What is creatine monohydrate?
Creatine monohydrate is one of the supplements with the most evidence confirming its effects, benefits and functions. Creatine is composed of a set of 3 amino acids which are L-Arginine, L-Methionine and Glycine. Supplementing with creatine causes our body to increase intracellular reserves, improving mental and physical performance.
Creatine is stored in the form of phosphocreatine, and contributes to energy production and ATP regeneration. Increasing our free creatine levels facilitates the replenishment of phosphocreatine. Among the different types of creatine, monohydrate is the most popular and studied. It is composed of 88% creatine and 12% water.
Among the main functions of creatine monohydrate, it significantly increases physical performance, helps maintain energy levels and postpones the feeling of fatigue. It is a supplement that acts by saturation.
Creatine monohydrate is one of the most studied supplements: its benefits and effectiveness have been confirmed. It is one of the must-haves for all those in the world of fitness and training.
What is creatine monohydrate for?
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- It helps to improve sporting performance in different strength and power disciplines.
- It speeds up recovery time between sets of exercises.
- It improves muscle contraction-relaxation.
- Contributes to increasing the time of intense exercise. Muscle and nerve cells will increase their energy resynthesis capacity.
- Provides a higher degree of cellular hydration, making the muscle mass look more swollen and voluminous. Increases fluid retention at the muscular level.
- Improves muscle permeability and amino acid absorption.
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- Delays the onset of muscle fatigue and tiredness.
- Can improve cognitive capacity as a small proportion of creatine, between 5% and 10%, is stored in the brain.
- Delays the onset of lactic acid.
- Promotes muscle mass gain.
How to take creatine monohydrate?
- The dose of creatine for each person must be calculated individually as the amount to be taken is different depending mainly on body weight. The dosage is 0.1 grams per kilogram.
- Example: if your weight is 75kg, the amount per intake will be 7.5 grams. This amount will be taken constantly, if you decide not to do a loading and maintenance phase.
- It is not necessary to rest: it is advisable to take it on training days and rest days in order to notice its effects.
Doing loading and unloading phases of creatine is a protocol that has been used for many years, although nowadays, it is not necessary to notice the same effects. The protocol would be as follows:
- Loading phase: this is carried out over a period of 5 to 7 days. During the day, we divide it into 4 intakes of 5 grams each.
- Maintenance phase: 0.1 g per kg of body weight.
When to take creatine monohydrate?
Creatine can be taken at any time of the day, as it acts by saturation, the time of intake is not very important.
A good time to take it would be after training, as this is the point at which the muscle cells will have exhausted their reserves.
