Creatine is one of the most popular and proven bodybuilding supplements.
Ideal for endurance, muscle mass, and overall recovery, creatine is backed by decades of research showing it works.
Not all creatine supplements are made equal. Creatine isn’t just creatine. The type and quality of creatine affect your performance.
We want to help you find the optimal creatine supplement. Today, we’re ranking the best creatine supplements available online.
The Top Creatine Monohydrate Supplements in 2021
Our editorial team contacted supplement companies, analyzed lab reports, and did hundreds of hours of collaborative research to compile our list of the best creatine supplements.
- CrazyBulk CRN-5 Creatine
- XWerks LIFT
- Onnit Creatine
- Performance Lab Maintain
- Cellucor Creatine Monohydrate
- Optimum Nutrition Micronized Creatine Powder
- Beast Sports Creature Creatine
- NSP Nutrition Muscle Power Creatine
- Elm & Rye Creatine
After much deliberation, here’s how we ranked the best creatine supplements available today.
CrazyBulk CRN-5 Creatine
CrazyBulk offers several bulking, cutting, and strength supplements, including its famous CRN-5 Creatine formula. Priced at $49 for 30 scoops (10.2g per scoop), CrazyBulk’s CRN-5 Creatine aims to offer better pumps, heavier lifting, and more intense workouts.
Any creatine supplement contains ordinary creatine. What makes CrazyBulk CRN-5 Creatine unique, however, is the use of five different types of creatine to give you maximum power at the gym, including:
- Creatine monohydrate
- Creatine hydrochloride
- Creatine ethyl ester
- Creatine citrate pyruvate
- Tri-creatine malate
CrazyBulk even adds electrolytes like potassium, sodium, and magnesium to aid hydration. Experts recommend taking creatine with lots of water. These electrolytes help to replenish your body after heavy lifting.
With a blend of five proven sources of creatine and a reputation as one of the top bodybuilding supplement brands, CrazyBulk’s CRN-5 Creatine is the best creatine you can buy online today.
- CrazyBulk CRN-5 Creatine Price: $49
XWerks LIFT
LIFT from XWerks is a pure, micronized creatine monohydrate supplement that doesn’t try to reinvent the wheel. It contains a strong dose of unflavored creatine monohydrate in each serving, making it easy to mix with a shake, a pre-workout, or any other beverage of your choice.
According to XWerks, LIFT is designed to deliver rapid strength and power increases. The formula increases the growth of lean muscle mass when combined with strength training – just like other top-rated creatine supplements listed here.
Each bag of XWerks LIFT contains 80 x 5g servings of flavorless creatine for just $39, making it one of the best-value options on our list. Despite offering great value, XWerks is a reputable and proven manufacturer offering a range of high-quality bodybuilding supplements, and LIFT maintains that company’s reputation for quality by working as an effective creatine formula.
- XWerks LIFT Price: $39
Onnit Creatine
Onnit has solidified its reputation as one of the best bodybuilding supplement companies available today, and it’s no surprise the company offers an excellent creatine formula. Onnit’s creatine is a creatine monohydrate formula designed to promote strength and performance.
Priced at just $15 for 30 servings, Onnit’s Creatine may be the best-value option on our list. Each serving contains 5g of micronized creatine monohydrate in the form of Creapure – so Onnit doesn’t skimp on the scoop size or dosage compared to other supplements listed here.
Onnit’s creatine works like other top-rated creatine supplements listed here: it helps to regenerate ATP, the fuel source for muscle contractions. That means you can enjoy more significant strength gains and more reps on weight training exercises, along with proven muscle building and lean muscle mass increases, among other perks.
- Onnit Creatine Price: $15
Performance Lab Maintain
SPORT Maintain from Performance Lab is a creatine supplement that reloads muscle with nutrients while providing extended-release muscle growth support. By taking Performance Lab Maintain daily, you can purportedly promote strength, power, and endurance – similar to other creatine formulas on our list.
