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Creatine: Is It Worth A Try To Enhance Benefits of Exercise?
By Christina | September 10, 2009
Creatine is a supplement that has been popular with elite athletes for a long time, but is now becoming popular with mainstream exercisers. Because it is an amino acid that our bodies produce naturally, it is a safe way to enhance your muscle mass and improve your athletic performance. Creatine has many benefits, but the most noteworthy one is that it enables you to work harder because it boosts your energy levels when your body is working anaerobically. Your heart rate enters an anaerobic zone when your body requires more energy than your aerobic system can safely handle.
Put simply, creatine is ideal for athletes who participate in sports which require intense bursts of energy expenditure. Rugby players, basketball players, and sprinters have all credited creatine for improving their athletic performance. Any sport or exercise that incorporates explosive movement will see improved strength and performance on behalf of its participants if they add low doses of creatine to their supplement plan. One drawback to note about creatine is it is not useful for all athletes. For example, researchers have found the benefits of creatine negligible for endurance athletes like long distance runners or distance swimmers.
Always check with your doctor before starting any supplementation program. If you are the type of athlete or exerciser to whom creatine would positively apply, the benefits are impressive. Not only is athletic performance improved, but there is less fatigue and recovery needed from training. Proponents of creatine also cite increased strength, gain in muscle mass, and less lactic acid build-up.
Creatine is a safe, natural way to become faster and stronger. The negatives are few and the positives can make you a better athlete by providing your body with the extra energy it needs to perform your sport or exercise training regimen at your highest potential.
Topics: Bodybuilding, Nutrition |
