PLEASE NOTE: 5g not 5mg ... sorry about that.

Creatine supplementation is pretty well documented. You do not need to do the "loading" phase (it will accumulate in the body over time and you will get to the same levels over time, usually 14-21 days). If you do not want to gain weight, than it may be not for you. Some people do retain water while supplementing creatine, some do not (I do not).

Creatine causes water to move into your muscles via osmosis. Since muscle is such a big part of body mass, you retain more water overall, and that is what causes the weight gain. It also explains your thirst and feeling of dehydration. You probably WERE dehydrated, i.e. a bit hyperosmotic. The positive effect on performance comes from the fact that it is a phospagen so you should have more efficient ATP utilization, but mainly in fairly short term efforts. It's not obvious why it increased your FTP and failed to improve sprints. Based on the underlying biochemistry one would expect bigger effects on sprints, but it may depend some on your muscle fiber type composition.. An osmotic effect also causes stomach upset (and also the feeling of extra weight in your abdomen, in reality most of the weight was water inside your muscle cells). You don't absorb all the creatine from the gut, so it tends to hold some extra water inside the lumen of the intestines. It probably also has big effects on the gut microbiome, hence flatulence. By the way, I teach renal physiology at a medical school, so this kind of thing is my specialty. I suggest next time that you lower your dose a bit. Make sure to not take your daily dose in a single bolus.

Been using creatine since mid 90's. 62, fit as hell, zero wrinkles, everyone should be using this. It's miraculous. There's lots of research on creatine and aging. It's great for the skin. Do some research.

This explains why I had to push over 400watts to stay with your group on the first climb at nationals! Pace was most insane I remember. Broke my personal bests so glad I didn’t try to stay with you boys.

Thanks for sharing. It's the reduction in fatigue and better energy post training that's got me interested in this supplement, happy to hear you had a positive experience in this regard.

LOVE IT - but mostly the drawings on the wall!!! Keep it up Mate!

Appreciate the candor Chris… especially with this… 🙌🏽

Thanks for this honest account! From someone thinking of supplementing.

Thanks for sharing your experiences! Very helpful! I often thought about taking Creatine, but for me the negative points are more important than the positive ones.

Really interesting video - and the overall comparisson of W/KG pre and post-Creatine was a really good insight into the overall picture; not just a headline gain.

Been doing 2g/day for 3 months. No preload. Did gain a couple kgs but burned that off and more since. It’s helped me a lot more in the weight room than in cardio, but I agree that threshold sessions seem to be significantly less challenging with it

Loved the GS spring drive... real class

I appreciate your honest feedback both positive and negative.

Refreshing honesty!!

Nice display of all the work you have done. Congrats on all the gains.

Good video- i haven’t personally heard of many dealing with gas from creatine but everyone has their own side effects . I also find the energy/ recovery aspect to be quite an advantage as well

Great video. Next time you use creatine perhaps you might try a less aggressive loading period to see if that mitigates some of the negatives.

Serious topic, delivered well with a touch of humour. Excellent video

Thanks for the insightful video, Chris. I've noticed similar performance changes recently by taking just 5g/day of creatine w/o any loading phase. I'm a vegetarian doing heavy weight training and lots of Zn 2 on the bike during my early season. Recent test shows FTP +10W and weight +2lbs. Like you, I am noticing better energy both during workouts and throughout the rest of my day. Zero GI distress. It's been a big help in getting the work done (15+ hrs/wk). If I skip a day of creatine supplementation, my legs feel more tired and need a "reload" with just normal dosage. Will need to consider how to taper supplementation when the next phase of training begins. Thanks again for all the thoughtful content!

Sorry, but you’ve got the units wrong. It’s grams, not milligrams, for creatine dosing.

Really interesting video, and your results match very closely with my experience with creatine. I also really focused on training hard when my HRV was high, and made sure I slept better (using magnesium tablets really helped). And well done on the Podium finish, amazing result !

great videos recently mate. unsure what's changed but more relatable content i suppose and love the side that exposes more racing-adjacent topics.

