Using Creatine

I

Insert Username

0
I am 18 years old and average normal/skinny looking size. I just recently started weight training and do so every second day or so.

My diet is still quite bad but I do eat a lot and I also drink protein shakes after workouts.

I am thinking about using Creatine but have heard some bad stuff about it, such as you should be on a good diet/workout regime before using it. Is this true? What is your opinion on it?
 
From the info you provided dont use it. Not cause its bad but you 1. have a bad diet 2. dont have a routine and 3. it will save you money, just buy whey protein
 
I would put off using it for now but later on when you need that extra hump, then ya. First, clean up that diet. Everyone and I am pretty sure everyone would agree that diet is 50%+ of any workout routine. You can workout until you turn blue and will not progress too far without a proper diet.

To the positive side, you are working out and that is GREAT. You are making some progress and the workout may neglect some of the poor dieting.
 
To the OP with a strange name, I would guess the posters are saying (sort of) that you are a noob and need to get your diet in order and know a bit what you are doing.
 
Insert Username said:
I am 18 years old and average normal/skinny looking size. I just recently started weight training and do so every second day or so.

My diet is still quite bad but I do eat a lot and I also drink protein shakes after workouts.

I am thinking about using Creatine but have heard some bad stuff about it, such as you should be on a good diet/workout regime before using it. Is this true? What is your opinion on it?
Click to expand...

This is my scoop on persons wanting to take a supplement:

Never put anything in your mouth, unless you have taken the time to understand (as completely and as feasibly possible) what is you are taking, what it is suppose to do (with quality information), and its potential side effects.

There are simply VERY FEW supplements on the market today (over-the-counter), that are worth your money.

Take the "necessary" time an invest in: EDUCATION, in what you are attempting to do. The forum is a good place, but right at your finger tips are a mountain of valuable (and quality) information if you just look.

However, Creatine is worth considering as a supplement. IMO, you study (at first the two types, as there are others now on the market): Creatine Mono, and Creatine Ethyl Ester.

Also understand what Creatine's purpose is and the "potential" it may present to you in your weight training.

Dont expect a "miracle worker" but it can prove to be a minor "coworker" in your fitness plans.​


There is a biological necessity for water with Creatine Mono (CM) while with Creatine Ethyl Ester (CEE) there is not.

If you choose, Creatine Mono, you may experience some water retention, gas, and possibly boating (every one is different and you may not experience most of the other side effects other than water retention).

Some who do not study at least the side effects of Creatine Mono, can misinterpret this water retention as fat gain. However, its simply water retention.

If you stop taking Creatine Mono, the water retention will decrease. How much can also depend on your carbohydrate consumption/diet trend.

THIS IS NOT muscle tissue loss. Its just a reduction in tissue swelling from loss of water.

To PREVENT misreading ONES BODY and forbid personal heartache: IMO one should be proactive in education prior to purchase of any supplement they plan on consuming.


I have seen many posts by people new to fitness and training on the forum. Some of these posts were from those that had freshly taken Creatine Mono a week before, and were disheartened that they gained weight when deficit dieting--->or are misinformed in believing the water retention their experiencing is actual muscle growth.

The informed person would realize this is temporary water retention and not "really" tissue gain.

With Ethyl Ester, one does not have this problem--or potential confusion.

Thus the importance of education BEFORE taking any supplement.

If I were to choose MONO or CEE, I would choose CEE over MONO.

Mind you I am not saying one shouldnt take Mono, it is as good as Ethyl Ester, IMO.

Just understand their are differences in side effects and understand the potential bodily feed back when taking them. There are no known side effects with CEE--that I am presently aware of.


Various Info on Creatine Mono and CCE, and Creatine Articles:

Some "relative" info on Mono:



========================================================

Some "relative" info on Creatine Ethyl Ester (CEE):






========================================================

An "opinion" on which is better:



Additional Info on Creatine: Does it assist training, etc:


(some good info, but seems a bit "commercialized")



Interesting Link:



========================================================

Best wishes,

Chillen
 
Last edited:
Well said Chillen, so the gain with creatine is just water weight? Man this is scary and people shell out for it. Is it worthwhile taking creatine if one just needs to shed a bit of flab around the sides and tone up a bit?
 
blackbeard said:
Well said Chillen, so the gain with creatine is just water weight? Man this is scary and people shell out for it. Is it worthwhile taking creatine if one just needs to shed a bit of flab around the sides and tone up a bit?
Click to expand...

