With creatine monohydrate, is it necessary to have a loading phase (15g for 5 days) followed by maintenance days (5g)?

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 27 Mar 2017 18:27:45 -0400

Response by SSgt Shawn Springsteen made Mar 27 at 2017 6:30 PM

SSgt Shawn Springsteen — Mon, 27 Mar 2017 18:30:20 -0400

While I am no personal trainer, I am a long time wrestling coach. I've seen a lot of young athletes utilize creatine in a beneficial way. In my opinion, you don't need excessive loading if you're eating correctly. However, a good supplementation of 3-5g per day is a solid start.

Drink lots of water too!

Response by SFC Stephen King made Mar 27 at 2017 6:58 PM

SFC Stephen King — Mon, 27 Mar 2017 18:58:33 -0400

No, that used to be protocol. As mentioned food, meat has creatine within it.

Response by SFC Stephen King made Mar 27 at 2017 6:59 PM

SFC Stephen King — Mon, 27 Mar 2017 18:59:02 -0400

Increase H2O

Response by CPT Zachary Brooks made Mar 27 at 2017 7:45 PM

CPT Zachary Brooks — Mon, 27 Mar 2017 19:45:41 -0400

Necessary? No. Helpful? Possibly. I personally never bother.

Response by CPT Chris Loomis made Mar 28 at 2017 3:09 AM

CPT Chris Loomis — Tue, 28 Mar 2017 03:09:05 -0400

I cycle on and off of krealkilyne which is basically buffed creatine in a capsule. You do not need to load "Kre." I have good results.

I have also had good results when I loaded creatinemonohydrate.

I have NOT had good results when I did not load creatine.

In all cases my diet is balanced, with an appropriate amount of meat,and my protein sups were on target. My sleep was scheduled and enough. My water intake was increased to an appropriate level.