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If you're looking to take your training to the next level and improve your strength, endurance, and explosive movements, than Creatine is perfect for you. Creatine's strength and explosive movement benefits make it especially beneficial for sprinters, powerlifters, and combat athletes. Creatine is primarily stored in the skeletal muscle as phosphocreatine (PCr) which provides a rapid supply for the re-synthesis of adenosine triphosphate (ATP). The ATP energy system is the pathway your body favours during maximal effort, short duration exercise, making Creatine ideal for low volume, high intensity training.

Creatine is one of the vital compounds utilized to feed the energy system during strength training and explosive movements. Creatine is a compound derived from the amino acids methionine, glycine and arginine and is primarily stored in the skeletal muscle. It is naturally occurring in animal-based products including meat, fish and eggs. Widely renowned as the number one supplement for improving performance in the gym, Creatine is known to improve muscle strength, enhance explosive movements, improve cardiovascular capacity and assist high performance training. Creatine is one of the most widely studied sports supplements, with many studies supporting these claims.

Like many supplements, the optimal time to take Creatine remains controversial. Subsequently, we advise to choose the supplement strategy that you are most likely to stay consistent with. Creatine can be taken pre-workout, post-workout, or on your rest days. The supplement strategies for each are listed below.

Pre-workout:
If consuming Creatine prior to your workout works best for you, Creatine should be consumed between 30 - 60 minutes prior to training. This will help replenish your phosphocreatine (PCr) levels and help prepare your muscles for a heavy training session ahead. Taking creatine with carbohydrates pre-workout will assist your body in replenishing it's glycogen stores, which can later be utilised to improve athletic performance during prolonged exercise.

Post-workout:
Following an intense training session, key nutrients in the body, including creatine, are at their lowest. Subsequently, within the first thirty minutes following your training, your body is ready for maximal nutrient uptake. Adding creatine to your post-workout shake will help feed your starving muscle tissue, assist the recovery process and support an increase in muscle mass.

Rest day:
Supplementing Creatine on your non-training days will help maintain your supplement levels. This can be taken with water, with juice or with another liquid of your choice. If you skip Creatine supplementation on your days off, don't stress as it won't have a significant effect on what you've already accomplished.

Creatine can be and is often used with other supplements. When stacking Creatine with other supplements, you should first check if the other supplement includes Creatine, as it is regularly included in pre-workout and post-workout formulas. Research suggests 5g per day is enough to achieve results, so consuming more than this is not necessary or recommended. An ideal post-workout combination is True Creatine Monohydrate and True WPI90. On days you've taken other supplements such as Pre or Post workout, you may like to skip or reduce supplementing Creatine. 

True Creatine Monohydrate is design to mix well with water and subsequently has a neutral taste, making it perfect for consuming on it's own or stacking with other supplements.

There are a number of potential side effects of Creatine, however when consumed correctly, they are unlikely. These may include, muscle cramping, nausea, dehydration, weight gain (due to water retention) and dizziness.

Initially, when consuming high levels of creatine for the first 5 days, it is likely you will gain weight through water retention, approximately 1-2kg at most. It is not uncommon for individuals to maintain the water weight whilst continuing to supplement Creatine, as water is pulled to the muscles. However, once the Creatine cycle stops your weight will likely reduce as the muscle water retention reduces.

If weight gain from water retention is not ideal for your situation, you can skip the loading phase and start directly on the maintenance dose of 3-5g per day. If you chose this method, ensure that you continue supplementation for at least three weeks for optimal benefits.