No, creatine is awesome man. I can total tell the difference when I am on and not on it. It's not mental (although I might be slightly crazy). The thing about creatine mono is that it does make the body retain a little more water and you get a little more of a pump. When I am on creatine, my rest period between sets are less and I can crank out more weights and the muscle that I am working on is more pumped.

With that said, when I do cardio for 30-60 minutes after my workout, the pump is virtually gone. The creatine does give tons of energy though. Energy in term of anarobic excercise, which is weight lifting. IT is a worth while supplement. CEE will not cause as much water retainsion, so people on that wil not feel as much of a pump but it does provide the energy. I use CEE as it does not require a loading phase. Gives me that extra ump when I feel weak on certain unmotivated days.
 
Yeah, the water retention from creatine is not the effect we are looking for (at least not most of us :p) it's the effect on the ATP-PCr energy system. Basically, ATP is the molecule used to do work that requires energy in the body (such as muscle contraction) ATP can be regenerated by phosphocreatine, so the more phosphocreatine you've got the longer this system can opperate. Creatine is stored in the muscles, and creatine draws water into the muscles with it, so your muscles can get a bit bigger, but the main effect we want is the effect on the energy system.
 
I have used creatine for many years now, and the results are undeniable. Since I have used a lot of them over the years, there is only one that I use now -- NOXPLODE. For me, this is the only one. It is easy on my stomach, helps promote vascularity, and for vane reasons, I guess, shows me that it is working when I become a little bit more vascular during my workouts. Further, it seems to help my focus and drive a little bit longer during my workouts. Maybe it's a placebo effect, I don't know, but when I cycle off it for a few weeks, I seem to lose endurance in the gym though I try very hard to duplicate my same intensity and volume of lifting, and believe it or not, cardio... I have recently started taking it even on days when I swim and run... before my swim, and before my run... they suggest taking two small scoops over 30 - 45 minutes apart. It works for me! ... and well!

The big thing, HUGE thing with any supplement, is that you need to take a break from them for 3 -4 weeks every so often. Since long term effects regarding supplements really are not certain, I don't use any supplement, including creatine, for long durations of time. Use them for a month or so, maybe two, and then take a couple weeks off from them. Then back on it, etc. That is what I try to do.

My friend likes Fast Twitch creatine over NOXPLODE. I didn't like it as much. I felt I lost endurance with Fast Twitch - but he gets good results.

So, co some searching on the internet as Chillen wrote, but for me the absolute best creatine out there is NOXPLODE, and this was confirmed by Bodybuilding.com as their number 1 creatine supplement two years in a row.

Good luck.
 
blackbeard said:
Well said Chillen, so the gain with creatine is just water weight? Man this is scary and people shell out for it. Is it worthwhile taking creatine if one just needs to shed a bit of flab around the sides and tone up a bit?
Click to expand...

Do not misunderstand my post. The water retention is normal, and a biological necessity, and this is an experience: YOU DO WANT. One should drink lots of water with Mono, to assist in the absorption process. To put this as "simple as possible", what Creatine can do is allow you to recover more quickly during set, and create a more energy producing environment (within the muscle), which "could" assist in pushing out an extra rep or two within a set (within reason).

If you do not weight train (as an example), quite simply (IMO), Creatine isn't worth consuming. One can get their ample supply through eating various meat products.

Additionally, the body's personal capacity to hold Creatine is limited, and simply popping Creatine (without knowing the gram amount) isn't wise, IMO. If you take too much, the body will simply get rid of it. If take to little, you hamper your potential. This is WHY its absolutely wise to study Creatine. Creatine is one of the most studied supplements on the market, and there is simply no shortage of "quality" studies on this supplement. For example, some persons whom take Mono (in the loose powder form), experience gas and bloating, because the powder can lump in the stomach, and the body has a difficult time processing it. Some will simply quit taking Creatine thinking it isn't working for them, when CEE could eliminate this problem.

