When to take Creatine
If your seeking the best results of Creatine, it is best to take one teaspoon of creatine at least one hour before workout, it will stay in your system for roughly one hour and a half, so take it two hours after your workout and then one more teaspoon before you go to sleep.
If your not training that day, take it two teaspoons throughout the day.
20070708 4:25 pm
Previous 1 year i have takilng creatine it work me i used creatine for 3 months but after that i feel brething problem its normal after few days it pains me on my left side of between kidney i thought so i stop 2 taking creat..
20071106 6:29 pm
is it good to use creatine especialy that your muscles dont get rock hard
20080321 6:16 am
You should take creatine right after a workout! It is the best way to re energize your muscle’s.
20080321 6:20 am
Immediately before your workout?
Immediately before your workout is not the best time to take creatine.
First, large shifts in body fluid during exercise should be avoided at all cost. They could severely compromise exercise performance and even prove hazardous.
Secondly, less glycemic foods are a preferable food source prior to exercise because they provide cellular energy more steadily. On the other hand, highly glycemic sugars (like those taken with creatine) should be avoided prior to exercise because of the sudden crash in energy levels they cause.
Lastly, creatine needn’t be “fresh” to work. Once the muscle stores are full, creatine is stable until degraded. Therefore, the stores don’t need to be replenished immediately before exercising.
During your workout?
One study showed that taking creatine during your workout hampers exercise performance. This is probably due to the effect of dehydration on exercise performance.
Before and after your workout?
Don’t supplement to frequently. Supplementing both before and after exercise may be counterproductive because of the inhibition of creatine transporter activity that may still persist from the previous feeding.
The short answer:
The best time to take creatine is immediately after your workout when the metabolic state of skeletal muscle is most receptive to insulin-mediated uptake of creatine. Further capitalize on this situation by taking creatine with fruit juices (at least 16 ounces) that contain simple sugars such as glucose or dextrose.
20080409 8:08 pm
Hi, this is in deed great post. The art of working on lean mass is not so complicated and demanding as many try to make us believe. Really we all need practical and effective guidelines in order to advance and growth, doesn’t matter if goal is getting huge or just toning up a bit. I keep seeing same thing in my gym: those who are not using their mind power to keep up with new experiences and stay closed to anything outside their box - they give up , sooner or later usually sooner
Therefore I want to emphasise importance of places like you have here. All the best .
20080506 5:46 pm
Good article. Was this based on much testing from personal experience? What other times/tests did you try, and what were the results there?
I recently added an article to my website in which I talk about when to take creatine and the loading phases and maintenance phases. I know some don’t bother with this, but, I know many do.