Nutrition

We asked some fitness, nutrition and health experts what the biggest "impostors" are when it comes to healthy eating. Here are their answers:

1. butter and bacon

Many people are almost obsessed with butter and bacon. This is understandable, as these foods can be delicious, but I see no real reason to consider these foods healthy in the way that many people do.

This assertion is related to the influence of recent data showing that reducing healthy fats in the diet probably doesn't have quite as many health benefits as previously believed, especially when replacing saturated fats with simple carbohydrates.

Yet somehow this message has been translated into "eat unlimited amounts of butter, bacon and saturated fat because it's good for you". However, you'll be hard pressed to find any scientific data to support overconsumption of these foods. A 2014 study concluded that eating polyunsaturated fats instead of saturated fats led to improvements in lean body mass in diabetics.

And what's a sensible approach? Aim to consume one third of your fat intake in the form of saturated fat sources (bacon, butter, etc.), one third of your fat intake in the form of monounsaturated fat sources (beef, olive oil, macadamia nuts, etc.) and one third of your fat intake in the form of polyunsaturated fat sources (salmon, nuts, etc.).

This means you can eat bacon and butter - but you should not think of these foods as health foods. And don't think you will benefit from adding these foods to your diet in significant quantities on top of what you already eat.

2. most organic foods

One of the biggest misconceptions, and a factor that contributes tremendously to poor health and lousy body development, is the belief that anything labeled "organic" is automatically a good choice for any diet plan. This is simply not the case. Sugary soft drinks made with organic cane sugar are still sugary soft drinks. Organic jam-filled cupcakes are still jam-filled cupcakes and organic macaroni and cheese is still macaroni and cheese.

The term "organic" has absolutely nothing to do with the amount of calories or macronutrients a food contains, so in that sense you'd be better off pretending the word doesn't exist.

Can certain organic foods be a better choice than conventional foods? Definitely, but this is largely due to the fact that these foods contain fewer pesticides and other potential toxins. It has nothing to do with the fact that organic foods automatically contain more protein, less sugar or fewer calories than their non-organic counterparts.

You're cheating yourself - not to mention wasting money and time - if you think you'll lose more body fat if you eat highly processed, fat- and carb-loaded organic potato chips instead of highly processed, fat- and carb-loaded non-organic potato chips.

Eat organic foods whenever possible, or when it will have the most positive impact on your health - things like high-fat protein sources, fruits, vegetables and coffee. And instead of opting for organic versions of junk food, you could also take the bold approach of cutting out the junk altogether.

3. alleged fitness bars

Protein bars have long been abused by sports nutrition marketers. The protein contained in these bars often consists of horribly incomplete proteins with a low biological value, such as collagen and gelatine, which are at the top of the list of ingredients. In addition, many of these bars are packed with laxative and diarrhea-causing sugar alcohols and regularly contain food-like ingredients to make them more appealing.

It's ironic: a product sold as a health food can be so damn unhealthy. From poor protein synthesis support, to bloating and diarrhea - I can't see what's so healthy about it - and for up to three euros a bar. I think it would be better to give up this desperate craving for chocolate. Why not remember how delicious real food is? Many of my heroes from my childhood and teenage years became amazing bodybuilders with healthy foods like potatoes, brown rice, chicken and broccoli. They weren't so weak that they had to look for excuses to eat sweet dessert every day.

The relatively rare truly legitimate protein bar, on the other hand, is a convenient way to take valuable casein or whey protein with you wherever you go.

4. almond milk

The concept behind commercial almond milk is great. Take some great tasting, nutrient dense nuts, pulverize them and add some water to get a lactose-free alternative to milk that's allergen-free and you can soak your breakfast cereal in.

Too bad the actual version of almond milk - or at least the industrial version - can't really deliver on the promise of this conceptual version.

Sure, almond milk manufacturers start with a few almonds, but an entire tetra-pack of almond milk only contains about as many almonds as you can fit in an old lady's small, arthritic hand. This measly portion of almonds is pulverized, but then the manufacturers filter out all the fiber because it would settle to the bottom of the carton and the consumer would have to shake the carton before consuming it - and as everyone knows, shaking is for losers.

Because the amount of almonds used is so puny, manufacturers have to add nutrients such as calcium and vitamin E to be able to advertise with claims such as "50% more calcium than milk" and "covers 50% of the daily requirement of vitamin E". But adding vitamins after the fact is simply misleading. It would be more honest to stick a strip of vitamin tablets on the packet and tell the customer to take one tablet with each portion of the drink.

And then there's the protein - or rather the lack of protein. A serving of almonds contains 6 grams of protein, but a serving of typical commercially available almond milk only provides about 1 gram. If you were to drink the whole carton, you'd get about 6 grams of protein, but that's also what a single serving of whole almonds would give you.

Sugar is also a problem. The typical almond milk contains about 7 grams of added sugar per serving, while most vanilla-flavored varieties contain about 16 grams of added sugar. Yes, yes, cow's milk also contains about 13 grams of sugar per serving, but at least that sugar comes from the cow.

