Is creatine for men like you?

Your muscles store creatine whether you train or not. If you are on your feet, carrying things or climbing stairs, your body is using the energy it helps supply. A day on the tools, a kickabout with the kids or a long walk in the hills all count as moving your body.

• Dog walks
• DIY and garden work
• Five-a-side
• Cycling
• Lifting kids and boxes
• Stairs and hills

It works best alongside something that challenges your muscles a couple of times a week, and that can be as simple as hills, stairs and carrying the shopping.

In 2009, a small study of rugby players found that creatine raised DHT, a hormone linked to male pattern hair loss. It stayed within the normal range, and the study did not measure hair. In 2025, a 12-week randomised trial looked at hair directly.

The 2025 trial was short and used a small group of men aged 18 to 40, so it doesn't answer the question for everyone. If hair loss is a concern for you, have a word with your GP before you start.

Read the 2009 study · Read the 2025 trial · Stronger By Science on creatine and hair loss

Your cells use creatine to quickly regenerate ATP, the form of energy they run on. When you push hard, like a sprint for the train, a heavy bag or a steep hill, your cells use ATP faster than they can make it, and creatine helps top it back up. That is why it supports repeated bursts of hard effort.*

1. CreatineStored in muscle and brain
3. ATPThe energy your cells use
5. Short, hard effortsA sprint, a heavy lift, a flight of stairs

Your brain is about 2% of your body weight and uses roughly 20% of your energy, so it has a big energy bill. Creatine is part of how brain cells keep their ATP topped up, much as muscle cells do. Researchers are studying what that means for memory and mental fatigue, including when sleep is short.

Read more: Creatine and the brain

Creatine tops up the stores in your muscles over time, so rest days count too. Take two chews every day at whatever time you'll remember. Timing barely matters, and one missed day is no drama because stores drain slowly.

1. Weeks 1 to 2Your stores are topping up gradually. You won't feel a buzz yet, and that's normal. Every day counts towards a fuller tank.
2. Weeks 3 to 4 and beyondStudies using around 3g a day found muscle stores reach their ceiling in roughly 4 weeks. Timing varies from person to person, so keep it daily and give it a little longer if you can. A fuller tank supports short, hard efforts:* the last hill on the walk, a full day on the tools, the dash for the train.
3. Month 2 onwardsTwo chews a day is just part of your routine now, like the first brew. Keep it daily.
4. If you stopStores generally drift back to baseline over about 4 to 6 weeks, so keep the habit going.

Each serving is 5g of micronised creatine monohydrate, in two chews. Keep the tub by the kettle and take them with your first brew, or at any other time that suits you. Each tub holds 15 servings, so three tubs cover 45 days.

Loading is when some people take around 20g a day for 5 to 7 days, split across the day, to fill their muscle stores faster. You don't have to do it. Taking your 5g every day fills them more gradually, so you can simply wait a little longer and stay consistent.

A hint of orange sherbet, and nothing to mix. A routine that takes ten seconds is one you keep.