Fantastic Video Chris ! Great insights & so well explained 👌🏻thx

Gotta say that anyone rocking that Bowie T shirt gets my subscription.....even though you got the loading and dosage totally wrong....thanks for the vid.

Keep these videos coming.. Love the pod.. Love the varied content. Let's go!

Understand the whole family part! That’s exactly how I feel with two boys who are non stop Thanks for the video! Was very helpful

Thank you for this valuable review. Especially those non measurable points are interesting to hear.

I'm 60yrs old and have returned to lifting to maintain strength and bone density. Creatine has definitely enhanced my lifting power and helped me train with form, as it gives confidence to push through the last few reps without slackening that form. The benefits for me on the bike are noticeable. It's spring here in the UK and usually a time when I'm conditioning, therefore prone to niggles and aches. My core /upper back is stronger and I'm pain free without trigger points. That's important to me. I can turn a harder gear than usual without drawbacks.. I'm about 3kg heavier though. I expect to lose some of that as my riding time increases in the following months. I'll probably come off the Creatine as it's done it's job and set the ball rolling.

I like your objectivity and open-mindedness. Nice after-action report on your trial of creatine!

Thank you for your transparency.

Really interesting video. I did not see the gastro problems but definably saw the weight gain very quickly after starting a cycle. Congrats on the podium finish!

Creatine pulls water into cells, so the weight you put on was purely water. Which is also why you lost it so fast after you stopped taking it. It's also the reason you felt thirsty all the time. One of the recommendations for creatine use is to drink more water. That water retention is partly where its benefits are.

55 yo powerlifter been doing creatine for a few years now. My experience of the benifits mirror yours. Sime of your....side effects could be related to the volume you are taking vs your body weight. I'm at 110kg and daily take 5g. I would guess you are half my body weight so your could get away with 2.5g per day. I also don't consume in one hit, instead mix in a water bottle and consume over the course of the day, less of a hit to your stomach. Worth a thought. Great vid.

Family matters to those whom have families...or at least it should - Appreciate your sharing as such!

From what I understand, because creatine is used in ATP production, it pulls water into muscle cells from everywhere. This is likely the source of both your enhanced energy and your dehydrated feeling. It can also cause weight gain in some people, as another person mentioned in the comments. The weight gain however, as you found, should drop as you reduce the amount of creatine you’re using per day or you stop using it altogether. Also the B-roll footage was great lol

My experience has been similar, having taken creatine for the past couple of months. Improved endurance and mood for me, but a couple of kg heavier. Personally, I think I may continue it for the life gains, at least in the off-season.

Great episode. Thanks my take was just the benifits of better mood was worth the whole effort.

This video was the gateway for me to start creatine. I had no idea it was so good. I started noticing everyone recommending it after I watched this. I weigh 71 kg, and 3.5 grams of creatine is a lot for me. I have way more energy, but I'm sleeping a lot less. I can't imagine taking 20g / day for loading. Re: stomach issues: My stomach was having issues after a week of just 3.5g/day, but mixing it in hot water solved this for me. Thanks for the video!

i guess the loading phase was unnecessary. your body is not able to resorb this big amount of creatine and you get this reactions you got. i would suggest to take it constantly, then your body is able to get used to it and to your new body composition with the water retention in your muscles caused by the creatine. creatine is one of the best studied supplements and they found also benefits for brain health and mental health. great content, as always, keep it coming! :) greetings from germany

Man, that was a heck of a loading phase you employed...you don't need to do that in the future. It just takes a little longer to build up the levels in the body. There is talk that the loading is simply for the manufacturers to sell more product. Also, creatine allows for more rapid replacement of ATP within the muscles following hard effort. That is why your 8 minute intervals showed improvement. Your body was able to replenish the ATP faster in between the intervals. I personally have never had gut issues with creatine, but I never do a loading phase and only take 5 g a day. Great video! Thanks.

Congrats on the podium finish.

Great Spring Drive GS 👌

Great video! One thing... I did not recall you mentioning one of the huge downsides of creatine and supplementation in general: the risk of contamination. Everybody should be fully aware of this in the first place and this means either totally staying away from supplements or, paying a premium for fully certificated brands by reliable labs. You definitely do not want to risk going down as a cheater just because you decided to spare a few bucks buying a cheap supermarket supplement. About Creatine, I can only share my personal experience. I used it in the past trying to leverage my gym and interval work. The results were good (both in the workouts and the racing) but I really can not say if it was from it, the training itself or even some kind of placebo effect. I would do it again for sure...

