Creatine: this is how you use it

You've got your diet and fitness routine perfectly in check and are now considering the use of supplements. As a strength athlete, you're likely thinking about creatine. Creatine is one of the most widely used supplements and has proven effectiveness. But how do you use creatine optimally? In this XXL Nutrition blog, we’ll tell you everything about using creatine, including tips on daily dosage and the best times to take it. This way, you can use creatine to boost explosive power and muscle growth!

How Does Creatine Work?

Before you start using creatine, you’re probably curious about what creatine actually does. We won’t dive too deeply into the workings of creatine in this blog, but we’ll give you a brief overview. If you want to learn more about the effects of creatine supplements, read more about what creatine does here.

Creatine plays an important role in the energy supply to your muscles, especially during short, explosive movements like strength training. Creatine is converted in your body into creatine phosphate, which replenishes the creatine phosphate system. Your body uses this system when performing explosive strength efforts, such as during deadlifts or military presses.

Unfortunately, the creatine phosphate system depletes fairly quickly. You can typically maintain an explosive movement for only about 15 seconds before muscle fatigue and reduced strength set in. By using creatine, you can ensure that more creatine phosphate is available to your muscles, thereby enhancing performance during explosive strength efforts.

While most strength athletes and bodybuilders benefit from the effects of creatine, not everyone experiences a positive impact. About 20% of creatine users do not respond to supplementation and therefore won’t notice an increase in explosive strength. These individuals likely have naturally high levels of creatine. This group is referred to as non-responders.

How Much Creatine Per Day?

To determine how many grams of creatine you need per day, it's important to choose a dosing schedule. You can opt for the creatine loading phase, where you take a higher dosage of creatine for the first 5 to 7 days. After this loading phase, you transition to a consistent daily dose of creatine.

During the loading phase, you start with 20-25 grams of creatine or 0.3 grams of creatine per kilogram of body weight for 5 to 7 days. This higher dosage should not be taken all at once but spread out over 4 doses throughout the day. Afterward, you switch to a daily dose of 3-5 grams of creatine or 0.03 grams per kilogram of body weight.

Another way to use creatine is to skip the loading phase and start directly with a consistent daily dose. In this case, you take 3-5 grams of creatine per day (or 0.03 grams per kilogram of body weight) from day one.

Taking more creatine than the recommended amount? That would be wasteful, as your body won't absorb the excess creatine. The surplus will be excreted in your urine, which won’t result in more strength or muscle growth. It just means you'll go through your creatine supply faster and need to buy more.

Note: For large bodybuilders with extremely high muscle mass, a higher daily dose of creatine is required. Because you have more muscle mass, your body needs more creatine. In this case, stick to a maximum dose of 5-10 grams of creatine per day.

Is a Creatine Loading Phase Necessary?

As mentioned above, some athletes choose to follow a creatine loading phase. But what’s the benefit of creatine loading? The loading phase allows you to notice the effects of creatine use more quickly. The maximum creatine levels in your muscles are reached faster, allowing you to benefit from creatine sooner.

However, in the long term, it hasn’t been proven to be more valuable than maintaining a daily dose of 5 grams of creatine per day. For example, this study[1] shows that you eventually achieve the same results without the loading phase, but you might have to wait a little longer to notice improvements in your athletic performance.

Therefore, it’s not strictly necessary to follow the creatine loading phase. If you use creatine over a longer period, you will achieve the same results by starting with 5 grams per day right away. The advantage of this approach is that your creatine supply lasts longer, and the chances of experiencing nausea or diarrhea are reduced. These side effects can sometimes occur during the creatine loading phase.

How Long Should You Use Creatine?

In the past, it was believed that creatine should be taken in cycles. For example, you might take 5 grams of creatine monohydrate daily for 3 months, followed by a month without creatine. But is it really necessary to temporarily stop using creatine? Or is a creatine cycle unnecessary, allowing you to take creatine continuously?

The arguments for cycling creatine include:

• Maintaining natural creatine production
• Preventing a decrease in effectiveness over time
• Avoiding harmful effects of creatine

However, recent research has shown that these arguments do not necessarily apply to creatine use. When you stop taking creatine, your natural creatine production will quickly return to its previous levels, regardless of how long you have been using it. Additionally, cycling does not enhance the effectiveness of creatine. When you stop, your creatine levels drop quickly, and when you start your next “cycle” with a loading phase, the levels rise to their maximum again. There is no evidence that your body becomes accustomed to creatine supplementation.

