Creatine or not? Has anyone used it?

[Cobalt Violet]

I'm thinking about it. I am a vegetarian and I've read that vegetarains experience the best results to creatine.

[semillama]

1. They experience pretty good results

due to the lack of natural creatine in a vegetarian diet.

But just about anyone who takes it sees an effect.

I started taking it again yesterday and i saw immediate gains in numbers of reps doing my basic bodyweight exercises.

[flvegan]

2. I started using it around 6 months ago.

I found out that creatine is vegan, and so long as I stay away from the jacked up products, I'll not take any animal products in.

I've experienced great gains, but be ready to pay for it. Don't just get creatine monohydrate by the bucket. Go for one of the nitric oxide/creatine blends, that have dicreatine malate, etc.

Personally, I swear by BSN's No-Xplode. It's around $50 for almost 2 months worth. My body has really responded to it.

Do some research, and before you buy (if buying in person at a supplement store) shake the bottle and make sure it's not been exposed. Creatine products are notorious for caking/hardening if they've been exposed. Make sure it's still all powdery.

[Poiuyt]

3. Is creatine only useful for strength gains?

does it have any benefit for weight loss?

[flvegan]

4. Yup. Think this way...

Increase muscle mass, burn more calories. Muscle burns those doggone calories like an SOB.

However, as a caveat, creatine products DO have calories. You gotta burn those, too.

Want specific help? PM me.

[Cobalt Violet]

5. Did you notice any water weight gain from using creatine?

[flvegan]

6. I didn't, no.

Bloating and water retention was one of the problems that folks complained of using the first generation of creatine monohydrate. Some of the better supplement companies are using delivery methods (within the body) and compounds that eliminate that. Plus, no more loading. Before, you had to take several servings for the first 5 days to pre-load your body. Not any more. Look for a creatine product that isn't crapped up with a bunch of sugar

Bear in mind that different folks will react differently. Hardgainers notice the biggest difference with creatine. If you experience water retention, you may choose to discontinue it's use.

[H3Dakota]

7. Ahhh!

I know that when I had taken it before, the package called for pre-loading. I tried that brand for a couple of weeks (but avoided the loading), but I did have that water retention problem. I finally just stopped taking it. Between the calories (yep, loaded with sugar) and the water retention, I was gaining weight & not seeing much of a difference at all.

I'll have to see if I can find the one that you mentioned - did you find it at a local place? If so, do they have a branch over here in Pinellas by any chance? :)

[flvegan]

8. Nature's Food Patch might have it

They're in Clearwater. I'd call first (great market, small supplement area) to see if they have it. GNC might carry it, as well. You might want to order it over the net, as I can assure you, it'll be cheaper.

Here's bodybuilding.com's page on it:
http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/bsn/xplode.html

They sell it for under $40, I pay around $45 with a "good customer" discount at Discount Nutrition here in Tampa (small, local shop). Or, if you're coming to Tampa anytime soon, let me know and I'll pick one up for you and make arrangements to meet.

BTW, if you do get this particular creatine, go for the fruit punch flavor first, orange second, lemonade third. The taste is, of course, a little lacking.

[H3Dakota]

9. One of my favorite places! :)

Excellent, thank you. I have another place I go that actually has a much larger supplement area - The Health Nut in Largo. Light on organics & vegetarian foods, heavy on supplements! I'll check with them first. I usually get my Spiru-Tein there rather than driving into Clearwater.

Thanks for the tip on flavors - they ALL taste foul... I've learned just to mix with very cold water & slug 'em down fast! he-he-he

[MemphisTiger]

14. It's good for keeping your muscle mass, however

it's not a fat burner. It will make your muscles hold water and look less defined, but it's worth it.

[emulatorloo]

10. this blogger has posted her "1 week of Creatine" before and after photos

http://skwigg.com/id29.html

Seems pretty impressive.

[davidinalameda]

11. could be because of fluids in her body

doesn't creatine draw fluids out of the body

[emulatorloo]

12. Here's a good FAQ on how it works re fluids. . .

Sorry DU mods, 5 paragraphs rather than 4 but I don;t think anyone will care. . .

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/koch1.htm

<snip>

Creatine attracts water, so as your muscles absorb and store creatine, it brings additional water with it. This process super-saturates the muscle tissue with water and creatine, thus enlarging the actual muscle tissue. This super-saturation results in your muscles having that "just trained feeling" all day long. Many refer to this as the "perpetual pump" from creatine. Larger muscles in a matter of days: Can you believe some people refer to this phenomenon as a "side effect" of creatine? Indeed, many people take creatine for this "side effect" alone!

When you first start to take this supplement, it is common to gain a few pounds of muscle. Typical gains are three to five pounds, up to ten being possible, all in a week to ten days - thanks to this super-saturation. The additional weight gain in your muscles is good news, because every extra pound of functional muscle means you will burn additional calories…even while you are resting.

Make no mistake. Even though some of the weight increase is water in your muscles, it still acts as functional muscle. Some creatine opponents have gone on record stating that it just causes your muscles to retain water and is of no real value. Let's put things in perspective. Your muscles are already about 70 percent water without creatine. So is that seventy percent of your muscle useless to begin with? I don't think so. If you suck the water out of your muscles, you are left with a wrinkly little corpse.

But the question remains, are the gains you receive only muscular water retention, or are they actually lean muscle? According to a study done on a bunch of little piggies at Texas A & M University, the gain is lean muscle.(9) Before they were slaughtered, some pigs were fed 25g of creatine for five days, while the other little piggies got none. The pigs that were fed creatine gained almost five pounds more than the ones that did not receive creatine. When cooked, the muscle-bound little pigs that fed creatine showed less meat loss than the pigs not fed creatine. Bacon, anyone? So what can we learn from our squeaky little friends (besides how much fun rolling around naked in mud is, of course)?

From this study, one can conclude that while creatine results in inter-muscular water retention, it may also increase lean muscle. In yet another Belgium study, 25 healthy males were placed on a 42-day controlled strength-training program. Eight were fed creatine, ten a placebo, and seven formed a control group. The body mass of the creatine group went up two kilograms, while the other two groups showed no increase. The researchers concluded that "the relative volumes of the body water compartments remained constant and therefore the gain in body mass cannot be attributed to water retention, but probably to dry matter growth accompanied with a normal water volume." (10)

<snip>

[MemphisTiger]

15. NO, it pulls water into your muscles

this buffers the lactic acid that builds up to give you that burn when working out. Also, she should have loaded a 20g per day for the first 5 days then maintain at 5g per day for about 5 weeks.

[lwin]

13. The one I use..

I like the the ATP Advantage serum from Muscle Marketing USA (orange flavor).

http://www.creatine.com

Easy to use at the gym, it's the most convenient, works great and none of the problems (gas, bloating, etc) that you can get with some of the powders. No loading, take it just before your workout. It's a little pricey, but I can usually find it at my local health food store for about $37. (lasts about 6 weeks)