Brilliant video Chris. This is very informative information on how you felt after taking Creatine. I also experienced stomach issues while on Creatine & honestly won't wanna take Creatine again. On a side note, I wonder if you've ever tried Beta Alanine? If not, I recommend trying it as it definitely does work. Cheers :)

3:44 Love the Star Wars art 👌

My understanding is that Creatine aids in the athlete’s ability to do repeated powerful efforts (up to 10-15 seconds), and strength training to increase overall load to build muscle. It does cause water retention in muscles, thus causing dehydration, and weight gain. For an endurance athelete, it has not been shown to assist in endurance events, however it does allow for off season strength gains, when done appropriately. I’d like to see a study that measures effectiveness in a sprint at the end of an endurance ride or sprint for points.

Thanks Chris. Up here in North Scotland sometimes its the, erm, Scottish Suppliments which are too frequently consumed for the amount of riding done :/

Good video Chris, interesting info and results, congrats on your 3rd place! Living in Puglia, Southern italy I struggle to keep the weight down, 6ft 183cm, 85+ kilos in winter, food is too good here compared to crap English food!!!

I agree Chris, I am 51M and have been training in altitude rooms recently (3500m) , lots of Z2 riding and running. I am 12 months + with 5 grams a day of Creatine and 5 Grams AAKG and have recently doubled my Creatine to 10grams a day and have noticed considerable measurable gains in my long distance riding and recovery. Creatine by itself is great but the AAKG seems to balance out the negatives for me.

Quick update from earlier post; Have been taking since Oct 23- 20 min power jumped from 290’s to 331w by Feb ‘24 - most of this is down to improved recovery and increased energy which have allowed me to take on 2 interval days per week vs only 1 in previous years. I have also lost 10-12 lbs down to increased intensity of training load. I think the medical establishment have dismissed the need to do an early load phase which might help with GI issues and weight gain. I will likely never stop using it. A CGM is the other most valuable tool in my new arsenal- brilliant!

Started creatine two months ago and have noticed a boost in energy which has translated into the pedals- no data to report but a noticeable difference antidotally. The most valuable benefit for me though has been the mental boost I've had since starting my regime of 5mg daily (no load phase). I have a higher happiness baseline as a result, in fact, many studies document the anti-depressant effect of creatine. Creatine may not be for everyone but I sincerely believe it could be helpful to a lot of people.

Sounds like there should be a warning label on Creatine supplements as follows: Side effects include sudden onset type II Fartabetes. :)

I go on and off since I was in high school in the 90s. I always use it for workout recovery.

Not a cyclist,but an avid lifter and I have never done a "loading phase" and never had any troubles w Creatine.The "loading phase" may be what's causing some ppl problems.

Interesting. Thanks for sharing.

Creatine was a disaster for me..., until I started pairing it with electrolytes and osmolytes - potassium, magnesium, sodium (pink salt), taurine, glycine, inositol.

I find 2-3g a day with no loading phase to be the sweet spot. I notice no digestive discomfort, and the water gain is minimal. It makes me feel much more cognitively acute during hard training. I would go so far as to say it elevates mood, even. I always mix it with leucine, glutamine, and collagen (5g, 10g, and 20g, respectively). This is a good stack. I recover much better when I am on this regimen. I would highly recommend it. For the record, I train for long mountain ascents, but the training is super compatible with principles of competitive cycling.

you might try creatine hcl, a different form. when i used it i had less weight gain from retention and no gastro distress.

As with any supplements the benefits will differ between individuals. If you don’t try them then you will not know whether they work for you or not. I’ve tried it with a loading phase similar to yours and used it for about 3/4 months. It worked for me very well. It certainly gave me extra energy and strength. It may not be everyone but at least give it a try before dismissing it.

