7 Good Reasons To Take Creatine Every Day

Creatine is a compound found mostly in your muscles. It is mainly used to create energy during high-intensity activities and short-duration exercises like weight lifting.

It’s believed that the more creatine you store, as phosphocreatine, the more energy your muscle cells can generate during high-intensity workouts. Other uses of creatine include increasing muscle mass and strength, reducing muscle cramps or fatigue, and improving exercise performance.

Studies suggest that creatine may protect bones, especially in older adults. In one study, postmenopausal women who took creatine for 12 months and did resistance exercise saw improvement in their bone strength.

Creatine may also reduce the risk of hip fracture, decrease the risk of falls, and slow down the loss of bone mineral. Not all studies have found these benefits of creatine in bone health.

Creatine is one of the most popular supplements with athletes and weightlifters due to its potential to improve exercise performance.

Studies consistently reveal that creatine supplements improve performance in single and multiple bouts of a short-duration workout session. They also enhance performance in high-intensity exercise activities and help your body adapt better to training over time.

During high-intensity exercise, the demand for creatine in the form of phosphocreatine is greater than the supply, which can limit physical performance. Increasing creatine stores will also increase phosphocreatine, which may, in turn, improve exercise performance.

Creatine supplements can also increase both upper and lower body muscle strength by acting on growth factors. Studies suggest combining creatine supplements with exercise may amplify muscle strength and increase muscle size.

Creatine can help accelerate recovery from muscle damage from exercise. Taking creatine after exercise may improve muscle regeneration, which could prevent severe muscle damage and improve recovery.

Creatine may also help improve your memory, attention span, and information processing speed. Some studies suggest that creatine improves memory by boosting energy levels and protecting the nerves in your brain.

High doses of creatine may also reverse fatigue-related memory decline and improve recognition memory.

Creatine has also been found to possess antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties that can benefit your heart.

Studies show that creatine helps reduce homocysteine (an amino acid in your blood) levels and improve blood vessel function. An increase in homocysteine has been found to increase the risk of heart disease.

Supplementing with creatine in the short term may positively affect the heart. However, creatine’s effects on heart health haven’t been widely confirmed yet.

Creatine has been found to reduce lipids in your blood, including low-density lipoprotein (LDL) “bad” cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) “good” cholesterol, and total cholesterol, which have all been linked to heart disease.

One study found that while four weeks of creatine significantly improved triglyceride levels, it did not affect other lipids, such as HDL-C and total cholesterol.

Creatine is generally safe to use daily for all age ranges. Studies show that taking up to 30 grams of creatine supplements daily for five years is safe and well tolerated. However, more health benefits are seen when low doses of dietary creatine supplements (3 grams) are taken daily.

Despite creatine being well-tolerated, you may experience side effects like:

• Muscle cramps
• Nausea
• Diarrhea
• Dizziness
• Stomach pain
• Dehydration
• Water retention
• Heat intolerance
• Fever
• Weight gain (temporary, often water weight)

Do not use creatine if you have the following conditions without first talking to a healthcare provider:

To increase or load your muscle creatine stores rapidly and effectively, experts recommend taking 5 grams of creatine monohydrate four times daily for about five to seven days. Other researchers noted that you can also take creatine less quickly, about 2 to 3 grams daily for 30 days, to increase creatine stores effectively.

After the “loading phase,” depending on your diet, muscle mass, and physical activity, you may need to consume about 2 to 3 grams daily to maintain your creatine stores. People with larger body sizes or those engaging in intense physical activity may need to consume up to 5 to 10 grams of creatine daily to see results.

It’s important to take creatine every day, even on days when you don’t work out, to ensure the muscle is consistently saturated with creatine. Consistent muscle saturation with creatine may help improve performance in your next workout session and help your muscles recover from exercise-induced muscle damage.

Creatine can be found in foods like milk, fish, seafood, and white and red meat. You can get up to 2 grams of creatine from meats. Vegans, vegetarians, or people who need extra grams of creatine may opt to get creatine from supplements. The most widely used and researched form of creatine supplement is creatine monohydrate. 

Here are some tips for incorporating creatine into your daily routine:

• Take it consistently, even on rest days, to get the most out of creatine benefits.
• You can mix creatine with your current pre-workout drinks or protein shakes. Avoid taking creatine with drinks containing caffeine, as caffeine may interfere with creatine’s benefits.
• There is no specific time to take creatine, but it is best to take it close to your workout, either before or after.
• You may pair creatine with a meal, particularly carbohydrates and protein, to improve creatine uptake.
• Drink water to stay well-hydrated, as creatine may draw water into your muscles.

Creatine may benefit athletes or people looking to build their muscles. In addition to improving workout sessions and muscle growth, creatine can enhance bone health and memory and help lower cholesterol levels.

While creatine is generally safe to use daily, it can help improve your creatine stores. You may experience side effects like muscle cramps, nausea, dizziness, bloating, weight gain, and heat intolerance.

If you have been diagnosed or have a family history of kidney disease, bipolar disorder, or Parkinson’s, talk to your healthcare provider before using creatine.