Start the New Year with Energy: The Role of Caffeine and Creatine in Building Fitness
15.01.2025Table of contents
Whether you regularly set new goals for the next year or prefer gradual growth, improved fitness and more energy will definitely come in handy. Find out what habits are worth adopting and which dietary supplements will help you achieve your desired results on the road to good shape. Take care of your well-being and enter 2025 with a strong plan.
How do you build fitness? You can't do without these rules!
1.1 The role of healthy habits in maintaining fitness
Although properly selected supplementation can bring many benefits on the road to better shape, it's worth remembering that it is only an addition to how we treat our bodies on a daily basis. The foundations of healthy fitness building are our habits - so what we put on our plate, how we sleep, and how much we rest are important. First, you should take care of:
- a balanced diet;
- regular physical activity;
- proper hydration;
- limiting stimulants;
- getting enough sleep;
post-workout regeneration.
You can only reach for other methods to support a healthy lifestyle after implementing the above principles - e.g. physiotherapy treatments, massages, or supplementation. This is vital, because without taking care of the basics, the effects of our work may be small.
Creatine and caffeine - the choice for regeneration and energy
2.1 The use of creatine and caffeine
Are you looking for an addition to your daily training that will allow you to improve your results? Learn about the properties of creatine and caffeine - two of the most popular dietary supplements supporting athletes, both those starting their journey with physical activity and those who already know a lot about training.
2.2 Don't know where to start supplementation? Listen to your body!
Many people starting their adventure with physical activity feel lost in the maze of expert advice and the wide range of dietary supplements on the market. The best way to approach taking specific products sensibly is to not exceed the recommended daily dose and pay attention to your body's reaction to the substances. It is worth starting with smaller doses and gradually increasing them over time. On the road to better shape, you have to give yourself time - the effects do not appear instantly, but those worked through consistency last longer.
Sources:
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[2] Cooke M.B. et al. (2009). Creatine supplementation enhances muscle force recovery after eccentrically-induced muscle damage in healthy individuals. J Int Soc Sports Nutr 6, 13. https://doi.org/10.1186/1550-2783-6-13
[3] Cooke M. (2005). The effects of nutritional supplementation on regeneration of muscle function after damage (Doctoral dissertation, Victoria University).
[4] Rosene J. M. et al. (2009). Short and longer-term effects of creatine supplementation on exercise induced muscle damage. Journal of sports science & medicine 8 1: 89-96.
[5] Fernández-Landa, J., Santibañez-Gutierrez, A., Todorovic, N. et al. Effects of Creatine Monohydrate on Endurance Performance in a Trained Population: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Sports Med 53, 1017–1027 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-023-01823-2
[6] Fernández-Landa J, Calleja-González J, León-Guereño P, Caballero-García A, Córdova A, Mielgo-Ayuso J. Effect of the Combination of Creatine Monohydrate Plus HMB Supplementation on Sports Performance, Body Composition, Markers of Muscle Damage and Hormone Status: A Systematic Review. Nutrients. 2019; 11(10):2528. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu11102528
