Issue 078
August 2011
Simon Jurkiw is training and education manager for the UK’s number-one sports nutrition supplier. Is muscle training’s leading supplement actually beneficial for MMA performance? Fighters Only investigates.
If you’ve spent any time at all in the free-weights area of the gym it is highly likely you’ve heard creatine mentioned as a supplement to improve performance. However, the potential benefits of creatine for MMA performance aren’t as well understood.
What is creatine?
Creatine is a non-protein nitrogen that can be synthesized in the body from three amino acids (arginine, lysine and methionine). Everyone has creatine in their muscles and creatine can be obtained from your diet (mainly meat and fish).
What does creatine do?
Simply, creatine is a source of high-intensity energy. If you think of striking and grappling, they require bursts of high-intensity exercise. Biochemically, creatine is used to resynthesise ATP – often referred to as the body’s ‘energy currency.’ The amount of creatine available can effect energy production during high-intensity exercise.
Why supplement with creatine?
The aim with creatine supplementation is to provide additional energy during high-intensity exercise. This additional energy can be used specifically during a fight or to help enhance adaptations from training by creating additional stimulus. The muscles naturally store creatine, but the ‘creatine tank’ is typically about 75% full. Creatine supplementation saturates the muscles so the creatine tank is 100% full.
Does creatine actually work?
Creatine is the most researched ergogenic aid available and, amongst sports nutritionists and sports scientists, is considered an effective ergogenic aid. In fact, the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition (www.jissn.com) described creatine as “the most effective nutritional supplement currently available to athletes in terms of increasing high-intensity exercise capacity and lean body mass during training.”
Pretty unequivocal!
Does creatine actually work for a fighter?
Despite the plethora of research studies, there is little evidence for creatine use in MMA. However, it would be impossible to perform a controlled study on fight performance.
Instead, if we look at what variables a fighter considers important it becomes clear that creatine has huge potential. Research has consistently demonstrated increases in strength, speed, power and recovery from repeated bouts of exercise. A fighter needs all of these attributes – performing repeated bouts of high-intensity exercise.
One aspect a fighter has to be aware of is that creatine supplementation can cause intra-cellular water retention. Under normal circumstances, this is advantageous but it is something a fighter who is trying to make weight needs to be aware of as it can cause weight gain (circa 2–4.5lb). If you find it difficult making weight, then creatine may not be for you. Due to the water retention it is prudent to remain adequately hydrated – but then you should be doing that anyway.
Is creatine supplementation safe?
Yes, there is no research to suggest that creatine has any detrimental effects on health. To the contrary, creatine use has been shown to be beneficial for conditions such as Alzheimer’s. A recent study on creatine on patients with pre-existing kidney damage, showed no negative effects of using creatine.
How much should I use?
There are differing opinions on how creatine should be used. Some people advocate a loading phase: four 5g servings per day for 4–5 days; others suggest this is unnecessary and to have one to two 5g servings per day.
The advantage of loading is that the muscles are saturated with creatine very quickly – this is ideal for short-term use. If you take one to two servings per day, it takes around 18 days to saturate the muscles – this suits someone who is using creatine slightly longer term.
All in all, creatine supplementation can definitely be beneficial for a fighter who is trying to increase strength, speed and power to improve their performance. The amounts we consume from food are too small to enhance performance, so supplementation with creatine monohydrate would be beneficial.
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