You also don’t need to worry about harmful effects from using creatine. Creatine is the most researched supplement in the world and has consistently been found to be safe. No adverse health effects have been discovered with either short- or long-term use of creatine monohydrate.

Therefore, it is safe to use creatine continuously, and there’s no need to stop periodically. Since creatine monohydrate is inexpensive, there’s no financial reason to cycle it either.

So, How Should You Use Creatine?

Creatine is an incredibly useful supplement for strength athletes and bodybuilders. It promotes muscle growth and improves performance during explosive strength efforts. If you’re excited after reading our blog about creatine use and want to start right away, here’s a quick summary of how to use creatine most effectively. Use our tips to enhance your athletic performance.

• Take 5 grams of creatine daily (a loading phase is not strictly necessary).
• Drink creatine with water, a sports drink, or your protein shake.
• Preferably take creatine after waking up or immediately after your workout.
• Creatine monohydrate is the best choice.
• You can use creatine continuously without needing to take breaks.
• Creatine use is completely safe.

Are you looking for more information about creatine? Check out our blog "Creatine: Everything You Want to Know" and become an expert on creatine.

How to Take Creatine

Once you’ve determined your daily creatine dosage, using creatine is very simple. You can dissolve the creatine powder in water, a sports drink, or any other beverage of your choice. It’s even possible to add creatine to your protein shake. Just give it a good shake or stir, and your creatine drink is ready!

Creatine is also available in pill or capsule form. In this case, you take the creatine pills with plenty of the drink of your choice. The advantage of capsules is that you don’t need to mix powder into your drink.

When to Take Creatine?

You should use creatine every day, both on rest days and training days. For the desired effect, the timing of creatine intake doesn’t matter much, as long as you take your dosage consistently each day. However, research[2] suggests that taking creatine after your workout might offer slight benefits. One study alone isn’t enough to make concrete recommendations, though.

Our advice is to take your 5-gram creatine dose either in the morning on an empty stomach or immediately after your workout. You can also choose to adjust your creatine intake based on whether it’s a rest day or a training day. Here’s a guideline you can follow:

• Rest days: 5 grams of creatine after waking up
• Training days: 5 grams of creatine immediately after your workout

If you opt for the creatine loading phase, spread the intake over 4 times throughout the day. In total, you’ll take approximately 20 grams of creatine. You can follow this distribution:

• 5 grams of creatine after waking up
• 5 grams of creatine before your workout
• 5 grams of creatine after your workout
• 5 grams of creatine before bed

Which Creatine Should You Use?

When you're looking to buy creatine, you'll come across various types. But what is the best creatine? For most athletes, creatine monohydrate is the best choice. Monohydrate, also known as the "basic creatine," is the most affordable option. We recommend that if you're starting with creatine, you should always choose creatine monohydrate. It's unnecessary to spend more money on other variants that haven't been proven to be more effective.

In addition to monohydrate creatine, there are "luxury blends" and creatines with added ingredients. Some well-known types include creatine ethyl ester, creatine HCL, creatine nitrate, and creatine kre-alkalyn. Although scientific evidence doesn't show clear advantages, some creatine users report better experiences with a blend. This is often the case for people who don't respond well to regular creatine monohydrate, so if you fall into this category, a blend might be worth trying! The article "What is Creatine" delves deeper into this topic.

Creatine Monohydrate Intake Schedule

So, you’ve decided to go with creatine monohydrate to give your progress a new boost. Below, we share a creatine monohydrate intake schedule, so you can use creatine step by step.

With Loading Phase:

• Days 1 to 7: Take 20 grams of creatine monohydrate per day, divided into 4 doses.
• From Day 8 onwards: Take 5 grams of creatine monohydrate per day, either upon waking (on rest days) or immediately after your workout (on training days).

Without Loading Phase:

• From Day 1 onwards: Take 5 grams of creatine monohydrate per day, either upon waking (on rest days) or immediately after your workout (on training days).

As previously explained, the creatine loading phase is not necessary. It simply helps you reach your maximum creatine levels faster. Choose the method that you feel most comfortable with.