Creatine, When to take?

[James_M]

I am going to start taking creatine starting in two days
i am planning on taking 2.5 grams 20 minutes before i work out with some protein, then aproxemetly 20 minutes after i work out i am going to take another 2.5 grams with some protein.
how does that sound? should i be taking it at different times, should i take less more times in the day?

IF i am on hydroxycut while taking creatine i will still be loosing fat right?

thanks for all the help, i am finding this place to be very usefull!

[theroc]

why only take 2.5 grams?
take 5 grams before and after your workout.
some people load up on 20 grams for the first 4-5 days, i think its just a marketing scam , i dont load up and it works fine.

[theroc]

and yes you'll still lose fat if you take creatine and hydroxycut (provided your diet and workouts are good)

[Lee J B]

I would save the creatine for your bulk, after all whats the sense in wasting it on a cut? When you take it, take it with grape juice about an hour before your workout and immediatly after your workout in your post-workout shake. Make sure you do the loading phase, some guys load it all the time as in they dont stop after 5 days, they stick to 20 grams a day ... you do need to load it for best results.

[iraszl]

What's with the grape juice? Also, I read that creatine gets into your muscles and stays there for 6 weeks. So, why does it matter if you take your daily creatine after workout or in the morning?

[Lee J B]

The grape juice will help shuttle the creatine to your muscles, it has a lot of sugars in. As for staying in your body for 6 weeks .. thats wrong... its more like an hour and a half I think it stays in the blood stream, if it stayed in for 6 weeks, you'd be having troubles taking 20g a day... you'd get ill.

[iraszl]

Thanks! Wonder where have I read about the six weeks?

[James_M]

oh ok
someone told me only to take 5 grams a day, i guess they were way off
i am going to start with 20 grams a day
thanks so much for the info!

[Lee J B]

no hold on a second, 20g a day should be taken whilst loading for the first 5 days .. not everyday .. you take 5g x 4 a day for 5 days , and then maintenance period which is about 2.5g before training and 2.5g after .... hope it is even clearer now

[James_M]

oh ok
sweet
thanks for the adivce

[4banger]

You should take at least 5 grams a day, but I recomend aound 10, I recommend taking something like cell-tech or Phosphagen Xt, because they containg high amounts of sugar and other substances that will spike your insuline and that's what drives the creatine (and protein) into your muscles, both products recomend taking it right after your workout because that's when your muscles are trying to "suck in" nutrients to recover from the workout. load for 5 days 20g a day.

[James_M]

is it ok to take 10g 2 times daily of creatine for the first 5 days or should i stick to 5grams 4 times daily

[Lee J B]

Your body can only process so much at anyone time, thats why they have set amounts to take, 5g 4x a day is the most effective for the 20g loading phase.

[James_M]

oh ok
Tommorow is going to be my first day on creatine
thank you everyone for all the help

[heibrin]

I found it best to take a small amount (5grams) half an hour before I go training, then 10 grams after my workout. But the amounts may differ from person to person, we do not all have the same build.

I also take 5 grams when I wake up. I feed my system creatine like I feed it proteins-constantly. It really does work!

One thing I have noticed a few times:guys mix their creatine with whatever liquid they intend to take it with and then sometimes have a chat while drinking it. Creatine only remains stable in liquid for a minute or so... mix it & down it!