Supplements?

[GWagner84]

Should I take creatine to boost my strength during Catagory 2 of the navy seal workout featured on this site? Why or why not? Also, are there any others that I should or shouldn't take? Thanks.

[Nissan]

No, Creatine will not help you in any way shape or form. All creatine does is hold water in your muscles to make them appear bigger it does not help you out at all...and also with that water being held in the muscles you will cramp up on runs and it will cause other problems with hydration because it's taking water from where it's needed. You don't need any suppliments at all for any type of training. They will not show big enough benefits to be worth the price or the aggrivation. If anyone out there is bothering with ripped fuel xenadrine creatine etc etc etc I'd reccomend stopping now because they won't be allowed in BUD/S at all and are grounds for being dropped from the program.

[Doug]

Should I take creatine


No, no and no. One more thing - absolutely not *lol*



are there any others that I should or shouldn't take?


Here is some you should NOT take - any and all. Supplements are bad things for the prospective BUD/S student. Carbohydrates are what you should use for fuel. Fish, chicken, rice, bread, etc. Lots of carbs and lots of water. But stay away from any supplements. Trust me...

[ZakkWylde470]

Thats not what creatine does. Creatine that is available in health stores HELPS to give your muscles more endurance. Thats it. It does not take water away from places it's needed. I've been taking it 5 days a week since i was in 8th grade and all it has done is helped me to become stronger, faster. Is it nessacary? No. Does it help? Hell yes.

[goonsquad]

I've been taking it 5 days a week since i was in 8th grade and all it has done is helped me to become stronger, faster.



I agree,ZakkWylde470. I've taken creatine for a few months and my strength and endurance has greatly improved. I was at 21 pull ups and a 29:30 4mile run. After taking creatine I quickly went up to 30 pull ups and i'm at 28min 4mile. But it is not allowed in BUD/S so like Doug suggests, stick with rice, chicken, veges, fruits, etc!

- Goon out

[NavySEAL1313]

Creatine that is available in health stores HELPS to give your muscles more endurance


Just cause something is available in Health Stores doesn't mean it's good for you... There like mini-steroids if you would... The might feel and probably work but A) once you enter the navy <if you plan on it> and volunteer for BUD/S you are going to wish you never took those... Why?!? because you won't be allowed to use them and if you are found you will be discharged from training. also...B) since you won't be able to use them... You'll feel weaker and/or not perform as well as the other trainees.. Since your also , probably dependent on them right now it would be hard to get off them but you should get off them in incriments... work your way down.. (otherwise you'll regret it if you want to join the SEALs)


. It does not take water away from places it's needed.


I'm not 100% on that but I do believe that it does take water away from places it's needed. Also you may think it's doing great now... and that might be so.. this also might not ever happen but it will most likely be that you become dependent on those. Which is bad.. Now this is with all due respect too.. I'm not trying to argue/ start a fight but I'm just making my opinion across...

and to me as far as the one question goes.. the first one..
Should you take it.... NO!
Should you take anything else NO!

What should you do:

Build up your own muscle at your own speed... who cares if it takes a year to get to what you want to be. Just don't hurt yourself on the way. Also since your doing the catagory workouts...just remember (and you probably already do this) that you balance your diet and push yourself to, or past, your limits (only after conditioning)

[Doug]

Like goon pointed out, the reason I suggest staying away from all supplements is because they are not permitted at BUD/S, so it is best to just stay away from them in my opinion. I did not mean that they dont work, I just dont feel that they are necessary...

