Creatine vs. Whey Protein: No Comparison!

This is an article that I never would have thought to write myself, but discovered it needed doing to help a lot of people out there who seem to be very confused about the difference between creatine and whey protein; so confused in fact, that some people want a straight creatine vs. whey protein comparison. What you will discover is there really is no common ground upon which to draw such a comparison. Creatine and whey protein are very different animals and the only thing they do have in common aside from they are both made up of amino acids, is they’re both excellent supplements. Here you’ll discover what creatine is, what whey protein is, the very different ways in which they work, and whether or not both can be used together for even greater results. Crack on, shall we?

Whey protein is a food supplement, creatine is a performance enhancer…

You probably already know that a lot of protein is needed to build muscle, and that’s where whey protein comes in. It’s simply a way to get extra protein into your diet – and it just happens to be that whey protein is widely regarded as the best source of protein on the planet for its complete essential amino acid profile and highest biological value of all proteins – even superior to egg.

Although it’s made up from amino acids (Arginine , Glycine, Methionine) creatine isn’t sustenance, it’s an anaerobic muscular energy compound that’s essential for muscle contraction to take place. You may not know this but every time you eat meat and fish you take in small amounts of creatine from your diet. Your body manufactures the rest in the liver and kidneys from the 3 aforementioned amino acids.

The idea of creatine supplements, therefore, is to provide you with much greater additional muscle energy to enhance muscle contraction power and anaerobic endurance and recovery. This in itself helps to lead creatine users to greater muscle size gains from superior muscle contraction during training and the heavier weights you can lift, but also through increased intramuscular water retention and many studies show  a third mechanism of growth – by increasing satellite cell activity providing greater potential for muscle hypertrophy.

You can probably understand by now why comparing creatine and whey protein is pretty much impossible.

What if you had a limited budget and could only buy one or the other?

I guess if you had, say, $50 to spend and could only afford one or the other, then at least a tub of whey protein is 100% guaranteed to contribute towards your gains as part of your high protein diet, whereas creatine can be a little hit-and-miss, with some people experiencing fantastic gains in strength and size, with others reporting little to no noticeable effects. Just remember: A good diet and enough protein is essential to gain muscle, additional creatine is not.

If you have the money, you can always try both. However, it’s sometimes prudent to only try one supplement at a time and see how you fare before introducing another. But, it’s entirely up to you.