POWER UP YOUR PROTEIN WITH CREATINE

There are some stories-like How the Grinch Stole Christmas-that we know by heart. Another tale that may be all too familiar to many of us: How we try to slim, only to regain more weight than we lost.

-  LISA MAXBAUER

NEWS FLASH: Women over 40 benefit from the nutrient that body builders have sworn by for decades. Here, top experts reveal how creatine fights fat 5 ways!

Why does this happen to us over and over again? Experts have identified two main types of weight loss: healthy (when we drop body fat) and unhealthy (when more than 25% of the loss comes from muscle). Top protein researcher Paul Arciero, Ph.D., Director of the Human Nutrition, Performance & Metabolism Lab at Skidmore College, says, "Unfortunately, unhealthy weight loss occurs with most diets." And once that metabolically active muscle is gone, "resting metabolism drops, and you burn fewer calories, making it much harder to maintain your previous body weight." As a result, any holiday weight gain tends to continue into the new year.

Luckily, breaking science reveals a tool that can help: creatine. It's like protein since it's made of a blend of amino acids (the building blocks of protein), but it's not protein. It's found naturally in red meat and fish, but cooking often depletes creatine, so we need to supplement to get enough.

And despite what you may have heard, creatine isn't just for body builders. "Most of the supplements that you think are for college-age guys are actually more important for perimenopausal and menopausal women to take," says Charlie Seltzer, M.D., a specialist in obesity medicine and strength and conditioning. That's because women naturally lose more muscle as we age, which grinds our metabolism to a halt.

The body can make some of its own creatine, but experts at the University of North Carolina discovered that women store only about 70% as much as men. Dr. Arciero says, "It doesn't mean women need less. Actually, they may need slightly more creatine than men." And shoring up levels with a supplement can be a powerful step toward achieving your goal weight.