Hey yall, I have tried creatine before and never noticed any of the beneficial effects, such as the incresed “fullness” in the muscles, or any of the strength gains. Just really watery guts, and a bloated feeling.
I tried the monohydrate from GNC (got nuthin cheap) and also the “adenergy” from optimum, as well as trying ethyl ester. My question is this? Is there really a such thing as a “non-responder” or is it just bad absorbtion from crappy creatine.
I ask because in light of all of the benifits of creatine, I have decided to give it another try, with biotests creatine, which is creapure, which I understand is really as good as it gets.
Any thoughts, or recommendations. I hate to miss the boat on the most accepted suppliment in history!
What exactly are you asking? Did you already order and are asking for what we think it will do, or are you asking if you should order it?
I would assume that the GNC stuff you got was cheap crap with fillers and such, and I wouldn’t think the other products were much better.
If you haven’t already ordered, give the creatine here a shot, it should prove to be benneficial, or at least if it isn’t, you shouldn’t get any negative side-effects like bloating. 12 bucks for a supplement that will last you several months is CHEAP, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t try it.
I would recomend loading it personally, as you’ll likely see more changes in that week and know if it’s working for you.
How’s your training going by the way? Have you found any solutions?
It can be largely dependent on the creatine you already get in your diet (i.e. from red meat). This is why vegetarians tend to benefit greatly from supplementation, IIRC. Just a thought.
I took creatine for a while, didn’t seem to gain any benefits, but thats just me. It was the GNC stuff though, I am thinking about trying Biotest creatine.
Hey yall, sorry for not being able to get back here for a while. I already ordered some of the monohydrate from here, hoping it was just junk stuff from gnc. I figured what the heck, its cheap enough to give it a decent shot, right?
As to the training, it is still going. I am still about half as strong as I want, or would expect to be, but what the hell, if this were easy then everyone would be strong, and big, huh?
The doc now has me taking .4mg of the GH per day, and the total test is still at 325, but hes a lot happier with that level than I am, so what am I gonna do? Choke him till he gives me a script?(lol)
All I can do, is realize that we all have our own hurdles to jump, and keep lifting. Sooner or later its gotta come together. Thanks yall
I would assume that the GNC stuff you got was cheap crap with fillers and such[/quote]
When you assume things like that you make an ass out of yourself.
You’re obviously someone with very little supplement knowledge. What kind of fillers would they put in exactly?
One day one person on here says they don’t like GNC, fine. Then all of a sudden you have all these self proclaimed experts saying, “yeah man, GNC is crap with fillers and such”.
Get a mind of your own and do some of your own research!!
The research I have done has led me to believe that “creapure”, which is the type, or brand of the creatine that is in the Biotest product, is reliable as far as its purity, and potentcy. From all the material I can find on it (Berardi, Brink, Barr, Aaxis labs, etc.) it is recognized as the “standard” as far as creatine quality.
Thats why I decided to give it a go. A lot of sources also seem to point towards the potency of German manufactured creatine, as opposed to U.S. made, or of course Chinese. Also an indicator to me.
I just figured Id give it one last shot in hopes that I could reap some of the benefits of creatine, before giving up on it.
As another issue, I have also improved my overall diet considerably, though, at 2000-2500 kcal/day, at 5’11" and 165, I probably need to up it still more. I find that Im not gaining as much lbm, as I would want, and tend towards a propensity to smooth out, and soften up. Im all for getting some meat on me, but I would prefer to add the inches to the arms, chest, and etc. rather than just the waist. Stronger is great, but not at the cost of going all doughy to get there.
Unfortunatly for you, creatine monohydrate by any other name is still creatine monohydrate. It will still have the same problems with absorption and it will still break down into creatinine.
Just make sure you do a week of loading and use something like dextrose to increase absorbtion…or Vitargo which is even better.
I’ve used it on and off for years, mainly in the hope that it was doing something that I wasn’t perceptive enough to notice. I’ve tried it all: loading, not loading, micronized, effervescent, plain powder, etc. I never noticed one iota of change, positive or negative from it. No increase in size, strength, “fullness,” hardness, look, etc. Nada.
I just seem to pretty much be a non-responder to almost all “muscle-building” supplements. Overall changes in diet are the only things that actually change anything for me.
[quote]pwrhngry wrote:
Is there really a such thing as a “non-responder” [/quote]
Yes. Some people simply will not take up and store high levels of creatine, even with supplementation. It isn’t common, but it does happen. As another poster mentioned, if you’re already eating a lot of red meat, you could already be “topped off,” so to speak.
I would assume that the GNC stuff you got was cheap crap with fillers and such
When you assume things like that you make an ass out of yourself.
You’re obviously someone with very little supplement knowledge. What kind of fillers would they put in exactly?
One day one person on here says they don’t like GNC, fine. Then all of a sudden you have all these self proclaimed experts saying, “yeah man, GNC is crap with fillers and such”.
