What Is Creatine? Does It Actually Make You Stronger? – Supplements 101

Welcome to another installment of supplements 101, a series where I try to break down the complicated science of supplements and make it easy for you to understand!

This week we’re covering creatine.

What is creatine?

Creatine is an acid, typically found in the muscles and in the brain. It is used primarily in the process of helping your muscles produce energy during high strain, such as when lifting heavy weights or doing some other form high-intensity training. How does it do this? When you body’s energy source (ATP) is used up, it gets converted to another substance, ADP, and can no longer be used to boost your energy. Creatine works by taking ADP and converting it back to ATP so that it can be used again! This helps maintain your body’s level of energy-producing molecules.

Creatine is not essential to consume as a supplement, as it is already produced naturally by the body. Our liver, kidneys, and pancreas all produce it.

Plus, you can actually get a good amount of creatine through your normal diet if you regularly consume foods that come from animal sources (e.g. meat, dairy). On average, people who consume this type of food will consume about 1 gram of creatine per day. However, if you consume a primarily plant-based, vegetarian/vegan diet, you are unlikely to be getting adequate quantities of creatine from your food.

Why might you consider supplementing?

There are three main reasons why you might consider taking supplemental creatine:

  1. You eat no or very few animal products, so your levels of creatine are lower than the average person, and you want to replace what you’re missing so that you aren’t limited in your fitness goals.
  2. You have naturally low creatine for some other reason, such as the balance of hormones in your body or the fact that you are aging, which is associated with reduced creatine stores.
  3. You eat enough creatine-containing foods, but would like to add some in addition so that you can attempt to improve athletic performance.

What are the potential benefits?

Proponents of creatine have claimed that it has a variety of potential benefits for fitness, including::

  • Increased energy during high intensity exercise
  • Increased potential volume during a workout (you can sustain your exercises for longer without getting weak), which is key for long-term muscle growth
  • Improved muscle repair, which can help with growth
  • Creatine draws water to your muscles, which can help them appear bigger and potentially grow faster
  • Reduces muscle breakdown

Creatine has also been said to have some positive effects on mental health and brain function:

  • Improved memory
  • Reduced mental fatigue
  • Improved reaction time
  • Reduced brain fog

Does it really work?

There have been many claimed benefits to creatine supplementation, but how many are actually backed by science? Does creatine really help improve muscle growth and brain function?

Unlike a lot of other supplements, the answer is actually yes! Creatine has been studied for decades, and there is a great deal of scientific literature that has been published on its positive effects.

Let’s look at some highlights from a few studies:

  • A 2008 study over 8 weeks of heavy resistance training found that individuals who supplemented with creatine had significantly greater increases in body mass compared to those who did not supplement (2.2 vs 0.6 kilograms)
  • A 2010 study found that individuals who had supplemented with creatine had decreased markers of muscle damage after a high intensity Iron Man competition (however, note this was a very small sample size). Another study found similar effects of decreased muscle damage, this time when looking at a high intensity weightlifting set.
  • Studies on older adults (in their 50s through 70s) found that creatine supplementation led to increased lean muscle mass, chest press, and leg press strength after resistance training.
  • A 2018 paper found that “short term memory and intelligence/reasoning may be improved by creatine administration.”
  • A 2021 paper summarized many of the positive mental effects of creatine, some of which are listed as follows:
    • In sleep deprived rugby players, creatine supplementation helped with passing accuracy
    • In healthy young adults, creatine use improved performance on a test of recalling numbers backward
    • A test of healthy, young, sleep deprived men and women found that creatine supplementation helped with movement, reaction time, balance, and mood.

What about side effects?

Creatine is generally considered quite safe. However, there are some potential side effects you should be made aware of.

  • Weight gain–though this often seems to come through lean muscle growth
  • Worsening of kidney dysfunction in those that already have kidney disorders. Those who have healthy kidneys do not seem affected. You should probably not take creatine if you have kidney issues (though of course, consult with a medical professional)
  • Creatine can raise levels of creatinine in your body, which is one sign used to diagnose kidney dysfunction. This may make your doctor–or you–think that you have kidney problems even if you don’t!

What about pregnancy? Many supplements are deemed dangerous to pregnant women.

Creatine is a very interesting case in this respect. There is actually some evidence that creatine consumption could help with pregnancy in a few different ways:

  • Increasing the survival likelihood of pre-term babies
  • Lessened effects from issues due to hypoxia, where a baby receives inadequate oxygen to the brain during or shortly after birth
  • Potential ability to decrease c-section rates by helping enable consistent labor through improved uterine muscle function

Of course, once again, it is important to check with a medical professional before using any supplements during pregnancy!!

What kind of creatine should you take?