I take less than 5mg, more like 3mg and I don't do the loading phase just let it build up. I still notice the gains in strength, especially with the weights and doing push-ups. Keeping the dose a bit lower seems to solve the bloating feeling or indigestion. I also feel more motivated to do things. I don't think 5mg is necessary unless you're a serious athlete.

I like your term "ducks in a row" with all the products available and marketed it's easy to build up an expensive shooting gallery that's often not needed with a good diet. I found creatin monomongate gave me eye bags. I guess that it was water retention. Though I did feel stronger. A few more eggs in my diet would of probably given the same result. Great channel ✌️

You should try to avoid caffeine and creatine intake at the same time. It's easier on the stomach and the effect is likely better overall as you feel better. With caffeine you lose water and with creatine you stack up more water, so it is really important that you drink more water.

if you have off-season creatine is good for gym strength work, but you are right about the bloating and water it's uncomfortable, it's probably safe to use twice a year not constantly. yeh podium👍👌

I just want to share my personal experience with creatine. So the impotant point of it is just not to use the "load phase" at all, just don't do that. Start normally to take usual dose of 5gr per day and better to do it AFTER training , because it is more effective then. You don't really need any "load phase" just because the effect will be the same, but it will take few more days and with lesser or no side effects.

As someone who has been doing primary calisthenics for years and just started cycling a year ago, ive been taking creatine long before i touched a road bike and never considered it has any effect on cycling. The weight thing is a negative for you but its due to the water the creatine pulls into the muscles, so the cosmetic benefits are definitely at least a little part of the reason many people who are into fitness take creatine

been using creatine for a few months now and it’s had quite a tremendous positive effect on my fitness and mood. don’t love the water retention though. and where i live it isn’t as cheap as what people all say creatine is across other counties.

Best and most informative creatine video I've ever seen 😎👍👍 thanks Mate. I'm trying to get leaner..not put on more water weight..I will skip on the creatine.

I took creatine in the off season. But was more in the gym then on the bike. Came off the stuff heavier and got awhile it seemed like I was dehydrated quite a bit. Even was cramping in my quads on the climbs. Been over a month now and the cramps are gone. The weight is still on tho.

Go with 3 grams without the load up, tinker with dosage, I'm a former collegiate runner so I share your thoughts regarding weight gain rationale. Your right about energy increase and less muscle fatigue. Creatine reacts differently with each person.

Creatine will not help with max power output. It works with your bodies energy system (ATP-ADP) to give more available energy. No need for loading period and if you choose to take again, I'd suggest to measure more accurately than eyeballing with a teaspoon. A little bit extra as you found out can lead to stomach issues.

great video

Thanks for this video. I’m a runner who also does a little bit of weightlifting. I just recently started on creatine and noticed all of the negatives you mentioned, with the positives not quite noticeable yet. Perhaps, perhaps more energy, but I was doing fine even before it. I’ll stick to it for a bit longer to see if the negatives diminish. If they don’t, its simply not worth it. If they do, its maybe, maybe worth it, but the lifting gains and interval speeds will have to improve significantly; otherwise still not worth it, by any means.

If you don’t mind putting additional data out there, how tall are you? Just trying to put a height with the weight, as I am a shorter rider and lower mass rider (but by no means super lean as I sometimes think I could/ should be), and I do wonder whether shaving those couple kilos (at the cost of some of my happy feelings with a beer or bowl of ice cream at the end of a hard week of teaching) would be worth is - quantitatively, or more so qualitatively. Another very informative video - much appreciated.

I had the same experience with monohydrate. A decade later trying again and using creatine hcl capsules. No issues at all and with a very low dose I respond very well, 1 capsule a day of 750mg!! Always been a quick responder and hcl has more bang with lower dose required

I am 163 cm for 54 kg. I take 3 gr/day, i am vegetarian and i think my conditions is better now after months not stomach issues, more weight ? Not then 1 kg...in a balance diet especially for vegetarians and vegans it's a good supplement!!!

Thanks Chris.

love that EPO bottle😂

interesting video. i'm about 3 weeks in, so should have completed the load phase. will be incorporating more weight training to try push power out put. interested to see what gains i can make.

