Creatine: Why I Call It The Number One Supplement

Creatine is the most proven, cost-effective supplement for building muscle and supporting performance. It also has growing evidence for helping the brain, especially under stress. Here’s the no-nonsense breakdown, with facts and numbers.

What creatine does in muscle

Your muscles store creatine in two forms, regular creatine and a charged-up version called phosphocreatine. When you train hard and your muscles need quick energy, phosphocreatine steps in to rapidly recharge your main fuel source so you can keep going. This means you can push out more reps before hitting fatigue, recover faster between sets, and get more out of each workout. Taking creatine supplements can boost the amount stored in your muscles by about 20% to 40%, which has been shown to increase strength, power, and muscle growth when you’re lifting regularly.

Meta-analyses and controlled trials show creatine plus resistance training adds about 1.1 to 1.4 kg of lean mass and boosts strength more than training alone. Older adults benefit too when they lift.    

Why 5 grams per day works

• The classic approach is either a loading phase of ~20 g/day for 5 to 7 days followed by 3 to 5 g/day, or simply 3 to 5 g/day with no loading. Both raise muscle creatine, the loading just gets you there faster.

• In practice, 5 g/day maintains full stores for most lifters and supports long-term gains in strength and fat-free mass.   

Creatine and the brain: what 15–20 grams can do

Your brain also uses creatine as a quick backup power source, kind of like a portable battery. When your brain is working hard, whether you’re solving problems, learning something new, or dealing with sleep loss, it burns through energy fast. Creatine helps keep that energy supply steady. It can get into the brain through a special “gate” in the blood-brain barrier, and taking creatine supplements has been shown to raise brain creatine levels by around 3% to 10%. That might not sound like much, but it can make a real difference when your brain is under stress.

Evidence for higher doses

Several human studies used 15–20 g/day and showed increases in brain creatine and task performance in specific situations:

• 20 g/day for 4 weeks increased brain creatine by ~8.7% in MRS data.

• Loading protocols around 20 g/day for 7–28 days often raise brain creatine, though not every study finds an effect.

• Under sleep deprivation, high-dose protocols improved processing speed and cognitive performance, with brain energy markers shifting in the right direction. One study used a single dose of ~0.35 g/kg, which for a 70 kg adult is about 24 g.

• In clinical settings, prolonged high intake has been explored. For example, pediatric traumatic brain injury studies used ~0.4 g/kg/day for months and reported functional benefits, though these are special-case medical scenarios.   

Big picture: brain effects are most consistent when the brain is under metabolic stress, like sleep loss or hypoxia, and when higher intakes or loading phases are used. Benefits in healthy, rested adults are smaller and more variable, but recent reviews still show signals for memory, attention, and processing speed.

How I use this in practice

For muscle and performance

• Take 3 to 5 g creatine monohydrate daily, any time of day, with or without loading. Pair it with training and adequate protein. This is the backbone.

For brain-focused experiments

• To push brain creatine higher, use a short loading phase of 15–20 g/day split into 3 to 4 doses for 7 to 28 days, then maintain at 3 to 5 g/day. Expect small percentage increases in brain creatine and the clearest performance benefits when the brain is stressed, like after poor sleep.    

Safety, side effects, and what to buy

• Creatine monohydrate is the most studied form and is safe for healthy people across age groups when used as directed. Loading can add 1 to 3 kg of water weight quickly. Some get mild stomach upset, which usually resolves by splitting doses and taking with food. Stay hydrated.   

• Choose plain creatine monohydrate from a brand that is third-party tested. Fancy forms have not shown consistent advantages over monohydrate.

• If you have kidney disease or are under medical care, talk to your clinician first, especially before running higher-dose protocols.

Why I call creatine the number one supplement

• It works for almost everyone who trains. Better high-intensity performance and more high-quality reps add up to real strength and size gains.

• It is affordable and simple. One small daily dose. No complex cycling required.

• It has credible brain upside. The brain uses the same ATP buffering system as muscle. Under stress, higher intakes can improve processing speed and resilience.   

Quick reference

• Muscle plan: 3–5 g/day. Optional load 20 g/day for 5–7 days.

• Brain plan: If exploring cognitive effects, load 15–20 g/day for 1–4 weeks, then 3–5 g/day. Expect modest changes and more reliable effects when sleep deprived or otherwise stressed.