[rhodey]

[Cr33pin]

I just started taking my Creatine again Monday. I been off it for over a year... I couldnt find a expiration date on it. Don't know if it goes bad or not. Its like kind of hard but once you break it up with a scoop its just like normal.

I remember when I first started taking creatine I felt like it made my dick bigger.... no joke. I posted something about it on here years ago (I'm not trying to go back and find it)

[Emancipator]

I use creatine for the gym and as a nootropic daily for several months now.

Since I've started I've noticed two things:
1) Mentally clearer
2) Helped me gain an additional 20 lbs

[Valentine]

It's great for what it's supposed to do which is increase physical endurance (I notice this especially during long sparring sessions). As with all supplement trials, measure your performance with and without to see if there's a significant benefit for you (my lifts slightly improved above what could be accounted for by level of growth from gym alone).

[Nascimento]

I've been training for a few years now and haven't supplemented with creatine. The only supplements I've used are protein powders, vitamins, fish oils, zinc and the like. Never anything fully geared to workout performance.

I wouldn't mind the performance benefits of creatine. However, I'm not fully sure about the aesthetic benefits.

Correct me if I am wrong, but creatine will fill up your muscles with more water. But does this give you a bloated look or a more muscled look? Do you need to be a low digit body fat to make most use of this? I'm currently slowly cutting down my body fat digits from high to low teens. I'm not sure if creatine is ideal at this point.

Are these aesthetic changes only evident in the gym? Will I only see increased muscle size due to the creatine during the pump while working out, or will this be a permanent effect while I am rest as well?

I like to experiment and see how my own body reacts, so I'm interested in this. Just hoping to get some facts straight.

[StrikeBack]

Creatine is one of the few supps that works and is well researched.

What it does is to give you more energy to do a few more work sets i.e train harder. It doesn't make you directly stronger or bigger, but it improves your work capacity so if you utilise that increase effectively, you'll get results. If you use the extra energy on bullshit exercises then you won't see any difference.

[Emancipator]

@nascimento

Since I began using Creatine for it's physical and mental benefits I've noticed compared to my pre-creatine pictures that my body overall is indeed more bloated and less aesthetically pleasing. Not to mention the boost it gave me cause some 12 years a slaves level stretch marks over my body.

Note opinions above are anecdotal of course.

[Laurifer]

(01-16-2014 12:21 AM)Emancipator Wrote:  

@nascimento

Since I began using Creatine for it's physical and mental benefits I've noticed compared to my pre-creatine pictures that my body overall is indeed more bloated and less aesthetically pleasing. Not to mention the boost it gave me cause some 12 years a slaves level stretch marks over my body.

Note opinions above are anecdotal of course.

This. After taking creatine daily for quite a few weeks this happened to me as well. It helped with work since I was at labor intensive job and wasn't able to work out as often as I liked.

But the one day I did go to a real gym and hit the weights hard, rather than my weights in my basement, good god. Every muscle in my upper body looked like someone stuck a hose in it and filled them up like water balloons. I had a bizarre, bloated, and balloon like look to my muscles that I didn't like. Maybe this was due from weeks of loading creatine into my system without working out often enough. I've been of off it ever since.

I was taking creatine monohydrate, which i was told gives the user the more bloated look over the other forms of creatine.

However, I didn't mind the look it gave me when I wasn't pumped up from having just been at the gym. My body overall seemed to look more built. I may start taking it again.

[The Beast1]

Creatine has been a god send in my weight training regimen.

I use some micronized creatine from bodybuilding.com's store. I highly recommend it along with protein as the only supplements that are 100% useful.

Creatine makes me thirsty as a work house though. I always wondered how the gym guys would drink 1 to 2 gallons of water. Now I know. The stuff makes you able and want to consume at least one gallon.

[Nascimento]

I'm not sure I want a bloated look, especially considering I'm not lean to the core. Skinnier guys would probably benefit much more from creatine, as I understand.

But maybe it's not so bad, unless you are actually on a pump during the workout?

Correct me if I'm wrong, I think the best option might be for me to get down to ~12-13% body fat before experimenting with it.

[The Beast1]

(01-16-2014 09:02 AM)Nascimento Wrote:  

I'm not sure I want a bloated look, especially considering I'm not lean to the core. Skinnier guys would probably benefit much more from creatine, as I understand.

But maybe it's not so bad, unless you are actually on a pump during the workout?

Correct me if I'm wrong, I think the best option might be for me to get down to ~12-13% body fat before experimenting with it.

It's not bloat per say. You get more power per push. I can break through my mental plateaus faster.

I'd give it a shoot for 1 month. You'd be surprised how effective it is.

[Bad Hussar]

I take Creatine, Gaba and DAA daily and work out 4 or 5 days a week. Since I am naturally (genetically) slim I don't find Creatine causes a bloated/ridiculous appearance. I'd say it helps (together with the other two) mentaly and physically. Mentally in that I am ridiculously calm/centered/ whatever you want to call it throughout the day. Maybe too much so. Physically I think the creatine helps me look not too slim.

[Nascimento]

I got allmax 400 g, I'm going to experiment with it for the time being. I'm taking 5g a day as recommended.

Is there a way to improve the solubility? I mix it with a full glass of water but it's still been really difficult to completely mix it..there's always some powder left at the bottom.

[kosko]

(01-17-2014 05:21 PM)Nascimento Wrote:  

I got allmax 400 g, I'm going to experiment with it for the time being. I'm taking 5g a day as recommended.

Is there a way to improve the solubility? I mix it with a full glass of water but it's still been really difficult to completely mix it..there's always some powder left at the bottom.

The stuff is hard to break down in liquids. Your best bet is to mix it with pulp orange juice which will also give you the carb hit needed for quick absorption.

