I got bad gas and a thinner wallet from dessicated liver.
I didn’t get gas but I did get a thinner wallet ha ha it’s the only supplement I found to ever make a difference with me .
Scott
Creatine did for me…temporarily. I did two short cycles of the stuff, six weeks each, didn’t exceed the recommended amount. First round, my PRs (bench, leg press) improved around weeks four or five. Second round, about a month later, same time frame slight improvement in the PRs but as I recall nowhere near the first. Waited two months, went for a third and nothing. I wasn’t willing to go for more product since it is a processed product, little history in terms of health risks so I stopped there.
Lots of creatine in steak and other meats. If you eat a decent amount of meat you’re getting lots of creatine anyway. The only people who need creatine supplementation are vegetarians/vegans, IMO.
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Not sure why vegans would need it except for temporary benefits if that is what you’re suggesting?
Creatine is produced by the human body… the kidneys, the liver and pancreas…using three amino acids: glycine, arginine and methionine. (All of these amino acids are found in plant foods – seeds, beans, etc.) The amino acids are then converted into creatine phosphate/ phosphocreatine which is stored in the skeletal muscles.
Well consuming creatine has benefits in the muscles as well as your brain. It’s very cheap and as previously stated can even be had through consumption of red meat. It’s certainly worthwhile.
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I added it recently. Almost done with my first jug. Didn’t notice anything, but it’s cheap, not hard to throw into my pre workout, and can’t hurt so 
I also eat a lot of meat as well, so probably getting plenty naturally.
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As cheap as it is, I feel like I may as well. I like any small additional benefit I can get!
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Actually, that is according to the supplement manufacturers regarding the additional consumption…if enough isn’t consumed through your diet, your body will produce amounts needed by your brain, etc. It all comes down to consuming enough of the right calories.
The other issue is you’re consuming a processed product – supplement – and what are the long term benefits? Its crazy the number of people I know that have been lifting for years and have religiously followed the supplement fads and are now having health issues to include cancer. I’m not vegan, but, I do read information published by vegan MDs along with Paleo and “balanced” …years ago Dr. John McDougall, MD (Internal Medicine), posted this piece on supplements along with the comment below:
Supplements
Nature’s foods are complete. To make a profit, manufacturers isolate out and concentrate nutrients, like vitamins and minerals, and sell them as expensive pills. The consequence is to create serious imbalances within the workings of your cells, and then diseases follow (including cancer, heart disease, and earlier death). Don’t risk your life and waste your money on these gimmicks. The only supplement I routinely recommend is vitamin B12.
Everyone needs to make their own decision, but, I cut my spend on supplements years ago as the majority provide little if any value. I’ve never seen a Mr. Olympia, NFL linebacker or Crossfit winner supplement his way to a title…the obvious answer has been, since the 50s, steroids.
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A number of studies have shown whey protein to help with immunity. Lots of research to support probiotics and Vitamin D supplementation (many Americans are deficient in Vitamin D which is really a hormone. Low Vitamin D has been noted in severe Covid cases too.). Vegan diets are typically deficient in Vitamin B. Fish oil has shown benefits too. However, with any supplement, you want to buy from a reputable company. Consumerlab dot com does their own independent research for quality, label ingredient claims, impurities (lead, etc.), etc. and I use them for guidance on my supplement purchases.
Labdoor is another independent lab site. Consumer lab has the most test results, but Labdoor has the advantage of being free.
I used creatine for something over a month and could swear it improved muscle recovery, but after a while it seemed to deplete my body of water to the point I feared toxins would not be properly flushed through my kidneys. I probably just needed to drink more water, although I did drink a lot of extra water. Presumably all the missing water was going to the muscles. I’m tempted to give it another try, but it seems now that carbs and water can load muscles just as well?
Bbf: A nice breakout of the protein theme, into general supplementation. You raise a very interesting question re possible long-term health risks - of which none have been proven, or?
