What Are the Benefits of Taking Creatine?
While creatine was first discovered by French philosopher and scientist Michel Eugene Chevreul in 1832 as he successfully extracted it from animal meat, it wasn’t until 1912 that Harvard University realized that ingesting creatine could promote nitrogen retention and increase muscle and weight gain. However, professional athletes and everyday people were not taking advantage of it at the time because creatine (and the process of accumulating it) was rather expensive.
The Benefits of Creatine
Your muscles already contain a certain amount of natural creatine that helps them perform during intense workouts. But once the supply of creatine gets diminished, it takes a while before enough is stored back up to really assist you once again. However, by supplementing with more creatine, your muscles can be fully stocked at all times.
By the mid-1990s, creatine was viewed as a miracle supplement for those in the fitness world as people started realizing they could put on some serious mass and even have their endurance improve at the same time. As creatine accelerated faster muscle recovery and promoted muscle growth through increased protein in the muscles themselves, the popularity of the supplement was off the charts.
In fact, as research shows, supplementing with creatine can amazingly double your strength and lean muscle gains when compared to training without supplementation. Plus, it offers an increase in the water content of muscle cells so your muscles become larger through cell volumization.
Any Concerns About Supplementing With Creatine?
Nowadays, it is easy to find creatine supplements that literally costs pennies per serving. And it is one of the few legal supplements that can put on size and strength in a relatively short amount of time without having to mess with hormone levels.
Still, there are a few things a person should be aware of when supplementing with creatine. For instance, some will complain that creatine makes them bloated. This is a legitimate concern as creatine causes rapid water weight gain as it draws water into your muscles' cells. Your muscles will retain this water, resulting in a bit of bloating generally around the arms and stomach. However, every person handles creatine differently. The bloating that may be present for some will not be noticeable for all.
Plus, as the cells soak up additional water, it is easy to get dehydrated if not drinking enough water.
One concern that has been making its way across weight rooms around the world is that creatine can damage your kidneys and liver. But as to date, there has never been a study that has shown this to be true as long as the people are taking the recommended dose and do not have prior kidney or liver problems.
All in all, though, the International Society of Sports Nutrition ranks creatine as an extremely safe supplement.
Safe, Produces Results, and Inexpensive
When speaking of health and fitness supplements, it would be tough to find another one that provides the benefits that creatine does and at the low cost per serving.