Thread: Lowdown on Creatine?

I've been reading about creatine on the web. Not sure how good the info is out there.

Can anyone summarize it's effects and side-affects (if any)? Is it a waste of money for beginners? Useful? What can I expect if I add it as a supplement?

TapRackBang!

Creatine, also known as methyl guanidine-acetic acid [NH2 - C(NH) - NCH2(COOH) - CH3], is an amino acid used by the body to provide energy. Creatine helps volumize muscle (makes muscles larger), increases strength and power, provides energy to the muscles and buffers lactic acid. Creatine is a naturally occurring substance in our bodies; the average person stores over 100 grams of it. Ninety-five percent of creatine is stored in the skeletal muscles, with the other five percent in the brain, heart and testes. When you consume creatine, it combines with phosphate in your body to create phosphocreatine, which in turn is stored in your muscle cells, waiting to be called upon for energy. When you expose your muscles to short, intense exercise, your muscles require a chemical energy called ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate), the quickest and best source of energy for your muscles. Unfortunately, ATP is in very short supply in your muscles. When you run out of ATP, you run out of gas.
This is where creatine comes in. When your body uses ATP for energy, it creates a by-product called ADP (Adenosine Diphosphate), which is useless to our body. Fortunately, the phosphocreatine stored in your muscles allows your body to convert the ADP back into ATP and be used for energy. So, to make a long story short, by increasing the amount of creatine you consume, you increase the amount of phosphocreatine in your muscles, which elevates the amount of ATP you have available for muscular energy. The increased level of ATP, in turn, allows you to increase your workload and sustain it over a longer period of time. Essentially, creatine helps you either lift heavier weight, complete more reps, or both. This elevated work capacity results in an increased ability to develop lean muscle tissue.