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Hello and welcome to 3 Broscience Scoops #1, the information based on 30 years of expertise and a bit (a lot) of scientific studies.
Today, we're talking about creatine. Stay until the end, I have a little anecdote (funny for you, not for us) to tell you.
Tell me its story
Discovered in 1832 by the French scientist Chevreul (yes, our French scientists are good), creatine is now one of the most popular dietary supplements among strength athletes and bodybuilders.
Why creatine? Because it was discovered in meat, and more specifically in the flesh of meat, Kreas in Greek.
Do not confuse it with creatinine, which corresponds to creatine waste found in urine.
But what exactly is it?
It is an amino acid derivative, produced naturally in the body thanks to glycine, arginine, and methionine. It is found in small quantities in meat (really small), especially red meat.
But what if I don't eat meat? How can I get it?
You see where I'm going with this...
Nutrimuscle Creatine......
Creatine as a dietary supplement
No, more seriously, creatine is also available as a dietary supplement. In most cases, it is synthesized from sarcosine and cyanamide.
It comes in several forms. About fifteen, to be precise: creatine monohydrate; citrate; phosphate; malate; tartrate... in short, I won't list them all.
The most studied form is monohydrate. It is also the most effective. So don't risk taking liquid creatine or any other hocus pocus creatine.
The form is good, but if it's not of good quality, it's less good: the purity of the raw material is essential.
Different labels exist, but only Creapure® is recognized as the creatine expert. It's a bit like Eleiko for pro equipment, or Nutrimuscle for supplements 🙂.
What does it do?
Concretely, what does it do?
If you expect to become like the Hulk, you're out of luck... At best, you might get closer to Lou Ferrigno's physique (and even then), rather than that of the latest Marvel movies, for those who get the reference 😉.
Creatine increases phosphocreatine stores, an intracellular energy reserve, and accelerates the rate of ATP synthesis (or Adenosine Triphosphate for geeks).
Basically, it provides energy to muscle cells 💪.
Combined with intensive training, it therefore increases muscle strength and muscle gain at the same time. Creatine also draws water into the cells, which can sometimes create water retention. Hello Michelin Man! But that's not all! Creatine is also a source of fuel for the brain. Einstein was born shortly after its discovery (I'm just saying). In the United States, some hospitals have even prescribed creatine to patients suffering from neurological disorders, for its protective effect. These Americans are good!
💧How is it taken?
3 to 5 grams per day, in powder or capsules. Take creatine with a meal, with a glass of water. If you take it in powder, it will settle at the bottom of the glass. Just mix well and drink instantly. You can also take it with your protein shake.
⌛When should it be taken?
Spread the doses out as much as possible throughout the day. For example, take 2 grams with breakfast and 3 grams with dinner. Avoid taking creatine before training, as it can cause slight hypoglycemia (a drop in blood sugar levels). Annoying when you're training. Creatine "loads" are not useful, which is why we recommend taking it all year round.
🎯Can I take it?
It's even recommended if you want to gain strength and improve your physical performance!
🧠And if you want to take care of your brain, that's good too. I prefer to repeat, creatine will not turn you into the Hulk or Einstein.
Studies that revolutionized creatine
100 years of studies, that's a lot, isn't it?
100 years of studies, that's a lot, isn't it? It's probably older than you (dedication to the grandpas and grandmas who read our blog posts). We can even say that creatine has seen several wars. Basically, it's THE most studied dietary supplement in the world! Last year alone, there were nearly 2000 studies on creatine. And yet, we still hear absurdities about it.
👨🦲You'll lose your hair with that
☠️Careful, it'll ruin your kidneys
💉Stop doping yourself
🍆It will lower your sexual performance
For these various misconceptions, no study has demonstrated or validated them. It's even the opposite for some of them, like the decrease in sexual performance. As for doping, the International Olympic Committee has refused to include creatine on the list of prohibited substances.
But then 🤔, what do the studies show?
A 1923 study showed that... Okay, a more recent one. In 1956... okay, okay, even more recent, even if we shouldn't demonize old studies. Old habits die hard... what's the expression again?
A study published in 2003 shows that oral creatine monohydrate supplementation significantly increased intelligence compared to a placebo. (1)
A 2013 study highlights the increase in muscle strength generated by creatine. (2)
And if you want other interesting studies on creatine, you can find them at the bottom of the page. Or ask Gundill, he has a closet full of them!
Tell me an anecdote
I promised you, you did well to stay until the end (you won't be disappointed).
In the 90s, creatine almost got us kicked out.
Indeed, the regulations were not in its favor: it was considered a doping product (this creatine was too strong) and therefore prohibited for sale.
One day, the police visited us at a fitness fair and seized all our pots (we still wonder what they did with them). We even went to court twice!
So, there was no choice, we had to find a solution: Belgium
Aahhh Belgium, its fries; its beer... sorry, I'm getting carried away.
BELGIUM! That's a country where regulations were in favor of creatine. So, we packed up our bags and moved. It was the same year as France's victory in the football World Cup. 1998 for the younger ones.
Since then, Nutrimuscle has been living happily ever after and creatine has become its bestseller. Take that 🤓🤓!
Bibliography
- Rae C, Digney AL, McEwan SR. Oral creatine monohydrate supplementation improves brain performance: a double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over trial. Proc Biol Sci. 2003 Oct 22;270(1529):2147-50.
- Kley RA, Tarnopolsky MA, Vorgerd M. Creatine for treating muscle disorders. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2013 Jun 5;2013(6):CD004760.
Other interesting scientific studies :
Lyoo IK, Kong SW, Sung SM. Multinuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy of high-energy phosphate metabolites in human brain following oral supplementation of creatine-monohydrate. Psychiatry Res. 2003 Jun 30;123(2):87-100.
Schoch RD. The regulation and expression of the creatine transporter: a brief review of creatine supplementation in humans and animals. J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2006 Jun 23;3:60-6.
Rawson ES. Low-dose creatine supplementation enhances fatigue resistance in the absence of weight gain. Nutrition. 2011 Apr;27(4):451-5.
Deldicque L, Louis M, Theisen D. Increased IGF mRNA in human skeletal muscle after creatine supplementation. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2005 May;37(5):731-6.
Parise G, Mihic S, MacLennan D. Effects of acute creatine monohydrate supplementation on leucine kinetics and mixed-muscle protein synthesis. J Appl Physiol. 2001 Sep;91(3):1041-7.
Burke DG, Candow DG, Chilibeck PD. Effect of creatine supplementation and resistance-exercise training on muscle insulin-like growth factor in young adults. Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. 2008 Aug;18(4):389-98.