Creatine and cutting..

[Kayrock916]

Question..?? Is it okay/best to take creatine while trying to cut or should I cycle off for a couple of months..??

[DavisForman]

Originally Posted by Kayrock916

Question..?? Is it okay/best to take creatine while trying to cut or should I cycle off for a couple of months..??

Creatine causes your muscles to hold water. You WILL be heavier if you stay on it while cutting, but its not going to be fat. It will just be water weight. I'd stay on it if I were cutting. Probably help in minimizing muscle loss.

[madSano]

Originally Posted by DavisForman

Creatine causes your muscles to hold water. You WILL be heavier if you stay on it while cutting, but its not going to be fat. It will just be water weight. I'd stay on it if I were cutting. Probably help in minimizing muscle loss.

Exactly.

I was on creatine when I went from 300 pounds to 230. And not only did I keep the muscle I lost tons of fat.

Just remember to not judge your progress by the scale. You can easily get discouraged when the scale starts playing tricks on you. I would only go by the mirror, at least in the beginning.


good luck.

[SumDumGoi]

This was actually a good question. Here is one study that I found related to this topic.

http://tinyurl.com/pr58cn

"INTRODUCTION: Anaerobic performance and body protein may decrease with energy restriction practiced by some athletes for weight loss. METHODS: This investigation examined the effects of creatine (Cr) supplementation during energy restriction on muscle Cr, exercise performance (10 sprints of 6 s, with 30-s rest), nitrogen balance, and body composition in male resistance trainers. Creatine supplemented (CrS, 20 g x d(-1) of Cr) and those given a placebo (P1) consumed a formula diet of 75.3 kJ (18 kcal) x kg(-1) x d(-1) (54.7% C, 21.3% P, 24% F) for 4 d. A control group was unsupplemented and continued their normal diet. There were no changes in body composition or performance of the control group. RESULTS: CrS and P1 demonstrated similar decreases in body weight and percent body fat. The percent change in fat-free mass was more for P1 (2.4+/-0.3% reduction) than CrS (1.4+/-0.4%), but urinary nitrogen losses were similar. Significant increases in muscle total Cr and CrP of 15-16% were demonstrated by CrS over the energy restriction period, whereas P1 had no changes in muscle Cr. Total work done during the sprints expressed per body weight tended to be 3.8% higher in CrS and 0.5% less in P1 after the energy restriction (P = 0.058). CONCLUSION: It was concluded that Cr supplementation increased muscle Cr during short-term energy restriction but did not affect body fat or protein loss. The change in muscle creatine was reflected in a tendency for higher total sprint work for the Cr group."





In other words, save your money and don't take it when you are cutting. It has no affect on reducing bodyfat or minimizing muscle loss.

[Kayrock916]

Originally Posted by SumDumGoi

This was actually a good question. Here is one study that I found related to this topic.


"INTRODUCTION: Anaerobic performance and body protein may decrease with energy restriction practiced by some athletes for weight loss. METHODS: This investigation examined the effects of creatine (Cr) supplementation during energy restriction on muscle Cr, exercise performance (10 sprints of 6 s, with 30-s rest), nitrogen balance, and body composition in male resistance trainers. Creatine supplemented (CrS, 20 g x d(-1) of Cr) and those given a placebo (P1) consumed a formula diet of 75.3 kJ (18 kcal) x kg(-1) x d(-1) (54.7% C, 21.3% P, 24% F) for 4 d. A control group was unsupplemented and continued their normal diet. There were no changes in body composition or performance of the control group. RESULTS: CrS and P1 demonstrated similar decreases in body weight and percent body fat. The percent change in fat-free mass was more for P1 (2.4+/-0.3% reduction) than CrS (1.4+/-0.4%), but urinary nitrogen losses were similar. Significant increases in muscle total Cr and CrP of 15-16% were demonstrated by CrS over the energy restriction period, whereas P1 had no changes in muscle Cr. Total work done during the sprints expressed per body weight tended to be 3.8% higher in CrS and 0.5% less in P1 after the energy restriction (P = 0.058). CONCLUSION: It was concluded that Cr supplementation increased muscle Cr during short-term energy restriction but did not affect body fat or protein loss. The change in muscle creatine was reflected in a tendency for higher total sprint work for the Cr group."





In other words, save your money and don't take it when you are cutting. It has no affect on reducing bodyfat or minimizing muscle loss.

Interesting study, thanks for the info!

[ironwill2008]

Creatine won't help or hinder fat loss, but if your weight training has benefitted form taking it, then there's no reason to stop taking it. You are planning to continue to lift as heavy as usual during your cut, right?

[Falcon01]

I have cut while on creatine and had very good results. Whether or not it had a tremendous effect on my muscle mass, I cannot say. I will say, however, that it made my weight and sprint workouts more effective. As for saving money, creatine is very cheap anyways, so if you can use it and it doesn't cause a detriment to your bank account, I would stay on it personally. Just my opinion though.

[r_graz]

The creatine isn't going to in and of itself affect muscle mass, or fat loss. Neither is its purpose. What it will do is help maintain your strength levels, which will in turn allow you to do what ironwill recommended, i.e. keep lifting heavy weights. Lifting heavy stuff while cutting is what's going to help you keep the muscle.

The downside of creatine is of course the water retention, which might give you a "softer" appearance than you're looking for on a cut.

Your call.

[Kayrock916]

Originally Posted by r_graz

The creatine isn't going to in and of itself affect muscle mass, or fat loss. Neither is its purpose. What it will do is help maintain your strength levels, which will in turn allow you to do what ironwill recommended, i.e. keep lifting heavy weights. Lifting heavy stuff while cutting is what's going to help you keep the muscle.

The downside of creatine is of course the water retention, which might give you a "softer" appearance than you're looking for on a cut.

Your call.

I do plan on still lifting heavy but the "softer" look you're talking about is what I'm worried about.. In the spirit of keeping my strength levels where they are I'll keep taking creatine.

Thanks for the advice fellow bb.comers..