Creatine: What It Actually Does, How Much To Take & Is It Worth It?
Some people swear by it. Some think it's basically a steroid. Others have bought a tub, taken it three times and left it in the kitchen cupboard ever since. So what's actually true?
Creatine is one of the few gym supplements genuinely worth knowing about.
It isn't magic. But it has a strong amount of research behind it and can help improve strength, high-intensity training performance and muscle gain when combined with proper resistance training.
What actually is creatine?
Creatine is a substance your body already produces naturally. You also get smaller amounts through foods such as meat and fish.
Most of the creatine in your body is stored inside your muscles, where it helps provide energy during short, intense bursts of exercise.
Your muscles use a molecule called ATP as an immediate energy source. During intense exercise, those readily available energy stores run down quickly.
Creatine helps your body replenish that energy supply.
Creatine can help you perform slightly better during hard training.
That might mean another rep, slightly more weight or better performance across several sets. Small improvements don't sound dramatic, but repeated for months they can add up.
Does creatine actually build muscle?
Indirectly, yes.
Creatine doesn't simply enter your body and turn itself into muscle. What it can do is help you get more quality work from your training.
Over weeks and months, being able to perform slightly more work can contribute to greater strength and muscle gains.
Creatine also draws more water into muscle cells. That's one reason people can notice their muscles looking slightly fuller after they start using it.
This also means some of the initial increase you see on the scales may be additional water stored within muscle, rather than body fat.
Will it make you stronger?
This is probably where creatine becomes most interesting for people regularly lifting weights at Apex.
Research consistently finds that combining creatine with resistance training can produce greater improvements in strength than resistance training alone.
But don't expect to take a scoop on Monday and put another 20kg on your bench press on Tuesday.
It's a small performance advantage that can compound over time.
You may never actually "feel" creatine working like caffeine or pre-workout. That doesn't mean it isn't working.
Per day. That's the bit you actually need to remember.
How much creatine should you take?
This is one of those things the fitness industry loves making more complicated than it needs to be.
Take 3–5g per day.
For most healthy adults, simply taking 5g once per day is an easy routine to remember.
You can mix it into:
- Water
- Juice
- A protein shake
- Yoghurt
- Anything else that helps you remember to take it consistently
Do you need a loading phase?
You might have heard people recommending around 20g per day for the first 5–7 days, usually split across multiple servings.
This is called creatine loading.
It can saturate your muscle creatine stores more quickly. But here's the important part:
You don't have to do it.
Loading
Gets muscle creatine stores up faster, but means taking several servings each day initially.
Just Take 5g Daily
Takes longer to reach full saturation, but is far easier to remember and stick with.
When should you take it?
Morning? Before your workout? Immediately afterwards? With carbs?
For the average gym member, this really doesn't need obsessing over.
Whenever you're most likely to remember it.
Consistency matters far more than trying to perfectly time every scoop.
If you always have a shake after training, put it in your shake.
If you take vitamins with breakfast every morning, keep your creatine next to them.
Yes. Take it on those too.
You're trying to keep your muscle creatine stores topped up, so continue taking your normal daily amount even when you aren't training.
Which type of creatine should you buy?
Walk into a supplement shop and you'll find all sorts of versions: HCL, buffered creatine, creatine nitrate, branded blends and plenty of expensive tubs with impressive labels.
For most people, there's no need.
100% Creatine Monohydrate.
It's inexpensive, well researched and the form most people actually need.
Will creatine make you gain weight?
Potentially, yes.
But that doesn't mean you've suddenly gained body fat.
Creatine can increase the amount of water stored inside your muscles, so your bodyweight may increase slightly after you start taking it.
Scale weight isn't the same thing as body fat.
Look at your waist measurements, progress photos, clothes, strength, gym performance and longer-term weight trend rather than one random weigh-in.
What about the scary stuff?
Creatine has been around long enough to collect plenty of myths. Here are some of the big ones.
Kidneys
In healthy adults taking normal doses, research has generally not shown creatine to damage healthy kidneys. Creatine can influence creatinine blood-test readings, so tell your doctor if you're taking it before having relevant tests.
Hair Loss
There's currently no convincing evidence that normal creatine supplementation causes hair loss.
Dehydration
Research doesn't support the idea that recommended amounts of creatine cause dehydration or muscle cramps in healthy people. You should still stay properly hydrated when training.
Steroids
Creatine is not an anabolic steroid. Your body already produces creatine naturally and you also consume some through food.
Medical conditions change the conversation.
If you have kidney disease, another medical condition, take relevant medication, are pregnant or breastfeeding, or have concerns about supplementation, speak to an appropriate healthcare professional before using it.
Who actually benefits from taking creatine?
If you're regularly resistance training at Apex and your goals include any of the following, creatine is worth considering.
But creatine isn't compulsory.
You can build an excellent physique without ever touching it. Your training, diet, protein intake, sleep and consistency are still far more important.
So... is creatine worth the money?
For most healthy adults who regularly lift weights: yes.
Creatine is inexpensive, widely researched and one of the few supplements with genuinely useful evidence behind it.
It won't give you a crazy buzz.
It won't burn belly fat.
It won't transform your body after three scoops.
What it can do is provide a small but useful advantage in strength, repeated high-intensity exercise and training progress over time.
The 20-Second Guide
Skipped the article? Here's everything you actually need to remember.
Creatine monohydrate.
3–5g per day. Taking 5g keeps things simple.
No. Take it every day.
No.
Whenever you're most likely to remember it.
No. It can increase water stored inside your muscles.
No.
If you resistance train regularly, it's one of the better-supported supplements available.
Don't overcomplicate it.
If you're already taking creatine, ask yourself whether you're actually taking it consistently.
If you're only remembering it when you train, make it part of your everyday routine instead.
And if you've never taken it before, you don't need an elaborate supplement routine.