One of the most popular supplements people take for muscle gain is creatine monohydrate. It is responsible for increasing your strength and maximizing your workout performance. Furthermore, it is believed that about 40% of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCCA) athletes use creatine as part of their sports routine.
Understanding Creatine Monohydrate
Creatine is quite similar to the protein in the sense that it is a nitrogen-containing compound. However, this element is not a true protein; it is known as non-protein nitrogen. Moreover, creatine can be obtained through the food we eat or through supplements. Hence, it would be great to check out the best creatine monohydrate in the market if you plan to add these to your diet.
This nitrogen-containing compound plays a huge role in the phosphagen energy system, which is the prime origin of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) during short-term and intense workouts or activities. To understand this thoroughly, ATP is the energy source for every cell in our body. That is why if you take creatine monohydrate, you will have the capacity to endure physical activities even longer than you used to, resulting in muscle growth.
Creatine exists as both phosphocreatine (PC) and free form creatine in the body. A PC acts as a storehouse or a vault for high-energy phosphate. This means it can replenish ATP in your muscles in case you get worn out.
Advantages Of Taking Creatine Monohydrate
Creatine is one of the most researched supplements there is today. Below are some of its benefits:
Increases Your Muscle Creatine Levels
An increase in creatine levels in your skeletal muscle shows that taking creatine is effective. Moreover, about 10-40% increase in PC stores and muscle creatine have been connected to creatine supplementation. This observation was a result of a certain loading phase, which will go through later on.
Maximizes Your Performance and Power
Creatine supplementation has become the most effective nutritional supplement available in relation to improving lean body mass and anaerobic capacity. In both long-term and short-term activities, it has been found out that creatine supplementation is great in improving your overall quality of training. This leads to about a 5 to 15% increase in performance and strength.
How To Take Creatine Monohydrate
The main goal of creatine supplementation is to fill up muscle stores with creatine. There are a lot of different ways you can achieve this. However, it appears that having an initial loading phase followed by a series of sustained dosages is the best way to quickly achieve and maintain creatine saturation levels in your muscle store.
The loading phase involves taking about 20 grams per day in 5-gram gains or increments between 5 and 7 days. After that, you can choose to take about 3 to 5 grams a day. Furthermore, others might suggest that you don’t need to have a loading phase. However, not having one doesn’t seem to present the same result of increased muscle creatine levels.
Does Creatine Monohydrate Have Side Effects
There is a lot of misinformation that surrounds the use of creatine supplements. One of these fake news is that it results in bad health. This includes dehydration, liver and kidney damage, GI distress, and even injury. However, these are not true; no study can prove the connection between taking creatine monohydrate and these illnesses.
The only true side effect that is linked to taking creatine monohydrate is weight gain. This is due to the increase in intracellular water concentration that is caused by creatine supplementation. Moreover, this side effect is most likely the goal of some certified creatine users.
How Long Does It Take For Creatine Monohydrate To Affect Your Performance?
The timeline in which creatine monohydrate impacts your performance will vary on how you ingest creatine. If you plan to follow the loading phase, you might see the improvements in about 1 to 3 days. On the other hand, if you plan to take creatine in a slower and longer approach, you might see the improvements in about 5 to 7 days.
Is Creatine Advantageous To Women?
Creatine is as advantageous to women as it is to men. However, dosing this supplement can be a little different for women. This is because women most likely weigh less than men, which means they need a lower maintenance dose (about 3 grams per day instead of 5).
Different Forms of Creatine You Should Know About
Creatine monohydrate is not the only form of creatine. There is also the creatine ethyl ester. However, creatine monohydrate is considered a cheaper product.
Creatine ethyl ester is most likely marketed as the more effective product because of its increased bioavailability. Yet, these assertions don’t hold any scientific evidence. In fact, both creatine monohydrate and creatine ethyl ester can provide an increase in creatine muscle levels.
Takeaway
If you want to achieve muscle gain, take creatine monohydrate supplements as part of your routine. This supplement has been proven and tested by many. In fact, a lot of research can support the fact that creatine monohydrate is the best and most effective supplement there is that can help you out with your lean body goals.
