Mixing Creatine
A common question asked when taking creatine is: What do I mix it with? Is it ok to mix creatine with other supplements? Should you take it with water, with food, or with juices? Can you take it with protein? Throughout the following article I will outline some of the common and productive ways to take creatine.
Water is the most abundant natural resource on the planet. Water is also tasteless. If you are taking creatine monohydrate, odds are it is tasteless as well. So wouldn’t it be logical to take creatine with a class of water this way you don’t have to deal with the awful taste in your mouth? Well, that is not necessarily the case.
Research has shown that grape juice contains simple sugars that cause insulin to be released into the body. Insulin production is necessary to help transport to creatine into the muscle fibers. Just because creatine works well with grape juice, do not assume it works with all juices. Creatine mixed with citrus juices, such as orange juice, can be rendered useless because it will be converted to createinine which the body can not use.
Another option is to take creatine with Gatorade or other sports drinks. Sports drinks are loaded with electrolytes and help replace everything the body loses during an intense workout. If you plan on mixing creatine with Gatorade, it is recommended that you do it in the Gatorade powder form, not the pre bottled stuff. Gatorade powder has dextrose in it which helps replenish electrolytes.
What you mix your creatine in also depends on the flavor you buy. Supplement drinks can taste awful depending on the flavors and liquids you mix. You do not want to mix chocolate flavored creatine with grape juice. And you do not want to mix citrus flavored creatine with Gatorade. If you buy flavored creatine it would be best to mix it with water to help retain the flavor.
As far as mixing creatine with protein, there seem to be some conflicting reports. Some experts encourage it, while others oppose. The experts who approve the mix say the protein helps with creatine absorption. The people who oppose say that creatine and protein use the same transport and that they will compete with each other once in the body. The best way to figure it out is to try it yourself to see what works best. Start off with taking creatine before your workout, and protein after your work out.
20070424 5:01 am
hi,,, my name is mauricio, i am from colombia and i wanted to tell you that i am drinking protein and creatine blended with water and some bananas at the same time. i take one in the morning before eating any breakfas and other just after training hard… so my question is…. is it good? or what am i supossed to do?….. thanks
20070724 3:48 am
WHEN AM I SUPOSE TO DRINK (Pro Performance® Whey Protein - Unflavored) BEFORE I WORKOUT AND IF SO HOW LONG BEFORE MY WOUKOUT DO I DRINK IT AND WHAT SHOULD I MIX IT WITH????. OR IF I AM SUPOSE TO DRINK IT AFTER MY WORKOUT, HOW LONG AFTER?? PLEASE GET BACK TO ME ABOUT THIS ISUE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, PLEASE.
THANKS FOR YOUR TIME AND EXPERT ADVICE, FROM YOUR FRIEND MANUEL.
20070804 6:24 am
From your personal opinion regarding mixing protein with creatine, what is the best combination?
Kim
http://bith.org
20070906 5:50 pm
There is a new superhydration beverage that allows you to start absorbing water, electrolytes, and antioxidants into the bloodstream directly through the mouth. It also helps you absorb whatever you mix it with, i.e. creatine, glutamine, etc. resulting in higher assimilation and metabolic activity. It just launched in California, but soon should be available in more states. It’s pretty insane. I’ve used it with a couple of different supplements and the results are amazing, like you can “feel” the supplements working. No caffeine, no sugar. It would be a great alternative to grape juice or gatorade. It’s called AQUISS. Try it.
20070924 7:08 am
when you say gatorade.. but isn’t it citrus? b/c most of them are either orange flavour or lime flavour.
I’ve started Creatine Mono, and I bought the Staminade powder to mix it with, the flavour of the Staminade powder is lemon lime.
Does it make the Creatine not effective?
thanks
ed
20070930 4:31 pm
Is it good to mix Micronized Creatine with Nitro-tech Hardcore?
20071020 3:39 am
Can you take creatine pills and powder at the same time? Thanks for the advice.
20080227 2:31 am
Ok, I’ll try to answer all of your questions. First, creatine is not a miracle drug. But, if taken properly, it can give slight increases in strength and size, and also helps with recovery. Creatine does this by helping to replenish ATP, which can keep your energy up and slows down the process of lactic acid buildup (burning sensation in muscles) when you lift. All of my answers are based on a variety of articles I have read and my personal experience with creatine monohydrate, which is the creatine used in almost all of the studies and also is shown to be the most effective and safest form of creatine. “MAURICIO GIL” and “manuel”- Take creatine 1 hour before your workout. Do not take creatine more than once a day. Your dosage depends on your bodyweight. I am 200 pounds and take 10g a day for four weeks, then take a week off and repeat the cycle. If you weigh 150 take 6-7 grams. If you weigh 250 and up, take 15-17 grams a day. Of course, the safest reccommend dosage is 5g, but a bottle of creatine will show this because it is a “blanket doseage” or a doseage that will safely cover a wide range of people. Also, the powder form of creatine is most effective.
