supplementsWill taking creatine phosphate allow me to run my 5k faster?
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Hello,
I'm struggling to get a new PB on my 5k races, my current PB is 20:45.
I run with a running club with training sessions including speed sessions, hills, long runs and tempo, I've only began hitting the track in the hope that it help my performance.
I compete in assembly league races and various others for my running club, and always seem to find the last 800m a challenge.
I've heard a lot of talk about creatine phosphate, but I'm still not sure on how it can help me, does it prevent fatigue?
If creatine isn't for me is there any other sports supplements that I can take, or should I build the muscle s in my legs ( I've read somewhere that this also helps)
I have no problems when I'm running marathons...
Right now I'm thinking about hanging up my running shoes and forget about races, or am I being too hard on myself. ( i've only run 4 5k's this year)
I have a ELVIS league race in 10 days and so want a new PB!
Advice greatly welcome
Cheers x
I'm struggling to get a new PB on my 5k races, my current PB is 20:45.
I run with a running club with training sessions including speed sessions, hills, long runs and tempo, I've only began hitting the track in the hope that it help my performance.
I compete in assembly league races and various others for my running club, and always seem to find the last 800m a challenge.
I've heard a lot of talk about creatine phosphate, but I'm still not sure on how it can help me, does it prevent fatigue?
If creatine isn't for me is there any other sports supplements that I can take, or should I build the muscle s in my legs ( I've read somewhere that this also helps)
I have no problems when I'm running marathons...
Right now I'm thinking about hanging up my running shoes and forget about races, or am I being too hard on myself. ( i've only run 4 5k's this year)
I have a ELVIS league race in 10 days and so want a new PB!
Advice greatly welcome
Cheers x
By Taryne – over 1 year ago
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Creatine is best taken as "creatine monohydrate". Virtually all of the studies have been done on this kind of creatine and no other creatine has yet been proven superior to it. Creatine phosphate is the form that your body produces in muscle to allow for creatine's re-energizing effects in muscle.
Creatine works best when doing "high-intensity" exercise - sprints or runs of less than a minute or typical weight training . Creatine supplementation doesn't seem to improve longer runs.
Perhaps the reason is that despite the fact that creatine will allow for extra power development by the muscle, the extra body weight from the muscle gains that it causes, means that any extra performance is diminished by having to carry the extra weight for longer runs but no one knows for sure.
So creatine may have some benefits for you (muscle recovery, if you do sprint drills, etc) but it won't help with your actual 5-kilometer runs.
Nutritionist and Supplement Specialist
Yes, you should absolutely build strength in your legs. This WILL improve your 5-k times.
The best supplement you can take is caffeine. If you lay off the caffeine for a few weeks and then take 200 to 500mg (depending upon your tolerance), this has been proven to improve endurance exercise performance. If you get it from green tea, there are additional potential performance improving effects. Probably a few strong cups of green tea and a 200mg caffeine tablet is best for most people.
Nutritionist and Supplement Specialist
There is little doubt that creatine supplementation can improve the quality of endurance runners workouts as the evidence shows.
So whilst creating will not make you run faster per say, it will improve your training and that will in turn improve your competition performance.
Health and Fitness Doctor
However, if you continue to take creatine and you do "speed days", which you need to do to achieve maximum performance in longer-distance races, then over time it would be expected that you would achieve benefits in your 5 k due to the higher-intensity, increased power and better recovery throughout your training phases...but it won't help you over the course of 10 days for your league race that you mention above.
Nutritionist and Supplement Specialist
I've heard creatine leads to weight gain due to water retention. Is this true?
Most experts agree that the water retention from creatine is over-stated. It may come from the fact that increasing muscle mass increases body water content in itself and that may be the sole reason but no one has totally isolated whether there is further body water retained in the body beyond what would be expected from muscle gain.
One thing that the world's premier creatine experts agree on (and I've personally discussed this with them) is that creatine doesn't cause 'subcutaneous' (below the skin) water retention. So it won't make you look bloated or soft or blur your muscle definition. I've been on creatine for over a decade with only a few short breaks and I've got down to very low body fat and I recommend the same for all of the fitness athletes we work with.
Nutritionist and Supplement Specialist