Creatine: The Definitive Guide, Part II

ALL ABOUT CREATINE. THE ULTIMATE GUIDE. 

PART II

 *We recommend reading the previous post about creatine, especially the first part of this guide to the most common questions about its use in sport.

1. DO YOU NEED TO TAKE BREAKS OR STOP CONSUMING IT FROM TIME TO TIME?

No, the evidence firmly concludes that by stopping creatine monohydrate supplementation, it will gradually return to its baseline pre-supplementation levels and endogenous synthesis will not be diminished. So if a "washout" period is carried out, it has to be for other reasons (economic), not for the reason that it will lose effectiveness or other long-term side effects (which do not exist).

2. WHAT DIETARY SOURCES CONTAIN CREATINE?

 Fig 1. Amount of creatine in common foods

  Fig 2. Graphic representation of 25 g of creatine monohydrate as steak, capsules and powder, illustrating the difficulty of reaching ergogenic doses through food alone.

3. WHAT ABOUT VEGETARIANS?

 As is obvious and we have seen in the previous question, the foods richest in creatine are of animal origin, so it is normal for vegetarians to benefit even more from the supplementation of this substance (because their basal levels will be somewhat lower).

4. WHAT OTHER FUNCTIONS ARE LESS KNOWN ABOUT CREATINE?

In addition to its own functions as ATP resynthesis that can improve high-intensity and short-term performance, it is known in both sports-performance and clinical contexts:

• Muscle Mass Gain/Fat Loss
• Thermoregulation and cellular hydration
• Muscle glycogen replacement
• Buffer
• Antioxidant
• Antidepressant and neuroprotection
• Aid in injury recovery / anti-inflammatory
• Decreases muscle damage
• Maintaining strength and muscle mass during immobilization or injury

5. IN WHICH SPORTS OR SPORTS DISCIPLINES WOULD THIS SUPPLEMENT BE USEFUL?

• Strength sports (powerlifting, weightlifting, crossfit, bodybuilding)
• Endurance sports (cycling, triathlon, marathon...)
• Sprinting, swimming...
• Team sports (football, basketball, rugby...)
• Racket sports
• Contact sports
• Medium-length sports

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Related Product:

Creatine Monohydrate.
It is the best ultrapure creatine monohydrate on the market: Creapure®. With anti-doping certificate by Informed Sport.

AUTHOR:

Marcos Rueda Córdoba

Dietitian-nutritionist at Myosport Clinic and The Strength Society

Instagram: @marcosnutrition

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