Creatine, Magnesium Combo Improve Power, Weight Gain

BELLINGHAM, Wash.Combiningcreatine with magnesium supplements can increase body weight, power and peaktorque compared to placebo, with a magnesium-creatine chelate being morebioavailable than a stacked supplement, according to researchers fromWestern Washington University (Metabolism, 52, 9:1136-40, 2003).Researchers noted it is unclear what proportion of weight gain during creatinesupplementation is due to fluid retention and what proportion is due toincreased lean body mass. To investigate, they studied the effects of twomagnesium-creatine supplements on total body water and cellular fluidcompartments, peak torque, total work and power in physically active, youngsubjects. Magnesium was added to a creatine regimen because magnesiumdeficiency makes the body unable to obtain energy from creatine.

Researchers randomly assigned 35 young men (ages 19 to 24) totake four equal doses of 800 mg/d of magnesium plus 5 g/d of creatine,magnesium-creatine chelate (at the same dosage levels, as Creatine MagnaPower,provided by St. Clair Shores, Mich.-based Albion Advanced Nutrition) or placebofor two weeks while maintaining regular exercise routines. At the end of thestudy period, significant weight gains were noted in both treatment groupscompared to placebo. In addition, the chelate group gained total body water andexhibited changes in relative body water compartments. The statisticallysignificant effects in compartmental water shifts in [the chelate group], butnot [the stacked group], may indicate a greater availability of cellularcreatine in the [chelate]-supplemented group, the researchers wrote.

Additional findings showed significant changes in peak torquein both treatment groups compared to placebo. Both treatment groups also tendedto do more work and exhibited increases in power from baseline compared to theplacebo group.