My other point on water retention, was simply stating that some persons can tend to "muddy their own water" with taking too many supplements, and not understanding "completely" what they are taking. For example, One is dieting to lose fat tissue (and lost a few pounds, hypothetically) without consuming Creatine during this time. They decided to take it, and gain about 4 pounds. They get depressed, thinking their diet isn't working and they gained 4 of the 5 pounds back they lost. What created this undeserved depression/sadness, is simply lacking education in what they have decided to consume. They simply do not realize (keeping things equal), that it is simply water gain (I have seen this a lot on the forum), and is the reason I am mentioning it.

And, to answer your question on whether taking Creatine while weight training, and the purpose is to lose fat tissue: This is fine, and its not going to inhibit fat loss.

Normally, there is some water retention at first, but this will level off (or maintain if you will--keeping things equal on water consumption), which will allow one viewing their "correct tissue" loss in the correct perspective. In other words, a person "can" experience a weight gain (water), it will even out (if you will), and one will experience the "normal" fluctuations of weight, and fat loss (keeping things equal). One just needs to understand that this is NORMAL, to expect it, and not cause unnecessary concern on fat loss, because Creatine WILL NOT stop fat loss.


Best regards,

Chillen
 
Their is nothing wrong with creatine, it's a natural supplement...

- Is it beneficial? Yes

- Is it dumb to take without a routine? Yes

- Will it hurt me? No, but their is no point in taking more than 5mg a day. Any more is useless.

- Is the loading phase necessary? No, but their are mixed opinions about this. Some say loading is effective, but studies have been conducted that if you just take 5mg in the morning on non workout days and 5mg after your workout on workout days, in the end the result will be the same. Save your money and take it once a day.

- Will i get fat? No, creatine does not make you fat, but does make you retain water. You will gain weight. You will also possibly appear bloated. (water retention) But, you will also get stronger. You will have an extra pump in the gym and will start lifting heavier weight.

Also, after taking creatine for a month, i would suggest getting off of it for a couple weeks, then back on it again. It's not a wise idea for your body to become dependent on creatine since your body produces it's naturally. Some studies have shown that taking creatine everyday without a break will cause the body to produce less creatine, hence the reason for the break. This is not a fact, but why not play it safe?

So, if you want to take creatine go ahead. But first, get a workout routine and STICK WITH IT. No use in taking creatine if you don't know what your doing in the gym...

If you want to get bigger, eat more calories than you burn. If you want to cut, i suggest to NOT take creatine. It will only hold you back since you will be gaining weight and possibly looking bloated.
 
Oldspice said:
Their is nothing wrong with creatine, it's a natural supplement...

- Is it beneficial? Yes

- Is it dumb to take without a routine? Yes

- Will it hurt me? No, but their is no point in taking more than 5mg a day. Any more is useless.

- Is the loading phase necessary? No, but their are mixed opinions about this. Some say loading is effective, but studies have been conducted that if you just take 5mg in the morning on non workout days and 5mg after your workout on workout days, in the end the result will be the same. Save your money and take it once a day.

- Will i get fat? No, creatine does not make you fat, but does make you retain water. You will gain weight. You will also possibly appear bloated. (water retention) But, you will also get stronger. You will have an extra pump in the gym and will start lifting heavier weight.

Also, after taking creatine for a month, i would suggest getting off of it for a couple weeks, then back on it again. It's not a wise idea for your body to become dependent on creatine since your body produces it's naturally. Some studies have shown that taking creatine everyday without a break will cause the body to produce less creatine, hence the reason for the break. This is not a fact, but why not play it safe?

So, if you want to take creatine go ahead. But first, get a workout routine and STICK WITH IT. No use in taking creatine if you don't know what your doing in the gym...

If you want to get bigger, eat more calories than you burn. If you want to cut, i suggest to NOT take creatine. It will only hold you back since you will be gaining weight and possibly looking bloated.
Click to expand...

Taking too much creatine is actually bad for you. It will overwork the kidney and possibibly liver (I think). But yes take less than 5 mg a day.

I believe in Creatine cycling as well and everything else here but the health risk. It is safe if taken under 5 mg and you do not have kidney issues like dialysis.
 
How much creatine do you have to take for it to be bad for you if you are healthy? I've never heard of creatine being bad for a healthy individual, only for people with preexisting renal dysfunction, etc.
 