[A62]

I think what Doug was trying to tell you is, you do not want to take anything that tests or can even be construed as doing steroids. One of the younger folks in here even called them "mini-steroids". Let me tell you about a young man that went to Boot with my son, and was a little better than my son(Pissed him off no end). this kid had lived in San Diego all his life and his lifelong ambition was to be a SEAL. In boot he won the "Ironman" comp. Before he got to BUD/S he tested positive for steroids. He got a bad paper discharge. Now, you don't hear much of that on this site, but, if you get bad paper, chances are your whole life will be FUBAR. You will be luckey to get a job as a garbage collector. Opps, I'm sorry, a sanitation engineer. Stay away form all that crap.
a62 out

[childofgod]

Thats not what creatine does. Creatine that is available in health stores HELPS to give your muscles more endurance. Thats it. It does not take water away from places it's needed. I've been taking it 5 days a week since i was in 8th grade and all it has done is helped me to become stronger, faster. Is it nessacary? No. Does it help? Hell yes.


Wrong again. It prevents lactic acid buildup, in a way it helps muscle endurance I guess. I took creatine in 8th grade as well. I'm now in 11th grade and take absolutely nothing, well, other than antibiotics for my eardrum (dont ask). In 8th grade, I had no AMAZING results that I could not have abtained naturally. I became a butterball (even for a skinny guy), I was soft to the touch. I gained 30 lbs. that year. After going off creatine, hmmmm... I did what... OH YES! I LOST THAT 30 LBS. ! Hey! Look at that. All waterweight. Now I am the same height as I was then, and I gained that 30 lbs. back, now, instead of being around 20% bf like I was then, I'm now most likely around 5-7% bf. All I do now is run, swim, situps pullups pushups. Keep up if you like with the creatine... but take heed....All of my friends who ever took creatine, moved on to bigger things. Translate like you wish, but there's only one meaning in that phrase, "bigger things".
and if you want to do BUD/S, listen to the people who have been there (Not I but many around this message board). If Doug says dont take supps, dont take supps.
God bless

[Nissan]

I can tell you from experience that creatine will not give you the benefits you are looking for at BUD/S...As a matter of fact alot of the guys that took creatine before they came to BUD/S were having a helluva time with cramps (not having the water where it's needed) losing excess weight (water weight held in because of the creatine) and Also with staying hydrated because of all the water their bodies were not used to losing. When you are about to go out on the beach there is nothing that will make you preform but your will...You can think creatine helps but I can assure you all the suppliments in the world won't help you when it's Wed of the 1st week of phase your tired from the days before and still have 3 more to go and you've been told you have night evolutions for the next 2 days and 0500 PT sessions in the mornings.

[elpaninaro]

Hey GWagner,

I gotta go with everyone else on this one. I have been involved in swimming in the past and creatine is a menace that infects that community to annoying levels. I have seen coaches, given cash for their sales in a virtual pyramid scheme, offer it to their 12-14 year old swimmers. It is legalized drug dealing in my opinion.

Extreme side effects are rare, but they can be fatal, and in the long term you are not doing yourself any good. As someone else (I think it was Doug) said, just because it is over the counter does not make it safe. Use this stuff long enough and the lower doses of the chemicals it puts in your system will catch up with you. The same is being proven of many vitamin supplements over the counter. To say nothing of prescription drugs to help you lose weight or of certain plastic surgery techniques (ie breast implants.) Can anyone point to one of the new weight loss drugs that has NOT been recalled at least once and readjusted due to horrific side effects and death?

I think you have to take a big picture look here. Creatine and the above things I have mentioned are intended as either short term "performance enhancers" or unnecessary cosmetic improvements. They all have two things in common- they allow you to some measure to do unnatural things to your body, and they also can hurt- or even kill you.

It is also important to look at the long term. I am not a SEAL, but one thing I have learned in pursuing that goal is that this is a way of life. It is far different from what the youth of our generation are accustomed to.

Take creatine and you might win the swim meet next week, or for a few years. But how are you going to feel about yourself in the end? I know that is a cheesy question, but think about it.

Then take the long term. When people think about SEALs they think about BUDs and Hell Week. Even in that awesome series on the Discovery Channel- note where the emphasis was. 3 hours about 2 weeks of Phase one, 1 hour about Hell Week, 1 hour about 7 weeks of Phase 2, 1 hour about 9 weeks of Phase 3, ZERO hours about Airborne, STT, probation, and a lifetime of training and deployments.

