Read something showing it’s well researched enough to actually be useful.
I used it for a few months years ago, any experiences / knowledge here? My brief memory was you had to cycle it on / off to some extent so years ago it didn’t seem that useful.
I’m not looking to gain muscle now, wouldn’t mind losing a few lbs of fat if can keep muscle. My diet is bad so realistically I should focus on that first.
Yes. Have used it many times over the years.
Loading up 20g/day for 5 days vs 5g/day for 30 days makes little difference. You still reach the same saturation point.
Its pretty cheap now (used to be much more expensive when it first came out) so you can find the micronised version easily enough (mixes better vs the normal creatine).
Its not really a supplement that you will notice working right away. Keep in mind that the point of creatine monohydrate is to keep the conversion of Adenosine di-phosphate (ADP) to Adenosine tri-phospate (ATP) inside your muscle cells as high as possible given normal physiological constraints (in your cells a phosphate molecule is added to ADP to make ATP
(creatine works via that process). ATP is basically the workhorse of your cells when it comes to heavy duty anaerobic (weightlifting) exercise.
And that is basically how creatine helps you over time. It helps you at the margins to keep adding weight to your lifts slowly via incremental gains (+2.5lbs in weight lifted bench or squats ever few weeks adds up over many months!). This then makes you stronger over time, which can then allow you to grow more muscle tissue (obviously with the correct nutrition).
No need to cycle, as Polymath mentioned. You would probably reach saturation sooner if you did a higher load for ~1-2 weeks, but that may lead to gastro problems.
~5g seems to be the standard dosage. You could start there, see how your body reacts, and adjust the amount up/down ~1g, as needed.
As far as timing, not super important if you are consistent. Add it to your daily routine and stick to it. Starting out, you may want to take it when you know you have a 2-3 open hours afterwards, just in case you get bubble gut.
Research the brand you use. Supplements aren’t regulated so there are some bad actors out there. Make sure the brand you use is independently tested/verified and creatine monohydrate is the only ingredient.
I’ve wondered about creatine as well. But sounds like it’s only worth it when you’re starting to max stuff out? I’m not there yet,.lots of gains to be had just by being consistent.
How do you usually train with weights?
Creatine won’t really work if you do lower weights and higher reps, but it can help you with medium weights and more reps vs heaviest weigths and lower reps.
So just as an example,
50Kg x 20 reps (creatine won’t do much)
100Kg x 10 reps (creatine can help you get to x 12 reps)
150kg x 5 reps (creatine can help you get to 152.5 x 5 reps)
You need to determine what is “medium” exertion in your own case, but it should help you crank out a few more reps without pushing yourself to the max.
3 sets of 8 reps, but I’m not going to failure yet. Just trying to get some fat off, and get the muscles acclimatized.
5x5 bro!
Wow, this linked website has changed a lot from when I first found it. But the link goes straight to the heart.
I can do all these at home, so that works for me. I bought 2.5lb weights (sorry, no metric conversion) and brought them to the gym pre-COVID, but son bought a bench, other son bought me a simple squat rack for my birthday, and voila.
Do I use them? Not as much as I should, but that’s my problem.
Oh, I made my own spreadsheets, and they are only for day-of-lifting. Not keeping track like an OCD. Not bragging on antisocial media, either.
Useful, I’m not really focusing on max strength right now so I’ll keep it in mind if I come back to that.
Getting a dietician was one of the best decisions of my life. I PR’d a lot of my lifts just by eating better. And hey, it’s covered by insurance too in the US at least.
I have a pretty good idea how I could be eating better, I’m just choosing not to because sugar is delicious…
Not a MD but it should be noted that if you get bloodwork done your serum creatinine (byproduct of your muscles utilizing creatine) levels may come back elevated, if you’re supplementing with creatine and/or increasing protein intake. Another measure of your kidney health, the glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) based on your creatinine levels, can also come back abnormal. Again, not a MD so definitely consult with your doc, but I wouldn’t freak out if those come back abnormal/trend poorly after you’ve started supplementing.
Personal anecdote, my creatinine levels and eGFR (creatinine based) have been outside the normal range since I started getting annual blood work done ~5 years ago. My PCP and I have discussed this and given my background (above average muscle mass, high protein intake, creatine supplementation, regular intense exercise), we’re both not concerned.