Most creatine supplements on our list come in the form of powder. Maintain, however, comes as a capsule. You take 6 to 10 tablets daily to promote muscle growth. Performance Lab claims active individuals can safely take up to 10 capsules per day. Each six capsule serving contains around 3,000mg of creatine, which is lower than powdered creatine supplements listed here. However, many find it more convenient to take capsulated creatine than powdered creatine.
Although Maintain has a lower dose than other creating formulas, it makes up for that dose with a bonus serving of beta-alanine. Each serving contains 1,600mg of beta-alanine for added recovery. If you want good capsulated creatine from a reputable brand, then Performance Lab Maintain is one of the best-encapsulated options available today. However, with just ten servings (60 capsules) per container, it’s also significantly more expensive than competing options.
- Performance Lab Maintain Price: $44
Cellucor Creatine Monohydrate
Cellucor is one of the most established names in the supplement space, and the company’s creatine formula lives up to its strong reputation. Cellucor Creatine Monohydrate provides 72 servings for just under $20, making them a top-value option on this list.
By taking Cellucor Creatine Monohydrate daily, you can harness the power of creatine monohydrate to support your muscle development goals. Creatine is legendary for building muscle. Cellucor has micronized its creatine monohydrate to boost absorption and digestion, similar to what we see with other top-ranked creatine formulas.
By making its creatine easy to digest and offering substantial value, Cellucor has created one of the best creatine supplements available today. Take it daily to promote lean muscle mass development using the power of Cellucor Creatine Monohydrate.
- Cellucor Creatine Monohydrate Price: $20
Optimum Nutrition Micronized Creatine Powder
Optimum Nutrition is one of the most-recognizable supplement brands on this list, and their Micronized Creatine Powder remains one of the most popular options available today. Designed for muscle size, strength, and performance, Micronized Creatine Powder delivers 5g of creatine monohydrate per serving to help support ATP recycling and explosive movements.
Like other top-rated creatine supplements on our list, Optimum Nutrition’s Micronized Creatine contains 0 calories and 0 carbs per serving. It’s just creatine monohydrate with no filler ingredients.
We also like Optimum Nutrition’s Micronized Creatine Powder because of its multiple serving options. You can buy 30, 60, 120, 240, or even 400 servings. With prices starting at just $10.99 for 30 servings, Optimum Nutrition’s Micronized Creatine Powder holds the title as the best mainstream creatine brand on our list.
- Optimum Nutrition Micronized Creatine Powder Price: $10.99+
Beast Sports Creature Creatine
Beast Sports Creature Creatine has a unique name (and most beautiful packaging) on our list. It’s also one of the few creatine powders available in multiple flavors like cherry limeade, citrus, beast punch, and pink lemonade, among other options.
Beast Sports describes Creature as “the unfair advantage for next level performance,” claiming the formula can add more reps to your bench press, increase the speed of your sprints, and help you pack on slabs of lean muscle “easily.” Designed with performance in mind, Beast Sports Creature Creatine can help you maintain elite performance levels for extended periods.
Like the top-ranked creatine powder on our list, Creature Creatine contains five types of creatine in one formula, including:
- Creatine monohydrate
- Di-Creatine malate
- Creatine anhydrous
- Creatine gluconate
- Crea-Trona (a buffered form of creatine with 94% creatine and 6% of a buffering agent)
Notably, you can buy Creature Creatine in a capsule or powder. Although most buy the powdered form, Creature Creatine is available in multiple options for different needs. Just combine one scoop with a glass of water before and after your workout to give yourself 4g of creatine per serving.
Because it contains multiple types of creatine, Creature can help with short-term muscle endurance, long-lasting muscle size, strength gains, and faster recovery times, among other perks. At $30 for 60 servings, Creature doesn’t break the bank.
- Beast Sports Creature Creatine Price: $30
NSP Nutrition Muscle Power Creatine
NSP Nutrition’s Muscle Power Creatine claims to fuel your muscles for faster gains in strength, muscle mass, and fat loss. Taking the formula every day can help build muscle mass, increase strength, boost energy, and increase overall performance, among other perks.
Priced at $28 for 60 servings (5g of creatine per serving), Muscle Power Creatine competes with most other top-ranked options on or list for pricing and value. The Florida-based company offers a single type of creatine, creatine monohydrate, in the formula.
