What Is Cutting?

Cutting is a very common practice among professional bodybuilders and fitness competitors. In case you aren’t familiar with what cutting is, this means restricting your calorie intake in order to look as lean as you possibly can. Professionals often do this for competition day to achieve these same results. Often times when they are on a cut, they will take supplements during this phase especially creatine. However, it is important to know that you do take creatine a bit different when you are on a cut than when you are in the bulking up stage of the cycle.

What Is Creatine?

Creatine is a particularly useful amino acid for people to boost their workout performance as well as to increase lean muscle mass. This amino acid is produced naturally in the body, but it can also be found in protein-rich foods such as fish or meat. Prior to their workouts, especially high-intensity and short-duration workouts, this is taken as a way to increase one’s energy. It is also used after workouts during the cutting phase, as it can be very difficult to retain and build up lean mass during this phase. You will get the best results when you take the creatine immediately after a workout if you are looking to retain your muscle. You should talk to a nutritionist to see what the right dosage is if you are going to use creatine on a cut.

Taking Creatine While You Cut

There can be some issues with this. One issue that professionals have with taking creatine on a cut is bloating. Creatine can draw the water to your muscles, which causes bloating. Sometimes it helps to take creatine monohydrate during cutting, an option that is commonly used during the bulking phase of your routine. There are even some options that specify that they are “bloat-free”. There are some things to consider before you start to take creatine.

If you are new to using creatine, it is common to experience such conditions as stomach upset, diarrhea, or nausea. These are mild symptoms. After continually using this product, these symptoms will often subside. Creatine can also increase your blood pressure, so if you are at risk for hypertension or you have this condition, you should avoid using creatine. It may also interact with certain medications. You should discuss taking creatine with a doctor to ensure that you are healthy enough to take this supplement or to make sure that creatine doesn’t interact with your medications.

When used wisely, creatine can be an effective tool to be used when on a cut. It can not only help you to retain your lean muscle mass, but it can also help to increase your muscle cell thickness and volume. Whenever you use products like this, getting the advice of medical professionals can be essential to ensure that you are as healthy as possible. These products should only be used if you are healthy. However, if you are in good health these can be an effective tool for maintaining your lean muscle mass.

Benefits Of Creatine

Let’s begin by discussing what impact creatine has on the body. Creatine is naturally produced by the body, helping to produce ATP which provides the energy for muscle contractions. Usually, it is obtained by eating fish and produced by amino acids. However, these natural sources don’t maximize the storage of creatine. During exercise, creatine helps muscles work harder by providing more energy. Because of this, it has become popular within the fitness community. Now that we know a little more about the role this supplement plays in the body, let’s examine some of the benefits it provides the body.

The most significant benefit provided by creatine is an increase in physical performance. Because more energy is being produced in the muscles athletes can work harder. This is especially effective during high-intensity training sessions, although it doesn’t have much of an effect in endurance sports. It may also help improve increase lean muscle mass and speed up the muscle recovery process. But when should you take creatine to take full advantage of these benefits?

How Much & When To Take It

As with many health supplements, when you take creatine and how much you take will have a significant impact on its effectiveness. The recommended strategy for taking creatine involves a loading and maintenance phase.

• First, you load the muscles with creatine taking a high dose over 5 days.
• During this period, it is recommended that you take 20 grams, split over 4 doses of 5 grams.
• Then, you spend the rest of the time maintaining the amount of creatine in the muscles by taking a low dose.
• In the maintenance phase, you should only be taking 5 grams per day.

Studies have shown the best time to take the dosage is shortly before or after the workout. On rest days it doesn’t matter when you take it. Additionally, the benefits of creatine are maximized when taken with carbohydrates, as this promotes creatine storage in the muscles.

Side Effects & Conclusion

Finally, critics of creatine often claim that has many harmful side effects such as dehydration and kidney problems. However, research has shown that it is one of the safest bodybuilding supplements and that there aren’t any side effects. Problems only start to emerge when it is taken in dosages that are too high.

Using supplements can be a great way of building muscle quickly. Creatine is one of the most popular and effective supplements currently available on the market. We’ve examined how creatine works and provide numerous tips to help you take it safely. So, add a dose of creatine to your pre or post workout routine and start to reap the benefits of this supplement today.