Essay Sample on Ergogenic Aids - Creatine Supplement

Recent reports have shown the increase in the usage of Ergogenic aids as a supplement in the improvement of athlete performance. There has been a widespread adoption in the use of supplement aids which is only shunned by serious athletes. Ergogenic aids specifically enhance an athletes performance either through enhancing their energy metabolism, the central nervous system, increasingly developing a lean body mass. Other athletes have been seeing using ergogenic aids in reducing their propensity to illnesses that cause an interruption to their training activities. In many cases, Creatine is the most widely used supplement. The muscle creatine phosphate levels can increase with the use of the supplements. The effects of creatine can boost long term effects, but it has been noticed to boost short-term performance too (Bemben & Lamont, 2005).

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Creatine is a crucial amino corrosive utilized as a part of the body as a source of muscle vitality. It's a standout amongst the most generally utilized ergogenic aids and thought to be the best supplement accessible for highly intensive exercises and increasing the average muscle mass during training (Lemon, 2002). More than 40% of athletes registered with the NCAA have confessed using it.

There's a substantial evidence giving proof that the use of creatine supplementation can build body muscle mass. Wide studies have shown that athletes who have taken creatine have picked up 2 to 5 lbs within a time span of 4 to 12 weeks of training. The increase was the consequence of creatine's ergogenic impact as a task enhancer in highly intensive exercises. The athletes who supplement their daily dietary with creatine are able to train harder, which reflects in the increase and notably well-formed muscles and increased muscle strength ("Foods High in Creatine - CreatineHQ", 2013).

Previously, specialists wrangled about the wellbeing of athletes who used creatine supplementation, however, late studies on its long haul security report no symptoms when it's taken in suggested measurements. Creatine additionally, can decrease the level of injury in between training sessions. Athletes generally supplement their diet with 3 to 5 g of creatine per day. Nonetheless, when taken in bigger dosages, creatine can bring about gastrointestinal pain and even cramps. At suggested measurements, creatine is considered safe and successful ergogenic aide that can help build growth of the muscular regions, its strength, and its vitality (Lemon, 2002).

Analysis of Tests conducted on Human Trials on the use of Creatine

On a research conducted at the Neuromuscular Research Laboratory in the Department of Health and Sports Sciences, in the University of Oklahoma. The research was conducted in 2005 by Bemben MG and Lamont HS, the investigators conducted a research on athletes taking 20g of Creatine supplements per day. The research was conducted on a five to seven days period, they later on went to add a 3-5 gram on a 1 week to 6 months worth of creatine ingestion in the body. The researchers found out that, creatine does not significantly increase the impact of muscle strength regardless of the sport, age or the sex of an individual.

The researchers found out that there is minimal protection on muscle injury or damage caused by forceful training by the use of creatine supplements. Clearly, there were no indications of any muscle healing upon the use of creatine after a hard-core training session. On assessments of performance based on the intensity of the exercise period and the time period taken in the conduction of the intensive exercise, it was found out that there were contradictory results in relation to both continuous and highly intermittent endurance in the activities. In other activities that involved jumping, running and cycling, it was noticed that the ingestion of creatine was helpful in the improvement of an athletes body action.

The last section of the research was focussed on testing if there are any harmful effects that can be developed out of the ingestion of creatine in the body. It was found out that there are no significant problems that arise with the ingestion of creatine in the body. No sufficient evidence has been found out that would show the ability of creatine to give any adverse long-term damages among athletes.

In a brief summary, it can be said that the ingestion of creatine in the human body has its pros, but the cons have not yet been conclusively found out. In many cases, it has been noted that the ingestion of creatine is highly helpful in increasing muscular activity without damaging the body. Performance enhancement has been a key outcome on the ingestion of creatine. This research has not been able to conclude if the ingestion of creatine supplement can in the long-term affect the performance of an athlete or in any way cause any adverse effect on the liver due to the ingestion of ergogenic aids in sports activities.

In another research activity conducted by the Exercise Nutrition Research Laboratory at the University of Western Ontario in the year 2002, it was concluded that the excessive use of Creatine can alter the bodys digestive system to reduce its activity in the digestion of proteins. The protein breakdown in the body will be diminished due to the need for the body to supply more creatine than that was required initially ("Foods High in Creatine - CreatineHQ", 2013). In this case study, the researchers went with the perspective of looking at the use of creatine supplements as a booster in the undertaking of short and rigorous training activity. The researchers found out that the supplementation of diet with Creatine leads to; increased storage for muscle phosphocreatine, the quick recovery of muscles in between a tough training session, increased generation of adenosine triphosphate from glycolysis.