Creatine might get you through a few weeks of BUDs if you don't get caught (but it is my understanding you will), but are you willing to take an artificial supplement as a crutch to get you through a 10-20 year career in the Teams? Also consider that when people go off creatine after extended use, they have a massive performance drop in most cases- to below where they would have been not using the stuff. Not a good way to start BUDs (when you will have to give up using it.)

And if the answer to that is no, and I hope it is, why use it now? You can take supplements, run the inside of the track and call it a mile, or add a few laps to your real swim time now, but when you get to BUDs all that ends. I would heartily suggest playing the game the right way now. Good habits require hard work, bad habits are hard to break.

Okay- I am done. Please forgive the aggressiveness of this post. I am not lashing out at you but just really trying to send a message here. Creatine and doping is ruining the sport of swimming these days. Every Summer Olympics brings more controversy and no swimmer who sets a record is free of suspicion. These supplements create nothing of value in any sense whatsoever and it makes me very very upset to know that- for the almightly dollar- there are legions of coaches out there getting their kids hooked on using this stuff.

I am not saying creatine is addictive- but the free performance edge it gives you is very much addictive. And to look at the major Olympic athletes who get busted for far more serious drug violations, it is clear to me that creatine is just one step down a very dangerous path.

[elpaninaro]

I agree,ZakkWylde470. I've taken creatine for a few months and my strength and endurance has greatly improved. I was at 21 pull ups and a 29:30 4mile run. After taking creatine I quickly went up to 30 pull ups and i'm at 28min 4mile. But it is not allowed in BUD/S so like Doug suggests, stick with rice, chicken, veges, fruits, etc!


I would respectfully suggest, from personal experience, that in a few months you could have made those improvements without this stuff. The immediate short term burst is mighty convincing, but I have seen this sort of improvement, and better, in myself and others without using the stuff.

My challenge to you would be to go a few weeks without it and watch closely to see the downturn and then upturn you experience. You have good posts here and are obviously working hard to a great goal. So please do not take this post as a personal criticism- just a challenge to try it both ways over a probation period with the same effort and how it goes.

[childofgod]

Take creatine and you might win the swim meet next week, or for a few years. But how are you going to feel about yourself in the end? I know that is a cheesy question, but think about it.


Ha, I'd like to see someone actually sneak creatine into BUD/S in the first place. It seems like this would happen-

Any drug dependency.... big or small, creates what... a dependency. You depend on the drug. I doubt that you will be able to sneak these drugs onto the BUD/S compound. I understand you can leave the BUD/S compound at night if you have family. But if i am correct, BUD/S also TESTS for drugs, maybe not creatine, but def. other things. You most likely wont be willing to go home at night after BUD/S you will hurt so bad just for creatine. You might for other, bigger things, but like I said, the Navy ppl i talked to said they test. If you depend on a drug, and don't have it, then what will you depend on? So, if you want to use creatine go ahead. I'm not you, and I've even used it before. I'm just trying to help you out that's all.
God bless

[jaredtitan]

I would respectfully suggest, from personal experience, that in a few months you could have made those improvements without this stuff. The immediate short term burst is mighty convincing, but I have seen this sort of improvement, and better, in myself and others without using the stuff.


I would agree with Elpeninaro (sp) on this, and I would remind ALL users of any suppliment that many times the suppliment has serious psychological effects as well. Once you're on the suppliment, you come to rely on it mentally - sort of like Dumbo and his feather. If you have the suppliment, all is well. Without it, you crash.

Best advice - forget the suppliments completely, safe or otherwise. Stick with the muscles you were born with, eat the foods God created.

JT

[ZakkWylde470]

I already do that. After going six weeks of excercising while using creatine I do 1, maybe 2 weeks off of creatine. I started using it for football so I could get stronger faster, but I ended up liking the results I get. I also take a multi-vitimin everyday and a hugh-*** protein shake after every workout.

