Body Builders, please help...Creatine and Protein

Hi guys, I plan to start hitting the weights this sumer with my son who is starting High School net year.  What shoulld I know about Creatine and Protien?  I have bought some Body Fortress Brand of each.  Both are palettable.  Any help for me and my son would be appreciated. Thanks. MKJ

Hi MKJ,

Creatine will really help you lift more during a workout and will appear to make you gain muscle weight immediately (due to stored muscle nutrients). In order to truly appreciate Creatine, I would suggest training for 4-6 weeks without it and then on the following week begin supplementing Creatine about 30 minutes before the workout.

As for protein supplementation, the most common recommendation is 45 minutes after the workout and 1 gram of protein per kilogram of lean body mass. If your ideal lean body mass is 75 kg (about 165 lbs), then your total protein intake should be 75 grams. This is a common nutritionist recommendation. Bodybuiling magazines often recommend 300 grams, so what I do is "hit the one in the middle" and get 150 grams per day.

Another supplement that is not too expensive and seems to have promise for anyone who might be nutrient depleted is ZMA. It raises Zinc and Magnesium levels to the extent that it inhibits muscular breakdown. It also seems to bring about massive bowel movements and improve sleep somewhat. This was originally recommended by Chris Lubrecht and I decided to try it. 

Hope this Helps,

Dave 

hey Mark,

Dave's post was spot on as usual. i would start without the creatine first for at least a month. you need a baseline to know your limits and range. go ahead with the protein though as he said, one gram per pound of body weight at least. after you've trained for a month start taking creatine at 20 grams a day for 5 days. spread it out over 4 times at 5 grams each for the day. then maintain at 5 to 10 grams a day for a month. then stop taking it for a month and start the cylce over again. it's very important not to start the creatine for a while because you will really train a lot differently and look different on the stuff too.

creatine will add 2 to 7 pounds of water volumization. no****er retention but it will stay in your muscles. the reason i say don't start on it right away is because you're not going to know the benefits if you take it right away. once you take it after a month or so you should notice that you heal faster, can lift more and do more reps. it's like a super shot of lifting power. but you won't know that or be able to guage it if you start with it. very important. i sound like a broken record but you need to know if this stuff works and also, you won't freak out about the weight gain. in addition, don't fool yourself that it's lean muscle mass. it's jus****er.

you need a very clean baseline when starting your program. creatine will really change the bottom line in weight, reps, your body weight etc. amazing stuff. it's the only suppliment i take to lift and it's powerful stuff. so get the basics first, then go for the creatine and add one supp at a time so you can tell if it's working. this stuff can get expensive so you want to make sure it works. some people get really bad cramps with creatine so drink water a lot. another reason to start this later. ok, enough already........Carbonblob

Pretty much, what Dave and CB said.. except..  Don't sweat the loading phase for Creatine.  5g per day for the first month should be fine enough to get your muscles full of the stuff.  Then figure 5g per day ont he days you work out. Your body just does not deplete it fast enough and more then that is likely a waste. (Especially if you eat as much meat as we all tend to.. ) The bioavailability for creatine monohydrate is pretty crappy.  For every 5g you take in, you will absorb and use maybe 3...the rest gets pissed out.  To increase it, mix your creatine with something warm and something that will spike your insulin a bit.. for example.. warm fruit juice.  Sounds gross, but its really the best way to get the cheaper stuff in.  Oh yea..and take ZMA and fish oil.. they rock :)

you're right Chris, it's a toss up as to whether or not to use a loading dose. a lot of guys take insulin or do the sugar spike thing too. i just put mine in my protein shake or hot tea. now i heard it's best to take it for a month and then go off because of what you said, once it's saturated it's a waste. so you go off and then start over with or without the loading phase depending on your preference. just curious if you take it all the time or take time off.......carbonblob

CB and Chris,

Sounds like what you're doing is an economical version of the expensive, gimmicky pre-workout and recovery supplements nowadays. Sugar, insulin, creatine, maybe glutamine, etc. I'm all for the economical shortcut!

Dave

yeah Dave, you can go broke with the suppliment thing. i just stick to protein and creatine. the rest is all about diet for me. working out is just a small portion of the whole package. i only work out for 45 minutes, the rest of the day is spent recovering. i can undo all of that good work with a poor diet so i've always had to watch what i eat. i'm trying to stick more with the adkins approach, high protein low fat low carb. doesn't always work but i'm trying!