Creatine In Sports Nutrition

What is creatine

Creatine is one of the most studied supplements in sports medicine, with a strong evidence base. You can find many articles in different sources, with a reasonable degree of reliability confirming the safety and effectiveness of creatine supplementation in different types of training.

The function of creatine is to serve as a source of energy for the normal functioning of skeletal muscles. Therefore, the importance of a sufficient amount of creatine in the body can be put on a par with the necessary amount of the main macro- and micronutrients - proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals.

Creatine levels in the body

It is believed that the human body under normal conditions contains from 100 to 140 grams of creatine with a daily requirement of about 2 grams. If a person's level of physical activity increases, the need for energy for muscle work also increases, which means that the need for creatine also increases.

Does this mean that creatine can and should be taken by everyone and it will only have a positive effect?

Why you need creatine

Before you understand whether you need to think about the amount of creatine consumed, it is important to understand what effects it has on the body.

The most important of them:

• growth of muscle mass due to the increase in "dry" muscles;
• increase in strength indicators;
• improving the relief of the muscles by filling the muscles with water;
• reduction in recovery time after short intense exercise due to a decrease in the level of lactic acid secretion;
• cardiovascular protection by lowering total cholesterol, triglycerides, and LDL (bad) cholesterol;
• anti-inflammatory effect in the presence of acute and chronic inflammation.

This is not a complete list - creatine has a wide range of effects on the body and can even be used in the treatment of various diseases. But if you consider creatine as a sports nutrition, understanding these effects will be enough to decide if you need to take it.

Sources of Creatine

Creatine can be ingested with food, and its main sources are animal protein products: meat and fish.

But to get 1 gram of creatine from food, you need a lot of food. For example, to meet an average daily requirement of 2 grams of creatine, you would need to eat almost 700 grams of cod - and there will be loss of nutrients during cooking.

Getting enough creatine from food alone can cause digestive and detox overload, excess calorie intake, and unwanted weight gain.

The use of creatine supplements is a great way to replenish the level of this substance in the body without creating a calorie surplus and having to digest a large amount of animal protein.

When can you take creatine?

• For any workout that requires increased muscle strength. It can be short-term physical activity, high-intensity exercise, alternating with less intense, team sports. Taking creatine allows athletes to train intensely for much longer;
• for a set of "dry" muscle mass, for example, in preparation for performances and competitions in which muscle relief is important;
• when losing weight. Creatine is not a fat burner, but it improves training results, strength performance, recovery rate, and therefore indirectly accelerates the fat burning process. However, creatine causes fluid retention, therefore, it can increase body weight because of this;
• Vegetarians may be recommended to take additional creatine not so much for the sake of improving athletic performance, but for the normal functioning of the body in the absence of the main source of creatine in food - animal protein.

Not every sport requires supplemental creatine supplementation. The supplement does not increase endurance, so for low-intensity long-term training, creatine supplementation is only reasonable if it is necessary to increase muscle mass or muscle strength.

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When to take creatine

When training:

• on training days - within an hour after sports activities;
• on rest days - at any time of the day or at night.

Why you shouldn't take creatine before or during a workout: Creatine causes dehydration, which should be avoided, especially during a workout; the body during training uses creatine from muscle reserves and does not need additional intake; during sports activities, the body cannot transport and absorb creatine normally.

When eating:

The absorption of creatine (ingestion into the blood from the intestines) will not be affected by how it is taken, with or without food. But the effectiveness of its transition from the blood to the muscles depends on what creatine is taken with.

The most effective intermediary for creatine transport is insulin. Therefore, to improve the absorption of the supplement, it is necessary to stimulate the secretion of insulin. To do this, it is recommended to combine creatine:

• with 10-20 grams of fast carbohydrates (for example, dilute creatine in juice);
• with 20-30 grams of fast proteins (for example, drink creatine with a protein shake or gainer);
• with 5-15 grams of amino acids (drink creatine with amino acid supplements).

On sale there is creatine with a transport system - this allows you not to think about what is best to use it with. However, such sports nutrition should in any case be diluted in a small amount of liquid to prevent dehydration.

How much to take creatine (dosage, regimen)

No more than 50 mg of creatine per 1 kg of body weight is absorbed per day, the rest is excreted in the urine. This suggests that consuming more than 5-7 grams of creatine per day does not make sense.

There are two main regimens for taking creatine:

• without loading - this scheme involves taking creatine for two months at a dosage of 5-6 grams daily, with a break of 2-3 weeks after the course to restore sensitivity to the supplement;
• with loading - a scheme popular with athletes, in which 20 grams of creatine are taken per day (5 grams 4 times a day) for 4-6 days. During this time, the muscles are fully loaded with creatine, after which it is enough to take a maintenance dosage - 2-3 grams per day. The level of creatine in the muscles will remain high even after 12 weeks of maintenance dosage.

