Creatine is something that you will hear a great deal about in any gym in the world. Bodybuilders found out some time ago that a good creatine supplement had numerous benefits for their bodybuilding endeavors. But in the grand scheme of things, can't you get the body that you desire without the use of a creatine supplement?

Creatine is, after all, usually only thought of as a performance enhancement supplement, meaning that it will enable you to do better during your workouts, but that it has few, if any, benefits beyond this. Research shows that this is a mistaken belief. Other people believe that because they eat plenty of red meat and fish, which has creatine in it naturally, that they don't need a creatine supplement. This is also a mistake.

First, it is true that creatine is a natural performance enhancer, but it enhances more than just your performance. It also enhances your body's performance, by increasing anaerobic performance when you are working out. This does allow you to workout longer and harder as well.

You see, muscles are comprised of four different biochemicals, which include fatty acids, glucose, ATP, and creatine phosphate. All of these are necessary in the exercise and strengthening of muscles, and all of these biochemicals work together. Unfortunately, there is only so much that these biochemicals can do, and if you want them to do more, you need a supplement, which provides more of those biochemicals in the muscles…particularly creatine.

As with most things, there are those who will tell you why you shouldn't take a creatine supplement. They will claim that creatine causes muscle cramping. Unfortunately for them - and fortunately for you - science has proven that creatine has nothing to do with muscle cramps. Muscle cramps are caused by a lack of hydration and low electrolytes. Experts agree that you need to drink one glass of water for every serving of creatine that you have.

It is also important to note that your body can waste creatine. You see, the muscles store creatine as 'stored energy' and use it as they are called upon to do more than they could without those stores. But you must think of your muscles as a container. Any container can only hold so much of any substance or item. Containers are not 'bottomless' and neither are your muscles. So, the muscles can only store so much creatine at any given time. Experts agree that 10 grams of creatine a day is all that is really needed in terms of creatine supplements, because the muscles cannot store more than this.

While creatine improves your muscles response to your workouts, there are certain substances that actually improve the creatine as well. Research has shown that creatine taken with Ribose increases the ATP in muscle cells. You can find products that now contain creatine and Ribose, and results of those who take a creatine supplement that contains Ribose have been great.

Caffeine is also great for creatine. As you know, however, too much caffeine isn't good for you. Experts advise one cup of coffee prior to a workout, which contains about 250mg of caffeine. You may need to experiment with caffeine with your creatine supplement, because everyone seems to have different reactions to caffeine.