For those who are looking at building stronger and larger muscles to attain the physique that they dream of, supplementation is one of the most important aspects of the process.
Creatine Supplements, also known as Creatine Monohydrate are heralded as the top performance improving supplements in the world of body building. This is one of the most important natural substances that is essential not only to build muscle but to also improve endurance and make your workout more productive.
What exactly is Creatine?
Creatine is a substance that is very similar to amino acids in its chemical structure. It is a naturally occurring substance that can be found in the muscles of our body. A total of 95% of the body’s stores of creatine are found in the muscles. Here, they are stored as Phospocreatine.
The rest of the creatine reserves are found in the liver, brain and the kidney. Phosphocreatine is extremely important in producing ATP which is the energy molecule required by the body. The more ATP you have, the more energetic you feel and the better you are able to perform during your workout routines.
In addition to all of this, creatine is also essential for the body to recover, improve in strength and also develop more muscle mass. There are several creatine supplements that are available in the market. Of them, MuscleBlaze is one of the most popular creatine supplements for several reasons.
It is loaded with 100% pure creatine. It also contains about 5g of fast absorbing micronized creatine in each serving. This provides a quick boost of energy and helps your body perform better when it comes to heavy lifting and also exercises that need a quick boost of energy, such as sprinting.
Top 5 Benefits of Creatine
There are several benefits of consuming creatine supplements. Among the top 5 are the following:
- Allows your body to produce more energy: As mentioned before, creatine is stored as phosphocreatine in the muscles. With creatine supplements, you increase the reserves of phosphocreatine. This aids the formation of the energy molecules or ATP. When you are exercising, the ATP is further broken down to release energy. Since you have a continuous supply of ATP when you consume creatine, you are able to perform at your best.
- Helps in better performance with High Intensity Exercises: There are several studies which reveal that ATP can improve your performance in high intensity exercises drastically. Since creatine is directly responsible for the production of these energy molecules, any high intensity training is benefited in the following ways:
- You have more muscle endurance
- You are more resistant to any fatigue
- Your ability to perform fast movements such as sprinting improves.
- You are able to recover faster
- You have more power when it comes to heavy lifting
- The overall strength of your muscles improves as the muscle fibers increase in number.
- Improves growth of muscles: Research shows that consuming creatine regularly for just one week can show tremendous improvement in the size of your muscles. In a study that included a 6 week training routine, participants who consumed creatine were able to build 4.4 lb of muscles more than those who did not. This makes creatine one of the most popular supplements among sports people. The reason for this is that they are less expensive and are extremely safe for consumption.
- Helps keep blood sugar levels in check: Sugar is transported to the muscles from the blood by a molecule called GLUT4. When you consume creatine, the function of this molecule improves and makes it easier for you to get rid of additional reserves of sugars in the blood. This is of great use in preventing diseases like diabetes as well. Since the blood sugar is transported to the muscles faster, you also have more energy to perform better at the gym. One popular study was conducted over a period of 12 weeks. This study revealed that consuming creatine resulted in lower blood sugar levels even after consuming a meal that is high in carbs. Although the long term effects related to diabetes are still unknown, there is enough evidence to suggest that creatine reduces blood sugar levels immediately.
- It is essential for several muscle functions: Along with added muscle mass, creatine benefits muscle function in several ways. To begin with, the cellular pathways that are responsible for the growth of new muscle fibers are altered. This is done by faster formation of proteins that are responsible for this process. A certain cellular pathway called Akt/PKB pathway is stimulated with creatine. This gives your body signals to build more muscle mass.
The water content of your muscles also increase when you consume creatine. This process is known as cell volumization which leads to quick growth in the size of your muscles.
There is also some evidence to suggest that when you consume creatine, the levels of a certain molecule called myostatin decreases. This is responsible for reducing the growth of muscles. When myostatin reduces, the development of muscles also increases drastically.
When and how to take creatine?
There is still some debate about whether you should take creatine before or after your workout. Research suggests that it is best to consume it after your workout for maximum effects. Mix one scoop of creatine powder with about 200 ml of water and drink it right after your workout.
What are the possible side effects?
Creatine is known to be one of the safest supplements available. However, with some individuals, the reaction may differ. The possible side effects of consuming creatine supplements are nausea, stomach pain, diarrhea and cramps in the muscles.
If you are consuming creatine supplements, you also need to ensure that you are drinking ample water. This is because create increases the amount of water drawn by the muscles from the rest of the body. This can lead to dehydration and can also increases the chances of kidney stones. If you are pregnant, breast feeding, diabetic or suffer from any kidney related condition, avoid the consumption of creatine supplements.