For those looking to build muscle power with pure creatine and no fillers, NSP Nutrition’s Muscle Power Creatine is one of the best options available. It can boost strength, energy, and overall performance while priced at under $0.50 per serving.
- NSP Nutrition Muscle Power Creatine Price: $28
Elm & Rye Creatine
Elm & Rye is carving a niche as a high-end bodybuilding supplement company, and the company’s Creatine formula aims to maintain that reputation. Elm & Rye’s Creatine promotes muscle growth, improves performance, and reduces fatigue, helping you improve your performance during high-intensity workouts.
Elm & Rye Creatine can also boost energy, increase endurance, and promote muscle growth and recovery – similar to all other creatine supplements listed here.
What makes Elm & Rye Creatine different, however, is the use of capsules instead of powders. Elm & Rye’s Creatine is a capsulated creatine formula with 1,400mg of creatine per serving. Capsulated creatine is convenient to take, and it’s ideal to use on the go without needing to be mixed into a shake, water, or anything else. Just swallow the capsules and go.
- Elm & Rye Creatine Price: $50
As a final recap on the rankings of the best creatine supplements to buy in 2021, here are the key takeaways of each creatine monohydrate formula:
| CrazyBulk CRN-5 Creatine |
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| XWerks LIFT |
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| Onnit Creatine |
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| Performance Lab Maintain |
|
| Cellucor Creatine Monohydrate |
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| Optimum Nutrition Micronized Creatine Powder |
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| Beast Sports Creature Creatine |
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| NSP Nutrition Muscle Power Creatine |
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| Elm & Rye Creatine |
|
How We Ranked The Top Creatine Monohydrate Supplements
Every creatine supplement claims to optimize muscle growth, strength gains, and performance. However, not all creatine supplements live up to that promise.
To separate the best and worst creatine supplements available today, we used the following metrics:
Types of Creatine
Most creatine supplements have just one type of creatine, creatine monohydrate. However, some of the top-ranked creatine formulas contain three to five types of creatine: the more creatine types, the better. Your body processes different creatine types in different ways. Some creatine is ideal for fast absorption, while other creatine is suited for long-term absorption. By mixing multiple creatine types, you can enjoy a multitude of benefits.
Price and Value
Creatine is a surprisingly affordable bodybuilding supplement. You don’t need to spend a fortune to buy good creatine. Some of the best creatine supplements available today cost just $0.50 per serving. We considered price and value in our rankings. For example, we were wary of creatine supplements that charged an unusually high price for the equivalent dosage of creatine. Whether you’re willing to spend $10 or $100 on a one-month supply of creatine, you can find a top-ranked creatine supplement for you.
Manufacturer Reputation & Track Record
Some manufacturers have been creating effective supplements for decades, while others are new to the scene. We weren’t biased against newer or older companies. However, we preferred supplements with a proven track record for creating high-quality supplements.
Label Transparency
Some low-quality creatine supplements contain creatine as a component of a proprietary formula, making it impossible to see individual dosages. Other creatine supplements claim to use five types of creatine, but there’s only creatine monohydrate mixed with trace amounts of different types. We preferred maximum label transparency in our creatine supplements.
Honest Advertised Benefits
Creatine supplements won’t supercharge muscle development overnight. They won’t turn you into Captain America if you’re not willing to work for it. We were wary of creatine supplements that exaggerated their benefits or were hyperbolic with their claims.
Effective Creatine Dosage (3g to 10g Per Serving)
Creatine is one of those bodybuilding supplements with a specific and proven dosage: most creatine supplements use a scoop size of around 4g to 5g for maximum effectiveness. Capsulated creatine supplements use a smaller dosage, but most powdered formulas use 4g or 5g per serving, which is the same size proven in scientific studies to work. We preferred creatine supplements at or around this dosage, giving you 3g to 10g of creatine per day for optimum muscle-building capabilities.
Minimal Filler Ingredients
You’re not taking a creatine supplement for stimulants, protein, or other ingredients; instead, you’re taking a creatine supplement for creatine. We preferred creatine supplements with zero added ingredients. The only exception to this rule was a creatine supplement with electrolytes (like potassium and sodium), inoffensive ingredients to help with hydration. The fewer filler ingredients there are in your creatine supplement, the better.
