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Creatine Monohydrate
The Ultimate Facts
Jeremy Keough - July 14, 2008
Disclaimer: Before starting creatine talk to
your health care professional and see if it is safe for you to
take. Do not take if you are pregnant or expect to be pregnant.
This product is not intended for people 18 years and under. The
statements in this article have not been approved by the food
and drug administration and is not meant to treat or cure any
disease or illness.
Before I get into the details of creatine, I figured I would
get into what creatine is and why people use it. Creatine is an
over-the-counter supplement you can find at any supplement
store. There are 3 different variations of creatine:
I. Creatine in pill form. Most people
prefer not to use this type of creatine for two different
reasons. one of the reasons is because most people do not want
to be swallowing pills on a daily basis, and two, people report
it does not work as efficiently as other creatine would.
II. Creatine Serum (syrup form)
Again, this is not a favored form of creatine either. Does not
work as well as creatine monohydrate, and also people prefer
not to take this because of it's taste (although you can mix it
with your protein shake)
III. Creatine Monohydrate (powder
form) This is the 'king of all creatine'. Most people into
bodybuilding love this form of creatine. Some come flavored,
flavors such as cherry, orange, etc; and you can mix with a
glass of water. A lot of them come flavor-less. Personally I
prefer the flavor-less version as I can mix it with water,
grapefruit juice, or even blend it with my protein shake.
There is also creatine that you can find in a gum form. Most
people choose not to use this method, so it is not popular at
all.
Creatine can also be found in meats and fish. It's a naturally
occurring drug synthesized through the liver, pancreas, and
kidneys. It is created in the body through two different amino
acids, Arginine, and Methionine. In order to get the full
rocomended amount of creatine (20 grams) you would need to eat
about 10 pounds of meat.
The History of Creatine
Creatine was discovered nearly two centuries ago in 1835 by a
French scientist, who goes by the name of Michel Eugéne
Chevreul. He was responsible for discovering a skeletal
component which he later named "creatine."
Nearly ten years later a scientist (name unknown) discovered
that wild animals have ten times more creatine content then
those that were raised as farm animals. This made the scientist
come to the conclusion that creatine content was found in
higher amounts from the increase in exercise levels.
It was found by researchers in the late 1920's that creatine
can found in two different forms: Free Creatine and
phosphorylated creatine. It was also discovered that ingesting
large amounts of creatine increasing the concentration of
skeletal muscle activity.
The first time creatine was used in sports as far as the public
is aware of, is in the 1992 Olympics. It was made known that
the gold medalist were using this to increase their stamina and
muscular reaction. Creatine was used again in the 1996 Olympics
and it was found that three in every four medalist have used
creatine with their nutrition plan.
1998 Muscle Tech Research and Development© produced the first
creatine-carbohydrate-alpha lipoic acid supplement. They
discovered when you combine creatine with Alpha Lipoic Acid
(ALA) it will increase the level of phosphocreatine (Pcr)
levels in your system. Pcr is the creatine found in your
skeletal muscles which is used as an energy source for muscle
contraction. It contains three different amino acids.
How to Use creatine
Creatine is usually done in two different phases, the loading
phase and maintenance phase. The loading phase is done to
increase the amount of creatine being fed into your body. The
recommended dosage by most users during the loading phase is
5grams 5 times per day for about 5-7 days. The maintenance
phase users take 5 grams of creatine once per day and make it
last 3-4 weeks.
It's suggested that you do not use any diuretics while cycling
with creatine. Creatine is used to increase water retention,
using a diuretic only voids out the creatine you're putting in.
So nothing with caffeine, or anything else that will decrease
the water retention. Another thing you should not do is mix
creatine with citrus beverages. The citrus voids out the
creatine and all you'll be doing is drinking waste product.
When using creatine try to avoid any over-the-counter or
prescribed pain killers. The pain killers increase creatinine
levels in your body which is a by-product of creatine
metabolism that can cause potential kidney damage.
It is unknown what the overdose symptoms of creatine are as
there aren't any reported. It is strongly suggested to speak to
a medical professional if you decide to load up on a lot more
than the Recommended dosage.
Creatine Benefits
Controls Lactic Acid Build up - Lactic Acid is the
acid in your body which creates the "burning" feeling in your
muscles while working out extensively. Th creatine bonds with a
hydrogen ion that will delay the build up of lactic acid,
helping you from not feeling the "burn".
Increase in muscle size - The creatine you ingest soon
will give you water retention. The water gets into your muscle
cells and help volumize the muscles. This is not a permanent
fix to bigger size as it is mostly water.
Increase in ATP production - ATP stands for adenosine
tri-phosphate. ATP is a very quick acting energy source created
by the body. When you're working out the ATP gets broken down
into two more simplified chemicals, adenosine di-phosphate
(ADP) and inorganic phosphate. When the ATP turns into ADP it
gives you a sudden burst of energy in order to lift those
weight or jog some more. This process only lasts for about
10-15 seconds. In a nutshell, creatine allows us to take the
"used' ADP and turn it back into ATP and start the whole cycle
over more quickly.
Jeremy Keough is available for any
specific question related to creatine, fitness or
bodybuilding. you may reach him via email at:
Bigjaysigtau@gmail.com or
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Source: http://www.anabolic-evolution.com
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