As with any aspect of supplementation, everyone has their own opinions about it - heavily influenced by a commercial industry, selling placebo, I mean products, to the people. It’s just as easy to pick your favorites, and put them into hilight - because you/me/we believe in it.
Some supplements are quite interesting because of their “direct” effects, like creatine and cyclic dextrin/peptopro - also backed up by science for some years. Other supplements are also proven to be beneficial, like vitamin D - at least in normal dosages (and specifically when deficient). But there is a movement surrounding vitamin D, recommending it in dangerous dosages, promising godlike features (which it hasn’t). Well, I better stop my ranting here…
Re my collegue Dr McDougall, he seem to advocate the general use of vitamin B12, which should be all fine, right? In reality there is talk of a potential risk of cancer related to high-dose B12 supplementation in suspected individuals - directly related to it’s effect in the human body - the dividing of cells… Never heard of that, did you?
My guilty pleasure on all this, is I actually use some supplementation - but I strive to keep the dosages out of the high range, and maintain cycling periods.
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I stay away from high dosages as well. Cycling some things is not a bad idea either.
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You can suppress your immune system or keep it healthy. There’s lots of spin about ‘boosting’ your immunity with little or no proof. Follow the $$$.
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LOL, first time I’ve seen brewers yeast mentioned in a long time ! I remember it being talked about as the ‘perfect food’ back in the 80’s. I tried it of course and remember it tasted so bad you couldn’t mask the shitty taste with anything. Is it still around ?
When I was young my mom pushed brewers yeast and liver tablets on us and I remember making these cocktails of brewers yeast, liver all powder, protein powder, bananas , milk and other crap I can’t even remember. All it did was make me bloated and over weight. I still believe in liver tablets but they’ve got so expensive I don’t get them any more .
Scott
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I wish I’d stayed with the science vs. the muscle magazines when it comes to protein. Would have saved sooooooo much money over the years.
Think it was Dr. Barry Sears (the Zone Diet PhD) who first noted you can’t eat your way to “muscles” or hypertrophy. A few years later, Dr. Ron Rosedale (endocrinologist) confirmed Sears’ position and went on to state his concerns about protein and health, in particular hormones like IGF-1 and their affect on many cancers. Dr. David Ludwig, MD/PhD, head of Harvard’s Dep’t of Endocrinology advocates no more than 25% of your diet in protein including athletes.
And even if you don’t get a ‘complete’ protein on a particular day – which is another nonsensical term, since nearly all animal and plant foods have 100% of all amino acids (just in varying percentages) – the body’s amino acid pool will provide the amino acids needed as part of the body’s recycling process. Makes sense – our ancestors didn’t feed on “protein” 7 x 24…they had to forage and hunt for their meals – so we evolved to have a very efficient amino acid system.
But! If you want to age faster? Just eat more protein as it jacks up your mTOR.
How is this in any way unusual?
Like, if some guy down the street dropped from the same thing at the same age, would you reference that as a good reason to not live down the street?
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Not unusual and pretty simple, actually.
Vince and Stefansson have been cited in various circles as reasons why we should eat high fat, high protein diets. They’re healthy! You’ll live longer! The fitness gurus who don’t eat like Vince advocates actually live longer, don’t suffer from heart disease and TIAs like he did until passing away.
And the funny thing? The scapegoat for the low carb/paleo pundits has been Ancel Keys…who lived to 100…on a Mediterranean diet. Hmmmm…not Gironda’s miracle high protein/high fat diet.
Finally, yes these YT videos are made by a vegan but I think its a pretty fair representation of what isn’t unusual, but that the simple answer usually being the right one (aka Occam)…
It absolutely is not. I made it as far as his discussion of Poliquin before determining that the video creator has a biased agenda void of objective facts. Poliquin had a family of heart issues, lost multiple family members to heart attacks, and had a series of heart attacks himself in his 30s, which led him into advocating magnesium for heart health among other benefits.
The video guy’s complete omission of this context deliberately sets up a false narrative.
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