Mixability and Texture
Some creatine supplements are notoriously difficult to mix. They clump, stick together, and form chalky pockets in your shake. Others are surprisingly easy to mix and have a pleasant texture. We tested creatine supplements whenever possible to verify their mixability.
Absorbability and Micronized Creatine
Most top-rated companies micronize their creatine for optimal absorption. By reducing the size of the creatine molecules, they can boost your body’s ability to absorb the creatine. The more creatine your body can absorb, the more effective your creatine supplement will be. We preferred creatine supplements that were micronized to maximize bioavailability.
What is Creatine?
Creatine is a nutrient found naturally in your body. Everyone has creatine.
Chemically, creatine is a combination of three amino acids, including arginine, glycine, and methionine.
Your body needs creatine to fuel muscles. Creatine helps give your muscles the energy they need to move.
Creatine is beneficial for quick and explosive movements. Studies show that creatine can increase sprint speed and maximum lifting strength, for example.
How Does Creatine Work?
Creatine works by targeting the processes involved in muscle contraction.
Muscle contraction is fuelled by adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Your body only has enough ATP to provide energy for around 10 seconds. When you take creatine phosphate, you’re giving an extra phosphate molecule to your ADP to create ATP. This increases the supply of creatine phosphate, boosting performance.
When you have higher ATP/ADP levels, you’re able to work at a higher capacity and with better energy efficiency.
Studies show that creatine is particularly effective for improving training intensity and recovery. By boosting muscular energy at the cellular level, creatine could supercharge your performance and gains.
Who Should Take Creatine?
People associate creatine with bodybuilders and strength gains. However, people take creatine for all different reasons.
Some take creatine for muscle recovery, for example. Others take it for lean muscle development. Some even take it for joint health or brain health, which are proven benefits of creatine.
Some of the people who could benefit from taking creatine include:
- Anyone wanting to maximize strength and muscle gains
- Those looking to break through performance plateaus at the gym
- Anyone who wants to increase lean muscle mass or bulk up
- Someone who wants faster recovery and performance
- People wanting to boost brain power, focus, and overall cognition
- Anyone interested in a safe, proven, and easy-to-take nutritional supplement for better overall performance
Types of Creatine
There are around six to seven major types of creating. The most common type is creatine monohydrate.
Most creatine supplements contain just one type of creatine. However, some include three to five types of creatine.
The most common types of creatine include:
Creatine Monohydrate
Popular and proven, creatine monohydrate is the most cost-effective type of creatine available today. It’s also the most widely-researched type of creatine, and it was the original creatine used in supplements. Today, the majority of creatine supplements use creatine monohydrates.
Creatine Ethyl Ester
Creatine ethyl ester is a type of creatine bound to ester salts to increase bioavailability. Although supporters argue creatine ethyl ester is easier for your body to absorb, one study showed no difference between creatine monohydrate and creatine ethyl ester.
Creatine Hydrochloride (HCl)
Creatine hydrochloride, or creatine HCl, is a type of creatine bound to parts of hydrochloride molecules. This makes the creatine more water-soluble, which could make it easier for your body to digest. If you have digestive issues with creatine monohydrate, then try a creatine hydrochloride supplement instead.
Buffered Creatine
Buffered creatine is creatine with a higher pH level than regular creatine monohydrate. There are two main types of buffered creatine available, including Crea-Trona and Kre-Alkalyn. Some believe buffered creatine is more effective than creatine monohydrate because it doesn’t break down as much. However, one study found little difference between the two.
Liquid Creatine
Liquid creatine is a liquid version of creatine marketed as more manageable for your body to take. There’s limited research proving the enhanced bioavailability of liquid creatine, although some find it easier to use.
Creatine Magnesium Chelate
Creatine magnesium chelate is a type of creatine bound with magnesium. Some claim your body absorbs it more quickly than creatine monohydrate. However, as with most other types of creatine on our list, there’s limited research validating that claim.
Overall, most creatine types work similarly: they boost muscle energy to maximize performance.
