• FreeTrainers.com Forums
• Health Supplements
• Creatine Recovery

Group: Health Supplements

Creatine Recovery

mrmagical Posts: 302 Joined: 2002/12/12	2003/01/21, 02:29 PM When people say that creatine helps your recovery time that is to say it helps you get back to full strength between sets right? as this seems what it does for me.
ageis Posts: 198 Joined: 2002/10/25	2003/01/21, 08:33 PM I've always thought of the recovery time after a workout. Full strength between sets? I would like to have some of that.
mrmagical Posts: 302 Joined: 2002/12/12	2003/01/21, 09:54 PM Well i should say that when i take creatine it seems like my muscles recover quicker from set to set like i dont get as fatigued during my work outs....
houseofdiet Posts: 161 Joined: 2003/01/07	2003/01/21, 10:02 PM o.k. probably a dumb question but I'll as you guys anyway... What the heck is Creatine?!!! (If I read about it one more time with out knowing what it is I will die of curiosity or ignorance) =)
mrmagical Posts: 302 Joined: 2002/12/12	2003/01/21, 10:24 PM Creatine is something that the body normally contains. The body either produces it naturally or it is obtained directly from the foods we eat. On average the body goes through about 2 grams of creatine each day. Most of our body's creatine is contained within skeletal muscle, although some is also present in the heart, brain and testes. Following ingestion (or synthesis) creatine is transported into our muscles where it serves to increase muscle energy levels. Creatine achieves this by increasing the availability of ATP, the cell's energy molecule. Recently it has become popular to supplement one's diet with synthetically produced creatine in hopes of enhancing athletic performance. Synthetic creatine is sold as citrate, phosphate or monohydrate salts. Creatine monohydrate is the most commonly used form in athletics and is nothing more than a molecule of creatine accompanied by a molecule of water. A gram of creatine monohydrate contains more creatine than a gram of either creatine citrate or a gram of creatine phosphate. We typically notice an improvement in exercise performance when our muscle creatine levels increase by at least 20% as a result of creatine supplementation 2. How does creatine work? Simply speaking, creatine increases the energy content of muscle cells. Creatine does this by increasing the availability of ATP, the energy currency of cells. Since our strength depends on how quickly ATP can be made available during exercise, creatine supplementation increases our strength.
erirvine Posts: 196 Joined: 2002/11/20	2003/01/22, 01:57 PM Mrmagical is perfectly correct but it is worth stating Creatine also increases water retention in muscle. This also allows for faster recovery time, as there is a larger volume for both nutrients and toxins to be stored and metabolic reactions occur in. However faster recovery time and physically bigger muscles often give people the notion it increases muscle – it dose not. The additional water retention dose make it unsuitable for people who primarily care about their weight, am currently bulking and have gained 8kg in 2weeks mainly due to this. I do have a low body fat and high proportion of muscle so the effect is more pronounced on me than on many others but it is worth mentioning.
houseofdiet Posts: 161 Joined: 2003/01/07	2003/01/22, 05:02 PM Thanks guys, I feel so enlightened now! =)
ageis Posts: 198 Joined: 2002/10/25	2003/01/22, 11:14 PM heh, erirvine, your not green anymore. kudos on the second pic.
erirvine Posts: 196 Joined: 2002/11/20	2003/01/23, 02:09 AM Yer I finally had a shower and washed it off - only took 3 months!
smthomas Posts: 4 Joined: 2002/12/16	2003/01/23, 01:26 PM > metabolic reactions occur in. However faster recovery > time and physically bigger muscles often give people the > notion it increases muscle – it does not. But the increased energy to the muscles makes it easier to build more muscle, right? I'm not taking Creatine yet, but I'm really thinking about it. The problem is it costs a lot of money and I don't know if it's worth it for me.
erirvine Posts: 196 Joined: 2002/11/20	2003/01/23, 02:02 PM If you new to training (which from your profile I guess you are) don’t bother, I have just stated on creatine and I have been training of and on for almost 10years, but more importantly constantly for 9months and 6 days a week for the last 3 months. When you start training you can easily make big gains without supplements and if you take them you will not notice the effects just the cost. If you reach a plateau after a few months then research it and reconsider it, then it might be worth it to make new gains. If you start from basics and increases slowly you will do a lot better than instantly trying to live a heavy trainers lifestyle; you will learn to understand what things to do, why they are done and all of the effects they have on your body.
mackfactor Posts: 766 Joined: 2002/10/17	2003/01/23, 04:19 PM Creatine is an amino acid already present in your muscles. By supplementing with creatine, you are merely increasing the saturation in your muscles, which leads to increased muscle hydration as the creatine pulls in extra water. Since your muscles are 70% water, adding more makes your muscles a little more robust and increases ATP, as was previously stated. The outward effect of creatine is slightly greater muscle power. Also, being an amino acid, I imagine that it assists in post workout recovery, but I'm honestly not certain. -------------- "Don't follow leaders and watch your parking meters!" -- Bob Dylan