Creatine Use: A Few Suggestions Before You Start

Here's a few points to consider before you begin taking creatine:

More Is Not Better
People sometimes expect that if a small amount is good, more is better. School-aged athletes are particularly inclined to this line of reasoning. This is not true when you're talking about creatine.

Your body can only hold a set quantity of creatine, and this quantity varies from athlete to athlete. Once you reach the muscle's limit, any excess creatine you ingest will be processed by the liver and kidneys, and urinated away. Ingesting extra creatine means you are throwing away your money.

Not only is using too much a waste, but it may additionally increase your probability of side effects. Greater dehydration, cramps, and stomach pains have been reported when using large doses of creatine. There is also a danger of more life-threatening complications, because processing the excess creatine puts strain on your kidneys and liver. Never use more than the recommended amount on the container.

Consume With Food and Water
Creatine is best absorbed into the muscle tissue when insulin levels are elevated. Eating any food will elevate your insulin levels, but sugary foods will elevate your insulin levels higher than other foods. For this reason it's often recommended to ingest creatine with juice. I believe ingesting it with any food is alright. I just consume it with my breakfast, which is ordinarily a banana or some cereal.

One of the most common side effects of creatine use is indigestion. Taking your dose with food will help prevent this.

Dehydration has occasionally been reported as a side effect, so drink a good sized amount of water with your dose. A large glass is fine. If you're exercising often you should already be drinking additional water anyway.

Duration of Use
I recommend taking creatine for one month on, one month off. There is some evidence that taking creatine for protracted time periods will cause your body to stop making it's own creatine. Also, whenever you're taking a supplement for prolonged periods there's an increased danger of unfavourable side effects. Creatine has not been studied for long term use, so we do not know if there are damaging consequences to consuming it for long periods of time, i.e. a year. Again, I wish to err on the side of caution.

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