And another thing: almond milk manufacturers have to add thickeners like carrageenan to almond milk, because if you finely grind a portion of almonds and add almost a liter of water, you get a pale, watery broth that has the unappetizing appearance of goat semen. So it's understandable that these thickeners are added, but some of these substances have been linked to inflammation around the digestive tract.

But people are starting to realize all this nonsense. Just recently, Blue Diamond Growers lost a lawsuit against consumers who were offended by the use of terms like "all natural" on this almond milk because this product was anything but natural.

As a result of this lawsuit, Blue Diamond can no longer use the word "natural" or the American Heart Association seal of approval on its almond milk.

If you want to save a lot of money and enjoy something truly nutritious, you can make your own almond milk:

Ingredients:

• One cup sliced almonds
• 3 cups of water (and some extra water to soak the almonds)
• 1 tablespoon honey or agave
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• A pinch of salt

Preparation:

1. Place the sliced almonds in a bowl and cover with water. Leave to infuse at room temperature for 1 to 12 hours.
2. Drain the almonds and rinse with water. Blend the almonds with 3 cups of water, vanilla and salt in a blender until smooth (about 2 minutes).
3. Enjoy the almond milk as it comes out of the blender. It should keep in the fridge for 5 days. Remember to stir it before consumption.

5. soy protein products

Soy burgers, chicken-like soy cutlets and nuggets, soy milk, soy cheese, soy protein and low-carb soy cereals - there are so many products that you can practically live on them. Or at least you might think you could live on it...until you realize that your face and belly look soft and puffy from chronic water retention, that you have periods for 5 weeks (yes 35 days), that you can't stop crying for no reason, and that you have a face full of pimples. At least that's how it was for me.

And I should have known better, because earlier during that same year my nutrition professor had told us about phytoestrogens (phyto stands for plant-based and estrogen for estrogen). But even after learning about these compounds, I wasn't able to make the connection at first. What was happening in my body was a direct result of what was going on in my mouth, and it took me a hell of a long time to apply what I was learning in the classroom to real life.

But soy-packed stuff can look pretty good on paper. According to the nutrition facts on the products, these foods contain tons of protein, a lot of fiber, relatively low amounts of net carbs, and not too much fat - and as a huge bonus, you can often prepare these products in less than a minute. Sounds like the perfect solution for anyone who doesn't have time to cook. A good old microwave and these ready-made treats seem to be all you need...

Of course, you can probably avoid this massive hormonal fiasco by choosing ONE soy product instead of ten and sticking to one serving at a time. But why take a chance when you know that even a little can manipulate the hormones responsible for your mood, health, metabolism and even your sex life?

Obviously, there are people who eat soy products and live a long and healthy life. But we probably don't even begin to know what this processed stuff can do to your body. I have found enough information about soy to convince me to avoid this imitation meat forever.

However, there seems to be one exception to consuming soy products: the occasional serving of soybeans, also known as edamame. It's probably okay to eat these now and then in reasonable quantities.

6. breakfast cereals for adults

You probably know that breakfast cereals for kids are nothing more than life preservers in a box, but "healthy" breakfast cereals for adults are often not much better - and sometimes even worse.

These cereals resemble women you meet in clubs and discos. The outside packaging is great, but when you look behind the push up bra and the mental disturbances temporarily suppressed by vodka tonic, what you see underneath is quite terrifying.

Cereal manufacturers are masters when it comes to legal loopholes in labels. The health authorities have set strict rules regarding ingredients, but it's quite easy to hide the facts. For example, the list of ingredients should list the ingredients in order of quantity, which means that the first ingredient on the list should indicate the predominant ingredient.

Fit people will know that they should avoid products where sugar is quite high on the list. However, the fact is that most 'healthy' cereals you find on the market should list sugar as the second ingredient. But this is not the case.

How do manufacturers get away with this? By using multiple forms of sugar: Organic cane sugar syrup, granulated sugar, fruit juice concentrates, honey, African whoopie tree extract, unicorn tears, etc. This way, they can split the sugar between different sources and list something like oatmeal first, which should actually follow behind the main ingredient: Sugar.

And what about cereals with added protein? Well, it's usually the cheap stuff: soy. Protein that is of such poor quality that not even good dog food manufacturers use it these days.

And then there are the calories. A popular brand with numerous health claims on the package contains 220 kcal per half cup. Measure half a cup of anything. That's a handful, maybe a couple bites. Compare that to oatmeal, where a cup has maybe 150 kcal.

Cereal manufacturers market their breakfast sweets to people who want to be healthier, but at the same time don't know much about healthy eating or are too busy to read the back of the package carefully. These people are likely to eat a whole bowl of this cereal, which already has about 800 kcal without milk.

The nice young lady trying to lose weight will then easily eat about 1000 kcal for breakfast, which is probably more than half the calories she should be eating per day to lose weight. "But the cereals are wholemeal cereals and the packet says 'good for heart health'!"

