I'm no expert by any means, but I can assure you of one thing from my personal experience. Make sure to drink plenty of water. I found that it was very easy to get dehydrated for whatever reason while I was on this stuff.

 

I've had mixed results with creatine personally. There are so many different brands out there that use different ingredients and there are also a few different forms of creatine(monohydrate,CEE, KreAlkalyn,etc..) What kind are you thinking about using?

Here's some more basic info.....http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creatine

Good idea to start up this thread BTW.

 

Thats basically how creatine works, it carries more water to your muscles. So you definitely need to up the water intake. Gallon a day for most people when taking creatine regularly is ideal.

 

I took it for a lil while while I was in the Army. That didn't turn out to be a good idea at the time, since I was basically in my alcohol drinking stage at the time. So I'd work out in the morning with the unit during PT, work through the day, then work out in the afternoon in the gym or playing sports, then top it off with a night of drinking. NOT A GOOD MIX indeed.

 

:lol: I would imagine that would be alittle rough.

 

Don, what's your main goal for using Creatine? Are you just using it to get more strength or are you using it to bulk up?

 

I STRONGLY beleive in Ester Creatine. I have dabbled in a few different brands and types of creatine, but found much quicker recovery and good mass relatively quickly. CE2 Ester Creatine is my favorite. 2 tablets in the morning, 2 more in the evening.

One thing for sure DRINK LOTS OF WATER!!!

Also, need to make sure to cycle..go a month or four then none at all. Read instructions as most products get pretty in-depth to length of cycle

 

Just a tad. It was really rough on those 12 mile march days, where you march in full battle dress for 12 miles in the heat. THAT is when you do not want to get dehydrated!

 

Yeah no doubt. That is a pretty tough regimen for sure.

 

Creatine isnt gonna help you lose weight DS!

I will tell you that after having knee surgery about 1-1/2 years ago, I was instructed to start riding my bike for recovery.
SO, I went out and bought a nice new Mountain bike, nothing too serious, spent about 350 on it I think. Man, I lost quite a bit of weight, and mostly fat. My BFI went from about 16.5 to 14 in a matter of 5 months..

Also, another thing for losing weight DRINK LOTS OF WATER!!!!!


See a re-accuring theme here ?

 

:pointlol:

I will say that I notice considerably quicker recovery from workout. That is the burning you usually try to achieve when lifting isnt as prolonged, and the fatigue between workouts of particular muscles is shorter..that is, If I work chest Monday, I wouldnt have any issues working it again Wed...even though I tend to spread closer to 3 or 4 days between particular groups

Does that make any sense?

 

anybody recommend a good cutter? hydroxycut maybe? i need to shed a quick 15

 

You probably already know this, but you cant turn fat into muscle. So your lookin at droppin all that weight then adding on some muscle. If I were you I'd try to do a lot of cardio initially to cut down some of that weight and at the same time start doing some lighter lifting to get your muscles prepared for heavier workouts. Then after you get acclamated and lose a lil weight (say maybe 3-4 weeks depending on how fast you progress) then start lifting heavier (less reps at a heavier weight).

FYI creatine will def make you gain some weight so if I was you I'd wait to start on that till after you lose some of what your trying to get rid of. Then start the creatine when your starting your heavier workouts and it'll help build you some mass.

Hope this helped a lil and if you have any more questions I'd be glad to give you any info I can.

 

I have used creatine on and off for many years in all forms. I would have to say that I would not recommend it to anyone. Yes it will pack on a few pounds or more of weight and increase your overall strength but it does nothing positive in regards to your overall health imo.

 

Creatine won't help you lose weight, but it really won't hurt you either. You might put on some extra pounds to do the the fact the creatine and saturating your muscles. I've used creatine blends, but never monohydrate. I'll probably start a cycle of that sometime soon. I had to take a month off because I screwed up my leg playing basketball (and kept playing every day to make it worse) so I lost a little bit of strength, not a whole lot but nonetheless.

I wouldn't expect to lose a lot of weight fast either (just adding to this point), probably try to make a goal to lose 1/2 to 1 pound of fat a week by limiting your calorie intake and drinking a lot of water. Your diet is really what matters when it comes to losing fat and what not...

 

Creatine is actually a compound you body produces naturally, specifically named Creatine Phosphate. This is broken down by an enzyme called creatine kinase to produce more energy specifically for muscle use. If you take in more creatine, you'll be able to use an extra source of energy for your muscle. It won't make you stronger per se, because you aren't building more muscle fibers that will be recruitable during contraction to increase force generation.

If you want to lose weight, you want your body to burn the fat reserves, not new reserves of energy you're ingesting. It's good for weight gaining or for anabolic goals, not catabolic goals.

Those cutter things like Hydroxycut DO NOT WORK. They are scientifically null and are nothing more than placeboes w/high levels of caffeine. If you want to lose weight, drop you caloric intake to 2000 calories and exercise daily, even if its just playing basketball.

 

Thanks Doc. I was gonna mention that your body actually produces Creatine and it is found naturally in steak and other red-meats....right?

