When it comes to the use of creatine, there are many athletes and bodybuilders out there who are wondering when the best time to take it is. Does creatine need to be taken before or after a workout? Is there any difference at all?
Firstly, let’s just be clear about the fact that creatine is considered to be a safe supplement for bodybuilders and athletes. International Olympic Committee and NCAA do not prohibit it.
Thousands of studies that have been carried out about creatine have shown that this supplement can work well for a wide variety of different types of training. It can help you with your recovery process after training (something that is crucial for bodybuilders) and improves strength, focus and endurance. As long as you use creatine along with a good diet, proper training and adequate amounts of sleep, this product will help you achieve your dream physique.
What is the Best Time To Take Creatine?
Timing with these types of supplements is something that a lot of bodybuilders and athletes often delve into quite deeply. Some of these products can actually provide greater benefits depending on the time that you take them.
When it comes to creatine, what is the case?
There are three different times that people argue you should take creatine: before a workout, after a workout, or at any time.
When you take creatine, it gives your body the ability to be able to produce more ATP. This is something that is directly correlated with providing cellular energy to the muscle cells. The more ATP there is, the stronger your muscles are going to be.
This means that more muscle fibers are going to be activated which would, in turn, help you to lift more weight, which essentially means that you are going to be in a better position to build more muscle. This is the argument for the people who believe that taking creatine before training is the best time to use this supplement.
Some say you should take creatine after a workout. Once you have completed your workout, your muscles are in a state of being depleted of nutrients. At that time muscles are primed to take in a whole host of nutrients, which is why post-workout meals are so important to help you get better results. If you did not fuel your muscles again with nutrients after training, they would stay in a state of being catabolic and your body would essentially end up eating away at its own muscle to replenish its stores.
So the idea to supplement with creatine after working out is that you should add it to the mix of your post-workout nutrition as your muscles are in a position to just take in anything that you put in your body. People believe that this will enable their bodies to use creatine in a much more effective way.
Lastly, those who think that it does not really matter when you decide to take creatine. They simply do not see enough benefits of having to stress about the timing of taking creatine that would make it worth it. They just think that the product is going to be good for you and give you results as long as you are getting your correct doses per day.
There has of course been a lot of research carried out about this topic. Some of them lean towards taking creatine before and others seem to slightly support the after-workout ideology.
The majority of studies that have been carried out seem to suggest that taking creatine after you have trained is more beneficial than taking it before training or just at whatever time you want. Although this is not something that has been set in stone because of the fact that there needs to be more research done on this topic.