And another labeling scam: the "made with" trick. Yes, your sugar cereal is made with whole grains, but frog poop is also made with natural fiber - which doesn't mean you should eat it. "Made with" is a code word for "add a pinch of something the average person thinks is healthy and we can highlight that on the package and then fill up the rest with the same junk we put in Captain Clowny's Kooky Krisps." Don't fall for this kind of thing.

Okay, it's time for a confession: I eat cereal. I buy them at the health food store and they come in a bag. It's puffed rice. These cereals contain exactly one ingredient: rice - and nothing else. A whole cup has 50 kcal. (And apart from that, this stuff is dirt cheap.) Instead of milk, I use protein powder mixed with water. Instead of puffed rice, you can of course also use popcorn prepared without sugar and fat.

No, these cereals may not be quite as delicious as all that sugar-laden junk, but I prefer them to that pregnant look.

So check the back of the packaging and look carefully at the list of ingredients. Never assume something supports your goals just because the manufacturer has replaced the cartoon character on the packaging with a green field.

7. rapeseed oil

Polyunsaturated vegetable oils - and rapeseed oil in particular - are the biggest blenders when it comes to healthy foods. Canola oil, which has been genetically modified, is the biggest fraud.

Monsanto produces the vast majority of genetically modified canola varieties that have been modified to be resistant to the toxic herbicide Roundup, but that's just one of the troubling aspects. Typical processing methods for canola oil and other vegetable oils include chemicals and high heat, which oxidize the polyunsaturated fats and turn them rancid. Rancid oil leads to the formation of free radicals in the body, which cause inflammation. Inflammation is the cause of all kinds of health problems including diabetes, cancer and heart disease.

In addition, the omega-3 fatty acids in rapeseed oil are in the form of alpha-linolenic acid, which is virtually useless as the body is very inefficient at converting it into a form it can use. Go and eat wild salmon if you want omega-3 fatty acids, because the marketing regarding the heart-protective properties of rapeseed oil is a joke.

I remember the mainstream media in the late nineties of the last century touting trans fats as healthy for the heart. We now know about the devastating health effects of trans fats, which is the reason their use must be phased out in the US. I suspect that polyunsaturated vegetable oils will be next, when informed individuals will outnumber the lobbyists. Until then, avoiding processed foods is your best defense strategy.

8. rice cakes

Rice cakes have a higher glycemic index than most sweet desserts. Just a reminder that the glycemic index is a measure of how quickly a particular food raises blood sugar levels, which also provides an indirect (albeit fairly accurate) estimate of how much insulin is released.

The superiority of low-glycemic foods for changes in body composition is well established. And it is also well known that you will store more fat if your insulin levels are kept continuously high. Not to mention that continuously elevated insulin levels can have devastating effects on your health.

If you look at commercial rice cakes, they have a glycemic index in the 85 range. In comparison, rice has a glycemic index of 40 to 60 and glucose has a glycemic index of 100. The glycemic index of rice cakes is also higher than the glycemic index of most sugar-loaded breakfast cereals for children. And we're talking about unsweetened rice cakes here - the chocolate or caramel flavored varieties have an even higher glycemic index.

Sure, a single rice cake doesn't have many calories, but it won't be very filling either, so you'll probably eat more than one - which adds up the calories.

Another problem is that rice cakes are quite low in nutritional value, as they contain very low amounts of vitamins and minerals, very little fiber, and so on. Basically, you're just eating air - but air that provides calories and causes your blood sugar levels to shoot up. And the problem with high blood sugar levels (and insulin levels) is that you'll quickly get hungry for more, which will make it hard for you to stick to your diet.

Source: https://www.t-nation.com/diet-fat-loss/9-fake-health-foods?utm_source=tnation&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=weekly_dose-170312

From T Nation

One question we are often asked is how to put together a bodybuilding diet. This article is designed to show bodybuilders how to create their own bodybuilding nutrition plan.

Okay, so you want to build big muscles?

All you have to do is go to the gym, do your reps until you feel a crazy pump, then go home and get on with the rest of your day, right? If only bodybuilding was that easy...

Nutrition plays a very important role in recovery, growth and overall fitness and without the right nutrition your body will not build lean muscle mass.

So if you want to be a real bodybuilder, you will have to change your lifestyle and put together a bodybuilding nutrition plan.

Don't worry, it's not as hard as it sounds. In this article, we will give you a complete overview of how to determine your nutritional needs for building a muscular body.

Determining the calories for your bodybuilding diet

Your bodybuilding diet will constantly change over time due to the increase in muscle mass and the changing difficulty of your training sessions.

If you increase your muscle mass and/or increase the amount of time you spend training with weights, then you will need to eat more. If you are losing muscle mass and/or reducing the intensity of your workouts, then you should eat less.

But how do you know if you are gaining or losing lean muscle mass?

You measure, of course. There are two primary tools that work very well here. The first is the good old scales that are gathering dust in the corner of your bathroom. You should monitor your weight to see if your goal of building lean muscle mass is causing you to gain weight.

