Creatine: Beyond the
Basics
Q. Is there a difference between
types of creatines that are currently
available?
- A. As some people are aware, you can
now find creatine on the market in three
forms: phosphate, citrate, and
monohydrate. My feeling is that the
phosphate variety is not easily absorbed
by the body and for this reason will not
yield effective and substantial results.
The citrate variety seemed to be
catching on for a time, but again the
research is sketchy here. In fact,
nearly all the positive clinical studies
that have been done on creatine have
utilized the monohydrate form, and this
is the only form that I currently
recommend.
-
Q. Should you use creatine
monohydrate and an ECA Stack together?
- A. Depending on your training and
physique goals, doing so may be
counterproductive. You see, one of the
primary ways creatine works is by
loading the muscles with water—this is
why consuming large amounts of water is
such a critical part of effective
creatine supplementation. On the other
hand, the caffeine included in the
typical ECA Stack has a diuretic
effect—it draws water out of the muscles
and the body. So if you take your
creatine simultaneous with your ECA
Stack, or with a cup of coffee for that
matter, you’ll tend to cancel out the
cell-volumizing effects of the creatine.
-
Q. Is all creatine monohydrate
alike, or are the name brands really
better?
- A. There’s a ton of cheap, generic
creatine monohydrate on the market
(especially on the web), but I’m
convinced that most of it is of
significantly lower quality than the
reputable brand name versions.
Supplement companies and distributors in
the U.S. currently get their raw
creatine from two primary sources: China
and Germany. The creatine that comes in
from China is almost always less
expensive, but it’s also much more
likely to be impure. Typically, it’ll be
cut with the complex carb maltodextrin.
This is the dirt cheap “creatine” that
many wholesalers offer. No wonder some
people don’t see any results. Reputable
creatine suppliers prefer the German
version, which is a bit more expensive
but tests out at a significantly higher
level of quality. With creatine you
really do get what you pay for.
-
Q. Is micronized creatine just hype
or is it really better?
- A. Micronized creatine is very
interesting. Basically, it’s produced
through a process that finely grinds or
“micronizes” the creatine particles
themselves into particles that are 10,
15, even 20 times smaller than regular
creatine particles. There’s no doubt
that micronized creatine dissolves
better in liquid—this just makes sense.
It’s also theorized that the smaller
particle size leads to easier and faster
digestion and uptake into the blood.
Individuals who report stomach upset
with regular creatine intake almost
always find the problem alleviated by
switching to the micronized version.
Many of the top creatine monohydrate
products on the market—including
AST’s Creatine HSC—have already
switched to using micronized particles.
This trend is likely to continue and
accelerate in the near future.
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