[diesel828]

I have whey protein in a powder form. Is it alright to take that? I figure it should help, besides, I don't feel like I get all the protein I need in a day anyway. For some reason I haven't been eating much of it lately, and too many carbs.

[jaredtitan]

Disel,

You'll have to make your own decision on what to eat, what to take, etc. I recommend eating and drinking NOTHING beyond natural foods such as chicken, bread, vegetables, peanut butter, potatoes, etc. Drink plenty of milk, eat bananas, drink water. Stay away from junk food and soft drinks.

But really, it's up to you. You make the choice, you live with your decision. (Sorry if that sounds harsh, but that's how it works. What works for me might not work for you.) There's a lot of great advice on here, and I'd listen real close to guys like Doug who have already been to BUD/S, been SEALs.

JT

[nick3282]

i say stay away!!!! my dad is big into bodybuilding and he says stay natural. i used it but only for pre load- you drink it before a workout to help build up the natural creatine stash in your body so an intinse workout isn't so bad, but you have to do one hell of a workout ( 3-4 hours and then run) to burn the execces off.but if your like me and want to be a SEAL i would take any more, get your body use to nothin but natrual stuff; i wouldn't take any supplements at all.
but what do i know, im just the son of a bodybuilder and a nurse.

[nick3282]

i say stay away!!!! my dad is big into bodybuilding and he says stay natural. i used it but only for pre load- you drink it before a workout to help build up the natural creatine stash in your body so an intinse workout isn't so bad, but you have to do one hell of a workout ( 3-4 hours and then run) to burn the execces off.but if your like me and want to be a SEAL i wouldn't take any more, get your body use to nothin but natrual stuff; i wouldn't take any supplements at all.
but what do i know, im just the son of a bodybuilder and a nurse.

[childofgod]

i say stay away!!!! my dad is big into bodybuilding and he says stay natural. i used it but only for pre load- you drink it before a workout to help build up the natural creatine stash in your body so an intinse workout isn't so bad, but you have to do one hell of a workout ( 3-4 hours and then run) to burn the execces off.but if your like me and want to be a SEAL i wouldn't take any more, get your body use to nothin but natrual stuff; i wouldn't take any supplements at all.
but what do i know, im just the son of a bodybuilder and a nurse.


Didn't you say that twice? You might want to delete one. I've heard a lot of juicers tell people to go natural. I AM NOT SAYING YOUR DAD IS A JUICER. That just reminded me of this. I have had guys tell me their stories of sticking 500 mg of this and that in their butt the day before.... then go up to some poor guy who is trying hard naturally who doesn't really have the genetics, and say, "Just eat a lot, that's how I do it. Just work hard and go natural". I want to go up and back hand them a good one. But they would most likely break me in two and save half of me for later.
oh well, good luck with whatever you do, natural or not, just be safe.
God bless

[depper]

I have whey protein in a powder form. Is it alright to take that? I figure it should help, besides, I don't feel like I get all the protein I need in a day anyway. For some reason I haven't been eating much of it lately, and too many carbs.

may i make a much better suggestion?

ingredients:
1/2 cupof peanut butter
2 raw eggs
1 cup o milk
maybe a cup o yogurt
bannanasznstrawberrysznsuch for flavoring
and a partidge in a pear tree(optional)
then comes the ice
blend till smooth n delicious

mmmm mmmm mmmm mothers milk for her growin boy
i drink a full pitcher o this nasty **** about half to a full hour before a really heavy workout. man this really does the trick. might not taste very good but man its loaded with everything a growin boy needs!

[elpaninaro]

ingredients:
1/2 cupof peanut butter
2 raw eggs
1 cup o milk
maybe a cup o yogurt
bannanasznstrawberrysznsuch for flavoring
and a partidge in a pear tree(optional)
then comes the ice
blend till smooth n delicious


Yikes depper! For once I am speechless. Looks interesting though. I may have to try this (as soon as I can go buy a blender anyway LOL.)