If the scale shows that your weight is staying the same (or dropping), then it's time to take a look at your diet and make healthy changes to create a higher calorie bodybuilding diet.

If your weight is increasing, then the question is whether this weight gain is muscle mass or fat mass. If your abdominal girth is increasing, then it could be that you are eating too much. You can expect to gain some body fat if you are trying to build muscle (especially if you are eating a high calorie diet), but you should monitor this to make sure your body fat percentage is not increasing too much.

Another good tool to monitor your progress is a body fat caliper. Using one every two weeks will give you an idea of exactly what is going on in your body. If your lean body mass is decreasing, then you should increase the amount of calories you are eating. If, on the other hand, your body fat percentage is increasing, then you should perhaps reduce your food intake. Finding the optimum level in the middle where you can build muscle without gaining fat is every bodybuilder's dream.

In many good gyms you will find a caliper and as long as the same person is always taking the measurements, you should get a pretty good idea of exactly what is going on. Once you have the total in millimeters and your body weight, the chart that comes with each caliper will show you what your body fat percentage is.

Now comes the clever part. If you take your body fat in kilograms and multiply this value by your body fat percentage, you will know how much body fat you are carrying around. If you subtract this value from your body weight, you will know how much lean body mass you have. Of course, your lean body mass is not just muscle, as it also includes internal organs, bones, etc.

You should write down the two values you can calculate in this way (total body fat mass and lean body mass). The next time you take the measurements or have them taken, you can compare the new values with the old values to see if your body fat percentage has increased or decreased.

You will find that if your food intake is correct, with the right amount of exercise your lean body mass will increase and your fat mass will decrease. However, if you don't eat enough or eat too much, you will find that your lean body mass (muscle) will decrease and your body fat mass will increase, which is definitely not what you want.

Calculating the amount of body fat

Here is an example calculation of body fat and lean body mass for a 90 kilogram person with a body fat percentage of 21%

The next time you calculate your body fat percentage, you ideally want to see that the amount of lean body mass has increased and the total amount of fat has remained the same or decreased. This is the ideal situation. But sometimes this doesn't happen and the amount of body fat increases while the amount of lean body mass decreases.

One reason that lean body mass decreases is that you may be losing muscle because you're not eating enough for the amount of work/training you're doing.

Okay, I can already hear the question "What if I work out at home?" Well, in this case we can use the good old favorites: A scale and a mirror. You know, the thing you always admire yourself in.

The bathroom scales should show an increase in body weight - if the weight on the scales doesn't go up, then you're not eating enough. If the mirror shows an increase in body fat around your midsection, then you are eating too much.

So how do we put together a bodybuilding nutrition plan with the right food?

First of all, we need to know how many calories we should eat per day. To do this, we need to add to the calories our body needs at rest the amount of calories we consume on a daily basis through our daily activities and training.

You can find numerous online calculators on the internet (e.g. https://www. menshealth.de/artikel/kalorienrechner.503652.html) that can help you calculate your approximate calorie requirements. Please note that all these calculators can only give you a rough estimate, as there are major individual differences in metabolic rate. Use one (or perhaps even several) of these calculators to get an approximate value for your calorie requirements.

As a starting value for the ratio of protein to carbohydrates to fats, we use 30% protein, 50% carbohydrates and 20% fat. Remember that protein and carbohydrates provide 4 kcal per gram, while fat provides 9 kcal per gram.

Here is an example:

Let's assume that the calculator has given us a value of 2900 kcal per day. We then use the following calculations to obtain the quantities of the individual macronutrients:

• Protein: 30% of 2900 = 870 kcal / 4 kcal = 217.5 g per day.
• Carbohydrates: 50% of 2900 = 1450 kcal / 4 kcal = 362.5 g per day.
• Fat: 20% of 2900 = 580 kcal / 9 kcal = 64.4 g per day.

So now you know how much food you need per day. Next, you need to determine how many meals you want to eat during the day and work out approximately how much food you should eat per meal.

You should eat regular, frequent meals to promote satiety, increase muscle protein synthesis by consuming regular protein-rich meals (1) and provide you with enough energy for the day.

To do this, you should divide the above amounts of each macronutrient in grams by the number of meals per day that you can comfortably consume and digest - usually between 4 and 6 meals per day.

For this we use the following calculations based on 6 meals per day (values have been rounded up)

• Protein: 217.5g / 6 = 36g protein per meal x 6
• Carbohydrates: 362.5g / 6 = 60g carbohydrates per meal x 6
• Fat: 64.4g / 5* = 13g fat per meal x 5*

* Note: The aim of the post-workout meal is to digest the nutrients it contains as quickly as possible and fat can slow down digestion, which is why we avoid fat in this meal.

Below are lists of the best foods for your post-workout nutrition, recovery and growth plan. The amounts are per ounce (28 grams) for each food.

To put together a meal, you can look at the lists below and choose which foods you want to eat during a particular meal to arrive at the nutrient amounts per meal calculated above.

Example: Dinner.

