl guanidine-acetic acid is the scientific name for creatine. A nutrient, made up from a combination of amino acids. It's a naturally produced metabolite in the body. A natural substance found in our muscle cells and around the skeletal muscle. Several food sources such as red meat and fish actually contain creatine. However, the amount your body produces and what comes in your diet doesn't even come close to supplying you with enough creatine to be advantageous and promote the most benefit. Since you would have to eat around 15 steaks to acquire enough of it to get the full affects, it's a lot easier to just take it as a dietary supplement.

It can come in several different forms. The four most popular forms of creatine are the Monohydrate (basically creatine and water), Phosphate (creatine bonds with phosphate groups), Citrate (dissolves better than monhydrate and more water soluble), and Esters (contains methanol or ethanol). When taken as an athletic supplement, research has shown that creatine monohydrate increases the body's ability to produce energy faster, by increasing the amount of ATP (adenosine triphosphate) giving you more power/strength (which is dependant on ATP) and enhancing athletic performance in activities(sports, weight training, etc) requiring periods of high intensity. It adds volume, giving you a thicker/fuller muscle, increases body mass and strength, and aids in faster post work out muscle recovery. When you first begin taking the supplement, you will notice, that you will almost immediately gain weight. Although it allows you to train longer and harder, more often, these gains predominantly consists of mostly water weight. It draws water into your muscle cells(giving volume), augmenting protein synthesis and allowing muscle fibers to grow. The creatine that comes in fruit flavored drinks contain lots of sugars as well, so you will not only gain water weight, fat will come along with that as well. Creatine can also come in a liquid form. In theory because it's already a liquid you would think it works because it will hit your blood stream immediately, however creatine is down graded the instant it's mixed with water. The creatine found in liquid form is actually creatine waste. Take that into consideration when taking or loading up on it, if you mix it and do not drink it immediately, it will lose it's effectiveness.

Creatine is one of the most controversial and researched supplements on the market. Because of its capabilities to improve your physical appearance and strength, it has unjustly become associated with steroids or PED's (performance enhancing drugs). Creatine is not and does not affect the body hormonally like PED's. Although studies have shown that consuming any form of the supplement has not caused any serious adverse effects, It has been linked to many side affects such as dehydration, muscle cramps, issues with the kidneys, diarrhea, gas, bloating and heart problems. Creatine may also affect the body's insulin levels. If you have some type of health condition associated with high or low blood sugar, you should proceed with caution after consulting your physician. I personally having been using the supplement for many years and have never experienced any kind of these negative effects. Of course when putting anything into your body, you need to understand what it is, how it works and use it in moderation. Too much of anything is bad for you, regardless of how good it's supposed to be for you. Because it pulls water into your muscle cells, this of course makes it necessary to drink more water or you may dehydrate yourself or develop cramps (usually develops from lack of water or muscle fatigue).That's for any supplement containing any type of fat burning properties. You should be drinking at least eight glasses of water on a daily basis without taking any kind of performance enhancing aid/sports supplement. Take that into consideration when adding these types of supplements into your diet. Depending on the person as to how much, the water intake should definitely be increased. If you are already suffering from some sort of pre-existing health conditions, taking any kind of supplement without first consulting your health care professional could be detrimental to your health and may perpetuate your condition or have an adverse effect on your body. Regardless of how good you feel, if you have underlying conditions, ask your doctor first.

The most important thing that you have to understand is that everyone is different. I can not stress that enough. Genetics play a major roll in everything you do to your body. Some peoples receptors will respond quickly with very positive results and some people won't. A vegetarian or anyone who doesn't eat a lot of red meat will more than likely respond better than a person who is constantly eating meat. So If you do not see increased training volume within 2-3 weeks of taking creatine, then it's a safe assessment that your body is not responding well to that particular type/form of creatine and probably wont do you any justice to keep taking it. It would probably be more beneficial to try a different type. But If you are one of the blessed ones with great genetics and your body reacts with the desired effects of any type/form of creatine, simply just taking creatine is not going to turn you into the Incredible Hulk. Its not a magic pill or powder. You still have to roll up your sleeves and put in some hard work.