Creatine: benefits, how to take it and side effects
In short
- Creatine monohydrate is the most researched sports supplement and increases strength and muscle gain with resistance training.
- Take 3-5 g a day, every day, at any time. A loading phase is optional.
- Without loading, muscles saturate in about 3-4 weeks. With loading, in 5-7 days.
- In healthy people at normal doses it is safe. A 2-4 lb gain in the first weeks is water in the muscles, not fat.
Creatine helps your muscles rebuild energy quickly for short, intense efforts like sets in the gym, sprints and jumps. The best-studied form is creatine monohydrate, taken at 3-5 g a day, every day, at any time of day. This is the recommendation of the International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN) in its 2017 position stand. A loading phase speeds things up, but you do not need one.
What creatine actually does
Muscles store creatine as phosphocreatine, a fast energy reserve for the first 5-10 seconds of hard work. With more of it, a muscle can squeeze out one or two more reps per set, which adds up to more training volume over weeks.
According to the ISSN position stand (Kreider and colleagues, 2017), creatine combined with resistance training increases strength, power and muscle gain more than training alone. The effect is clearest in short, heavy sets: the bench press, squat and deadlift.
A diet with meat and fish provides about 1-2 g of creatine a day. People who eat little meat start with lower stores, so they often respond more strongly to supplements.
How to take creatine monohydrate
There are two ways to start. Both end at the same place, only the speed differs.
| Method | How to take it | When muscles are saturated |
|---|---|---|
| No loading | 3-5 g a day | in about 3-4 weeks |
| Loading | 0.3 g per kg a day (about 20 g) in 4 doses for 5-7 days, then 3-5 g | in 5-7 days |
Hultman and colleagues (1996) showed that 3 g a day without loading reached the same muscle creatine level after 28 days as a week of loading. Loading only makes sense if you need the effect quickly.
Timing barely matters. Taking it with a meal or after training makes it easier to remember. What matters is taking it every day, rest days included.
Which creatine to buy
Creatine monohydrate has the most research behind it. Other forms such as creatine HCl, ethyl ester or buffered creatine cost more and have not shown advantages in studies.
- Ingredients: creatine monohydrate only, without added sugar.
- Price per gram: monohydrate is cheap, there is no reason to pay for a brand name.
- Third-party testing: a seal such as Informed Sport or NSF Certified for Sport confirms what is inside, which matters most for blends.
Creatine side effects
The most common effect is a gain of about 2-4 lb (1-2 kg) in the first weeks. This is water stored inside muscle cells together with creatine, not fat.
A review by Antonio and colleagues (2021) looked at common fears. In healthy people at recommended doses, creatine did not harm the kidneys or liver and did not cause dehydration or cramps. If you have kidney disease, talk to your doctor before starting.
When creatine will not help
Creatine boosts training but does not replace it. Without strength work it does very little, and it has a small effect on long endurance events like a marathon.
It does not burn fat either. During a diet it helps you keep strength while the calorie deficit does the fat loss, see calorie deficit: how to calculate it. To track strength gains, estimate your max with the one-rep max calculator.
Bottom line
If you lift, creatine monohydrate at 3-5 g a day is the cheapest and best-studied supplement you can take. Take it daily, watch your reps climb and do not expect it to replace training.
Creatine shows up as progress in your lifts: one or two more reps with the same weight. The Tonus workout log keeps the weight and reps of every set, so the gain shows in numbers rather than in how a session felt.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to cycle creatine?
No. Research has not found any benefit from cycling on and off. After stopping, muscle creatine slowly returns to baseline over 4-6 weeks.
Is creatine good for women?
Yes, it works the same way: more energy for short, hard efforts and better strength gains. The small weight gain is water inside the muscle, not fat.
Does creatine cause hair loss?
There is no good evidence that it does. The idea comes from a single small 2009 study on a hormone marker that has not been repeated, and no study has measured actual hair loss.
Sources
- Kreider R. B. et al. International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: safety and efficacy of creatine supplementation in exercise, sport, and medicine. JISSN, 2017 doi.org/10.1186/s12970-017-0173-z
- Antonio J. et al. Common questions and misconceptions about creatine supplementation: what does the scientific evidence really show? JISSN, 2021 doi.org/10.1186/s12970-021-00412-w
- Hultman E. et al. Muscle creatine loading in men. J Appl Physiol, 1996 doi.org/10.1152/jappl.1996.81.1.232
This article is for general information and does not replace medical advice.