(You need good sources of: protein 36g, carbohydrates 60g, fat 13g)

As you can see, the above meal is quite close to the calculated total amounts per meal. You can of course eat more at the main meals such as breakfast, lunch and dinner (for extra energy) and eat smaller meals between the main meals. Choose whatever is most convenient for you and your bodybuilding nutrition plan.

Also note that the sample meal includes a balanced selection of healthy food groups including lean meats, three different vegetables and a good source of carbohydrates to energize the body.

Use the tables below to build your meals based on the calculations above. You'll see how easy it is once you've done it a few times and you'll also quickly get an eye for the portion sizes you need from a given food. Once you have planned your diet, give your body two weeks to get used to your new eating plan.

Adjust your diet accordingly based on the results you have observed (weight gain too fast or too slow or significant weight and body fat gain) by increasing or decreasing the amount of calories.

The best foods for building muscle

Below is a list of the best bodybuilding foods and their macronutrient profiles. With this information, you can create your own healthy bodybuilding diet based on your personal goals of mass gain, fat loss or maintenance.

Meat, Fish, Poultry (per oz, 28g)

Dairy products & eggs (per oz, 28g)

Nuts, seeds and oils (per oz, 28g)

Cereals, bread and pasta (per oz, 28g)

Fruit (per oz, 28g)

Legumes (per oz, 28g)

Vegetables (per oz, 28g)

Supplements for a bodybuilding diet

It's not always easy to get the right nutrients and calories from your normal diet alone. Your time may be too limited to cook big, healthy meals between training sessions, work and other commitments.

So if you find it difficult to get the right amounts of nutrients, there are supplements that can help you stick to your bodybuilding diet more easily.

Whey protein

Supplying your body with the recommended 1.5 to 3 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight through protein-rich foods alone can be quite difficult. If you want to add supplements to your diet, then you should start with whey protein. Whey protein has been popular with bodybuilders and athletes (and the fitness world as a whole) for years, and with good reason.

Whey protein is a milk protein that is isolated from whey. It is a fast-digesting protein source that contains all the essential amino acids, making it an ideal choice for the post-workout meal or the first meal of the morning.

There are three different types of whey protein: isolate, concentrate and hydrolysate.

Whey protein isolate is considered the purest form of whey protein. It contains between 90 and 95% protein, making it the most protein-rich form of protein. Whey protein concentrate has a lower protein content (25 to 89%). Whey protein hydrolysate is a form of whey protein that has been enzymatically treated to break down long-chain proteins into shorter protein chains, making it easier for the body to absorb.

If you're looking for a supplement to aid your recovery after training with weights and help you meet your protein needs, then we recommend using a well-rated whey protein from a trusted and established brand (2).

Creatine

Creatine is a natural substance that is converted into creatine phosphate in the body after consumption. Creatine phosphate is then converted into a substance called adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which helps to provide energy to the muscles (3).

The body can produce creatine itself, but it is also found in protein-rich foods such as meat and fish. In addition to eating meat and fish, creatine is an excellent supplement for your bodybuilding diet. It also has positive effects on strength, power and lean muscle mass.

This supplement is easy to consume. You can add it to your pre- or post-workout shake, a smoothie or even fruit juice. Whether it is better to add this supplement before or after training is not yet completely clear (4). Our advice is therefore to simply take creatine when it suits you best.

Omega 3 fish oil

Another supplement that is an excellent addition to your diet is omega-3 fish oil. Eating fatty fish has a variety of health benefits for our bodies, but as seafood can be expensive - and some people don't like fish - it can sometimes be more convenient to consume pure and concentrated fish oil in supplement form.

But what does consuming omega-3 fatty acids do for your muscle growth?

Fish oil can reduce joint stiffness, improve blood flow and speed up recovery - which means more productive workouts and a longer training career for you as a bodybuilder (5).

This makes omega-3 fish oil a very useful supplement for your body, your weight training and your bodybuilding diet.

References:

1. Per meal dose and frequency of protein consumption is associated with lean mass and muscle performance. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27086196
2. Hulmi, J. J., Lockwood, C., & Stout, J. (2010). Effect of protein/essential amino acids and resistance training on skeletal muscle hypertrophy: A case for whey protein . Nutrition & Metabolism , 7 (51).
3. Kreider RB, Leutholtz BC & Greenwood M. Creatine. Nutritional Ergogenic Aids. CRC Press LLC: Boca Raton, FL, 2004, p 81-104
4. Antonio J, Ciccone V. The effects of pre versus post workout supplementation of creatine monohydrate on body composition and strength. J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2013;10:36.
5. The effects of fish oil and isoflavones on delayed onset muscle soreness. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12370562

Source: https://www.muscleandstrength.com/articles/how-to-create-a-bodybuilding-diet.html

A look at the science behind the world's most popular supplement. And a detailed look at creatine from a chemical and biochemical point of view.

