i am considering going on creatine what are some sideffects that i should no if i have to reconsider?

Answer 1

Your biggest side effect will be dehydration and retaining water, which will make you look really puffy. Make sure you drink plenty of water (more than 8 glasses a day) to avoid this. Muscle cramps are also possible. I've taken it several times (used to power lift in college and used creatine several times.) I loved that I could work out at higher intensities for longer periods of time and recovered faster but overall I didn't like how puffy and bloated I looked.

There are many opposing opinions about whether or not it is harmful or has any advantages. I only know from personal experience that it works but it's really hard to drink that much water to counteract the bloating.

And no, it's not cheating any more than taking vitamins is cheating (instead of eating the necessary foods). It's a supplement, not a steroid. If you are looking to take it for size note that some of the size will be water weight, which will go away when you stop taking it. Try it for 6 weeks on, 6 weeks off, 6 weeks on again and see how you feel about it.

If you don't like how it works with your body by all means stop taking it.

Answer 2

Personally, I found that although it helped me to get stronger (smashed through my bench press plateu with ease) and made my shoulders and biceps look "fuller" I also experienced an increase in bodyfat particularly around the waist, this could have been a coincidence though, I was on a clean bulk at the time, I might have over done the cals.

LOL, creatine is not a cheat, that reminds me of the time I got called into the boss's office at work for drinking "those steroid shake thingies" (it was whey protein) LOL, I laughed so hard I almost urinated in my pants.

Answer 3

if you haven't been weight training religiously for a good 2-3 years you don't need creatine. it may help but you surely don't need it to make progress in the gym. creatine is for strength training and most people do not train at a high enough level of intensity to reap the benefits from it.