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All About Creatine
Creatine is a powerful, science-backed supplement that supports muscle strength, energy, cognitive health, recovery, and physical function—and the benefits for women are just as impressive. Whether you’re hitting the gym, improving brain function, or doing your best to age gracefully, creatine offers a simple, affordable way to enhance your energy, performance, and vitality.
What Is Creatine?
Creatine is a naturally occurring compound made from three amino acids (glycine, arginine, and methionine). It is stored in muscles and the brain, and helps produce ATP (adenosine triphosphate), your body’s primary energy source.
Our bodies produce some creatine naturally, mostly in the liver and kidneys (about 1-2 grams of creatine daily). Additionally, we get small amounts of creatine through eating animal-based foods like red meat and fish, but we would have to consume large amounts of meat or fish to get enough creatine through our diet.
Benefits of Supplementing with Creatine
Creatine monohydrate is one of the most researched and safest supplements available. It’s well tolerated, non-hormonal, and safe for long-term use in healthy individuals.
Supplementing with creatine increases phosphocreatine levels in the muscles, helping to regenerate ATP during high-intensity, short-duration physical exertions, which is why athletes have been using creatine for years. However, creatine supplementation can provide a lot more benefits beyond improving exercise performance. Supplementing with creatine can also help to increase muscle strength and energy endurance. Additionally, creatine has been getting recognized for its help in supporting cognitive functions, including helping to improve mental clarity and even balance mood.
How creatine can help you supercharge your exercise routine
Taking creatine can help boost muscle growth and increase energy
Creatine has been used by athletes and exercise enthusiasts for years as it is known for being most effective for high-intensity, short duration activities or repeated bouts of high-intensity exercise with short rest periods such as jumping, sprinting, and resistance training. Combining creatine with strength training is your best bet for optimal health.
Creatine can help improve endurance and performance
Although creatine is best known for helping with short bursts of power, it can also help support endurance by improving training capacity and reducing fatigue. Taking creatine supplements helps increase creatine levels in your muscle cells, which can improve your performance by replenishing ATP during exercise. This means you can perform more reps, recover faster between sprints, or sustain higher intensity for longer periods.
Creatine helps you recover faster
Not only can creatine help you during exercise, but taking creatine can also help you bounce back faster after your workouts. Supplementing with creatine helps to reduce muscle cell damage from workouts, which can shorten recovery time. Plus, taking creatine also supports muscle hydration and repair, which is helpful for avoiding soreness and injury.
Creatine helps to boost energy
Because creatine helps regenerate ATP, it supports more consistent energy levels—not just in the gym but throughout your day. Whether you're powering through a workout, or a busy day, creatine supports both muscular and mental stamina.
How Creatine Can Help Improve Cognitive Function
Creatine’s benefits go beyond the gym! Studies show creatine supplementation can support cognitive performance, particularly in tasks requiring short-term memory, reasoning, and mental endurance.
Creatine Helps Sharpen Focus and Boost Mental Clarity
The adult brain uses a significant amount of energy to function, requiring a steady stream of ATP. Supplementing with creatine can increase brain creatine stores and energy, which may enhance brain function, helping to boost the ability to focus and improve cognitive performance.
Supplementing with creatine may help with emotional regulation or mood disorders, such as depression
Creatine plays an important role in brain energy metabolism, which is disrupted in individuals with depression. Studies in animals and humans have shown that creatine supplementation can help restore brain homeostasis, which can have a positive effect on mood. Creatine supplementation has been shown to help improve brain plasticity, and modulate key areas of the brain involved in mood regulation .
Further Food Creatine Monohydrate
Further Food Creatine is made of one ingredient, micronized Creatine Monohydrate which is the most common and widely studied creatine. It is micronized to help improve absorption.
Creatine FAQs:
When should I take creatine?
Creatine can be taken any time of day. Simply mix into 8 -16 ounces of water and enjoy. Creatine can also be taken at the same time as other supplements including collagen.
How long before I see or feel results?
Creatine takes several weeks to produce noticeable performance-enhancing effects, such as increased strength and muscle mass. Other benefits including cognitive function may take longer.
I’m vegetarian/vegan. Should I take creatine?
Absolutely, since we can only get creatine from animal products, vegans can benefit from taking creatine, which is vegan.
Are there any side effects?
Creatine is one of the most researched supplements and it is generally understood to be safe for long term use. Especially at a dose of 5g per day, creatine should not have any side effects. Gastrointestinal symptoms can occur at doses higher than 10g per day. If you are pregnant, nursing or have a medical condition, please consult with your medical care provider.
Can taking creatine cause water retention or bloating?
Creatine draws fluid into the muscles, so some people may experience water retention, especially in the first few days of taking creatine. This usually lasts just for a few days or weeks, as the body adjusts to the new creatine levels. It is important to stay hydrated and drink at least eight 8-ounce glasses of water daily which helps flush out excess fluid and reduce bloating.
Can I take creatine while pregnant or breastfeeding?
Please check with your medical provider prior to taking creatine or any other supplement.
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Do's and Don'ts When Taking Creatine