Introduction

Creatine has a very long and controversial history. Creatine (methyl-guandinoacetic acid) was discovered by French scientist Michel Eugene Chevreul in 1832. Chevreul was studying the various metabolic products found in meat when he first isolated creatine. He named it after the Greek word for meat, kreas (16). What Chevreul did not know at the time, of course, was that creatine would one day become the most popular dietary supplement in the world (1).

Justus von Liebig confirmed Chevreul's discovery in 1847 and carried out additional research into creatine and animal physiology. Liebig made several interesting discoveries during his investigations. He found that wild foxes had ten times more creatine in their skeletal muscles than foxes kept in captivity. He concluded from this that physical training leads to an increase in the concentration of creatine in skeletal muscle (1).

In 1927, phosphocreatine - a derivative of creatine - was discovered. This groundbreaking discovery was made by Fiske and Subbarow (1). Their research established the fact that phosphocreatine concentrations in skeletal muscle decrease during muscle contractions and increase again during rest (1). They also discovered the (important?) role that phosphocreatine plays in energy production.

After these discoveries by Fiske and Subbaro, not much more research was done with creatine until 1992, when Chanutin reported that total creatine concentrations in skeletal muscle increased after creatine supplementation (1). This discovery meant that supplemented creatine can be directly absorbed into skeletal muscle.

This study was confirmed by other studies, including one conducted by Harris et al in 1992, which is considered to be the study that started the creatine supplementation revolution (17). As a result of the Harris et al study, the number of studies conducted with creatine skyrocketed.

The purpose of this article is to show how creatine can be used as a sports supplement from a chemical standpoint and to examine different factors that may contribute to the effectiveness of creatine supplementation.

Over the last few years, creatine has become an interesting topic outside the field of sports performance enhancement and has also found its way into the medical field. There is evidence that creatine may play a role in the treatment of various disorders and diseases such as Parkinson's disease, neuromuscular diseases, brain diseases, muscular dystrophy and even heart disease (2, 19). This evidence has paved the way for the potential use of creatine outside of the athletic arena.

Creatine in the human body

As mentioned above, phosphocreatine concentrations have been shown to fluctuate during muscle contractions (19). This suggests the role that creatine plays in the human body. It has been speculated that creatine may ultimately increase the amount of energy that people "store" within their skeletal muscles. When a muscle contracts, it uses the hydrolysis of a phosphoanhydride bond of an adenosine triphosphate (ATP) molecule to release energy.

The hydrolysis of the ATP molecule leads to the formation of an adenosine diphosphate (ADP) molecule (3). This is the primary mechanism used by the human body to obtain energy during muscle contractions. Because of this reliance on ATP hydrolysis, the concentration and consequently the availability of ATP in skeletal muscle is critical in determining the amount of energy a muscle has available to perform contractions (e.g. during exercise).

It is important to note that when ATP is dephosphorylated to ADP, ATP resynthesis also occurs within the muscle tissue at the same time. This is the point at which creatine becomes a crucial factor in the energy production of muscle cells in the body. During muscle contractions, this resynthesis of ATP from ADP is achieved by a breakdown of phosphocreatine. This reaction can be seen in Figure 1 (4):

Figure 1: The creatine kinase reaction depicted on this graph is the creatine kinase reaction that occurs within skeletal muscle to allow ATP resynthesis. As you can see, phosphocreatine in combination with ATP creatine (Cr) and ATP provides ATP that can be used for energy production.

Source: Wyss and Kaddurah-Daouk (2000). (4)

As a result of this direct reaction between phosphocreatine and ADP, phosphocreatine concentrations are the limiting factor for ATP resynthesis. With this knowledge of how skeletal muscle utilizes the creatine kinase reaction to produce energy, we can now further investigate the effects of creatine supplementation. Many factors related to creatine supplementation, as well as the effectiveness of creatine supplementation in enhancing performance, are described below.

The first factor to examine is the contribution of creatine in its pure form to maintaining energy levels. Although creatine does not react directly with ADP to produce ATP, there is a pathway by which creatine supports the resynthesis of ATP, as shown in Figure 1. Creatine fulfills this role by acting as a buffer for the reaction that occurs during the resynthesis of ATP (5).

It has been shown that the total concentration of phosphocreatine in skeletal muscle increases after creatine supplementation (6). Therefore, creatine supplementation prevents the phosphocreatine concentration from decreasing to such an extent that the balance shifts away from ATP production. The increased phosphocreatine concentration also shifts the balance towards ATP production. In turn, this buffer system allows faster and more efficient production of ATP, which results in an increase in the overall availability of ATP.

However, while many would like to think of creatine as the perfect supplement for energy production in muscle tissue, reduced energy production is not the only reason muscle fibers become fatigued. The other factor to consider when it comes to muscle fatigue is the accumulation of lactate (lactic acid) during muscle contractions. When a muscle contracts, the demand for ATP begins to increase. As the consumption of ATP increases, lactic acid is produced in the muscle faster than it can be removed, causing the concentration of lactic acid in the muscle tissue to rise.