There are a bunch of different varieties of creatine supplements that you can buy. These include:

  1. Creatine Monohydrate
  2. Creatine Ethyl Ester
  3. Creatine Hydrochloride
  4. Buffered Creatine (Creatine + an Alkaline Powder)
  5. Liquid Creatine
  6. Creatine Magnesium Chelate

While all of them are some form of creatine, they are not all created equal! Some options are much better than others. If you’re in the market for creatine, I recommend looking into Creatine Monohydrate. Why this one over the others?

  • It’s got the best record of safety and side effects
  • It’s one of the cheapest and easiest to find online
  • It has the most scientific backing behind it, as most creatine studies focus on the monohydrate form
  • It works just as well (or better) than any of the other options!

How often should you take creatine? And how much?

In order to get the most from the benefits of creatine, you need to make sure you are taking it in the right intervals and dose sizes.

There are two primary ways of taking creatine:

  1. Using a loading phase, where you take heavy doses daily (20-25 grams/day–typically taken in four doses about every four hours apart) for about 5-7 days to build up your creatine stores, then cut back to a daily maintenance level of 3-5 grams/day.
  2. Using no loading phase, and just starting with the maintenance level of creatine, taking 3-5 grams per day every day.

Both strategies work and are considered safe, but many prefer the loading phase strategy because it builds up creatine stores faster so you can start to get the beneficial effects earlier on. If you do not use a loading phase, it can take around three weeks to build up enough creatine to start experiencing any changes.

The evidence on timing is up for debate. It is not completely clear whether there is an optimal time of day to take creatine, though some studies have suggested that taking it post-workout is more effective than pre-workout.

However, with creatine, the thing that’s considered most important is just that you take it! Consistency is key, and over time it’s a lot more important that you’re taking it at all, than when you’re taking it.

Conclusion

So there’s everything you need to know to get started with creatine!

Creatine is generally a safe and effective supplement–and the one that I would recommend the most out of any! It’s relatively cheap, doesn’t taste bad or produce many significant side effects, and can have a lot of beneficial effects in some users.

For ease of your use and consumption, I’ve gone ahead and summarized all the information from this guide into a graphic below!

What Is Pre-workout? Does It Work? Is it Safe? Supplements 101

Welcome to a new series, Supplements 101, where I break down the science behind different fitness supplements and help you find what’s right for you!

This week, Pre-Workout 101:

  • What is pre-workout?
  • What is is it made of?
  • Is it actually useful? (A review of scientific papers)
  • Is it safe to consume?

This post will not cover which pre-workout brands are best and what to look for when purchasing, but I’m hoping to continue this series and cover that in a later post, so stay tuned!

What is it?

Pre-workout is a supplement commonly taken shortly before a workout (between 15-60 minutes). It is used to increase focus, energy, and endurance. Sometimes you’ll also find ones that advertise “pump”, which essentially means making your muscles look bigger.

[Pre-workout is sometimes used for improving muscle size/definition at the gym]

Pre-workout is typically sold as a powder that can be mixed with water and consumed as a drink. It is often flavored–coming in options such as watermelon, limeade, or orange mango–to enhance the taste and make it more enjoyable. It can also be purchased as a pill, though that is much less common.

Its effects typically last for a few hours, though they tend to peak earlier on in that time frame.

It is typically taken frequently–often between 3-6 times per week–and in small doses.

What is it made of?

Pre-workout supplements are typically made from some combination of the following ingredients. Not all ingredients listed below are present in every pre-workout mix:

  • Arginine [Semi-essential amino acids]
  • Branch-chain amino acids (BCAAs) [Amino acids]
  • Beta-alanine [Non-essential amino acid]
  • Caffeine [Stimulant]
  • Creatine [Compound derived from amino acids]
  • DMAA [Stimulant]
  • L-citrulline [Non-essential amino acid]
  • Niacin [B vitamin]
  • Phosphorus/phosphates [Element]
  • Taurine [Acid]

In pre-workout supplements, these are often combined as part of a proprietary formula, which means that the sellers do not disclose the exact amounts of each ingredient.

In the United States, sellers must only list which ingredients are included and order them in descending order by quantity. Since most distributors leave details out, is almost impossible with most products to know how much of each substance is being consumed per serving.

This is especially true when considering that even when sellers say how much of an ingredient they include, their claim does not always match reality. For example, a study of pre-workouts in Australia found that only 6 out of 15 nutrition labels included details on caffeine content at all, and in those that did, the actual amount of caffeine ranged anywhere from 59% to 176% of what the packaging claimed!

Is it useful / backed by science?