Or just do it old school and pop the scoop in your mouth and down it with water/juice. This method is the only way you know your getting it all in.

[Swedreams]

For me it definitely made me look bigger since you retain more water in the muscles.

Although, if baldness runs in your family, it can speed up the process (raises DHT levels http://examine.com/faq/does-creatine-cau...ess.html).
For that reason it's not worth the marginal extra effect it gives me at the gym.

[Nascimento]

I've been taking it in straight as a powder, chased by water. I don't mind the pasty taste. After experimenting with ACV nothing is as bad.

From what I've read about in this thread here, creatine should be taken when you have an insulin spike for best results. Not a bad idea to mix it with some juice or sugary drink. But correct me if I'm wrong, taking it after a workout would have the same effect? Since your insulin is spiked up as well, so it's not necessary to take it with some carbs?

[Ziltoid]

(01-23-2014 11:00 PM)Nascimento Wrote:  

I've been taking it in straight as a powder, chased by water. I don't mind the pasty taste. After experimenting with ACV nothing is as bad.

From what I've read about in this thread here, creatine should be taken when you have an insulin spike for best results. Not a bad idea to mix it with some juice or sugary drink. But correct me if I'm wrong, taking it after a workout would have the same effect? Since your insulin is spiked up as well, so it's not necessary to take it with some carbs?

Because creatine doesn't have any acute effects (it builds up in your body after weeks and weeks of taking it) it doesn't really matter when you take it, do whatever is the most convenient for you.

If you want to make a big difference in the efficiency of your creatine doses, stop taking the powder the way you do. Stir it into a hot liquid, could be hot water, coffee, tea, cocoa, soup, whatever... Creatine that isn't solved into water is just pooped out.

[Benoit]

(01-23-2014 11:30 PM)Ziltoid Wrote:  

If you want to make a big difference in the efficiency of your creatine doses, stop taking the powder the way you do. Stir it into a hot liquid, could be hot water, coffee, tea, cocoa, soup, whatever... Creatine that isn't solved into water is just pooped out.

Yeah, here's a simple video that shows how much more effective mixing it with warm water is:

Just get creatine monohydrate, don't waste your money buying more expensive versions unless you have a specific need for them.

I load creatine at 10g/day for 2 weeks, then 5g/day maintenance. You don't need to do a loading period, it just speeds up the rate of muscle saturation and means the effects appear sooner.

Take it whenever you want but have something to eat at the same time. There's a chance of some minor stomach upset for the first couple of days but that should go away.

If you respond to creatine you will notice it by the end of week 3. For me, I think of it as "one notch stronger" - not a massive strength boost, just feels like the weights are slightly lighter.

Creatine won't bloat you up, but it will 'soften' you due to the water retention. So depending on how your body stores water you could notice less midsection definition but larger chest, back and shoulders. That matches what I've experienced.

[FrenchCanadian]

I'm 6'3, 190lbs, I play many sports (competitive cycling, soccer, basketball)
I have an athletic body, mostly because of the 5-6 hours of cycling I do every week and the soccer.
I've never been to a gym, as I never found the need for it. My upper body strength isnt all that amazing but Id still say Im pretty muscular for a guy my height.

That being said, I have a lot of buddies who work out, some who have worked out then stopped ect... nothing surprising

I have a few friends who were Creatine users, and today look nothing short of FAT.
Granted their usage might not of been optimal or whatever but I am throwing this out there.
If you plan on bulking up and stopping your workout after, watch ya creatine levels.
The once semi defined chest are now man tits, and although they gained weight, they look horrible.
You see them and you think ; Gym has been's. (and they are like 26-27)

[Benoit]

(01-24-2014 10:57 AM)FrenchCanadian Wrote:  

I have a few friends who were Creatine users, and today look nothing short of FAT.
Granted their usage might not of been optimal or whatever but I am throwing this out there.
If you plan on bulking up and stopping your workout after, watch ya creatine levels.
The once semi defined chest are now man tits, and although they gained weight, they look horrible.
You see them and you think ; Gym has been's. (and they are like 26-27)

That sounds like food-induced weight gain.

http://examine.com/supplements/Creatine/

Quote:

I honestly see no reason why somebody shouldn't supplement creatine, nor do I see any logical basis for the seeming 'fear' of this compound in society.
It's safe, it's healthy, it's cheap, and for most people, it just works. Get some Creatine Monohydrate, take 5g a day, and you're good to go.

Is creatine safe?
Yes.

[Ziltoid]

"Creatine users", . It's an amino acid that everyone eats all the time, found in things like beef, chicken... It's not some exotic pharmaceutical.

And it certainly won't make you fat.

[bodmon]

the latest I've heard on it from the fitness sources I follow is that while it 'works' it is largely overrated, giving you just a 1-2% boost in performance. if you want anything more than this marginal benefit, you'd better start juicing.

[Cr33pin]

Bruh I missed my workout and didn't have any creatine yesterday and today I woke up all skinny like I been smoking crack for months...... RIP Gainz

Ok so maybe a slight exaggeration, however for close to two weeks I haven't really been working out or taking my creatine and I am noticeably smaller. I do look a little more ripped which is cool but I was still pretty ripped on the "tine" (thats street code for creatine) Now my shirts even fit different. There is no doubt in my mind now that the tine works. Come Monday its back to the gym and back on that sweet sweet tine.

[RexImperator]

It moves more fluid into the muscles, as does working out itself, so yeah, they will shrink.

If you want to puff up, just do a high rep workout with lots of upper body and then eat a bunch of carbs...you'll feel hyooooge for a little while anyway.

[not_dead_yet]

Is there any advantage to taking baking soda with creatine?