Creatine 101

Author: Brent DB

Here at FDN we pride ourselves on being a sports supplement and Nutrition industry leader! We want to bring you relevant information to help aid you in your day-to-day life and to assist you in achieving those goals that sometime seem so out of reach!

Have you ever wanted to learn more about Creatine and how it works in the human body? 🤔 Well, look no further, we will go over some of the key elements that make Creatine, well, Creatine!

"Hey, how does creatine work exactly?"

Well, after Creatine enters the body, either through supplementation or diet (or even after it is produced by the body), it binds with a phosphate molecule to form a creatine phosphate. Now, this is the part where I'm going to lay a bit of the science on you, so I'll do what I can to keep it simple.

ATP (adenosine tri-phosphate) is the body's energy source, you know, the stuff that keeps you ticking along on those long Mondays... When your body oxidizes carbohydrates, proteins, or fat - it is doing this in order to produce ATP. ATP is the energy responsible for driving almost every process in the body. ATP provides this energy by hydrolysing a phosphate group.

When a phosphate group is hydrolysed, energy in the form of heat is given off and the energy gained is used to drive whatever process is being performed within the body, for example, muscular contraction.

But, there will be times when one phosphate has been lost from the ATP, and now it is known as 'ADP' (adenosine di-phosphate). Now you have free ADP as a product from the ATP hydrolysis. ADP is pretty much useless in our body (just like me before a coffee) unless it is converted back into ATP.

Now this is where creatine comes into play. Creatine works by donating its phosphate group to the ADP to re-form ATP! Can you see where this is going? By allowing you to return ADP (useless) to ATP (useful), creatine will increase your ATP stores, thus allowing you to train harder and longer and keep you GETTING THOSE GAINS ALL DAY LONG! 💪💪💪

"Why should I take creatine?"

Well, if you're looking to maximise your efforts in the gym and really make the most out of it, Creatine can help you achieve those goals even quicker. Creatine enhances the body's capacity to perform high-intensity work (resulting in greater muscle size and overall performance gains from supplementation).

Creatine is used to supply muscle fibres with immediate energy, ensuring these muscles do not prematurely fatigue... (Wouldn't you love to hit a new deadlift PR, or run that 100m sprint just that little bit quicker?!).

This in turn strengthens the muscular contraction of these fibres, and helps the individual to pump out more reps, increased overall athletic performance, or engage more forcefully in whatever sport or exercise they take part in.

Supplementing with creatine allows the muscle to store more and helps to provide greater gains in both strength and overall musculature 💪

That is why you should supplement with creatine, and you can browse the full range here at FDN or save big with FDN's own 100% Pure Pharmaceutical Grade Creatine Monohydrate here 💪

• "Should I load creatine?"
• "What's the best form of Creatine to take?"
• "Will I get fat from supplementing with Creatine?"
• "Is Creatine safe to use?"

Any questions? Watch the video below to get some more answers or contact us at info@factorydirectnutrition.com or in Instagram or Facebook for advice