Do I need to load creatine?
No: 3–5 g a day saturates your muscles in three to four weeks, and loading only gets you to the same place in one.
Large single servings are more likely to upset your stomach, so if you do load, split the daily amount into four or five doses. Unless you need the full effect within a couple of weeks, skipping it is simpler.
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- Hultman, E. et al. (1996). Muscle creatine loading in men. J Appl Physiol (1985) 81(1). 20 g/day for 6 days and 3 g/day for 28 days reached the same muscle creatine content.
- Kreider, R.B. et al. (2017). International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: safety and efficacy of creatine supplementation in exercise, sport, and medicine. J Int Soc Sports Nutr 14. Loading is optional; it mainly accelerates the timeline.
- Ostojic, S.M. & Ahmetovic, Z. (2008). Gastrointestinal distress after creatine supplementation in athletes: are side effects dose dependent? Res Sports Med 16(1). 10 g in one serving caused more diarrhoea than two 5 g servings.