[depper]

Yikes depper! For once I am speechless

yup itzgoood stuff!:D

[speeddemon]

no,no,no. Don't take creatine. It won't boost your strength. It will make you look bigger. That's it. It holds water in your muscles. That's it. I used to take it back in high school, I was big as fu*k, but i became suspicious. So, i did a little test on strength gains with and without the creatine. It's complete bullsh*t. If you want size, take it. But you'll be taking it for the rest of your life. What do you think happens when you stop? Have you ever popped a balloon. Same thing. Listen to Doug! He's been there. Eat right. Drink lots of water. Hard work is all it takes.

Man that peanut butter,banana,egg **** sounds awful! Why don't you separate all that stuff out and eat it individually instead of mixing it all up, and gulping that slop at once lol. I mean, i like steak and rice pudding, but do you think i'm gonna mix the two together? Hell no. Just make sure you chew all that **** up real good that he said and you should have enough room to pack it it.lol

[depper]

Man that peanut butter,banana,egg **** sounds awful! Why don't you separate all that stuff out and eat it individually instead of mixing it all up, and gulping that slop at once lol. I mean, i like steak and rice pudding, but do you think i'm gonna mix the two together? Hell no. Just make sure you chew all that **** up real good that he said and you should have enough room to pack it it.lol
[Quote

actually if you add a little lemon juice and some gatorade powder mix in there it really tastes good. also it saves on time to just blend everything instead of one at a time. :D

[Bart]

taking just creatine won't help it's the combination of what you do. First you have to work out, when you work out you lose musculs but when you eat right afterwards that's how you build your muscels back but stronger creatine just takes away water out of your body and puts it at the muscels you've been working out with. I spoon of creatine = 2 steaks so it does help but it's better when you do without any help cause onece it fals away you won't beable to do anything without it.

[childofgod]

I don't care for creatine, when I used it I was soft to the touch and felt slow and my muscles felt as if they had a retardent in them. I take absolutely nothing now, I feel faster, stronger, more fit and now I don't have to drink that nasty stuff!
Good luck either way.

[Eggscali]

Don't take creatine. It won't boost your strength. It will make you look bigger. That's it.


Creatine will definitely boost your strength if you use it properly and workout with HEAVY weights on a regular basis. I've been personal training for 4 years now and have yet to see a client's strength and muscle size not increase significantly from using creatine. Creatine is in my opinion valuable for people who lift heavy weights and who are trying to increase their strenght and size. And I have yet to see any side affects other then occasional muscle cramping which is due to the person not drinking enough water.

As far as a future BUD/S student goes, creatine is useless since the majority of your workouts deal with muscle endurance. Plus it is banned from BUD/S so don't even consider it.

Protein (Whey) powder is an excellent protein supplement. There is no purer or easily obsorbed protein out there. But again, you should have no reason to take protein supplements or creatine unless you're trying to get big or you simply don't get anough protein in your diet.

I wish you all good luck with your goals! Run hard, eat well, and HOOYAH!!

[elpaninaro]

Creatine will definitely boost your strength if you use it properly and workout with HEAVY weights on a regular basis. I've been personal training for 4 years now and have yet to see a client's strength and muscle size not increase significantly from using creatine. Creatine is in my opinion valuable for people who lift heavy weights and who are trying to increase their strenght and size.



But again, you should have no reason to take protein supplements or creatine unless you're trying to get big


Take it from this expert- if you want to get big, ie LOOK tough- creatine is for you.



As far as a future BUD/S student goes, creatine is useless since the majority of your workouts deal with muscle endurance.


Bingo again.

No offense dude. I have done my gym time and I know there are plenty of people looking for an image in there. And creatine and steriods are fine for them. Does not lead to a long term life of health, but I know that is not the goal there. Those people are entitled to do their thing, I just get real steamed about those who promote this product as a viable alternative for althletic performance in endurance sports and in military training.

So while you and I have totally different opinions about whether creatine should ever be used by anyone, I do appreciate you coming here and being totally honest about its usefulness to those of us who aspire to go to BUDs.