Advice on creatine

[spach23]

I recently got back to the gym after taking some time off for some injuries.  I have made some solid gains in the past 3 months and am ready to step it up a notch. I was curious what brands of creatine you guys like. I haven't tried any in the past 10 years or so and am out of the loop on what is hot right now. Thanks!

[Roger Bacon]

whitewidow recently informed me that herring is the best natural source of creatine.

[Dicki_Nurmom]

brands are irrelevant... what you need is 100% pure monohydrate sourced from canada/us/australia/etc... avoid products from no name sources or anything from asia and south america

the only real fear is any levels of toxic metals

[Montague]

what you need is 100% pure monohydrate...

Concur.
Based on the reading I've done, I personally believe there is no need to use "advanced" form creatine products. Most are outrageously and unnecessarily expensive. I still get favorable results with ordinary monohydrate. You can purchase this form quite cheaply from reputable brands like AST, Universal Nutrition, NOW, Optimum Nutrition, etc.

I've tried others "formulas" that contain carbs, Arginine, ALA, etc., and have noticed no benefit over mono.

[Dicki_Nurmom]

Concur.
Based on the reading I've done, I personally believe there is no need to use "advanced" form creatine products. Most are outrageously and unnecessarily expensive. I still get favorable results with ordinary monohydrate. You can purchase this form quite cheaply from reputable brands like AST, Universal Nutrition, NOW, Optimum Nutrition, etc.

I've tried others "formulas" that contain carbs, Arginine, ALA, etc., and have noticed no benefit over mono.

check the seller's balance sheet to see the benefits

[spach23]

Thanks for the advice guys!

[MCWAY]

Thanks for the advice guys!

GNC is marking down it's creatine (the flavored kind) for clearance. Get that, some cheap ALA (also from GNC) and some Gatorade and.... VOILA!!! CELL-TECH for months for $10, give or take a couple dollars.

[Mega Man]

What you want is Germany brand creatine monohydrate which is creapure. Creapure is the only real German pharmaceutical grade creatine monohydrate. Plus you want it Micronizedto ddissolve better.

Theonly product that Iis 100% Micronized creapure brand creatine monohydrate is the one by optimum nutition.  It's like 23 bucks for 1000 grams.

http://m.gnc.com/Optimum-Nutrition-Micronized-Creatine-Powder/product.jsp?productId=3687539

The trick is to put it in a clear glass of water and stir it the best you can. Than put it in the microwave for 2 minutes. It will become realy hot but not boiling.  Then stir it and it will completely dissolve instantly.  Than add icecube till its cool enough to drink.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=SqY_JtJazyw

[Roger Bacon]

What you want is Germany brand creatine monohydrate which is creapure. Creapure is the only real German pharmaceutical grade creatine monohydrate. Plus you want it Micronizedto ddissolve better.

Theonly product that Iis 100% Micronized creapure brand creatine monohydrate is the one by optimum nutition.  It's like 23 bucks for 1000 grams.

http://m.gnc.com/Optimum-Nutrition-Micronized-Creatine-Powder/product.jsp?productId=3687539

The trick is to put it in a clear glass of water and stir it the best you can. Than put it in the microwave for 2 minutes. It will become realy hot but not boiling.  Then stir it and it will completely dissolve instantly.  Than add icecube till its cool enough to drink.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=SqY_JtJazyw

Does it work better if it's more dissolved?

My bb.com creatine never dissolves at all. I have to stir/shake between every drink I take.

[Montague]

What you want is Germany brand creatine monohydrate which is creapure. Creapure is the only real German pharmaceutical grade creatine monohydrate. Plus you want it Micronizedto ddissolve better.

Theonly product that Iis 100% Micronized creapure brand creatine monohydrate is the one by optimum nutition.  It's like 23 bucks for 1000 grams.

http://m.gnc.com/Optimum-Nutrition-Micronized-Creatine-Powder/product.jsp?productId=3687539

The trick is to put it in a clear glass of water and stir it the best you can. Than put it in the microwave for 2 minutes. It will become realy hot but not boiling.  Then stir it and it will completely dissolve instantly.  Than add icecube till its cool enough to drink.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=SqY_JtJazyw

I've come across "reports" that creatine mixed in warm water aids absorption. I never researched it, but haven't dismissed it as a marketing ploy, either, since warming water is not a sellable gimmick.

