Sports Supplements > Creatine

It is not a drug, nor is it the dangerous substance the uninformed (e.g., many doctors) claim it is. In fact, there is not one peer-reviewed study or laboratory test showing creatine is dangerous (unless you don't take enough water with it, then it will crystallize, but so will vitamin C under the same conditions).

Creatine in the form of phosphocreatine (creatine phosphate) is an important store of energy in muscle cells. During intense exercise lasting around half a minute, phosphocreatine breaks down to creatine and phosphate, providing you with the primary source of energy, adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Output power drops as your cells deplete phosphocreatine, because the body cannot regenerate ATP fast enough to meet the demands of the exercise.

Creatine has another effect that is important to bodybuilders. Creatine pulls water into your muscles, adding volume to them. When the muscles are more full, they can contract harder--this means you have more strength for your workouts. Hefting more weight (safely) improves the rate of muscle gain and fat loss. Additionally, the extra water helps the cells rid themselves of waste (such as lactic acid), thus speeding up recovery.

That's right! Extra creatine in the muscle may also increase the rate of regeneration of phosphocreatine following repeated bursts of activity in training or in many sport competitions.

Caution. Water consumption is critical, so drink plenty when using creatine. Athletes who engage in intense, regular exercise should consume at least 120 oz of water per day. Drink an additional 16 oz of water for every pound lost during exercise.Value vs. cost. Creatine ranks near the top of all supplements for benefit. It's cheaper than the sugar-laden sports drinks that do nothing for you. If you want to improve performance, take creatine. Combining it with HMB is a strategy many people are finding works well for them.

Do not exceed recommended dose--doing so simply wastes your money.

• To protect your body, drink plenty of water when taking creatine. This is only prudent.
• There has never been any documented instance of creatine overdose, despite the media hyperbole and misinformation/sensationalism used to sell copy.

1. Increase the intensity of your workout (fewer reps per set, with heavier weight in each set). If you do 3 sets of 10 reps, you are sacrificing intensity for conformity. Change that silly pattern before supplementing. You should find each set harder to do than the last, so it will necessarily consist of either fewer reps or less weight. If each set is the same, you are doing something wrong. Think about the logic, here. Then, implement the change and watch your results improve.

2. Focus on what the muscle is doing, not what the weight is doing.

3. Stimulate, don't annihilate. You need only stimulate the body into an adaptive response. Training beyond that point is counterproductive.

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Taking creatine to store water in the muscles simply adds weight, so their whole approach was stupid. Using them as an example is like saying you will get hit by a train if you wear pants, because some guy wearing pants was lying on railroad tracks and got hit by a train.