How to take creatine.

Creatine doesn't ask much of you. Five grams a day, in cold water, ideally at the same time. That's the whole protocol. Below is what the research actually says, and what you can stop worrying about.

1. STEP 1

   Mix one 5g stick with 250ml of cold still water

   Creatine monohydrate dissolves best in cool, still water. Avoid hot drinks — heat can degrade it over time. Stir for ten seconds and drink straight away.

2. STEP 2

   Take it at the same time every day

   Timing is less important than consistency. Most people pick the morning so they don't forget. Pre- or post-workout is fine, but the daily habit is what saturates your muscle stores.

3. STEP 3

   Skip the loading phase

   Older protocols recommended 20g a day for a week. Newer research shows 5g daily reaches full saturation in three to four weeks — without the bloating, stomach upset and waste of a loading phase.

4. STEP 4

   Drink water normally

   Creatine pulls a small amount of water into your muscle cells (which is part of how it works). You don't need to chug litres extra — just drink to thirst across the day.

5. STEP 5

   Keep going on rest days

   Saturation is a daily state, not a workout-day state. Take your stick every day, including weekends and travel days. Miss one and you're fine; miss a week and you'll start to drift back to baseline.

What about timing around workouts?

Studies have compared pre-workout, post-workout and rest-day dosing and found no meaningful difference once muscle stores are saturated. Take it when you'll remember. For most people that's first thing in the morning.

Do I need to cycle off?

No. Your body doesn't downregulate its own creatine production in a way that makes cycling necessary. Long-term studies on daily 5g use show no adverse effects on kidney or liver function in healthy adults.