Hello everyone. Today’s article is a guest post from Karl Young who writes for Maxiraw.
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Creatine is a naturally occurring substance that is stored primarily in the muscles of the human body. Not only can it be produced by the body but it can also be obtained by consuming certain foods. In addition to this, creatine can also come from other sources that have been created in laboratories known as creatine supplements. These can be added to beverages or shakes with protein powder to help increase your creatine levels.
Creatine has several different uses but its primary use is for increasing muscle mass. Creatine has undergone numerous studies to assess its effectiveness at helping building people build muscle mass and the results have shown that it is generally quite effective at improving overall levels of muscle mass in healthy people. This is especially true for athletes or those who participate in bodybuilding. Some older people also use creatine to improve their muscle mass. However, studies have shown that in people aged 60 and over, creatine loses its effectiveness.
Creatine is permitted for use by several sporting associations such as the International Olympic Committee. Despite this, many universities will not supply creatine to their athletes using university funds. However, there are no restrictions on student athletes purchasing and using their own creatine.
When purchasing creatine supplements, one popular form of creatine is known as creatine monohydrate. This variety of creatine is best purchased in a powder form. Creatine monohydrate supplements found as powders contain 99.9% creatine. When taking creatine monohydrate supplements, only a small amount is needed each day and exceeding the recommend daily amounts can actually hinder your fitness goals. Therefore, it is very important to follow the directions given.
Creatine supplements can be found in various forms. Two of the more popular forms include tablets and powders. However, creatine can also be found in liquid form, capsule form or even already mixed into consumable food products such as energy bars and chews. Of all the forms of creatine, powders are the most commonly found. The reason for this is that the powder form is actually much easier to digest. However, there is no evidence to suggest that these varying forms of creatine possess different levels of effectiveness.
What seems to be of a factor in effectiveness is the specific formulation of the creatine. There are a number of different ones that can be purchased but of all of them, the most beneficial is creatine monohydrate. All the major brands sell creatine in this form including Maxiraw creatine monohydrate.
Amino acids make up creatine which is found in proteins and creatine can also be mixed with protein powder to optimize the results. Simple carbohydrates including fructose and glucose can also be taken with creatine to make the absorption occur more quickly and more effectively. Caffeine however should not be consumed with creatine supplements. This can actually prevent the supplement from working properly.