Creatine monohydrate is the most studied supplement in sports nutrition, and the one question people still argue about is how to start. The loading protocol, 20 grams a day for five to seven days, then 3 to 5 grams a day, dates to a 1996 study that also tested the alternative: 3 grams a day from day one. Both groups ended up with the same muscle creatine stores. The loading group got there in six days. The steady group got there in about 28.
Creatine loading: the fast route
Take 20 to 25 grams a day, split into four or five 5 gram doses, for five to seven days. Then drop to a maintenance dose of 3 to 5 grams daily. The International Society of Sports Nutrition confirms this saturates muscle creatine in about a week, so the performance effects, a few extra reps at the end of hard sets, show up within that window.
The costs: more water weight, faster. Expect to gain 1 to 2 kilograms (2 to 4 pounds) in the first week, most of it intracellular water pulled into the muscle. Some people get bloating or loose stools on 20 grams a day; splitting doses and taking them with meals helps. And you burn through roughly 120 grams of powder in week one, about a month’s worth at maintenance.
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