Creatine is widely acknowledged in the health and fitness industry as an effective supplement for increasing muscle mass and strength. Research appears to support this as it shows that taking creatine as a supplement can double your strength and increase lean muscle gain than doing the same without it. This is why creatine is considered a vital supplement for bodybuilders. We look at the role of creatine in this regard and how it affects muscle building.
What is Creatine?
Creatine is a natural substance that we all have in our bodies; it particularly is found in our muscle cells. During high-intensity workouts and heavy lifting, creatine produces energy. The amount of creatine in our bodies varies from person to person. Factors such as meat intake, exercise, muscle mass, and hormones affect the amount of creatine in each of us. As a rough guide, approximately ninety-five percent of our creatine is stored in our muscles with the remaining five percent in our brain, liver, and kidney.
Creatine supplements are stored in phosphocreatine in our muscles as reserve energy. Taking water soluble supplements can help your body better absorb creatine, based on research as mentioned at https://www.wilsonsupplements.com/. It helps to produce adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which is a high energy molecule. The more ATP we have, the more energy we have and the better we are able to perform during periods of exertion, such as exercise. However, creatine does not also increase our energy, mass, and strength, it is also effective in aiding our bodies in recovering from such activities too
Creatine and Performance
Creatine works on a cellular level to help you improve your health and overall performance when it comes to exercise and weight training. It does this by improving your strength and power. One study found that athletic performance improved by 15% when using creatine supplements for twenty-eight days. It is thought that noticeable improvements like this are due to increased levels of ATP. Naturally produced ATP is usually depleted after up to ten seconds of high-intensity activity. When creatine supplements are taken, more ATP is produced which allows us to have a few more seconds of this level of activity.
Creatine and Muscle Building
Creatine is one of the few supplements that have proven to increase muscle mass when combined with exercise. Regularly using it will increase the phosphocreatine stored in your muscles, which will improve your energy levels. The latter will be needed for the overall performance of high-intensity exercise, including weight training.
Creatine is effective for muscle growth, whether it be short or long term. Studies have shown that muscle growth and mass are improved when creatine is used. This includes people that have a typical sedentary lifestyle to those that regularly participate in athletic training and events. An even greater endorsement of using creatine is a study that found creatine as the most popular supplement for increasing muscle mass. Creatine can help with this by
1. Increasing Workload
As we’ve mentioned, creatine increases your ATP, which enables better overall performance whilst training. This is vital for long-term muscle development.
2. Increasing Cell Hydration
The more water in your muscle cells, the more volumisation they have which could have a positive effect on muscle growth.
3. Improving Cell Signalling
Improved cell signaling enables increased response time for repairing and rejuvenating cells, post-work-out.
4. Raising Hormones
Research has shown that anabolic hormones tend to rise after creatine has been consumed.
5. Reducing Protein Breakdown
By reducing the amount of muscle breaking down, creatine can increase total muscle mass.
6. Lowering Myostatin
Myostatin reduces or prevents muscle growth, which creatine can reduce and therefore increase muscle growth.
A lot of studies appear to indicate that an initial loading dose can be beneficial within days. This is done by rapidly increasing the creatine content in your muscles. However, this will depend upon the current levels of creatine stored in your body. Those with lower amounts of it will notice more positive changes than those possessing higher levels of creatine in their body. It is also important to remember that taking any supplement, including creatine, will only be beneficial if a healthy diet and regular exercise are undertaken. You cannot expect a pill to do this by itself – you need to commit to a healthy lifestyle to benefit from the advantages creatine can help you achieve.
Creatine is one of the most popular, if not the most popular, supplement for gym users. It has been rigorously tested and is recognised for its many health benefits and also being safe to take. As mentioned, usage can increase muscle mass, strength, and exercise performance, so if you’re seriously thinking about upping your gains and require a little help, creatine may be the best supplement for you.