[Montague]

What I've been doing lately, is drinking my creatine before training. I wait about 20-30 mins and then drink about 40 grams of dextrose. My rationale is that creatine and dextrose have different transit times through digestion, with creatine taking longer.

The insulin spike is desirable for cellular "delivery," and taking the creatine and carbs together may cause a premature spike - before the creatine is in circulation. I don't have exact numbers for the absorption times, so this is mostly a shoot from the hip kind of thing. A couple of years ago, I discussed this method with Donkey Kong, who's done plenty of his own reading on the matter.

Anyway, this is what I've been doing with favorable results!

[spach23]

I ended up buying the micronized creatine from optimum nutrition, 2000 grams for $33 from the dpsnutrition site. I will let you all know how it goes. I have been reading that other users are having mixing issues so I will try some of your ideas if that's the case.

[Mega Man]

I've come across "reports" that creatine mixed in warm water aids absorption. I never researched it, but haven't dismissed it as a marketing ploy, either, since warming water is not a sellable gimmick.

It's not so much that it aids in absorption....but it helps it disolves into the water better. Basically undisclosed creatine gets eliminated from the body. Dissolving it in warm water completely disolves it. I can even disolves 10 grams in one glass of warm water....That's crazy. I put the creatine in the water stir it...Thenmmicrowave it for 2 minutes....Thenstir Iit until completely dissolved.

[Montague]

It's not so much that it aids in absorption....but it helps it disolves into the water better. Basically undisclosed creatine gets eliminated from the body. Dissolving it in warm water completely disolves it.

Which, in turn, improves absorption in the body.

[Mega Man]

Which, in turn, improves absorption in the body.

true...we're on the same page

[Mega Man]

Another thing....I. recent years there'sbeen aa lotof bbrown science and a couple bs study that say you don'tneed to load.

That's bull....I've been taking creatine since I was 15...I'm 30 now. When I take creatine people think I'm juicing. I load it 20 grams a day until I get my first cramp...Then drop Iit Down. To 5 grams per day for a month...Then load it again until I get another cramp. Then drop it back to 5 grams. I get steroid like gain s because I saturate my muscles to the fullest. That's what it takes.

[Roger Bacon]

Another thing....I. recent years there'sbeen aa lotof bbrown science and a couple bs study that say you don'tneed to load.

That's bull....I've been taking creatine since I was 15...I'm 30 now. When I take creatine people think I'm juicing. I load it 20 grams a day until I get my first cramp...Then drop Iit Down. To 5 grams per day for a month...Then load it again until I get another cramp. Then drop it back to 5 grams. I get steroid like gain s because I saturate my muscles to the fullest. That's what it takes.

Are you serious

[Montague]

Are you serious

Bill Phillips likened the creatine and HMB combo to Deca.

 

[MCWAY]

Bill Phillips likened the creatine and HMB combo to Deca.

 

If you load with creatine for the first time, you might think it's that way, too.

Put on 7 lbs in a week (as I did back in 1996) and you'll swear before God and four more white people you'll never touch a syringe.

[Dicki_Nurmom]

look.... the goal of creatine ingestion is to raise the level of serum creatine...

timing is irrelevant as is consumption of macros....

i take my creatine first thing in the AM... 5-10g (whatever ends up in the scoop) with water... powered monohydrate is far more available than naturally occurring creatine due to volume at time of consumption (not due to any marketing horseshit)

[calfzilla]

Best one I ever used was Metrx micronized creatine. Not sure if they still make it, haven't used creatine in years. Just make sure it's from Germany and not China.

[240 is Back]

any works, as long as it's micronized.

[Princess L]

Best one I ever used was Metrx micronized creatine. Not sure if they still make it, haven't used creatine in years. Just make sure it's from Germany and not China.

Avoid ANYTHING from China 

[Montague]

Avoid ANYTHING from China 

I work with a Chinese girl my age. I joke with her all this time saying things like, "Come on, get the lead out!" I also drop frequent references to Short Round from Temple of Doom and Karate Kid. I'm lucky she's a good sport!