Creatine Studies: What Does Science Say?
Creatine is one of the most-studied bodybuilding supplement ingredients available today. Numerous studies have linked creatine to powerful benefits. There’s a reason creatine is one of the most widely-used bodybuilding supplements in history: it works.
In this 2003 study, researchers at Baylor University analyzed the effects of creatine on performance. Researchers found that creatine was ideal for those who wanted to maximize lift strength and sprint speed. Creatine increased the rate of sprints and the maximum lift weight. Researchers also found that creatine helped build overall muscle. However, researchers found that creatine was less optimal for increasing endurance at longer-lasting tasks, like long runs or aerobic exercise. Nevertheless, those who want to increase sprint and strength gains can use creatine for proven effects.
In a review of 300+ studies on creatine and muscle growth, researchers found that 70% of studies found statistically significant improvements in muscle mass linked to creatine. On average, studies showed that creatine improved maximal power and strength, sprint performance, and short-term performance by 5% to 15%.
In a similar study from 2017, researchers praised creatine for its additional benefits. Researchers found creatine had ergogenic benefits (meaning it improved workout performance) and a range of “potential health benefits.” Plus, creatine had a “favorable safety profile” linked with few side effects or risks.
Creatine and protein is one of the most popular stacks in the bodybuilding supplement space – and for a good reason. In this 2001 study, researchers tested the effects of creatine and protein on a group of people over six weeks. Participants completed a resistance training program while taking protein, creatine + protein, or a placebo. After six weeks, researchers found that the protein + creatine group had the most significant increase in lean muscle mass. That group also increased their maximum bench press and strength ratings more than any other group.
Creatine isn’t just for those wanting to build muscle. Creatine is linked to injury recovery and joint health. In one study, researchers in Belgium found that creatine helped to rebuild muscle mass after an injury. Twenty-two participants kept their healthy, uninjured legs immobilized in a cast for two weeks to simulate an injury. Then, participants underwent rehab while taking a creatine supplement or a placebo. Researchers found the creatine group regained strength more quickly than the placebo group.
Creatine could support joint health in older adults. Some doctors even recommend creatine to elderly patients, including those at a higher risk of injuries and falls. In one 2016 study, researchers gave older adults a creatine supplement or a placebo, then asked them to complete a resistance training program. After 12 weeks of resistance training, researchers found greater strength and muscle mass gains in the creatine group compared to the placebo. Today, creatine remains a popular way to preserve strength and lean muscle mass with age.
Some take creatine for cardiovascular health. Several studies have tested creatine for its effects on recovery from heart failure. Researchers found that participants taking creatine in conjunction with standard treatment improved more quickly than people taking a placebo in one study. In a similar study, creatine supplementation improved muscle strength and body weight in participants recovering from heart failure.
Growing research connects creatine to cognitive benefits. Many people take creatine daily for cognition. Studies have validated the use of creatine for this purpose. In one 2017 study, for example, researchers gave creatine supplements to participants recovering from mild concussions. Researchers found that creatine reduced neuronal damage and preserved cellular energy, making it an effective recovery aid.
A similar study from 2019 found that creatine boosted cognitive function and prevented the deterioration of brain function in stressful situations – like at high altitudes or when deprived of sleep. By taking a creatine supplement daily, you may be able to think more clearly in all conditions, boosting cognition in multiple ways.
Some people with diabetes take creatine to support healthy blood sugar. New research on creatine shows that it could help maintain blood sugar response after meals. In this 12 week study, researchers who combined creatine and exercise had better control over blood sugar after a high carb meal than those who solely exercised. Blood sugar response to meals is an important marker of diabetes risk.
Finally, creatine has been linked with anti-cancer properties. In one recent study, researchers concluded that “creatine may have anti-cancer properties” based on the results of a handful of preliminary investigations.
Overall, creatine is best-known for its proven muscle-building properties, but recent research has connected creatine to far more benefits.
Today, creatine continues to be one of the most popular and proven nutritional supplements, and it’s backed by science to support a range of powerful benefits.