FYI the stomach/gas issue aren’t across the board for everyone. It does affect some people but most of the people I know that take it don’t have a problem. Personally I unfortunately have a sensitive stomach but I haven’t had any of these issues and I’ve been taking daily for about a year now.

I used creatine and had great results.

A couple of years ago when I tried creatine, it was written on the box that caffeine should not be used in conjunction. Is that still actual?

Creatine retains water in the body and would explain most of your weight gain. Hence why when you stopped, it shed quickly. Great video

After not road cycling for a while and I lift, run now, I feel soooo silly for not taking creatine back when I was road cycling. Without a doubt I would’ve had a slight boost during races

Thanks Chris, very interesting! In my experience I agree with your experiences, with the exceptions of the weight gain and, the ‘blow outs!’. Thank goodness I haven’t as yet had those issues. Differences in my regime and me. I have never done a loading phase. I started at 5g and maintain this daily. I only take the supplement, in the morning, mixed with my usual Huel gluten free high protein shake ‘breakfast’. I started noticing benefits about 3 weeks after staring supplementation. I don’t have any numbers, just ‘subjective feelings’, but they are good feelings, especially the reproducible efforts! The research shows that the lower your ‘natural’ creatine levels the more you may benefit from supplementation. As you age the lower your starting level is likely to be and the more difficult it is for your body to generate phosphocreatine, from the creatine you ingest. Maybe I’m ‘lucky’ as my age, intake routine, and general biology may be allowing the benefits more than drawbacks, so far at least.

I use creatine, but mostly just in the first half of the off-season when I'm lifting ~3 times per week and don't care at all about the weight gain. To the extent that it increased your 8min power numbers, I think it has an even more pronounced effect when it comes to weightlifting & muscle building. Also as many have said, I don't think that kind of loading phase is necessary. I sometimes take 2 doses in a day for good measure during the first couple of weeks (usually just an "extra" dose of 5g after lifting sessions, in addition to the daily 5g dose), but definitely no more, and I've never had any gut issues from that.

Taking creatine used to bother my stomach too, now I'm taking a good quality micronized version and I have no problems at all

Try not mixing it with coffee to alleviate gastro discomfort. Perhaps Dutch the loading phase as well and do a slower build up towards saturation. Good luck and thanks for the video.

The extra weight is water retention, a very well known "side effect" of creatine

I like the background music a lot

I feel like it is something rider could use during a power/strenght training phase.

Strange that short term power didn't increase. That's to one I was expecting to increase. Have not tried creatine while cycling, but during gym training back in the day, short term power always increased, and I was able to use max power for a few seconds longer.

Thanks for your very interesting write up. I really would have expected better sustained power on sprints. Maybe try creatine at a lower dosage in the future. Tip from me, I dissolve creatine in my morning or evening tea to take it. With morning tea and breakfast it feels nicer on my tummy.

Great content! BTW you will have more success with creatine, when your intake of caffeine is by zero. The creatine depot in your muscles stays higher. That means your deadpoint in your muscle in a cycle race is later, or it doesn’t even come.

Thank you Chris

The literature on creatine is extremely positive. I personally have seen a massive improvement in my health since using it.

Dissolve the creatin in hot water and stirr until the water is clear. This increases absorption and lowers gastro intestinal side effects.

You have to establish a baseline with creatine. There is no need to load with creatine. It's 5g each day. You need to take the stuff for at least 6 months to avoid hypochondriac thinking. The weight gain at the beginning is short term. It doesn't give you fast twitch endurance or enhance anything that requires large amounts of high impact exercise. It probably will not help a cyclist much for short sprints but will help for long endurance rides and muscle recovery.

I guess my question is what were you hoping to get out of creatine? Why did you take it? Being more familiar with creatine from the muscle building perspective, I'm not really sure what performance benefit would be expected for a cyclist. As other have commented, creatine increases water in the muscles, so weight gain is totally expected. I can't speak to the stomach problems. I've been taking it every day for around 4 years and have never had any stomach problems. Really interesting video though. Thanks for sharing.

I think a dexa scan might have revealed more. E.g. if your muscles grew (not just from water) then that would add weight. I saw your maximum power didn't increase but there may be other limiting factors playing a role there?