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Definition: "An ergogenic aid is any substance or phenomenon that enhances performance "
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11.12.2011 |
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Creatine users build more muscle mass with shorter rests
If you do weight training first and foremost to build muscle mass rather than strength, then you might be interested in the study that sports scientists from the Federal University of Parana published in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition.
The article describes an experiment involving 22 experienced amateur bodybuilders, all of whom were creatine users [structural formula show below]. The first week they took 20 g creatine and 20 g maltodextrin daily; after that the dosage went down to 5 g creatine and 5 g maltodextrin a day.
All subjects trained six times a week and worked in cycles of three workouts in which all of the main muscle groups were covered; they all did the same exercises. They trained with weights at which they could manage 8-10 reps and did four sets of each exercise.
Both groups gained strength, but the increase in maximal strength increased more in the group with constant rest periods than in the other group.
When it came to muscle mass, however, it was the training with increasingly shorter rests that led to better results. The researchers measured the subjects' muscle dimensions with MRI scans and saw that the muscle mass in the arms [CSAA] and in the thighs [CSAT] increased more in the DI group.
"Decreasing interval seems to be more efficient than constant interval to produce hypertrophic responses", the researchers conclude. They say they are now doing a bigger study, and that they will also look at subjects who don't use creatine.
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