Increasing lactate concentrations lower the pH in the muscle, which has been identified as the cause of a fatiguing effect in the muscle (7). However, it is important to note that according to Katz et al, fatigue that occurs during short-term contractions is more strongly related to low phosphocreatine levels than to an increase in lactic acid concentrations (8). This result was confirmed by Saugen et al (18). These results demonstrate the important role that phosphocreatine plays in the amount of energy a muscle can produce during contractions.

Another aspect of creatine in the human body that needs to be considered is which types of muscle fibers use more creatine during their contractions. According to Casey and Greenhaff, the two types of muscle fibers found in skeletal muscle - type I and type II - use creatine in different amounts (3). Type I muscle fibers, also known as slow-contracting fibers, are more useful during endurance activities such as long-distance running and cycling, while type II muscle fibers, also known as fast-contracting muscle fibers, are primarily used for short maximal muscle efforts such as weight training.

Casey and Greenhaff report that the use of phosphocreatine in type II fibers can be up to 33% higher than in type I fibers. Since the primary energy source for type I muscle fibers is triglycerides (fatty acids) and type II muscle fibers primarily use ATP, it can be speculated that creatine supplementation will be more useful for short explosive anaerobic activities such as moving weights and sprinting than for prolonged aerobic exercise (3).

It is also important to examine the maximum amount of creatine, and ultimately phosphocreatine, that can be stored within muscle fibers. The average person consuming a normal diet consisting of protein, carbohydrate and fat will provide an approximate baseline creatine level of 120mmol creatine per kilogram of lean body mass (5). This amount can also be substantially lower depending on the individual diet. Vegetarians, for example, have lower creatine levels due to the absence of meat in their diet.

According to Paddon-Jones et al, the maximum skeletal muscle concentration that can be achieved through supplementation is 160mmol per kilogram of lean body mass (5). This concentration cannot be further increased by additional creatine supplementation. Once this concentration has been reached, any additional creatine consumed is simply excreted.

In addition to the proposed energetic effects that creatine has on skeletal muscle, creatine has also been shown to play a role in the mechanism that controls muscle protein synthesis. In one study, scientists found that increased concentrations of creatine within skeletal muscle cells led to increased synthesis of myosin heavy chains (9). These studies were conducted in vitro using tissue cultures. The results of the study by Ingwall et al are shown in Table 1.

Table 1: Total percentage of myosin heavy chain synthesis after creatine supplementation in tissue cell cultures. The cell cultures were incubated for 4 hours during which a 5mM creatine solution or warm water was added. As can be seen, the amount of myosin heavy chains increased dramatically after the addition of creatine to the cell cultures. Total protein synthesis and total myosin heavy chain synthesis were determined using 3H decay analysis (9).

As can be seen, the increase in creatine concentrations increased the amount of myosin heavy chains and the total amount of protein produced within the cell. These results were later confirmed by similar studies by Ingwall et al (19). Because myosin heavy chains are the primary protein that initiates muscle contraction, these results suggest that creatine promotes maximal muscle contraction via two distinct mechanisms: an energetic effect and a promotion of myosin heavy chain synthesis.

In turn, however, it is also important to note that some studies were unable to show that creatine supplementation increases total protein synthesis. However, one of these studies was able to show that creatine supplementation could potentially reduce the rate of protein catabolism, where protein is broken down in the body (19).

Although the theoretical possibilities of creatine seem amazing, the question remains whether creatine supplementation can enhance athletic performance. There have been countless studies regarding creatine supplementation that have come to contradictory results [, something is missing from verb] . Casey and Greenhaff found that his creatine supplementation with 20 grams of creatine per day for 5 days resulted in increased maximal isokinetic leg extension performance by up to 4% (3). Casey et al discovered that with the same supplementation program as Casey and Greenhaff, nine male subjects were able to increase their work performed during several maximal isokinetic exercises by an average of 4% (10).

Harris et al conducted tests with trained middle-distance runners at Tartu University, where they found that creatine supplementation of 20 to 30 grams per day for five days improved the runners' times in their respective runs compared to a placebo group (11). This study, conducted by Harris et al, suggested that creatine is not only useful for short-term maximal muscle contractions, but may also be beneficial in athletic activities such as mid-stretch runs, during which more type I muscle fibers are used.

Although a large number of studies have been conducted showing that creatine supplementation can improve athletic performance, there are many other studies that have failed to find such evidence. One such study, which examined the performance of rowers, was conducted by Syrotuik et al (12). The study was unable to find any significant differences between the subjects who supplemented creatine and the placebo group over the eight-week study period. Similar results were observed by Odland et al during 30 seconds of maximal exercise (13).

Since many of these studies seem to contradict each other, it is important to look at some of the aspects of the studies mentioned above. The study conducted by Odland et al only lasted for three days and many believe that this period is too short to achieve a sufficient increase in phosphocreatine levels within the muscles. The normal period required to achieve a maximum increase in creatine concentrations within the muscles and to maintain these concentrations is 5 days of creatine supplementation. The shortened duration used in this study may have led to inaccurate results and conclusions.