Often, the loading scheme causes side effects. Choose a scheme together with a sports nutritionist, based on the state of the body and on how you feel after playing sports.

There are different forms of creatine on the sports nutrition market, their main differences are as follows:

• with one type of creatine in the composition, for example, creatine monohydrate, creatine pyruvate, creatine citrate, creatine malate and others;
• with a combined composition - creatine + sodium bicarbonate, chelate compound of creatine with magnesium, creatine + glutamine and others;
• in combination with transport systems - substances that increase insulin levels and increase the efficiency of transport in tissues.

Of all the forms of creatine that modern sports nutrition offers, monohydrate is considered the best. Creatine malate may also be promising, but so far there is no scientific confirmation of the effectiveness of this form. In addition to monohydrate, creatine with a transport system is very popular, its effectiveness has also been proven.

Any form of creatine can be bought both in Moscow in sports nutrition stores and in online marketplaces throughout the country.

Side effects of taking creatine

Experience shows that creatine rarely causes side effects and does not cause irreversible harm to health. Often, side effects may not be related to creatine itself, but to the components that make up the product, such as simple sugars and various impurities that can be found in poor quality sports nutrition.

The main side effects of taking creatine, and not related components:

• water retention. It is observed in everyone who uses creatine. The increase in the percentage of liquid can range from 0.5 to 2 liters. Usually, fluid retention is not visible and can only be suspected by weight gain. It is important to be aware of this effect, and in no case should you limit fluid intake or take a diuretic in the hope of preventing swelling, as this can lead to dehydration;
• dehydration. An effect directly related to water retention. When taking creatine, fluid passes from the blood into the muscles, creating the effect of dehydration of the body. This can also cause disturbances in other processes - metabolism, thermoregulation, acid-base balance, etc. Therefore, when taking creatine, it is very important to monitor the water balance and consume at least 40 ml of water per 1 kg of weight. This will help smooth out the effects of dehydration and other possible side effects of taking creatine.
• indigestion. Often, taking creatine causes disorders in the functioning of the digestive tract. Abdominal pain, nausea, diarrhea are frequent companions of creatine intake, especially on loading regimens. But digestive problems can also arise with no-load regimens due to the use of low-quality creatine supplements. If you experience gastrointestinal side effects, try changing the manufacturer of the supplement. For example, micronized and encapsulated forms of creatine are considered less aggressive;
• convulsions and spasms. This effect usually occurs in response to dehydration. To prevent it, you also need to drink enough fluids and avoid dehydration. In addition, cramps may occur in response to an increase in muscle strength as a restorative reaction and in fact not be a side effect;
• acne. Pretty rare side effect. Its occurrence is associated with an increase in testosterone secretion.

Creatine and the liver

The negative effects of creatine on the liver are a myth. It has been proven that creatine, when taken in large dosages exceeding 30 grams at a time, does not adversely affect the liver. The explanation is that creatine is not metabolized in the liver and serves as a natural component of the body's internal environment. Therefore, from a biochemical point of view, creatine is safe for the liver.

Creatine and coffee

There are different opinions about the interaction of creatine and caffeine. There are two contradictory statements: caffeine impairs the effect of creatine and caffeine increases the effectiveness of creatine when taken together.

Athletes can safely drink coffee and tea while taking creatine, as well as use caffeine supplements, in moderation.

Contraindications for taking creatine

Although creatine is one of the safest and most studied supplements in sports nutrition, it should be used with caution in the following cases:

• With kidney disease. The negative impact of creatine on the kidneys has not yet been proven, but it is known that even ordinary doses of creatine lead to an increase in the concentration of its metabolites in the urine by 90 times. This can be dangerous for people with impaired functions and kidney disease, so it is better for them to refrain from taking the supplement.
• Creatine is synthesized from amino acids, therefore, in case of violations of protein metabolism, additional intake of creatine is not recommended.
• Hyperthyroidism is one of the contraindications for taking creatine, since increased production speeds up metabolic processes, has a catabolic effect on muscle tissue, while increasing the level of creatine in the blood.
• Pregnancy and lactation. There is no consensus on direct contraindications for the use of creatine by pregnant and lactating women. There are studies that look at creatine as a supplement that helps in the prevention of complications in the development of the fetus. But this topic has not yet been sufficiently studied, and the risks of using supplements can significantly exceed the benefits - therefore, in this case, it is also better to refrain from taking creatine.
• Young age is not a direct contraindication, but in the absence of sufficient research to avoid delayed side effects, it is better to postpone sports nutrition until the child grows up or use only when necessary.