How to Use Creatine in Your Daily Routine

Whether you’re chasing a new personal best or looking to sharpen your focus, if you’re in the market for supplements to promote a healthier, fitter lifestyle, creatine is sure to be front of mind. But if you’re thinking of diving into the world of creatine, you’ll want to know how to use it correctly.

There’s no point spending money on health and fitness supplements if you’re not going to enjoy optimal results. Creatine is no different. It offers plenty of benefits, from muscle building to improved cognitive performance. But to really see and feel those gains, you need to clue yourself up on how to take creatine. And it all starts with making it part of your daily routine.

From learning when to take creatine to making it a vital part of your routine, find out more about getting the most out of this versatile supplement.

Why make creatine part of your daily routine?

Breakfast, commute, lunch, gym, dinner, creatine? Wherever the supplement fits into your schedule, what matters most is that it becomes a regular fixture in your day.

Why should you use creatine? The answer is simple – it offers many benefits that help level up your health and fitness, whether you’re a seasoned gym veteran or a future health and lifestyle guru.

However, it’s only when you make it part of your daily routine that you’ll really see a difference. Regular ingestion helps maintain higher levels of creatine in your muscles, meaning you’ll enjoy stronger results and optimal benefits. Work out longer, get a burst of energy when needed, and enjoy improved cognitive performance.

When is the best time to take creatine?

While there are no wrong times, there’s still debate over the best time to take creatine. In truth, the best time is whatever works for you. We all get busy, but creatine is flexible, so it’s easy to make it part of your day.

Other supplements are restrictive in the times of day they should be taken, but creatine offers more freedom because it works consistently well whenever you take it. It’s the perfect candidate for slotting into your routine without hassle.

It’s best to take your supplements with food and water to aid ingestion, but if you’re still deciding when to take creatine, it will have an impact regardless. So if you’re too busy to take it before leaving the house or overwhelmed taking care of the kids, you can fit your creatine use into a more convenient time. It won’t compromise the benefits.

Pre- vs. post-workout

One of the biggest topics of debate is whether you should take creatine before or after your gym session.

Some gym-goers take creatine as part of their pre-workout routine. Pre-workout shakes are a great way to integrate creatine into your schedule.

Others believe post-workout is a more effective time to take creatine to boost its performance and replenish lost energy.

Research suggests taking creatine post-workout is better for muscle development. Muscles are more receptive to supplements after exercise. This period, known as the anabolic window, is when your body needs more nutrients.

However, there’s no significant advantage to taking creatine after your workout compared to before. So if a pre-workout shake fits your schedule better, you won’t miss out on too many benefits.

Can you take creatine on rest days?

You might have heard it said that you shouldn’t take creatine when you’re not working out. In fact, it’s vital not to miss your creatine supplement, even on rest days. Don’t worry, you won’t have any side effects if you don’t, but your progress might be a little slower.

Regular creatine intake at the correct dosage helps maintain its levels and saturation in your muscles, increasing its effectiveness over time.

Taking creatine on rest days also improves your recovery time. So, if you remember to keep up your creatine use on your day off from working out, you’ll be fighting fit and raring to go the next day.

And remember, creatine isn’t only about those gains in the gym or building lean muscle. Regular use can also improve cognitive performance and brain health.

Is it safe to take creatine every day?

Creatine is safe to take daily. It’s advised that once you start, you should take it every day to optimise its impact.

Supplementing with creatine daily helps absorption and saturation in your muscles, maintaining benefits over extended periods.

Tips for building a daily creatine habit

As with most health and fitness goals, consistency is key in getting the most out of creatine. Getting the best results means making sure you use creatine regularly, so making it a big part of your daily routine is crucial. That way, you won’t forget to take it, and you can seamlessly integrate creatine into your healthier lifestyle.

Some top tips for ensuring you keep your creatine use regular include:

Linking it to a meal – If you prefer to take creatine at breakfast or lunch, make sure you always do the same, so it’s harder to miss a dose.
Bringing it into your workout ritual – From packing your gym bag to maintaining a consistent cardio circuit, your routine keeps your plans in check. Add creatine to your workout ritual so it doesn’t slip your mind.
Keeping your schedule consistent – If you squeeze in a workout as and when you have free time, it’s easier to forget your supplements than if you work out at a regular time.
Sticking with it – You might not notice an immediate impact from using creatine. But remember, it takes time. Stick with your routine and look for marginal gains in your health and fitness to help boost your morale.

How much creatine should you take per day?

While the best time to take creatine is variable and will depend on how it fits into your lifestyle, taking the correct dosage is essential.

How much creatine your body will need per day depends on your body weight.

There are two ways you can choose to take creatine, with each offering several benefits.

Traditionally, people taking creatine for fitness have started with a larger loading phase, where they take 20g per day, split out across the day, for the first few days. After this, you then move on to a more consistent, smaller dose.

However, for optimising health and lifestyle benefits, it’s now more common to focus on consistency rather than loading, utilising what’s known as a maintenance dose and ensuring you get your creatine intake daily. This approach will typically see you take between 3g and 5g per day, based on your body weight. Taking this daily means your body can retain creatine at the optimal levels, so you enjoy all the health benefits.

How you choose to take creatine is up to you. But of course, you should also listen to your body. If you feel like it isn’t having an effect (remember to give it some time) or you’re suffering side effects, adjust your creatine dosage until you find what works.

Should you mix creatine with food or drinks?

Its versatility means there are many options around how to take creatine powder. Most people mix it with water or a shake for convenience, but there are plenty of other ways to get your daily dose.

Whatever form of creatine you’re taking and however you choose to use it, you should always take creatine with water. Water ensures the creatine is adequately absorbed into your muscles while keeping you hydrated throughout the day.

Taking creatine with food isn’t quite as important, but you can. If it’s easier to get into your routine, take creatine as a shake with breakfast, lunch or dinner. Or if you’re looking for inventive ways to bring creatine into your diet, you can mix it into almost any drink.

You can even include creatine in your recipes without losing the benefits. Perhaps just remember to match your recipes with the right creatine flavours to avoid anything particularly peculiar on the palate.

Can you take creatine with other supplements?

One of creatine’s most significant advantages is that it fits effortlessly into your existing health and fitness plans.

If you’re already taking other supplements, such as BCAA, glutamine or beta-alanine, creatine complements their benefits and helps improve your overall fitness. You can mix creatine with these supplements in whatever form you already use them without negatively impacting performance.

Similarly, creatine can be used alongside other lifestyle supplements without affecting their impact. If you’re using creatine for its cognitive benefits, it can be paired with other supplements that offer brain health advantages like Lion’s Mane Limitless, mushroom coffee and Super Greens, giving your overall lifestyle gains a boost.

Now that you know how to use creatine, plan your routine and make it part of your day-to-day with Protein Works.