The researcher did not find any side effects to the use of creatine supplement in athletes. It was noticed that the use of creatine increased the body mass by 1Kg in athletes that ingested the supplements on a regular basis. The research indicated in the previous six years, there had been no case or complains about the use of creatine supplements to the body. The research indicated that an intake of approximately 3050mg/Kg of body mass over a 1 week to 4-week session leads to increased muscle strength build up. The research outline the myriad of the possible use of creatine supplements as opposed to their use in athletes action boosting (Lemon, 2002). The use of creatine can be implemented in the curing of other muscle disorders that come with age, muscle sickness and even challenges from microgravity.

In another research by the Cardio Vascular Research department, the research which is based on the use of creatine in chronic heart failure conducted in 1994. The researchers Gordon and Kaijser just to mention two of them found out that chronic heart failure can be halted by the use of creatine which increases skeletal muscle creatine phosphate and improves muscle performance (Gordon et al., 1995). The oral intake of creatine supplement has been found to increase muscle activity in patients suffering from chronic heart failure. The research was conducted on the basis of developing clinical trials to test for the potency of creatine supplements; they took 17 volunteers who were supplemented with 20g of creatine per day for a time period of ten days. The researchers took muscle activity on the previous day before ingestion of creatine supplements. After the ten day research period, the researchers found out that the skeletal muscle vitality was increased, and it was rich in phosphagens. The results of the research justified the need for the use of creatine as a supplement for athletes ("Creatine Supplements at Bodybuilding.com - Best Prices on Creatine!", 2016).

It should be known that creatine is a naturally occurring ergogenic aid. Creatine Monohydrate is usually found in the muscle areas; it is highly important in the production of phosphocreatine which is important in the production of adenosine triphosphate. There are nutritional foods like Animal protein such as beef, salmon, and tuna that have creatine in them. It is estimated that one pound of beef contains about 5g of creatine. Fish, on the other hand, is said to contain about 4.5g of creatine in a one pound salmon fish. Other sea foods such as tuna, sushi, and sashimi are very rich in creatine (Bemben & Lamont, 2005). Chicken and even Herring are known for their high content of creatine in them. In any case naturally available creatine can be obtained through proper dieting and a balance of food intake by an athlete.

It is important to consider the costs incurred by athletes in the purchase of creatine supplements. Many athletes from different fields always spend a dime in the purchase of creatine supplements; different manufacturers have been able to extract creatine and package them in containers which are later sold (Gordon et al., 1995). Different manufacturers like Evolution Nutrition ENGN, sell a 500g bottle of creatine supplement at $29.99. Other manufactures in the market like ErgoGenix and Cellucor are in the business of creatine supplement sales. When you do the math, it can be seen that with the intake of approximately 20g per day, an athlete gets to use a 500g bottle of creatine supplements for 25 days (Lemon, 2002). In the long run the cost does not seem a lot for sponsored athletes but in any case, the costs outrun the accumulation of creatine from natural food such as been, salmon and herring. It is an expensive diet to maintain, but in the long run, the use of creatine has been known to pay off.

Based on the above studies it is objective to state that the use of creatine supplement to boost perfmance is highly effective. I believe that athletes who want to perfom better during short exercise sessions and in the long run have a perfect muscle growth, then creatine supplement is a perfect ergogenic aid. Many athletes have given testimonies of improved muscle growth and strength, the vitality of the muscles and improved performance in the field.

References

Bemben, M. & Lamont, H. (2005). Creatine Supplementation and Exercise Performance. Sports Medicine, 35(2), 107-125. http://dx.doi.org/10.2165/00007256-200535020-00002

Creatine Supplements at Bodybuilding.com - Best Prices on Creatine!. (2016). Bodybuilding.com. Retrieved 19 July 2016, from http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/creatine.html

Foods High in Creatine - CreatineHQ. (2013). CreatineHQ. Retrieved 19 July 2016, from http://creatinehq.com/foods-high-in-creatine/

Gordon, A., Hultman, E., Kaijser, L., Kristjansson, S., Rolf, C., Nyquist, O., & Sylven, C. (1995). Creatine supplementation in chronic heart failure increases skeletal muscle creatine phosphate and muscle performance. Cardiovascular Research, 30(3), 413-418. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/s0008-6363(95)00062-3

Lemon, P. (2002). Dietary Creatine Supplementation and Exercise Performance: Why Inconsistent Results?. Canadian Journal Of Applied Physiology, 27(6), 663-680. http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/h02-039