Should You Be Taking Creatine?
What is Creatine? What does it do? Find out if you are someone who could benefit from Creatine supplementation!
What is Creatine?
Creatine is a compound stored in high amounts in our muscles and in small amounts in our brain. We ingest creatine by eating meat products and our body can also make creatine internally from some amino acids (we find these in protein-containing foods). Taking creatine isn’t necessary for health but supplementation on top of dietary intake has some pretty amazing benefits! Creatine is one of the most researched supplements with about 3 decades of studies behind it and we are yet to find any negative side effects. It really could be the most amazing supplement that you should be taking.
For the evidence based low down on the safety of creatine use, listen to Amy’s DediKate Eat Great chat, Ep #50 - Should you be Taking Creatine?
What are the benefits of Creatine?
Exercise Performance
Creatine is better known for its ability to improve exercise performance and muscular gains. It does this by increasing your capacity to reformulate phosphocreatine in the muscle, which is our first line, fast energy production used in short duration high intensity movement. This basically means that you can recover better in between high intensity exercises or weight sets and get more work done overall. Therefore creatine is ideal for use in any exercise that is explosive or intermittent in nature e.g. rugby, football, weight training, sprinting, boxing, powerlifting, HIIT training etc.
Better Recovery
Creatine also seems to provide a protective effect from exercise induced muscle damage. Muscle soreness is reduced after muscle damaging exercise in those using creatine. One of the ways it may do this is to help to reduce lactic acid build up in the muscle.
Reduced Injury Risk
Creatine reduces risk of injury during exercise and is associated with less muscle cramping, muscle strains and heat sickness. It also importantly has a protective effect following brain and spinal cord injury which makes it valuable for use in high contact sports such as boxing or rugby. Creatine will also slow the rate of muscle wastage during injury induced time out and rehabilitation.
Tonnes of Health Benefits
There are so many more benefits to creatine that many people are yet to hear of. It has been found to have huge benefits not only for those that are exercising but also as a health supplement, protecting you from many different diseases, conditions and boosting our overall health.
Learn more about the benefits of Creatine!
Take a listen to Amy's DediKate Eat Great chat, Ep #50 - Should You Take Creatine? Members can find this HERE. If you're not already a member, sign up to your 2 week free trial and get started today!
Should YOU be taking Creatine? Find out below!
Who should be taking Creatine?
You should consider supplementing with creatine if you:
- Want to increase muscle and strength
- Take part in high intensity exercise
- Are involved in high contact sports
- Are concerned about ageing healthily
- Are pregnant (talk to your medical professional)
- Are at risk of cardiovascular disease
- Are at risk of neurodegenerative disease
- Have osteoarthritis
- Have fatty liver
- Want to improve cognition
Let’s Sum It Up
Creatine is a compound stored in our muscles and brain. We get it naturally from our diets and can make it ourselves from the proteins we eat. However there is an overwhelming body of evidence proving additional exercise and health benefits from further creatine supplementation. The question you might find yourself asking is, why am I not taking it?
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To hear more about the Creatine and whether you could benefit from supplementing with it, login to DediKate and check out Amy’s Eat Great chat, Ep #50 - Should You Be Taking Creatine?