“Asian Skin Care”- I take creatine and a protein shake seperately, but at the same time. This has been effective for me. Also, you need a lot of water when you take creatine, so I reccommend you take it with a large glass of water.
“drewo”- I have not taken the form of creatine that you mentioned. Since that particular form is new it is not likely that it has went through enough testing to be deemed “safe”. No form of creatine, not even monohydrate, has been proven safe by long term studies, since the first studies on the substance regarding supplemental use were first done in the 90’s. No forms of creatine are approved by the FDA, either. Don’t worry though, if taken properly it is not likely you will experience side effects. I do not reccommend that anyone use creatine unless it is creatine monohydrate, since as I have mentioned before, it is the most widely tested and accepted form of creatine.
“ed”- To be safe I would not mix creatine with anything that has “citrus” on its ingredint label. Creatine may create an imbalance in electrolyte levels, so it is a good idea to take creatine with something like gatorade. I take creatine with red punch gatorade. Try to find something like a blue or purple flavor, again, just to be safe, because combining gatorade with something with citrus in it like orange juice will make the creatine ineffective.
“Will”- I have no ideo what nitro-tech hardcore is, and have only taken and read about creatine monohydrate. The best advice I can give is to take the form of creatine that I take, creatine monohydrate, and to take a protein shake before and after a workout.
“Michael”- It is not a good idea to mix pills with powder because the risk of an overdose are higher. It is better to take powder only with my earlier reccommendation.(5g is roughly equal to one teaspoon tsp.) Powder works better because it is absorbed by the body faster.
Remember, I am not that reliable of a source, although I have researched and personally used creatine. Your best chance for finding information on creatine is on an OBJECTIVE WEBSITE THAT IS NOT TRYING TO SELL THE PRODUCT. I hope my information has been useful.
20080301 9:45 am
im taking protein and cratine mixed with milk together .. is that bad?
20080301 9:49 am
im taking protein and creatine mixed with milk toghether.. is that bad?
20080303 3:56 am
nothing wrong with that, make sure there is no caffine in the shake… it negates the effects of creatine
20080310 8:00 pm
after i finish workin out i’m takin creatin.
then after 10min a take protein is that ok to have it like that.
an what u think about cell teck creatine?!
thank you.
-John
20080418 2:07 pm
can I use an electrolyte beverage powder with 1.3meq of citrate in it mixed with my creatine?
20080430 3:55 am
I am 15 and before i took creatine my max bench was 160 now i have taken it for a month and i can bench 190
20080502 8:52 am
Although Creatine has shown certain benefits in terms of lean muscle gains, faster recovery and weight gains, the amount of such gains are clearly not significant enough to warrant intake, as the major risks factors of creatine supplementation has not been clearly identified.
Even as a Sports Medicine Doctor, I would advise against my patients (mostly professional athletes) taking it, until more clinically significant research is done.
Prof. Andrew Tamils, MD, PhD
20080502 8:53 am
Although Creatine has shown certain benefits in terms of lean muscle gains, faster recovery and weight gains, the amount of such gains are clearly not significant enough to warrant intake, as the major risks factors of creatine supplementation has not been clearly identified.
Even as a Sports Medicine Doctor, I would advise against my patients (mostly professional athletes) taking it, until more clinically significant research is done.
Prof. Andrew Tamils, MD, PhD
20080506 1:53 pm
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20080506 1:54 pm
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20080506 1:55 pm
http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/creatine-000297.htm
20080509 11:21 pm
Can i mix creatine with lemon juice? will it mess up the creatine? monohydrate states u can mix it with a NON acidic drink…what does this mean =(
20080510 7:09 pm
do creatine and protein help if you do workouts like push ups and chin ups/pushups¿
20080510 7:10 pm
i meant chin ups/pull ups ^^
20080515 11:43 pm
I use Creatine + grape/apple juice 30 minutes before working out then a Designer Whey Protein shake 30-60 minutes after the workout. The protein I take on days I workout only. The Creatine I take everyday for about 4-6 weeks then I take a week off before starting over. I have been lifting and involved in athletics all my life and that seems to be the most effective mix. If you have to chose between Creatine or protein, go with the Creatine because the research proving the effectiveness of high levels of protein is very sketchy. You WILL see result quickly from Creatine and the cost is manageable.
20080515 11:54 pm
To Craig, you probably don’t want the added expense of supplements when doing just push/pull ups. Weight training breaks down the muscles, if trained properly, allowing for the supplements to assist in recovery. Push/pull ups are great exercises and if mixed with Abdominal work can be a substitute, if free weights aren’t available. But you will likely create leaner, defined muscle but not as much size as free weights. Hershel Walker, former University of Georgia running back, did push/pull ups, ab work and a lot of sprints when he was young because no free weights were available and he was a beast!