Published Article - Creatine intake for females - a lot of benefits, very little downsides (strength, depression, body composition) :)

[savedbygraceandlove65]

@wolfe17 I am on aromatase inhibitors. So, not just post-menopausal, but... I have an estrogen level less than 2.5 pg/ml. Really low.

It is so had to figure out what E2 does with respect to muscle building and recovery, and what I can do to still from muscles without E2.

Looks like I need to up my creatine!

 

[gomez2219]

@worshiper1994 This is oddly timed. I have been taking creatine, one 5g scoop maybe 4 times a week for several years. In the process of getting prescribed spironolactone for my acne I had blood work done and it came back with high creatinine levels (this was due to the supplementation not a kidney issue as I found out).

I think there still needs to be some caution taken when using creatine when medicating, ensuring your medication and creatine intake isn't creating a dangerous situation health wise. I have been doing some research and many studies still show that taking an average of 3-6g of creatine per day is conducive for health and wellness if protein and muscular training are a concern or focus.

In my case I may need to hold off while on this medication because it seems to spike the creatinine levels for me and in combination with my almost daily use may be more negative for me than positive.

 

[ortma]

@gomez2219 Why is too much bad with Spiro?

 

[gomez2219]

@ortma looking more into creatine, having high creatine levels due to supplement use isn't necessarily bad. Rather it is the ability for my doctor to keep an eye on my Kidneys while on the medication. They do semi regular testing for urine and blood to keep an eye on my kidney function for flushing out byproducts, because Spiro increases my potassium levels. If I am taking supplemental creatinine it is hard for them to know if it is related to the meds or my kidney function.

 

[ertety703]

@gomez2219 I take spironolactone but for PCOS. Glad you brought it up. I didn't start taking creatine although I want to.

I never had a problem with creatine levels before, I will be cautious though when taking creatine. Probably won't take it daily.

 

[teatimebabe28]

@ertety703 Just my own experience, I also take spiro and started taking creatine in the winter and increased to about 15g a day (cause of this thread) in the weeks leading up to my blood test, and my creatinine levels were totally fine.

 

[ertety703]

@teatimebabe28 Thank you for that. So far I have no problems with creatine, but I am not taking it regularly. I'll probably take it regularly once gyms open up. But it's good to know there might be a potential correlation with taking Spiro.

 

[gomez2219]

@ertety703 For sure, and honestly best to just consult your doctor. As a disclaimer that is my health situation, use of the medicine and supplement. So it will be different for others.

 

[ertety703]

@gomez2219 True. Everyone is different. It's still good to note that this medicine in combination with the creatine might cause unwanted effects. Something I can bring up with my doctor.

 

[danielwebb]

@worshiper1994 To add to this discussion anecdotally, creatine has helped me push my numbers after a plateau and I haven’t gained any kind of weight (if anything, I’ve been eating close to maintenance or so and I’ve been losing the past few weeks which I’m still not sure why but not complaining!).

Personally it was the step between “lifting somewhat casually” and “full speed gym rat” that I didn’t want to take until I hit my plateau and thought, “why not try this and see how it goes?”

My numbers went up a good amount and it definitely positively affected both my physical strength and mental strength. My biggest concern was gaining weight but you can definitely maintain or even cut while on creatine.

PS to anyone interested in starting, I recently read another article about creatine that suggested dosing in the beginning is not necessary and might not have as heavy of an effect as what we thought it might. I can’t find the article off the top of my head but I’ll link it here if I do. FWIW I did not dose in the beginning and just did my regular daily amount (I do less than the recommended since I’m short), still got my gainzzzz

 

[veracityinformant]

@danielwebb hey! sorry I know this is an old comment but how much did you take? I'm short too (5'1)

 

[danielwebb]

@veracityinformant No problem! I take Cellulor’s creatine, about 1-2g after each workout day (honestly I wing it and don’t measure it down to a T). I’m 4’11

 

[veracityinformant]

@danielwebb thanks for replying! good to know we don't need to take as much and still get some benefits. how many times a week do you lift?

 

[danielwebb]

@veracityinformant No problem! I lift on average 4 times a week. MTWTh and have managed to maintain my weight to before I started taking creatine, but my lifts have shot up.

 

[veracityinformant]

@danielwebb alright perfect, same here. I'll just go with 1-2g. I was thinking of doing 5g daily as a lot of ppl have recommended but felt it would have been excessive. thank you again!

 

[danielwebb]

@veracityinformant Of course! I also felt that a full serving would be excessive but you could always work up to it. My biggest fear was not drinking enough water for what I was taking but I definitely think 1-2g is adequate to start seeing results. For me, taking creatine was kind of the key to unlocking beast mode haha. Good luck!! Get those gains

 

[dherr]

@worshiper1994 Oh, Dumbbells podcast this week was about this a little bit. It got me curious. Thanks for the link!

 

[joshuadas73]

@worshiper1994 Ok I've read the article and my brain is not functioning well..maybe I'm missing it..can someone explain the dosing? I'm interesting in learning if it's right for me.

"Healthy, sedentary females ingested CrM tablets or a maltodextrin placebo (PL) four times daily (20 g∙d−1) for 4-d, followed by a maintenance dose (5 g·d−1)"

What is the g•d-1 ?

 

[mhartwig]

@joshuadas73 It’s grams/day! d-1 just means day is on the denominator. Weird way to put it though.

 

[malgosia63]

@joshuadas73 grams in a single dose maybe?