Also, the only thing I know about the Hodroxycut product lines, they definately do NOTHING for me. I have tried a few, very few..but as mentioned most are just FULL of caffiene. If I want caffiene, I will just drink coffee.

 

i see. used to take ephedra back in the day. that helped by curbing my appetite. went from 190 to 160 in 4 months

 

Yeah creatine is found in red-meats, but it's not very much creatine so it won't do anything for you. And the Hydroxycut products are more or less a combination of caffeine and aspirin. I don't take them and likely never will.

 

Good luck getting ephedra nowadays.... Gotta dig deep for that stuff. :lol:

 

i guess im gonna take up smoking crack.

 

you can get it online. i remember buying it a couple times post-ban

 

I doubt it's actual ephedra, I could be wrong.

 

Yeah, I think when people starting dying (Korey Stringer) and serious lawsuits came out, ephedra went away....

Unless you know two fingers louie hanging out on the street corner that is...:no:

 

Creatine is solid if you're going for muscle-building and size. If you are just looking for general fitness or toning, you'd be wasting your time.

i've cycled on and off it for years, mainly trying different kinds and deciding to go different ways with my body. I can tell you this - my bodyfat drops down drastically when i STOP taking creatine. I lose the "puff around the edges".... of course that is the creatine telling my body to store more water, but you get the idea. Its a solid addition to a workout regimen if you are going to for gaining size..... otherwise, i would not recommend it. The average gym-goer does not need this.

If you are trying to get cut, i would advise against it.... while it IS possible to be cut while on creatine, it makes it that much more difficult, and getting on a cutting regimen while bodybuilding is hardcore and only for the most strict bodybuilders. :up:

Creatine Ethyl Esther (CEE) seems to be one of the most popular kinds, and the debate of whether you need to load or not load has gone on for ages.... I never loaded and never had issues, & had immediate results.

 

the stuff i got was legit, but that was right after the ban. dude bought a bunch before the news

 

find your neighborhood dealer, and have him get you some diuretics.

 

the stuff around here blows :up:

 

Don,

The product youre taking will directly conflict with your goal of weight loss. As TexasPhin already stated Creatine is fine if youre trying to bulk up but if all you want to do is drop weight then just do a lot of cardio work. If you insist on something take something like CLA which reduces your appetite and will help with Lab's idea of cutting your caloric intake to 2000 calories. It makes the transition easier especially if you eat like a bottomless pit like yours truly.

Two things I would not recommend are trying to lose weight and add bulk at the same time. The goals of each also conflict with each other as cardio work will undo much of the weightlifting necessary. So I would probably say drop the weight first then bulk back up so you add the weight back as muscle.

Im off to the gym...:)

 

There's studies for each one. If he does cardio or lift weights he's going to lose weight if he takes in less calories than he burns. I've been told from actual bodybuilders that you'll still be burning calories 48-72 hours afterwards. Not an intense amount or anything, but nonetheless. This is just what I've been told, I'm not going to vouch for it being true.

Depending on his weight, I'd suggest a bulk then a cut. Also if you do cardio and weight lifting, make sure you do your weight lifting first. You need amino acids when building muscle (when weight lifting) and when you run, you loses those amino acids stored up. So basically by lifting then running, you're using the amino acids you need during your lifting time and then you'll just lose the unneeded amino acids so to say.

 

Actually, by definition, you are "Burning calories" 24/7, unless something catastrophic happens :pity:

I know many "Bodybuilders" that prefer to do cardio first and after. Depends on what works best.
For anybody getting serious about it.
Keep a log.
Note what works best.
What time of day.
Some workouts get better Burns and results better than others.
Diet is different for everybody. Lots of Chicken and fish is known to be a very steady diet for "Bodybuilders" a few weeks prior to competition.
Stay away from White Starches. such as white rice and bread
Whole grain is the only way
Only ingest 2 to 3 servings of fruits a day...but eat as many vegetables as you want.

These are a few things "known" about in the Bodybuilding world.

and the 2 most important things...Listen to and monitor your body...often
DRINK LOTS OF WATER

 

I know you burn calories 24/7... But you're burning more calories than normal 48-72 hours after weight lifting for an hour.

 

That is true. That is the crucial point of recovery.

Most nutrition and rest are very important directly after working out.

Oh yeah, and LOTS of water.:up:

 

Youre right, this is what I do. But it doesnt work that way for everyone. The majority of people have to do either or until they train their body to behave that way. Ive been lifting weights for about 12 years, after a while you learn to make your body behave the way you want it to in conjunction with your workouts.

Bulk and cut is what weightlifters do though not what beginners do. The reason you drop weight first is because muscle weighs much more then fat. Its easier to burn off the fat first. :wink2:

 

With all due respect, I agree with everything else you've said bro, but I have to disagree with this part. From personal experience and what I've read and seen it is much easier to burn fat when you have a soild muscle base. I've tried the cardio/cut phase first before and had some success but nothing compares to the rate of fat loss when you have some solid muscle built up. Its almost scary how much easier the fat comes off. :D

BTW, lots of good info in this thread guys :up: