Of the many supplements on the market geared to muscle-building and performance- enhancing, creatine monohydrate has been studied extensively and found to be effective and relatively harmless. Creatine enhances muscle performance during exercise and muscle hypertrophy as a result of training. Following specific dosing guidelines will help you get the best results from creatine supplementation.
Creatine Monohydrate
Creatine is a nutrient composed of three amino acids; arginine, glycine, and methionine. Creatine is produced naturally in your body, with 95 percent found in skeletal muscle. During exercise, the working muscles draw on creatine stores to produce ATP, the fuel of muscular contraction. Dosing with creatine monohydrate enhances available muscle creatine, enabling you to work longer at high intensities. Food sources of creatine include wild game, lean red meat, salmon and tuna. Creatine supplementation causes water retention in muscle, leading to a slight increase in body weight.
Three-Phase Cycling Dosage
According to Creatine-Monohyrate.org, creatine monohydrate is often taken in three phases; loading, maintenance and cycling. The loading phase lasts one week, and is intended to saturate muscles with creatine. During this phase, a daily dose of 15 g to 20 g is taken in three or four smaller doses throughout the day. During the next two to four weeks, you enter the maintenance phase, decreasing dosage to 5 g to 10 g daily. In the cycling phase, you completely discontinue use for one week, then begin again with the loading phase.
Five-Day Cycling Dosage
In his book, "Advanced Sports Nutrition", author Dan Benardot, PhD, RD, FACSM, recommends alternating creatine dosing in a five-days-on, five-days-off cycle, citing evidence that muscle tissue reaches its saturation after five days. According to Dr. Benardot, athletes typically dose themselves with 10 g to 28 g daily, divided into four smaller doses throughout the day. The amount of the dose depends on the athlete's size, smaller athletes needing less, although he gives no specific guidelines regarding dose per unit of body weight. Dr. Benardot notes that taking creatine for only five days per month may be just as effective as cycling it every five days.
Safety Considerations
Dr. Benardot emphasizes that, while no studies have been done on the long-term effects of creatine supplementation, there is no evidence to suggest it is unsafe for healthy adults. No studies exist regarding the safety of creatine for children and adolescents. Dr. Benardot recommends athletes and others make certain they are consuming adequate calories before deciding to take creatine to enhance performance. The University of Maryland Medical Center suggests you take creatine with carbohydrate foods for better absorption.
References
- "Advanced Sports Nutrition"; Creatine Monohydrate; Dan Benardot, PhD, RD, FACSM
- University of Southern California; "USCience Review";The Science Behind Exercise; Victoria Saadat, June, 2011
- Creatine-Monohydrate.org; Creatine Dosage Recommendations and Cycling
- National Institutes of Health; "Medline Plus"; Creatine
- University of Maryland Medical Center: Creatine
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