Get a mind of your own and do some of your own research!!
[/quote]
Too bad you look like a prick when GNC sells mostly Chinese creatine.
I would assume that the GNC stuff you got was cheap crap with fillers and such
When you assume things like that you make an ass out of yourself.
You’re obviously someone with very little supplement knowledge. What kind of fillers would they put in exactly?
One day one person on here says they don’t like GNC, fine. Then all of a sudden you have all these self proclaimed experts saying, “yeah man, GNC is crap with fillers and such”.
Get a mind of your own and do some of your own research!!
[/quote]
When he says fillers he may be referring to many companies that throw some carbs and sugars in their creatine and then charge an arm and a leg for their “advanced” delivery system.
As far as GNC goes (I see you’re an associate) some of their products may be okay, but I will shop elsewhere for most. For instance I would buy Metabolic Drive before I purchased any GNC protein which would probably be only mid grade whey concentrate.
When I was new to the game I bought some items both GNC and non GNC from there until I found I was paying sometimes nearly fifty percent more then I found the same product elsewhere. So, after doing research, I bought my products elsewhere.
I buy the gnc protein powder when its on sale. If it gets around 30 cents a scoop I pick up a couple of tubs. I also buy fish oil from them.
GNC’s ZMA is junk, it contains calcium. I looked at animal pak and greens plus at gnc, and both were over 40 dollars, when they can be had for about 20 online.
While I was recently taking creatine I increased from about 178 to about 185 pounds, much of it in muscle.
However, at that same time I was also lifting hard, consistanly and eating a lot of healthy food.
When one is motivated to take creatine daily, one is usually at the same time motivated to have a good workout and eating schedule. So it is difficult to say how much of the gain is due to creatine and how much is the result of lifting & eating regular food.
[quote]GathCity wrote:
When you assume things like that you make an ass out of yourself.
You’re obviously someone with very little supplement knowledge. What kind of fillers would they put in exactly?
One day one person on here says they don’t like GNC, fine. Then all of a sudden you have all these self proclaimed experts saying, “yeah man, GNC is crap with fillers and such”.
Get a mind of your own and do some of your own research!![/quote]
I understand why you feel the need to defend GNC, but really the majority of people on here have done their own “research” by buying their products over time. I have spent plenty of money there, and never will again. Don’t confuse overpriced with crap though. Most people would say that GNC is overpriced while only some of the products are crap- not all. They do sell some decent stuff.
This same argument can be said for most supplement stores. It’s an unfortunate thing for retailers that almost every thing is cheaper online. So naturally they appear overpriced. Difference here is GNC is overpriced, even among it’s retail competition.
Well, so far I am about a week into supplimenting with the creatine from Biotest. I havnt noticed much but of coursedont expect to just yet. I decided to just go straight into a maintenance type schedule, and use 5gm in my pwo shake.
Havnt had any of the upset, or bloating. I figure for the low cost, and for the many effects that occur unseen (cognitive improvement, insulin sensitivity, etc) its a good insurance policy, whether or not I notice any “gains” from it. Kind of just like fish oil in that respect. I dont really “feel” a lot from taking it, but given the stuff that it does inside there, its a good bet.
[quote]pwrhngry wrote:
Well, so far I am about a week into supplimenting with the creatine from Biotest. I havnt noticed much but of coursedont expect to just yet. I decided to just go straight into a maintenance type schedule, and use 5gm in my pwo shake.
Havnt had any of the upset, or bloating. I figure for the low cost, and for the many effects that occur unseen (cognitive improvement, insulin sensitivity, etc) its a good insurance policy, whether or not I notice any “gains” from it. Kind of just like fish oil in that respect. I dont really “feel” a lot from taking it, but given the stuff that it does inside there, its a good bet.[/quote]
That is pretty much how I look at it. I have never had an overwhelming feeling or a drastic gain I couldn’t attribute to my overall program with Creatine. I just believe enough in the data on the positive aspects of it.
BTW: Loading has been discussed in detail and has been pretty much concluded to be unnessesary.[/quote]
If it’s not necessary, how come the Biotest Creatine says to load for 5 days on the label?
As for being a non-responder, I’ve always felt the same way. I don’t gain any weight from it filling my muscles like some people claim, and I’ve never gotten better pumps because of it or more energy.
But I’ve begun taking it again (finishing up some GNC pure creatine monohydrate and then switching to Biotest’s), and I’m hoping it has some benefits in the long term, even if I don’t “see” or “feel” the differences.
Even if you don’t think you’re responding, there’s no reason not to take it unless you’re dirt poor and have to choose between food and supps. I believe there are benefits other than those related to muscle, such as enhanced brain function. I paid, what, $13 some time last semester for Biotest’s creatine, and I still have a fair amount left. The price is so marginal it might as well be free.
