2.5 grams of creatine=results

[vegetapower]

I am wondering if taking 2.5 grams of creatine a day instead of 5 will still give me results. The reason behind this is that my mom does not like the idea of creatine because she thinks it will cause long term effects. But if I tell her I am only taking half the normal dosage she will let me do it.

[JuniorMint6669]

lol here's an idea, tell her you are only taking half the normal dosage, but when she's not looking go ahead and take the full 5.

I think taking 2.5g would benefit you more than taking none, and while I dont think anyone knows the optimal dosage for sure, I have seen recommendations as low as 3g per day.

[Saint Patrick]

tell her you are only taking half the normal dosage, but when she's not looking go ahead and take the full 5.

:withstupi


What makes her an expert on bodybuilding supplements anyway?

[ItalianGalleon]

The link in the creatine sticky recommends two days of loading at 20g followed by 2g a day. Though I did see a bunch of people say similiar things a while ago, lately people have been saying to skip the loading phase and just do 5 g a day. Something interesting is that there has been overlap between those two groups of people; i.e, some people have been saying that a loading phase is both necessary and unnecessary. I personally have no experience with creatine, though that might change soon.
Also, if your parents are dictating what supplements you can and cannot use, then you must be fairly young. Does anyone know of any reasons why someone under 18 or so should not take creatine?

[the doc]

take 2.5 g in the morning and 2.5 post workout

you dont need to load but it will saturate your muscles more quickly

[the doc]

oh and take it with some grape juice, that way you can tell your mom you are getting your anti oxidants also

[chris mason]

2.5 should be just fine. If you are receptive to creatine use 2.5g should work nicely for you. Once you have done that for a period and you can show your mom (by going to a doctor) that you are not damaging your body perhaps you can convince her that 5g will be ok as well. You could also go to pub med and pull research which shows that creatine use is safe.

[vegetapower]

Thanks for the advice.

[harryhoudini66]

Tell her to let you take creatine or you will start smoking.

[ItalianGalleon]

pot, not cigarettes.

[smalls]

Crack, not pot.
But 2.5g should work well and like chris said, after a time she will probably allow you to bump it up to the normal dosage. I also agree that you should print of some studies for her to read.

[Saint Patrick]

lol @ cigarettes>pot>crack

[AllUp]

Tell her to let you take creatine or you will start smoking.


ROFL Seriously.. If my kid wanted to I'd let him pop supplements into his mouth like PEZZ. There are way worse things a kid can be taking.. :/

[Podium Kreatin]

i dunno, if you have to lie to your mother to take 5g, then you aren't fixing the problem. why dont' you explain to her what creatine is, that's what i'd do. its better to educate than to leave ppl ignorant and paranoid, or we may have another "ephedra ban (see supp section)"

here's some facts that may help you change your mom's opinion:
-glucose may be the primary source of energy (ATP) of many cellular functions, but glycolysis ("glucose-lysing": the process of harnessing ATPs by breaking glucose slowly) is too slow to fuel the energy demand of rapid muscle contractions. to fix this, our muscles use creatine as the primary source of energy for muscle contractions by regenerating used ATP (~1 phosphocreatine to regenerate 3 adenosine-triphosphates)
-creatine is naturally found in higher animals; insects and shellfish use a similar molecule known as "phosphagens," which essentially do the same thing (regenerate ATP)
-creatine was known since the early 1900s. before pure creatine could be made, athletes ate salmon and berries as a source of creatine