Creatine: The One Worth Buying

Creatine monohydrate is, without exaggeration, the most thoroughly researched supplement in sports nutrition. Hundreds of studies, across decades, have converged on the same finding: it improves performance in repeated high-intensity efforts by topping up the phosphocreatine system that powers them.

The dose is unglamorous. Five grams per day, every day. No need to load. No need for fancy esterified or buffered versions, plain monohydrate matches every premium variant in head-to-head studies, at a fraction of the price. Take it any time of day; consistency matters more than timing.

The benefits accumulate over a few weeks. Expect slightly better performance in sets above five reps, slightly faster recovery between sets, and a small increase in body weight from intramuscular water. Vegetarians often see larger effects because their baseline creatine is lower. It is also one of the few supplements with growing evidence for cognitive benefits, particularly when sleep is short.