Although many pre-workout brands tout the impressive effects of their mixes, most of the ingredients aren’t all strongly backed by science. Studies have indicated that many of the ingredients–when taken in proper doses–can benefit individuals with certain health conditions or have generic wellness benefits, but not many studies have conclusively shown benefits for athletic performance.

In fact, of all the ingredients listed above, creatine is the only one with a long history of positive scientific backing for performance enhancing effects. The rest have pretty mixed reviews, with a few studies even showing negative effects–particularly when multiple of the above ingredients are mixed together, as they are in most pre-workout mixes.

Is it safe to take?

Pre-workout is generally considered safe for most people, but there are some significant concerns to be wary of.

1. Lack of Regulation

In the United States, supplements are not regulated by the FDA the same way that food or medications are. Producers are NOT required to disclose the quantities of each ingredient that they include in their mixes. This makes it difficult to know whether you are actually consuming a safe, recommended dose. It can be easy to overdose on an ingredient if you pick the wrong brand.

2. Drug Interactions

Many of the ingredients in pre-workout mixes interact with common medications to produce what can sometimes be dangerous side effects by preventing the drugs from operating properly–and sometimes causing serious reactions.

For example:

  • Arginine (L-arginine) has been known to interact with blood thinners, blood pressure regulators, and diabetes medications
  • Taking DMAA with other stimulants (such as caffeine) can cause increased heart rate and high blood pressure
  • BCAAs can combine with blood sugar medications to cause dangerously low levels

If you take any sort of medication, you should absolutely consult a health professional before taking pre-workout. Given the large number of ingredients, there is anon-negligible chance that one of them could react dangerously with your other drugs.

[Be very careful with pre-workout supplements. They can lead to drug interactions resulting in serious problems like high blood pressure].

3. Side Effects

Although most of the side effects of pre-workout ingredients are relatively mild, they can at times have serious effects.

An otherwise healthy 33 year old woman was admitted to the ER with heart problems after taking pre-workout and a 25 year old man–also with no serious conditions–had a stroke after taking a pre-workout supplement called Animal Rage XL.

Pre-workouts have also generally been known to occasionally cause high blood pressure, heart issues, and gastrointestinal distress.

4. Dangers During Pregnancy

Pre-workouts are especially dangerous to pregnant women, primarily due to their stimulant content.

Stimulants have been shown to lead to premature birth, low birth weight, fetal deformities, and heart problems. Even a daily consumption of as little as half a cup of coffee can lead to lower birth weight, and pre-workouts typically have much higher caffeine concentrations than that.

Pre-workout during pregnancy is very risky and should only be used after thorough consultation with a doctor.

Summary of Ingredients, Uses, Scientific Research, and Safety

To help promote a well-rounded understanding of pre-workout, I’ve created a table summarizing the main categories discussed above: what the ingredients are, their purported benefits, scientific evidence of performance enhancement, and potential side effects.

Conclusion

Pre-workout supplement mix, taken shortly before a gym session, may provide some benefits, however:

  • There is not much scientific evidence to back up its effectiveness
  • Usefulness likely varies dramatically by brand due to differences in ingredient concentrations, and also by individual
  • It can be dangerous for those who are pregnant or who are taking other medications

Do not blindly trust pre-workout supplements you come across. Do your research to find reputable brands–preferably those that tend to have lower doses of stimulants (the more dangerous ingredients) and disclose what they put into their mix. And if you fall into a group at risk of side effects, do not take pre-workout without first consulting with a doctor.


If there’s anything else you’d like me to cover related to pre-workout, or other supplements you’d like to have covered in this series, please share in the comments!

Sources / Learn More

Common Ingredient Profiles of Multi-Ingredient Pre-Workout Supplements
https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/11/2/254

Common Habits, Adverse Events, and Opinions Regarding Pre-Workout Supplement Use Among Regular Consumers
https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/11/4/855

Multi-ingredient pre-workout supplements, safety implications, and performance outcomes: a brief review
https://jissn.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12970-018-0247-6

The effect of acute pre-workout supplementation on power and strength performance
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12970-016-0138-7

Effects of Pre-Workout Supplements on Power Maintenance in Lower Body and Upper Body Tasks
https://www.mdpi.com/2411-5142/3/1/11

Caffeine content of pre-workout supplements commonly used by Australian consumers
https://doi.org/10.1002/dta.2501

Efficacy and safety of ingredients found in preworkout supplements
http://websites.rcc.edu/estrada/files/2019/07/Efficacy-and-safety-of-ingredients-found-Article.pdf

Impacts of Caffeine during Pregnancy
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1043276019302267?casa_token=rd-U4gMBB5kAAAAA:MWBIqZlCHO7PnA6_eTKDWb2WI1l8GZOhphLlYytsOFsnqAaMC5pkwa9dcR5AoTJ2PyHCErc-Kg