Creatine Supplementation: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly
Creatine is a widely used strength enhancing supplement and has captured recent interest in the wake of American Honda rider Davi Millsap’s vastly improved results soon after discontinuation. Although creatine has been widely accepted, Millsap’s discovery of his intake and the markedly improved results upon halting use is an example of how supplementation can cause negative effects..
Creatine is naturally found in fresh meats and the body can synthesize its own in the kidneys and liver from the amino acids found in other foods. A typical 154 lb. male has 120 g. of creatine in his body and it is excreted and reloaded at the rate of about 2 g. per day. Creatine is used in muscle cells to shuttle phosphate in a mechanism that produces short term energy for very intense efforts of ten seconds or less.
Supplements are not regulated so dosage can vary between manufacturers. The most popular supplementation protocol calls for a “loading period” where 20 g./day is taken for about a week, followed by a maintenance phase of 3-5 g./day taken for up to 3 months. A less popular protocol involves taking 3-10 g./day for up to three months with no loading phase. Creatine uptake has been shown to be improved with high glycemic index carbohydrates and alpha lipoic acid so many commercially available supplements contain these ingredients as part of their “mixture.” Again, nutritional supplements are not regulated so it is up to the manufacturer to suggest dosing and create their own mixtures and these may or may not be supported by research.
Creatine supplementation does not directly increase strength. It can enhance short duration, maximum effort performance. Studies have shown this positive effect across several activities from power lifting to sprint cycling. Studies have shown a 5-15% increase in performance and power across multiple efforts and a 1-5% increase in single strength and power oriented efforts. This increases strength through higher achievable workloads in training. Creatine can also cause rapid weight gain but many studies have shown this to be caused by increased water uptake within muscle cells. Take home message: creatine supplementation can improve your results by allowing that extra repetition, extra burst of power, and extra sprint speed in training which can result in improved strength and power. Creatine supplementation will not improve endurance performance.
The safety of long term creatine supplementation has been a hot topic for years. Short term studies involving supplementation for up to two weeks have shown no adverse side effects as long as there are no kidney or liver problems. Studies involving long term use are divided. Small scale, long term research has shown creatine supplementation to be safe but anecdotal evidence of long term use has shown negative and sometimes serious side effects. These range from dehydration (due to both water being pulled into the muscle fibers and the added need for fluids to aid in excreting the excess creatine), kidney stones, renal failure, and even death. Millsap’s reported forearm pump was possibly caused by the increased muscle fiber water content and associated increased volume of his forearm muscles. These muscles are encased in a compartment that cannot increase in size. This can cause raised pressure on the blood vessels, restricting blood flow leaving this compartment. It could also be caused by overall dehydration. All speculation but entirely possible.
Creatine supplementation has shown to produce creatine levels in urine that are 90 times normal. Creatine supplementation (as well as other supplements and drugs) work based on overload; you ingest more than your body can excrete or metabolize over a period of time to get the effects. Your body is hard at work trying to rid itself of the overload but you keep taking it to get continued effects. Prolonged overload and the increased stress on organs like kidneys and liver in general causes serious and often irreversible injury. A related concern is that the body loses the ability to produce creatine on its own when this type of overload is prolonged. These could be reasons for the popular practice of “cycling” creatine use; use is stopped for periods of time and then restarted again after a “rest” period.
Additional and possibly graver concerns are the impurities that can be found in creatine supplements due to the manufacturing process. Again, this is unregulated so there are no rules regarding what is a safe impurity and what level is acceptable. Horrific results of contaminated supplement ingredients can be found; in the 1980’s over 30 deaths were attributed to a contaminated amino acid supplement (L-tryptophan) and in 2001 France banned creatine sales due to possible contamination with the prion that causes mad cow disease.
Bottom line: creatine can improve strength and power through increased loads used during this type of training. There are risks involved, some of them very serious, irreversible and possibly life threatening. Maximum strength or peak power output is rarely the limiter in motocross performance. Unless these are your absolute limiter, the possible upsides of prolonged creatine use may not outweigh the possible downsides no matter how small the actual risk. If maximum strength or peak power is truly what is holding your overall motocross ability back, then short term use during specific periods of training may be an option to consider. In the end, it is your body and your risk but keep in mind that long term research is limited, the supplement industry is unregulated and the side effects could actually negate any possible gain. Just ask Millsaps!
Research, think logically and take every possible precaution when considering supplement use. Smart and dedicated training; a wholesome, well-rounded diet; proper recovery and rest – these will bring you to your goals. Supplements are just that; a supplement to these required ingredients of success. The answer is not going to be in a bottle. Some supplements can help but it’s really up to you!
Seiji Ishii is the head coach of www.coachseiji.com. Coachseiji.com provides online coaching and personal training services to motorsports athletes. Coach Seiji has worked with both pros and elite amateurs including: Heath Voss, Ryan Clark, Matt Lemoine, Hunter Hewitt, Austin Stroupe, PJ Larsen, Drew Yenerich and Rusty Potter. Learn more at www.coachseiji.com or contact Coach Seiji directly at seiji@coachseiji.com
This article was originally published on Racer X Virtual Trainer