Creatine and/or Glutamine
 

I went from a 2-3 day a week workout program with no cardio and an extremely crappy diet to a 5 day a week focused weights and cardio workout program coupled with a good diet, meal replacements and pro-whey supplements. I am seeing good fat loss and some more size and strength, but want to take it to the next level. I have an ectomorphic body type, so even though I'm in good shape I still look way too thin. People have mentioned me looking into taking creatine or glutamine. Any thoughts? Are there any sideeffects I should be aware of? Thanks.

Creatine simply gives food to your muscles. It has no real side effects. I used it for part of my HighSchool sports career, for a while people said it made you more aggressive, but it doesnt.

Personal experience was that it seemed worthless. I used it for 6 months working out 5-6 days a week, and saw less than expected improvement. For the next 6 months I stopped and increased hugely (same workout/diet). It could be that it was genetics deciding when I grew muscles, but Creatine didnt help me. Friends of mine did notice a big improvement with it. It's not too expensive anymore, so if you want to go for it.

it is pretty cheap now.. I would say give it a couple months. If it works like crap for you, give it up. Ive been on it for awhile now and Ive seen moderate effects, nothing to huge but enough to keep me buying more... Creatine, that is, I dont know anything about Glutamine.

this should help on creatine:
http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...hreadid=100831

For glutamine: most say its useless, I've never had any luck with it but some have it really depends on the person.

That website was hugely informative, thanks.

I just ordered a bunch of creatine.

Ill get back to ya in a couple months to see if she's working for me.

Good luck.

those are some good sites! They make me want to at least try creatine

im the same body type as you im tall and skinny even though im 196 pounds ...im 6'4" so im still thin

i take whey protein and every 8 weeks i take creatine for 8 week cylce...it works...last cycle i gained 10 pounds....

Glutamine: http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/glutamine.html

Basically helps with protein metabolism and reduction of the breakdown in muscle tissue.

Effects that you notice: less soreness, more energy when lifting.

I'm a huge fan of glutamine. Since I started taking it regularly a few months ago, I ahve noticed a nice reduction in soreness, and when mixed pre- and post- workout with creatine and whey protien shakes, I have been getting much more solid and substantial pumps from my workouts. I have noticed that not all creatine is created equal. some brands give better results than others. Though I hate the Nitrotech product by Muscletech, their Celltech creatine has givin me the best result of quite a few products I have tried in the last year. Genaric Glutamine from the Vitamine Shoppe has been great for me.

I use glutamine and It seems to help my post workout soreness, but I know some people who say it doesnt work at all for them.

Creatine I know almost nothing about except YOU NEED TO HYDRATE WITH IT. If your an athelete you prob are very aware of that, but seriously hydrate well. Ive heard it can cause liver problems if you dont hydrate properly- which would make sense i suppose....and you should hydrate well anyway so no real loss :)



I do take BCAA - And I honeslty thing they work- Branched Chain Amino Acids and i noticed major gains when i started.

Lastly I take Ribose and I think it gives me a bit of a boost in energy


Also stay away from GNC and other stores like them-

try - and i hope this is okay to plug a site ( i dont own it or anything ...) but

www.bodybuilding.com

Forums have excellent information, good articles, and store has great prices

I use SciFit Glutamine if it matters...


gl

Im loading as we speak. 20 grams a day. I will keep everyone posted with my results. I just need to keep drinking water.

Thanks for all of the good responses. I've decided to give Creatine a shot. I'm taking some stuff from www.schwartzlabs.com. So far I'm seeing some results, but it is difficult to tell if it is from the Creatine or not. What I do know is that it is killing my stomach. Anyone have similar difficulties?

Also, I've heard that BCAA can be really effective with some people. I may give this a shot down the road.

One thing I want to add is that the Creatine is definitely helping me with energy during my workouts. Really makes you feel strong and helps you get after it, if you know what I mean.

with new creatine forms you need to watch what types you are taking not all forms are created equal. there are knockoff types that do nothing but harm you liver(if not hydrated properly) and deplete your wallet.

I recomend a good dosage of 5000ug of pure creatine.

I cycle off of it ever so often as it its hard to keep up with the water requirements and what muscle growth is mine naturally. Just a person thing. Also with NO2 it allows for more nutrients to get to the active muscles allowing for a better absorption of creatine so for those of you that thought creatine didn't work maybe try that.