Diet

Creatine monohydrate - that's what muscles need

What is Creatine Monohydrate?

Creatine is a substance that occurs naturally in the body and is responsible for the supply of energy to the muscles.
Creatine monohydrate as a supplement is used especially in sports to increase performance and accelerate muscle growth. Creatine monohydrate itself is a non-essential amino acid that plays an important role in the body in converting ATP to ADP and thus supports the aforementioned energy supply to the muscles. With a sufficient supply of creatine monohydrate, the amount of available energy can be increased.

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Taking creatine monohydrate

The right dosage of creatinine monohydrate

The dosage of creatine monohydrate depends on the training goal. Age, gender, state of health and fitness level are important to consider.

1. Slow load

Loading phase: intake of 3g creatine monohydrate per day divided into 2 single doses over a period of 4 weeks
Maintenance phase: Ingestion of 0.03g creatine monohydrate per kg body weight over a period of 4 weeks
Withdrawal phase: continuous reduction in the amount of creatine per day

2. Fast Load

Loading phase: Ingestion of 0.3g creatine per kg body weight divided into several single doses over a period of 7 days.
Maintenance phase: Ingestion of 0.03g creatine monohydrate per kg body weight over a period of 6-8 weeks.
Withdrawal phase: continuous reduction in the amount of creatine per day over a period of 4 weeks.

3. Continuous intake

Continuous intake of 3g creatine per day. There is no phase subdivision for long-term intake.

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When should creatinine monohydrate be taken?

When taking creatine, you should first follow the recommendations of the respective manufacturer. However, some studies on the right time to take creatine suggest that the optimal time to take creatine should be 30-60 minutes before training. If you are currently in a phase of intake, one of the daily servings should of course be taken at this point in time. Creatine takes about 30-60 minutes to be absorbed by the body and available in the bloodstream. It remains there for 1-1.5 hours. Since the natural creatine stores are emptied during training, you should train during the time when the additionally supplied creatine is effective. Otherwise, the excess creatine will be converted to creatinine and excreted by the kidneys.

However, taking creatine after training and on non-training days can also be useful, as creatine does not remain in the bloodstream for long, but can be stored in the muscles. If the stores are emptied after training, they can be replenished more quickly by adding creatine afterwards. Ultimately, it has to be decided on an individual basis which time of intake is most effective and low-risk for personal goals. In any case, care should be taken not to exceed the maximum dose so that undesirable effects can be avoided.

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Can i take creatine?

Creatine monohydrate is particularly useful for sports in which a short-term high intensity and the highest possible number of repetitions are desired. Sports that meet these requirements are, for example, sprints, high jump or long jump as well as muscle building.

But creatine can also have positive effects in endurance sports. However, these effects tend to affect side effects such as sore muscles or a reduction in the recovery time. Basic constitution, diet and personal metabolism also play an important role, so that some people react better to the administration of creatine than others.

Overall, creatine is a very well-tolerated dietary supplement, as it is also a naturally occurring substance in the body. People who have no health problems can take creatine without any great concern, of course always in the right dosage. Even an additional burden or the risk of kidney damage have not yet been proven despite extensive studies.

Due to the property of storing water in the tissue, it stands to reason that people who have problems with water retention (for example, people with heart disease), people with kidney damage or other metabolic diseases should first discuss the intake of creatine with their doctor.

There are also no contraindications to taking creatine for pregnant women, so a doctor should be consulted if you are unsure.

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What should I watch out for when taking creatine monohydrate?

Basically, you should always follow the manufacturer's instructions. However, special attention should also be paid to whether other supplements are also taken, as these can influence the absorption of creatine. Combination preparations can also have an effect on the effect and should therefore always be checked for their mode of action. In general, the following things should be taken into account when taking creatine:

Interactions with other supplements or drugs
Food interactions
Underlying diseases that could affect absorption (e.g. heart disease, kidney damage)
Dosage form of creatine (powder, capsules, etc.)
desired effect of creatine (muscle building, regeneration)
Type of intake (cure or long-term)

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What are the side effects of creatinine?

As with most supplements, it can be said that there are seldom side effects, since creatine monohydrate is also an endogenous substance and can usually be easily absorbed through food. Side effects that can occur are, for example, flatulence, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, stomach pain, unpleasant bad breath, water retention and thus faster weight gain.

To avoid side effects, you should therefore make sure to follow the manufacturer's instructions and use the correct dosage. Should it have been used incorrectly, the problems should disappear again with a reduction or with the discontinuation of the supplement. People with otherwise creatine-poor foods or those who are in their initial phase with the dietary supplement are particularly at risk of side effects.

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Build muscle with creatine monohydrate

Regular exercise is necessary for muscles to start growing. The muscle then accumulates more protein in the muscle fibers, which leads to the desired training effect. To understand how creatinine monohydrate works, you first have to look at what happens in muscles during exercise.

When moving, the muscle is tensed and relaxed in a certain rhythm. The movement of the muscle requires energy, which is naturally provided by the body. In the case of the muscles - as in many other processes in the body - this is provided by the molecule ATP. By splitting off a phosphate group and converting it to ADP, energy is released that is required for the contraction of the muscles.

Creatine is essential for the formation of the muscle fuel adenosine triphosphate (ATP). This already indicates why creatine is so popular as a supplement. ATP is not available in unlimited quantities in the muscles, so that the additional administration of creatine plays a major role in the formation of new ATP and can thus increase performance. Thanks to these properties, creatine has the ability to positively influence the speed and performance of the muscles.

Taking creatine increases the creatine level in the muscles by up to 20 percent. In summary, the intake of creatine for muscle building means that the athletes are able to lift higher maximum weights due to the increased amount of ATP in the muscle cells and at the same time shorten the recovery time of the muscle cells, which makes more repetitions possible.

Another property of creatine is the water retention in the muscles, which ensures that the muscles look optically plumper. Taken correctly, creatine can support muscle building positively.

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