creatine with no loading phase

Don't know who told you that, but it's nonsense. so what happens after 5 hard efforts? Get dropped? Wouldn't last long in the races I do if that were the case...not unless you had the aerobic capacity of the Jan!

Hi alan, thanks for your reply.

I'm sorry but could you elaborate more on the loading part? i'm rather confused, i have quite a few questions but i'd wait for your follow-up-reply first.

But here are some more question that i would like to add:

5. What are the possible detrimental effects of higher than usual (from meat and fish) intake of creatine? I often hear people say that creatine is harmful, and my friends think they're as harmful as steriods. I've read a article saying that it is not safe for people under 18. Why is that so? is it because using creatine supplemnts would mean more creatinine formed?

6. Ingesting creatine can increase the level of phosphocreatine in the muscles up to 20%, how long can it stay that high? for an active individual.

I might give it a shot if im convinced enough, its costs quite a sum (for a student) :(

Thanks for your advice!

Sorry i ask many questions :oops:

AWX,

I would not advise you to use the liquid forms of creatine. Many of them are simply 'fad products' that do nothing. If you are going to use it, use a simple 'creatine monohydrate' and make sure you take it with a fair amount of carbohydrates.

It does not have to be expensive, if you live in the UK either email me or PM me and I can help you out and stop you getting ripped off.

Creatine may help you with your events as it will increase your glycogen stores which are basically one of the major fuel stores your body uses. The 'multiple sprint' benefits from creatine may not however help you in long distance events.

Loading is pretty unneccessary, you will still reach the same levels of saturation in the muscle and this can be maintain with small doses each day.

Creatine can cause an upset stomach if you take too much but your diet will not cause you to 'overdose'.

HTH

Martin

I am 15 years old male. Is it safe to use creatine i dont want to make myself look like a bodybuilder but i want to get in GREAT physical condition for upcoming events.

alan,

yes i do know abit about energy systems, there are 3 pathways, oxidative phosphorylation, anaerobic glycolysis and direct phosphorylation of ADP which is also known as anaerobic alactacid system am i right? I am also aware that creatine phosphate is stored in the muscles, just wasn't sure how fast supplemental creatine can enter the muscles in the same way, a question you've already answered :D thanks!

Oh sorry i think i misphrased, i meant overdosing creatine in the sense that creatine supplements are consumed, on top of those that you naturally gain from normal meals of red meat and fish. Doubts cleared too

Thanks for all your help! Really informative And yes i have more questions! Let me sort them out first. :wink:

Hi martin,
thanks for your advice too, the liquid creatine comes from GNC pro performance, it is quite a credible brand right? :? I can't remember which brand sells those in pill forms, but the pills are purple in colour (lol sorry poor visual memory).

The contents both read "creatine monohydrate". What other forms of creatine are there? What's creatine ethyl ester then? What's the difference?

I reside in Singapore, but thanks for your offer :) What is an acceptable price? You can quote in US$ and i can do the conversions!

I have also not heard of creatine increasing glycogen stores before, please explain too thanks.

Sorry may i digress a little, what's a meniscal bruise? I've been recovering from it since last december, but it was only diagnosed in april. Is it just a small meniscal tear? I'm afraid of pissing him off by asking too much.

awx,

CEE is a new version of creatine that is supposedly better however, the research is still catching up. One is supposed to be able to take it without carbohydrates (for the insuline spike). This makes it ideal for Pre-workout. I would advice using creatine monohydrate powder first though before using this.

A reasonable price is probably less than £20 per kilo........for powder.

GNC is credible but credible companies only have to abide by the law and this is VERY loose when it comes to supplements. Trust me on this one......don't waste your money on liquid forms.

Alan,

I will have to have a look for you now...... :roll:

It is to do with the cell volumising effects of creatine. I was also unaware of this until I spoke to Prof. Ron Maughan and he highlighted this fact.

Ok, all my papers etc are packed up in boxes at the moment so if you are UBER interested then drop me an email and I will find the specific papers I was thining of.

I have just found these two studies that show something of what I was referring to

Acta Physiol Scand. 2001 Feb;171(2):169-76.
Effect of creatine supplementation on creatine and glycogen content in rat skeletal muscle.

Extract: Five days of creatine feeding increased (P < 0.05) total creatine content in soleus (+ 20%) but not in red gastrocnemius (+15%, n.s.) and white gastrocnemius (+ 10%, n.s.). In parallel, glycogen content was markedly elevated (P < 0.05) in soleus (+ 40%), less (P < 0.05) in red gastrocnemius (+ 15%), and not in white gastrocnemius (+ 10%, n.s.).

Clin Sci (Lond). 2004 Jan;106(1):99-106.
Creatine supplementation increases glycogen storage but not GLUT-4 expression in human skeletal muscle.

Extract: Creatine loading significantly increased total creatine, free creatine and creatine phosphate content with a concomitant 18 +/- 5% increase in muscle glycogen content (P<0.05).
:D

LOL :lol:

He would be a good person for a conference. Very funny and a great manner about him, would certainly stop me falling asleep :wink:

when will i start seeing results in using creatine?

I tend to start my creatine use when I am nearing a plateau in strength and get noticable effects within 3-5days. It slightly depends on the protocol you use. Loading is only neccessary if you need saturation in a shorter period of time. I don't tend to load as such........

HTH

martin