There is no real long term side effect with using creatine BUT according to wiki, do not take more than 20 mg per day. The byproducts of creatine and the kidney and liver working to get rid of it makes me suspicious but there is NO research about side effects of creatine except muscle cramp.
 
Oldspice said:
If you want to get bigger, eat more calories than you burn. If you want to cut, i suggest to NOT take creatine. It will only hold you back since you will be gaining weight and possibly looking bloated.
Click to expand...

For most not in the KNOW, I would tend to agree with this statement--only in the sense of the person not understanding what is happening when viewing feedback from their own bodies, but not in the sense of real world fat loss (keeping things equal).

For the few that are in the KNOW and well adversed in the role Creatine plays when weight training, and its side effects (such as with Mono, with "some" people), then there isn't a problem.

Simply put, Creatine isn't going to inhibit fat loss.

The problem lies in EDUCATION. Just simply understanding what you are consuming, and this can sometimes "muddy a persons water" and "they cannot see through the mud".

I have answered many posts on persons complaining on weight gain when taking Creatine, and its these that probably "shouldn't" take Creatine because of their lack of education, and providing too much confusion among trying to figure out their personal diet and fitness puzzle to see what is--and--what is not working for them. They simply get confused.

What should (IMO), be occurring is one's continued pursuit of understanding in the RAW and BASIC fundamentals of diet and fitness, and applying this in their life. Such as constructing an appropriate diet that fits their personal fitness goals, constructing a routine, and fitting these basic rules of engagement within their lifestyle, and leave the water as "unmuddy" as possible (this is true--for the "average" fat loss seeker).

Adhering to a "restriction" in diet can be difficult for a lot of persons seeking weight loss, without adding in Creatine into the mix among an "uneducated observer". So, yes, there may be times, I would simply not recommend Creatine--for these types of reasons. Creatine simply will not "fit" some persons.

I want to touch upon this Calories IN versus Calories OUT--equation. For most, trying to lose weight......this can be the "BASIC ROOT" of the problem (not withstanding other personal lifestyle factors).

However, with some that are more advanced (so-to-speak), and education is (say) above average, then......its MORE THAN THIS.

To prove that it CAN BE more than Calories IN versus Calories OUT, lets use me as an example. I am an average 47 year old male (with no known biological or hormonal problems). I carb-cycle on a regular basis. Additionally, I have taken calculated and educated risks when studying certain diet criteria, to see how my body responds to different manipulation of diet (and food). With this said, after completing a very low carb period, and performing glucose depleting workouts, I can consume well over 1,000 calories in excess of my Maintenance Line, and feel leaner and meaner than before. Why is this taking place? It is primarily due to the fact that we store a certain amount of calories in our bodies for glucose storage, and a large majority of the calories consumed are being used for this purpose. If it is done wisely and reasonably, one can consume over, and be just fine. During the low carb period, I can look flat, dry, and some cases "drawn-out". But, man....when the water comes back in when carbing up, the definition is greater and seems to have a peak period.

This is one reason I tried Creatine during the carb up period.

I was simply experimenting with myself. I knew before hand that when I started to carbUP that I would retain water (this is what I wanted), but wanted to see if I would retain even more when taking Creatine---at this "specific time frame of timing it", and just see what it would do in the appearance sense. I ended up gaining a "net" gain of 2 pounds of additional water--approximately, and just looked great, IMO. I swelled up like a friggen balloon (all over, and GAINED definition).

I cannot blanket everyone. However, with the right person (just say average with no known complications), one can eat in excess and not gain "tissue" weight---through the power of manipulating the almighty macro nutrients--reasonably, and timely. Therefore when you add in a calorie manipulation AND macro nutrient manipulation, it can be damn powerful.

So, sometimes......its more than just calorie IN versus calorie OUT, with the "correct person".

By the way, I still believe 1500c is too low for you. ;)


Best regards,

Chillen
 
Last edited:
tic said:
There is no real long term side effect with using creatine BUT according to wiki, do not take more than 20 mg per day. The byproducts of creatine and the kidney and liver working to get rid of it makes me suspicious but there is NO research about side effects of creatine except muscle cramp.
Click to expand...

Do you mean that the only side effect that has been found in research are muscle cramps, or do you mean that they have only done research on muscle cramps as a side effect? If it's the first one, ok, if it's the last one, then I doubt it.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top