Creatine is one of the most essential supplements for any amateur or professional bodybuilder or athlete. As one of the most studied supplements in sport, it has been proven to be an exceptionally effective supplement in relation to increased strength, muscle growth and performance.
ProMera sports have taken Creatine supplementation to the next level with CON-CRET offering a supplement with no side effects, no caffeine or other stimulants and no additives.
So is it no bull? To find out, first we’ll quickly look at what creatine is and how it works then look at Con-cret to see how it “stacks” up.
Creatine in our bodies, The basic science
Each day, about 2gm of Creatine is produced by the kidneys and liver from Methionine, Glycine and Arginine. Under normal circumstances, most of your creatine is stored in muscle tissue, your heart and other cells.
It acts as an energy supply for explosive or heavy exertion. The cells only store enough creatine for several seconds of this type of exercise.
However, creatine is also essential to the formation of ATP, the fuel for muscular contractions. The more creatine you have available in your cells, the more ATP can be produced, giving you more endurance during a heavy workout.
For optimum performance, creatine supplements should be taken with carbohydrates. By doing so, you boost the amount of creatine stored in muscle tissue by as much as 60%.
Using a creatine-carbohydrate combination helps to increases insulin and therefore your body’s uptake of glucose, which is then stored in your muscles and liver as glycogen for fuel.
A higher level of glycogen again means, increased endurance for your workout.
The Ingredients and how they work
Most other creatine supplements on the market are Creatine Monohydrate. Con-Cret on the other hand uses a patented Creatine Hydrochloride formula. According to ProMera, by using a hydrochloride the creatine is more easily absorbed into our system.
It also claims that this formula gives a higher increase in ATP production than other creatines, and doesn’t cause the common side effects of creatine supplementation such as water weight gain, diarrhea and cramps.
It’s important to note that these claims have not been assessed by the USFDA as yet. However, anecdotal evidence from user reviews suggests the claims are accurate in terms of gains and no side effects.
There are no stimulants or banned substances used in Con-Cret and there are no other ingredients of note.
Dosage
Con-Cret is micro-dosed in a highly concentrated formula meaning there is no loading necessary as with other creatine supplements and you need less of it to be effective. Part of ProMera’s advertising states “1/4 teaspoons is equivalent to 5-10 grams of regular creatine”.
Again there is no proof of this scientifically speaking but 1 scoop contains 750mg of creatine. The recommended dosage is 1 scoop (1010mg) per 100lbs of body weight.
Taste and mix-ability
Con-Cret comes in 5 flavors. They are; Snake Fruit, Blue Raspberry, Lemon Lime, Pineapple and Unflavored. Yes you read that right, one of the flavors is Unflavored.
Pineapple and lemon Lime seem to be the most popular from 2000 plus user reviews at Bodybuilding.com. The unflavored flavor comes in last with some people commenting… it has no taste… go figure.
Mix-ability true to ProMera’s claims, is excellent with no clumping. However, once mixed, the powder does resettle quickly so you need to drink it straight away. If not you’ll notice the taste get stronger towards the bottom of your cup.
ProMera also make Con-Cret in capsule form, so if you don’t like the flavors or feel it’s inconvenient to mix, this gives you another option.
Cost
Con-Cret powder is available in 24 and 48 serve tubs and the capsules in bottles of 48. The regular retail price is $24 and $46 for the powder and $40 for the capsules.
I found the cheapest price around for the 24 serve was on Amazon for $13.99 and for the 48 serve in capsule or powder form Bodybuilding.com at $ 28.98.
This sounds cheap, but remember, you need 1 serve per 100 pounds of body weight.
Basically, when you need to multiply the cost by 1.5 or more and it soon becomes expensive and a 48 day supply is effectively halved and there are cheaper alternatives out there, that may or may not deliver the same gains. (Depending on who you listen to)
Summing it up
Pros
- Micro dosing.
- No loading necessary.
- No stimulants or banned substances.
- Mixes well.
- Creatine is proven to enhance endurance and gains.
- Available in capsule and powder form.
- All anecdotal evidence from user reviews suggest it is very effective.
Cons
- Is expensive compared to other creatine supplements.
- Some claims by the manufacturer are yet to be proven.
Con-Cret Review Conclusion
Con-Cret has a lot going for it, not the least of which are Creatine’s proven benefit to bodybuilders and the customer praise and testimonials.
While there is a shadow over some of the company’s claims, I’m going to recommend it if you can afford the price tag.