Creatine

What is creatine?

In short, creatine is a small organic molecule composed of 4 carbon, 9 hydrogen, 3 nitrogen, and 2 oxygen atoms. It is an amino acid derivative, meaning it is a product of reactions starting with amino acids.

What does creatine do?

To understand the role of creatine, first let’s see how our cells get their energy for cellular processes. There is a molecule called ATP (adenosine triphosphate), which contains three phosphate groups. When the bond between the third and second phosphate groups breaks, it releases energy which can power the majority of our cellular processes, including muscle contraction. But what happens to ATP after it loses a phosphate? It turns into ADP (adenosine diphosphate), but much like charging your cell phone when it is low in battery, ADP can be turned to ATP again by adding a phosphate group to it. This is where creatine plays its role! An enzyme called creatine kinase adds a phosphate to creatine, turning it to phosphocreatine (creatine phosphate), and phosphocreatine acts as a phosphate reserve inside the cell, to donate its phosphate group to ADP to regenerate ATP

How does creatine affect the body?

Most of the effects of creatine on the body are positive. It has been shown that creatine can increase muscle repair after a workout session, cause muscles to appear bigger by causing water to move into the muscles, boost muscular energy during repetitive, anaerobic exercise (such as weight training) by 5% to 15%, enhance brain function by improving short-term memory and reasoning, etc. However, there is one potential negative effect of creatine, and that is decreasing the VO₂max (the maximum amount of oxygen that an individual can use during an intense physical activity).

How should you take creatine?

If you consume meat, you already receive a small amount of creatine in your diet, and the rest is produced in your liver and kidneys, but if you are a vegetarian, or would like to increase your creatine reserves, you can take creatine supplements available in the market. A study showed that after ingesting creatine, its excreted level did not change, meaning that your cells (mostly skeletal muscle and brain cells) can store creatine to a significant level.

Creatine supplements come in different forms including creatine monohydrate, nitrate, ethyl ester, and gluconate, but research suggests that the best form is the monohydrate.

One of the recommended methods of increasing creatine uptake by your cells is to take it along with a food that has a high glycemic index, such as white rice, white bread, potatoes, and anything with added sugars.

Loading and Maintenance Phases

It was previously believed that you have to go through a “loading” phase followed by a “maintenance” phase. However, recent findings suggest that this cycle is not crucial to benefit from creatine supplementation but if you are still curious, here is how it works:

Loading Phase: take 0.3 grams of creatine per kilograms of your body weight daily for 5 days

Maintenance Phase: take 3-5 grams of creatine on a daily basis

It is important to mention that taking 3 grams of creatine per day for 28 days has the same effect as taking 20 grams for a period of 6 days, but it simply takes longer to saturate your muscles with creatine.