Bodybuilding Article 3

Welcome to Bodybuilding Article 3 in our comprehensive series. Here we'll outline the role of creatine monohydrate in the process of building muscle.

Bodybuilding article 3 will explain how creatine monohydrate has much to offer in helping bodybuilders to achieve significant muscle gain. And don't forget, you can get the best deals on a huge range of bodybuilding supplements at Bodybuilding.com

The importance of creatine in building lean muscle

Creatine monohydrate can rightly lay claim to being the most popular and arguably most effective bodybuilding supplement currently available. The beauty of creatine is that it is 100% natural and occurs in many foods so it's unlikely to be banned from any sports or competitions.

Let's first establish what creatine actually is. In brief, creatine is produced naturally in our bodies to help supply energy to the muscles. It is produced in the liver, pancreas and kidneys before being transported in the blood to our muscles. It is then converted into phosphocreatine which is a powerful metabolite used to regenerate the muscles' ATP source of energy.

From a bodybuilder's perspective, creatine can significantly increase lean muscle mass quickly, improve performance in high intensity exercise, raise energy levels and speed up recovery rates. Creatine's ability to raise energy in muscles is due to its muscle protein synthesizing action whilst reducing the breakdown of protein. This happens because creatine has the effect of super-hydrating muscle cells with water. It also improves muscle growth adding size and strength to muscle fibers.

Creatine is normally taken in two ways. The first involves loading the muscles with 20 to 30 grams of creatine per day for four to seven days. At the end of this phase maintenance involves a regular intake of 5 to 15 grams per day. The other method is more gradual in that it skips out the loading phase and simply involves supplementing with 5 to 15 grams per day for an extended period.

Two questions remain to be answered - does it work and is it safe? Creatine has undoubtedly been proven effective in recent years - over twenty scientific studies have concluded that creatine can increase energy levels and result in enhanced strength, endurance levels and recovery rates. As a training aid it therefore has many merits. In terms of safety, no study to date has shown creatine to be anything other than safe, provided manufacturers' instructions are followed.

Note to publishers

Don't forget to check out this week's recommended bodybuilding article entitled What causes muscle growth? 1. Stimulus - exercise is needed to make the muscles work, use energy and cause microscopic damage to the fibers. 2. Nutrition - after intense exercise the muscles need to replenish their stores of fuel. 3. Rest - it is during the rest or recovery phase that the muscles repair the microscopic damage and grow. Muscle size increases due to hypertrophic adaptation and an increase in the cross section area of individual muscle fibers. Intensive exercise impacts more on the strength influencing fast twitch type II fibers, therefore the increase in muscle size is accompanied by greater strength. . . . For the best supplement deals currently available, shop at Bodybuilding.com

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