Side Effects of Creatine
Creatine is safe to take in regular doses by healthy adults, and numerous studies have validated the strong safety profile of creatine.
Generally, participants in creatine studies experience no significant side effects. Studies have reported no side effects even when taking high doses of creatine for six months.
The only significant reported side effect of creatine is weight gain, generally as lean body mass. When you take creatine, your body builds more muscle than it usually would, creating weight gain (muscle weighs more than fat).
However, creatine may cause side effects in liver disease, kidney disease, or high blood pressure. Older adults who take creatine may be more susceptible to kidney damage. Talk to your doctor before taking creatine if you have a medical condition or are taking medication.
As a testament to creatine’s strong safety profile, one major review study concluded that banning creatine would place athletes “at greater risk” of physical and cognitive issues. That’s why all significant athletic associations continue to allow the use of creatine without a problem.
Recommended Creatine Dosage
Most creatine supplements contain a dose of around 4g to 6g of creatine per serving. You take this dose once or twice per day.
Most people take one scoop of creatine before a workout and another scoop after.
Some people reduce their dose on maintenance days or non-workout days, taking one scoop or two half-scoops.
Studies have suggested that you can enjoy the benefits of creatine at doses as low as 3g per day.
Meanwhile, those who take more than 20g of creatine per day are unlikely to see significant added benefits. Your muscles become saturated with creatine after a certain point, which means additional creatine is wasted.
Consider cycling creatine based on muscle mass development. Some people take 15g to 20g of creatine per day during a loading or bulking phase, for example, before dropping it to 3g to 5g per day for a maintenance phase.
If you have more muscle mass or weight, then your muscles can absorb more creatine. Consider increasing your dosage to ensure you’re getting the optimal amount of creatine per day. People who are 140lbs, for example, should take around 5g to 6g of creatine per day for maintenance, for instance, while people who are 200lbs or higher should take 8g to 12g of creatine per day for maintenance, according to Bodybuilding.com.
FAQs About Creatine
We get plenty of questions about creatine, creatine supplements, and how they work. Here are answers to some of our most frequently asked questions.
Q: How does creatine work?
A: Your muscles use creatine to generate short-term power. When you take a creatine supplement, creatine saturates your muscles, fuelling energy at the muscular level.
Q: Can I get creatine from food?
A: You can get modest doses of creatine from food, although creatine supplements are the best way to get a standard amount of creatine (10g to 20g per day).
Q: Which foods have the most creatine?
A: Raw beef, salmon, and certain other meats contain creatine. 1lb of raw beef and 1lb of raw salmon have around 1g to 2g of creatine, for example.
Q: What is creatine?
A: Creatine is a molecule used by your body for short-term energy. Your muscles generate energy using the creatine phosphate energy pathway. When you take a creatine supplement, you’re increasing your body’s ability to use this energy source.
Q: What are the benefits of creatine?
A: Creatine is ideal for muscle growth, lean muscle mass development, and recovery. However, studies have also linked creatine to cognitive benefits, heart benefits, and other effects.
Q: What’s the best type of creatine?
A: Creatine monohydrate is the most popular type of creatine available today. However, the best supplements use creatine anhydrous, which is a purer version of creatine. Some creatine supplements contain 3 to 5 types of creatine for optimal absorption.
Q: How many types of creatine are there?
A: There are seven primary types of creatine found in supplements, including creatine monohydrate, creatine anhydrous, creatine ethyl ester, creatine hydrochloride, buffered creatine, liquid creatine, and creatine magnesium chelate.
Q: Is creatine bad for you?
A: Creatine has not been linked to significant side effects in standard dosages when taken by healthy adults. Most research suggests that creatine is safe to take.
Q: Who should take creatine?
A: Everyone from bodybuilders to runners to elite athletes and weekend warriors can take creatine. It’s a popular and valuable ingredient prized for its numerous benefits.
Q: Should I cycle creatine? How does creatine loading work?
A: Some people cycle creatine for optimal absorption. For example, you might take 20g of creatine per day during a bulking phase and then drop to 5g of creatine per day during a maintenance phase. Others take 20g of creatine on workout days and smaller doses on off days. There’s limited research analyzing the pros and cons of creatine loading, and it’s difficult to say if it’s more or less effective.