The study conducted by Syrotuik et al lasted significantly longer than the study just mentioned. However, this study used the same training volume for the supplement group and the placebo group. When phosphocreatine levels increased in the supplement group, these subjects were unable to increase their training volume when they wanted to. As the training volume was kept constant in both groups of the study, this could have led to inaccurate results.

Based on the above results, the question of the effectiveness of creatine supplementation is still open. However, it is important to note that of the 300 studies examined by Kreider as part of a meta-study, approximately 70% reported clearly noticeable positive effects of creatine supplementation (20). Despite the fact that the majority of these studies concluded that creatine supplementation enhances athletic performance, it is still important to consider the different types of creatine that are commercially available. Some of the more popular creatine derivatives are discussed in more detail in the following section.

Creatine derivatives

Creatine monohydrate was the first form of creatine to be sold as a dietary supplement (15). Creatine monohydrate consists of a creatine molecule bound to a single water molecule (hydrate). This is the simplest and most popular form of creatine sold. Creatine monohydrate has a controversial history in terms of its bioavailability and effectiveness as a supplement. Many believe that creatine monohydrate cannot pass through the gut with great efficiency and therefore has low bioavailability (4).

For this reason, it is often recommended that creatine monohydrate should be consumed in conjunction with simple carbohydrates to induce an insulin release, which is believed to increase the absorption of creatine (3). However, although this is a widely held belief, Harris et al conclude that the bioavailability of creatine monohydrate is around 100% (14).

Another reason that creatine monohydrate is controversial is that it has poor solubility in water at room temperature, around 14 grams per liter of water (15). This poor solubility makes it necessary for creatine to be mixed with a large amount of warm water to produce a consistent, uniform solution (15).

Another factor to consider with the different creatine derivatives is the rate at which creatine derivatives are broken down into creatinine once they reach the bloodstream. Harris et al conducted a study that investigated how three different types of creatine (creatine monohydrate, creatine citrate and creatine pyruvate) affect creatine blood concentrations (14). They found that the different types of creatine resulted in different creatine blood concentrations during a certain period of time after supplementation. The results are shown in Table 2.

Table 2: Blood creatine concentrations after consumption of different forms of creatine. Three men and three women supplemented with the different forms of creatine, which were administered in the form of capsules. Each subject was given all three forms of creatine in turn. The amounts administered were 5 grams of creatine monohydrate, 6.7 grams of creatine citrate, and 7.3 grams of creatine pyruvate. The different amounts were used to ensure that each subject consumed exactly 5 grams of pure creatine with each administration. As can be seen, the different forms of creatine produced different results (14).

Since creatine monohydrate was shown to have a bioavailability of approximately 100%, the scientists speculated that the differences in blood concentrations were the result of a different rate of degradation of the different creatine derivatives (14).

The reasons for these different results lie in the molecular structure of the different derivatives of creatine. Creatine citrate is more soluble in water than creatine monohydrate, which makes it easier to achieve more consistent supplementation when taken orally. Creatine citrate is in the form of a salt in which a creatine molecule is ionically bound to a citric acid molecule. This form of creatine has a lower pH value of around 5 due to the citric acid molecule. This slightly increases the bioavailability and reduces the rate at which creatine is broken down.

The latter is related to the fact that acidic creatine is more stable in the acidic environment of the stomach (15). Creatine pyruvate is very similar to creatine citrate in that it is present as a salt of creatine and pyruvic acid (15). This modification also reduces the pH of the creatine molecule, thereby slightly increasing its bioavailability, improving water solubility and slightly reducing the rate of degradation to creatinine.

Another popular form of creatine is creatine ethyl ester (CEE). CEE is a creatine-based compound in which the caroxylic acid end (do you mean carboxylic acid end?) has been replaced by an ethyl ester (2). Because creatine is broken down into creatinine faster than the ethyl ester derivative in the acidic environment of the stomach, the bioavailability of CEE is slightly higher than the monohydrate form (2). This slower breakdown of CEE allows the body to utilize the full amount of creatine consumed. In addition, CEE has a higher lipophilicity, which results in better membrane permeability (2). This allows the CEE molecule to enter the muscle fibers more easily and efficiently than creatine monohydrate.

Conclusion

It's easy to see why creatine has such a controversial history. The many different factors that determine creatine's efficiency vary from person to person. However, it is also easy to see why creatine has become the most popular supplement in the world (1). It was reported that at the 1996 Olympics, nearly 80% of athletes supplemented with creatine (5).

The theoretical possibilities for creatine are astounding, but it is still very difficult to draw a definitive conclusion regarding the effectiveness of creatine. As mentioned above, 70% of 300 studies concluded that creatine supplementation can increase athletic performance within a surprisingly short period of time, usually in the range of one week (20).

However, questions remain as to why the other 30% of studies were unable to show an increase in athletic performance through creatine supplementation. Although the majority of studies conducted found creatine to be effective, it is ultimately up to each athlete to determine whether creatine supplementation can improve their athletic performance.

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