Hi T-chicos . Ok heres my question. What creatines have given u the best muscle fulness? I know its only water and fluid but i love that constant fulness. Muscles are 70 % water tho too right so i guess it can be justified. Its sad to say but that CT creatine that i took last year gave me the best fulness. I’d take it after workouts but now i can’t cause it interferes with Surge, so what do you guys think ? what gave ya that good pumped look along with results?
This has to be the third time I have heard someone on this site mention that they think creatine should only be taken after training. Where are you all getting this? Creatine is made by your body naturally and is stored in muscle tissue and replenishes your anaerobic source of energy(ATP) with an extra phosphate group when used. This converts the used ATP, now ADP, back into ATP. It has always done this long before anyone thought about supplementing it or knew how much was found in beef. This means that when someone is trying to fill their stores of creatine in muscle, it doesn’t matter so much when you take it as it matter how much you are taking daily. Creatine isn’t completely used up after a workout so why would anyone think that this is the only time you should take it. The goal is to keep creatine stores full and timing has little to do with that. About your question though, most of these companies get their creatine from the same place. Creatine is creatine unless you are buying it a little too cheap from some company that prints its bottle labels up on the Xerox machine in the back of the office. Go with a well known respectable company that has been around a while and you have little to worry about. I usually get mine from GNC, however, I have also gotten it cheaper from supplement warehouses with no change in the effect it has on me.
Professor X
Mike, my man, wassup. I’ve never really had much success in the past with creatine, so I don’t use it often and can’t really make any recommendations on brands. I am, however, interested in getting JB’s opinion on the following. Now I know Timmy P has said in BTS to add absolutely nothing to Surge, but I would think that some creatine added to Surge or a similar concoction would be beneficial because of the insulinotropic environment. I also see the good Professor’s point, although you never mentioned your specific dosing. I think that pre-workout is a good time for some creatine, but be wary of potential cramping.
I don’t believe creatine would interfere with Surge at all, and the insulin levels resulting from the Surge should work as well or better in helping the creatine as does the sugar of any of the creatine/sugar formulations.
So, if wanting to use creatine, I’d just buy a kilo of the stuff (preferably with the Creapure
trademark on it, which is purer stuff) for $30 or $40 and have at it.
By the way, I agree with Professor X, it makes sense when using creatine to also use it when having other carb meals. Maybe only a couple
of grams each time but it adds up. If you have your meal replacement powder or protein powder in a jug, it’s simple enough to add the appropriate amount of creatine so you get the number of grams you want per serving, then mix well, which is a lot more convenient than having to add creatine to each protein shake.
Hi i wanted to ask what do u guys suggest when taking md6 and creatine ? I know creatine sould not be taken with caffine and alkoids but i have read in t-mag that there is no problem please explain
Jag, why are you convinced that creatine should not be taken with caffeine or with alkaloids? Has anyone proven this? To my knowledge it is only a hypothesis someone pulled out of a hat.
Hi guys tahnks for the replies . i’m currently taking 4.5 grams of creatine 4 x a week before my workouts from MHP’s Trac creatine, supposedly has some nitro loading delivery system, all i know is my friend and hsi teammates on his college football tema were increasing their weights like mad with it. timbo i think you are on to something there bud. since JB invented surge, wonder what his thoughts would be. thanks for the response bill. I dunno why exactly but i blew uplast year with CT and then eventually lost the weight but i’m not sure if it was because of teh 10 g a day or because i took it every day. i’m thinking of taking the trac in the morning now and ribose c after i lift . I dunno…actually the Creapure idea sounds good…we’ll hafta see i guess…i dunno thanks again
Unless you have some allergy to water and just avoid liquids throughout the day due to some religious conviction, taking creatine and caffeine in the same day have little to do with each other. Creatine increases the amount of water in muscle tissue, but so do carbohydrates. What, should you avoid food with caffeine also? Caffeine is a diuretic, however we are not talking about lassix here or digoxin. We are talking about the equivilent to a couple of cups of coffee. Be careful about excepting everything you read as truth without doing any of your own research. I have taken both and have never noticed a problem. Then again, I, like most humans on the planet, drink water or eat foods with significant water in them during the day. My guess is, so do you.
Professor X
Two things (and I would like the Professor’s thoughts): 1) We speak of the water increases with creatine as being “just” water, BUT IT IS INTRACELLULAR, not EXTRACELLULAR. It is EXTRAcellular water that leads to “smoothness” and edema in disease states). SO WHAT? 2)INTRACELLUAR INCREASES IN WATER LEAD TO OPTIMIZATION OF THE INTRACELLULAR ENVIRONMENT. In other words, the cells become primed to work at optimal efficency with the increase in water and energy substrate. HOWEVER, if you don’t provide the basics for the body FIRST (adequate MACRO’s, a good multi, and adequate BASELIINE hydration), creatine will be far from a magic pill.
Creatine itself comes in only two qualities either german or korean. German creatine is best. Micronised is more likely to be absorbed better. I think your better fullness relates more to the delivery system - I take it with alot of dextrose in the hope of the insulin spike increasing absorption (in spite of my creatine have some weak ass 5% glucose “delivery system”). I also take it post workout as I understand absorption is better during the golden hour. This weeks mag also says ALA with creatine helps.
Mufasa, I couldn’t have written that any better. Many people just getting into bodybuilding seem to skip directly overthe most important point…That if you are not gaining at all at first, that should be the first thing corrected before attempting to buy a “supplement”. Something is wrong in your training if you are only growing because you just started creatine.
Professor X