All About Creatine

What is Creatine?

Creatine is a compound that can be made in our bodies or taken as a dietary supplement. The chemical name for Creatine is methyl guanidine-acetic acid.

It is made up of three amino acids; Arginine, Glycine and Methionine. Our liver has the ability to combine these three amino acids and make creatine. Creatine was identified in 1832 when Michel Eugene Chevreul discovered it as a component of skeletal muscle which he later name creatine (after the Greek word for flesh, Kreas).

What does Creatine do?

Creatine helps to improve muscle's performance during exercise. This improvement in performance should allow you to train at higher levels for certain sports and gain muscle.

Why take Creatine supplements?

Increasing the muscle stores of phosphocreatine by taking a creatine supplement theoretically improves the ability to maintain power output during intensive exercise. It is also thought to aid recovery between short bursts of activity. This effect could benefit your training programme and provide an important edge when competing.

Taking creatine supplements can increase your muscle stores of phosphocreatine by roughly 20 per cent on average. It can also help you maintain higher training volumes.

How much Creatine do we have in our body?

This varies based on the amount of muscle mass you have and your weight. On average a 160 pound person would have around 120 grams of creatine stored in their body.

Where is Creatine stored in our body?

It is believed that about 95% of the creatine in our body is stored in our muscles. The remaining Creatine (about 5%) is stored in various other parts of the body including the brain and the heart.

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