Creatine

Creatine

Creatine is a nitrogenous organic acid that occurs naturally in vertebrates and helps to supply energy to all cells in the body, primarily muscle. This is achieved by increasing the formation of adenosine triphosphate (ATP).

Creatine supplements are used by athletes, bodybuilders, wrestlers, football players, and others who wish to gain muscle mass, typically consuming 2 to 3 times the amount that could be obtained from a even a high red meat diet. Meaning you can not eat enough to get the creatine amount you need to support serious muscle growth.
 
The European Food Safety Authority published a record which stated that oral long term intake of 3g pure creatine per day is risk-free. Extensive research has shown that oral creatine supplementation at a rate of 5 to 20 grams per day appears to be very safe and largely devoid of adverse side-effects and at the same time effectively improving the physiological response to resistance exercise, increasing the maximal force production of muscles in both men and women.

Many athletes have turned to a variety of performance-enhancing drugs and supplements. Creatine is the most popular of these substances, believed to enhance muscle mass and help athletes achieve bursts of strength. Creatine comes in powder, tablets, energy bars, and drink mixes.

If you take creatine, you'll gain weight fast. The initial gain is water weight about 5 to 10 pounds in the first week or 2 of supplementation, then additional weight gains come from increased muscle mass due to the increase in the workload your body can handle. The water gain is because creatine is an osmotically active substance, it actually pulls water into your muscle cells, which also helps increases protein synthesis.