I lean toward the natural way, and Creatine is sort of natural. There is a study in
Department of Human Kinetics, St. Francis Xavier University, Antigonish, Nova Scotia, Canada that indicate the co-ingestion of alpha-lipoic acid with creatine and a small amount of sucrose can enhance muscle total creatine content. This study was composed of 16 males 18-32yrs of age. With another study: using 500 healthy male respondents
Effects of creatine supplementation on performance and training adaptations
Mol Cell Biochem 2003 Feb;244(1-2):89-94 (ISSN: 0300-8177
Short-term creatine supplementation has been reported to improve maximal power/strength (5-15%), work performed during sets of maximal effort muscle contractions (5-15%), single-effort sprint performance (1-5%), and work performed during repetitive sprint performance (5-15%) This same study examined 25% of respondents after a period of 6 weeks and found that TCr concentrations may take longer than currently accepted to return to baseline values after such a Cr loading regime. The load was 20gm 3x day 5 days, 2gm 3x day maintenance 6 week, 6 week clear. For a 13 week study.
Even if the creatine didn’t give you that extra burst to finish a few sets, at least the water retained gives a nice plump to muscle fiber. And at least there are no laws against creatine yet. Some natural guys like to add herbs like Tribulus and Chrysin during a cycle.