Q: What time of day should I take creatine?
A: It doesn’t matter what time of day you take creatine. However, try to split creatine into multiple daily doses of 5g each, giving your body ample time to absorb creatine.
Q: Can I take creatine at night?
A: Creatine supplements do not contain stimulants (unless they’ve been added to the formula), which means they’re safe to take at night.
Q: Should I take creatine before or after a workout?
A: Most people take creatine before and after workouts for maximum muscle growth and development. Creatine is a popular pre-workout and post-workout supplement.
Q: How do I take creatine?
A: Most creatine supplements come as powders or capsules. You mix the flavorless powder with a shake or water, then drink it daily. Or, you swallow one or more pills daily. Some creatine powders are flavored, but most are unflavored.
Q: What is a creatine shuttle?
A: Some people take a creatine shuttle to increase the absorption of creatine into their muscles. Some people take 20% creatine and 80% dextrose, for example, to shuttle creatine into the body. Others take glutamine.
Q: Will I lose muscle mass when I stop taking creatine?
A: There’s no reason to expect muscle loss when you stop taking creatine. However, you may lose a few pounds because creatine forces you to hold more water weight.
Q: Does creatine make you retain water?
A: Creatine draws water from the body to increase muscle performance, although it doesn’t technically make you retain water.
Q: What’s the best time to take creatine?
A: You can take creatine at any time of day, but the best time to take it is after a workout.
Q: Does creatine impact kidney function?
A: Most studies show creatine is safe for anyone to take, even in larger doses for extended periods. However, some small studies have shown creatine could impact kidney function in older adults. Other studies, however, have shown that older adults can take creatine safely even if they have kidney disease or diabetes. Talk to your doctor.
Q: Does creatine make you fat?
A: Creatine increases fluid retention within your muscle cells, which could lead to some short-term weight gain. However, when combined with a healthy diet and exercise, creatine is unlikely to make you fat.
Q: Can women take creatine?
A: Absolutely. Creatine does not affect your hormones, so there’s no reason for sex-specific usage.
Q: Does creatine negatively interact with caffeine?
A: Some studies have shown that creatine and caffeine work synergistically, while others indicate they nullify each other’s effects in a certain way. More research is needed to verify interactions between creatine and caffeine.
Q: Does creatine cause hair loss?
A: Creatine is unlikely to cause hair loss on its own, although it may accelerate the hair loss process by raising levels of DHT in your body.
Q: Is creatine vegetarian/vegan?
A: Virtually all creatine supplements use vegetarian or vegan sources of creatine, as these are the cheapest to produce.
Q: Do I need to take a creatine supplement?
A: Your body already produces creatine every day, and you get some creatine from a healthy, balanced diet. However, active individuals seeking maximum muscle growth might want to take a creatine supplement for better performance.
Q: How much creatine does my body produce each day?
A: Your body produces 1g to 2g of creatine every day.
Q: How much creatine do I need to take?
A: You don’t need to take any creatine. However, if taking a creatine supplement, aim to get 10g to 20g of creatine per day for muscle development, followed by a 3g to 5g daily dose for maintenance.
Q: What is creatinine?
A: Creatinine is a metabolite produced in the body from creatine and creatine phosphate. Your body excretes creatinine naturally via the kidneys.
Q: What’s the best creatine supplement?
A: CrazyBulk CRN5, XWerks LIFT, and Optimum Nutrition Micronized Creatine Powder are three of the most popular creatine supplements available today. However, any of the top-ranked creatine supplements on our list are among the best creatine formulas available today.
The Top Creatine Monohydrate Supplements in 2021 Final Word
Creatine has been one of the world’s most popular supplements for decades. Whether it be testosterone boosters, legal steroids, pre-workout powders or protein powders, creatine has remained one of the most sought-after compounds in the fitness and sports nutrition world for decades.
Today, creatine continues to be a popular and proven way to support mass muscle development, lean muscle growth, recovery, and even cognition, among other benefits.
To buy the optimal creatine for your unique needs, pick any of the top-ranked creatine supplements above.
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