All About Creatine And The Amazing Health Benefits

Creatine is an organic acid that helps us strengthen and develop muscles. It is derived from animal protein or from supplements if we do not eat meat, and the health benefits are many.

We really need to know what purpose this amino acid has in our body so that we can decide if we should take it for a while or not.

Discover what creatine is in this article, what properties it has and how we should take it to get the most out of it.

What is creatine?

Creatine is an organic acid produced by our liver from three amino acids: arginine, glycine and methionine.

Creatine is stored in muscle fibers until it is released as energy through physical exertion, especially if the workout is short but intense. Although the body already produces creatine, we can improve the positive effect it has on the muscles if we take it as a supplement.

The health benefits

Creatine has the following benefits for our health:

• It increases the endurance of the muscles
• We feel greater strength
• It increases muscle mass

It is therefore a supplement that can be very beneficial for athletes who want to gain muscle mass and volume, but also for those who want to improve body shape, that is, define the muscles and reduce uncontrollable fat.

Are any foods rich in creatine?

It should be noted that you can not find creatine in foods of plant-based origin, so vegetarians should therefore also consider taking it as an occasional supplement.

The foods that are richest in creatine are the following, in order of highest to lowest amount:

• Herring
• Veal
• Salmon
• Tuna
• Rabbit
• Chicken
• Cod

However, it must be noted that we must consume more than a kilo of herring to get 5 grams of creatine (recommended daily amount) .

In addition, a large part of this nutrient is lost during cooking. For this reason, we recommend taking a supplement if you want to increase your creatine intake.

The health benefits of creatine: creatine supplementation

• The general recommendation is 5 g of creatine per day divided into several doses. A more precise pattern, however, would be to consume 1 gram per 10 kg of body weight. That is, a person of 60 kg will need 6 g daily.

• After a month of supplementation, we can rest for two weeks and repeat the process.
• We can take creatine with water or mix in our shakes. If we are going to exercise that day, we should take it before or after the session to improve the positive effects.
• By taking creatine, we increase hydration at the intracellular level, so we must also be aware of drinking more water, especially outside of meals and while engaging in physical activity. We have to drink at least one and a half liters of water every day, and 2 liters on hot days, or if we sweat.
• It is important to clarify that creatine only retains fluids at the intracellular level, and that it has no adverse effect on kidney function.

Other tips for building muscle

Maybe we have decided to increase or define our muscles or improve our body shape, or maybe we have started an exercise routine and want an extra contribution of energy.

We can also follow these simple and effective tips that will complement the function of the dietary supplement:

• Reduce the consumption of harmful fats : Pastries, ready meals, fried foods, margarine, ice cream, sweets, low quality oils, snacks, etc.
• Increase healthy fat intake : good olive and coconut oil, nuts, seeds, avocado, clarified butter or ghee, egg yolk, cold water fish, etc.

• Eat protein at every meal and combine animal protein (meat, fish, eggs, dairy) with vegetables (legumes, nuts and seeds, whole grains such as quinoa or millet).
• Eat some of the protein within 40 minutes of physical exercise. At that time, we should also take the corresponding dose of creatine.
• Perform toning exercises with weights or elements that help us strengthen the muscles (bands, weight balls or our own body weight). To begin with, we can start with two or three sessions per week and switch between different muscles every day. After three months, we can reduce the number of sessions to one or two sessions per week as a maintenance, depending on the results we achieve.
• We recommend vegan protein shakes that are sold in powder form, made with foods such as peas, hemp or brown rice. We can combine them with fruit and vegetable drinks.