When to take creatine for best results

Creatine is one of the extensively researched and most-loved sports performance enhancers on the market, for good reason!

Creatine can help increase physical performance in successive bursts of short-term, high-intensity exercise, and so much more. But does it really matter when you take it?

Find out what the current scientific evidence on creatine has to say about it in this article.

What is creatine?

First things first, here’s an intro to creatine monohydrate. Feel free to skip this bit if you’re already creatine-clued up! 

We already have creatine in our bodies, most of which can be found in our skeletal muscle (~95%).¹

Foods like seafood and red meat also contain creatine, with a pound of salmon or uncooked beef providing around 1-2g of creatine.² It’s generally recommended that we replenish our bodies with around 1-3g of creatine per day to maintain normal creatine stores.³

What does creatine do in the body?

Maintaining optimal creatine levels in the body allows us to create more ATP, which is used to create energy in the body.

When you perform high-intensity training, like weightlifting, ATP gets broken down very quickly to provide you with that explosive ‘burst’ of energy, e.g. standing back up after performing a barbell squat.

Supplementing with creatine has been shown to increase creatine in our muscles, which then allows the powerful ATP to be restored quickly.

When should I take creatine for best results?

There is a general consensus in the fitness world of how much creatine you should be consuming day-to-day for optimal results, however, the jury is out on when to use creatine.

Let’s look at what the research says shall we!

Read more: Finding the best creatine for you

1. ‘Take creatine whenever you like’

A lot of research focuses on how much creatine you should take throughout the day depending on the creatine you ingest through your normal diet and the training that you do, rather than when.

Some research has even reported that there is seemingly no difference between taking it after or before exercising.⁴

• If you eat animal products like meat and eggs

For people following a normal diet that contains 1-2g a day of creatine, the most effective way to increase muscle creatine stores up to their full potential is to take 5g of creatine 4 times a day for 5-7 days.⁵ This is also known as ‘creatine loading’.

Once your muscles have been ‘refilled’ and have reached their saturation points after this period of time, you should maintain your replenished creatine store by ingesting 3-5g of creatine a day.⁶

• If you are vegetarian or vegan

Because dietary creatine is only found in animal products, it is suggested that vegans and vegetarians may have to initially supplement more to reach their muscle creatine saturation point, e.g. taking an additional 1-2g of creatine on top of the recommended 5g of creatine 4 times a day (6-7g 4 times a day).⁷

Then, when they have reached healthy levels in their muscles, they can apply the same logic to their maintenance creatine intake by adding 1-2g of creatine to the recommended 3-5g of creatine every day, e.g. 4-7g a day.⁸

• Larger athletes

As larger athletes have a higher muscle mass, they may need to ingest as much as 5-10g per day to maintain their muscle creatine stores.⁹

2. ‘Take creatine after a workout’

How about taking creatine after a workout? Does that have any extra benefits?

One 4-week study followed adult men who weight trained 5 days a week and either took 5g of creatine before or after they exercised.¹⁰

Results showed that the group that took creatine after exercising experiences a greater increase in lean mass and greater decrease in fat mass.¹¹

3. ‘Take creatine before a workout’

There is no current evidence that taking creatine before a workout is any better than taking it after a workout or any other time of day.

How should I take creatine for best results?

The evidence seems to point towards the theory that it doesn’t really matter when you take your creatine supplement – just make sure you take it every day if you want to maintain optimum levels.

3 of the best types of creatine

We've rounded up 3 of the best creatine types, along with our very own product recommendations. 

1. Creatine powder

2. Creatine capsules

3. Creatine gummies

Should I take creatine every day? Even on rest days?

Yes, if you want to enjoy the full benefits of creatine, then it is advised that you take it every day. This means taking it on rest days too.

How much creatine should I be supplementing?

As we discussed above¹²:

• A creatine loading period may be necessary to replenish diminished creatine sources - it is advised that you take 5g of creatine 4 times a day for 5-7 days
• If you are already obtaining 1-2g of creatine from animal sources a day, you should be supplementing 3-5g of creatine a day to maintain levels in your body
• If you are a larger athlete with more muscle mass, you may benefit from upping this to 5-10g a day
• If you are not getting much or any creatine from animal sources, e.g. if you are vegetarian or vegan, you may need to up the amount of creatine by a few grams in both the ‘creatine’ loading phase and maintenance phase to reach fully optimised levels in the body as your body is already starting ‘at a loss’ and needs more to maintain

Can I take creatine with pre workout?

Yep! In fact, as most creatine powders leave little to be desired in the flavour department, mixing in creatine with your usual pre workout could be a great way to take it. It might help you to remember to take it, too.

What happens when you stop taking creatine?

Your creatine levels will drop, and you may experience decreased strength in some activities if you are used to training with a creatine supplement.

Why creatine is bad for you?

Generally, it’s not. Creatine is widely regarded as a safe supplement if you use it correctly.¹³

Last updated: 23 April 2021