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The combined effect of whey, creatine and glucose
A shake containing just whey works just as well as a shake containing whey and glucose. A shake containing whey, glucose and creatine is a different kettle of fish, according to a study by Paul Cribb, a nutritionist associated with the supplements brand AST. The study was done on 31 male recreational bodybuilders.
Study
Besides the straightforward proteins, supplements stores are selling more and more mixtures containing whey, glucose and creatine. But are these better? Cribb answers this question partially in the study he did while at Victoria University in Australia.
Cribb got his subjects to all train in the same way for 10 weeks. And they were all given a shake three times a day too: in the morning, after training and before going to bed. All shakes contained approximately the same amount of calories.
The first group of bodybuilders [PRO] used whey every day. The amount was adjusted to bodyweight, so a bodybuilder weighing 80 kg got 103 g protein, 6 g carbohydrates and 1.2 g fat each day. That’s an energy content of 447 kcal.
The bodybuilders in the second group [PRO-CHO] were given a mixture of whey and glucose every day. The 80 kg bodybuilder in this group got a daily 52 g protein, 59 g carbs and 0.6 g fat. That's an energy content of 449 kcal.
Results
The Cr-PRO-CHO group built up the most lean body mass and also had the biggest 1RM gain, as the figures below show. This combination also caused the biggest growth in fast type II muscle fibre.
Conclusion
In this study whey shakes worked just as well as shakes containing glucose and whey. If you want to lose fat, then whey shakes actually work better, but shakes containing creatine, glucose and whey work best of all. It's a shame that Cribb didn't look at shakes without glucose, but just whey and creatine. These would probably be even better for body composition.
The supplements used in the study were from the AST factories.
Source:
Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2007 Nov;39(11):1960-8.
More:
Best post-workout shake? Whey and casein cocktail 17.12.2010
Fast protein snack after training? There's room for improvement 06.12.2010
Five months of strength training with and without whey 04.12.2010
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