Creatine is a widely used nutritional supplement. Athletes and fitness buffs utilise it all the time to gain mass, power, and strength.
Despite creatine’s low risk of side effects, some people suffer bloating during the loading period of supplementation. How to prevent creatine gas and bloating is discussed.
Creatine causes water retention in the body and that can make you feel bloated. Creatine causes rapid water gain and that water in the muscles make you feel bloated.
Creatine and Benefits
In order to produce creatine, the amino acids glycine, L-arginine, and L-methionine are combined. Muscles convert creatine into phosphocreatine, which is then used for energy. Phosphocreatine, a key source of energy in your muscles, replenishes ATP (adenosine triphosphate) during exercise. Early on in an activity session, the creatine system quickly generates energy.
A 2016 research published in Sports Nutrition and Therapy found that creatine supplements improved sprinting speed, maximum strength, and power output.
Hydration Retention in Creatine
Because of its chemical composition, creatine always has a substantial hydration shell of water surrounding it. Increasing your creatine intake causes your muscles to store more water, which temporarily expands their size. In the absence of proper creatine absorption by the muscles, the creatine will remain in the body until it is excreted by the kidneys.
ICON Nutrition claims that before the extra creatine is eliminated, the individual may experience water retention and bloating. Smooth and spongy is how you may describe your sensation after this. Creatine bloating is mostly a cosmetic issue in the short term, but long-term, chronic creatine water retention can put extra strain on your cardiovascular system, blood vessels, and kidneys.
Avoiding Creatine Bloating
Creatine supplements could be absorbed exclusively by your muscles when they are actively digesting food. You should move about when exercising while taking a creatine pill to increase its absorption. Don’t overdo it, especially if you’re not going to be working out.
Be sure to drink lots of water when taking creatine, since the supplement might boost your body’s need for water, leading to swelling and fluid retention beyond the creatine’s direct effects.
Reduce your dosage or stop taking creatine if you still feel bloated after taking it with lots of fluids and while exercising. The bloating should go away after taking this for a few days.
For those who are unfamiliar, what exactly is Creatine Bloating?
Many people who take creatine supplements experience bloating. A person suffering from bloating may experience some discomfort.
Creatine bloating is not limited to the musculature, and can manifest itself in the digestive system as intestinal bloating. People who use creatine often complain of stomach gas.
Creatine’s capacity to boost water retention is likely to blame for this phenomena. The capacity of the human body to absorb or store water is known as water retention.
Sixteen men were studied for a 2003 article in the Journal of Athletic Training, which compared the results of the treatment group with those of the placebo group. Total body water was observed to be considerably higher in the creatine group.
Creatine has been shown to boost metabolic activity in the muscles, and this in turn causes the body to send more water to the muscles, thereby explaining the phenomenon of water retention.
When creatine is dissolved in water, its molecular structure triggers a hydration shell, resulting in a cluster of water molecules wrapping around a single creatine molecule. It’s true that bloating is one of the most often reported adverse effects of creatine, but many people who take the supplement claim they’ve never had any discomfort from it.
Avoiding Creatine Gas and Bloating
Creatine bloating is a common problem, and there have been many research and personal accounts about how to prevent it. However, there is no certain strategy that can be applied to every situation. This is because each person reacts differently to creatine, which is why its effects (and potential drawbacks) vary widely.
Phase of Dosage and Loading
It has been hypothesised that the bloating effect of creatine only manifests during the loading phase, the first stage of supplementation when a far larger dose is taken than the maintenance dose needed to keep muscles saturated with creatine.
For the loading phase, you’ll want to consume 20 grammes daily for around five to seven days. The loading phase effectively shortens the time it would take for creatine to fully saturate the muscles. Once the loading period has ended, a maintenance dosage of 3-5 grammes per day is required.
The loading screen can be bypassed at any time. Researchers have shown that after 28 days of taking the recommended maintenance dose of creatine monohydrate, a person will reach the same degree of saturation that is achieved during the loading phase.
Depending on the creatine supplement used, the loading period may be avoided altogether. For instance, there is no need for a loading phase when using creatine hydrochloride (HCL).
It’s advised that, in addition to bypassing the loading period, each person try out different maintenance doses to see what works best for them. Maintenance dosage recommendations vary from manufacturer to manufacturer (typically three to five grams).
Creatine supplementation can cause bloating, however a 2008 article published in Research in Sports Medicine looked at the relationship between dose and adverse effects and concluded that it depends on how much creatine a person takes.
Substitute Your Creatine
A wide variety of creatine supplements are on the market. Creatine monohydrate may be the most well-known and extensively utilised kind, however there are numerous more forms of creatine with different chemistries.
Alternatively, you might try utilisingKre-Alkalyn, which is buffered creatine monohydrate. Combining creatine with an alkaline substance such soda ash, magnesium glycerol phosphate, or bicarbonate results in buffered creatine. The supplement’s pH rises, making it more acidic. It claims to alleviate “bloating, cramps, and other negative effects associated with standard creatine administration.”
To the contrary, research published in 2012 in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition looked into these claims and concluded that buffered creatine does not mitigate these negative effects.
Lifestyle Choices
Creatine bloating can be prevented, at least in part, by adjusting one’s way of living. Since sodium (salt) contributes to water retention, it has been suggested that a low-sodium diet can alleviate the puffiness associated with creatine consumption.
It is also suggested that you increase your water intake. Creatine causes water retention, which, while it may appear contradictory, is mostly felt in the muscles. To guarantee that the remainder of the body has access to sufficient water, it is necessary to increase water intake.
It’s Also Normal
Creatine bloating is a common side effect, but it also indicates that the supplement is doing its job. Creatine bloating may be reduced and finally eliminated with regular creatine use, workout, and proper eating.
But if you have an impending event and are concerned about the bloating that creatine might cause, the simplest method to get rid of it is to just stop taking it. Creatine saturation in the muscles can be maintained with a daily dosage of creatine, but it quickly fades once supplementation is discontinued.
While this is an option, it’s important to keep in mind that doing so will only serve as a temporary fix; restarting creatine supplementation would likely result in bloating once again.