A few creatine questions...

I plan on introducing creatine to my regimen once I get a bit more engrossed in the herb cycling, and naturally have a few questions about it.
Firstly, and most broadly, what is the TMO verdict on creatine's effectiveness in helping our situation precisely? I know it's not a n official protocol item, but I have seen CD and others on here speak positively about it nonetheless. Does it really work directly to stimulate DHT (as those studies on the rugby players sugggest), or are its benefits more likely indirect, by way of enhancing physical fitness?
Secondly, would creatine intake need to be ceased during pro hormone runs, or at any other times for that matter?
Thirdly, is the standard loading phase with 20 grams a day for 5-7 days followed by 3-5 grams a day for maintenance the best way to go about this?
Fifthly, related to the previous questions, is monohydrate the best way to go? If another form of creatine is advocated, is there a different leading phase/maintenance dose to he aware of?
Fifthly, any warnings/precautions/supplement interactions related to creatine implementation would be appreciated.

My personal take is that creatine is beneficial, EXCEPT that some guys claim it causes them to have a downswing or crash. (I think a full crash sounds extreme and I am not sure if they meant a downswing.) If it causes a negative reaction consistently or an actual crash, then don’t take it.

I personally do not believe the one small study that says that creatine spikes your DHT by like 50%. Why not? If that were true, creatine would substantially increase male pattern baldness, but it is not known to do this. It would also cause a significant sexual boost, consistently, which it does not do. If it boosted libido it would be mainstream, not just a workout product.

You can get weird results from any given small study. I would have faith in the study if there were other similar studies or a large study showing the same boost in DHT, but it is a very random thing to study and nobody tried to repeat the results. Because these results don’t fit with what I see in the real world (creatine doesn’t cause baldness or boost libido in normal men and women,) I don’t believe has any significant effect on DHT.

However, creatine has absolutely been proven to boost athletic performance. It is a must for all competitive athletes. You can lift a little more weight, run a little harder, etc. This has been absolutely proven in many studies you can find on Pubmed.

So, taking creatine will allow you to gain more hormonal benefits from your workouts by allowing you to do more in the gym. That’s why it is a great supplement.

You can either do the mega doses for a week (20g per day,) or just take normal doses (5g) daily and reach the max levels within a month. The mega doses help the creatine company sell more product, so that’s why they recommend it, but it’s up to you. A 3g dose is also fine and likely above the amount you need to stay at max levels once your muscles are fully saturated with creatine.

If you want to megadose creatine, please spread it out over the day - take 5g on waking, 5g with lunch, 5g with dinner, and 5g before bed. If you haven’t urinated since your last 5g, it’s too soon to take more. This helps you absorb the creatine better, and it also reduces the work for your kidneys, and reduces the odds of stomach pains and issues with defecating.

The stuff is not pleasant to consume, I wouldn’t want to take 20g all at once and there is no reason to not spread it over the course of a day instead.

I always take a mouthful of water and then dump the creatine in and do it that way, rather than ruining a glass of water and prolonging the unpleasant experience. You could also mix it into a post-workout drink.

You do not need to take none, less, or extra creatine while you’re on prohormones. Your body has a natural level of creatine, but it can absorb a LOT more - the maximum - with the supplement.

I recommend “German Creatine” because it’s made in Germany, which I think is the least likely country to spike it with testosterone or anything else. CD has a brand that he likes and I’m sure that is also a good brand.

Creatine monohydrate should be fine. A bodybuilder YouTuber I liked who died at 47, Rich Piana, had a product called Crea-Ten which supposedly had ten types of creatine in it, but as far as I know, creatine monohydrate gives you all the benefits of creatine.

The warning for creatine is that you must not take it if you have kidney problems, or if you have a bad reaction to it.

Also don’t get a cheap garbage brand, pay a bit more for a good brand.

I have been off of creatine and I am going to start mega dosing for the next 6 days, thanks for the reminder.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by LetsGo

My personal take is that creatine is beneficial, EXCEPT that some guys claim it causes them to have a downswing or crash. (I think a full crash sounds extreme and I am not sure if they meant a downswing.) If it causes a negative reaction consistently or an actual crash, then don’t take it.

I personally do not believe the one small study that says that creatine spikes your DHT by like 50%. Why not? If that were true, creatine would substantially increase male pattern baldness, but it is not known to do this. It would also cause a significant sexual boost, consistently, which it does not do. If it boosted libido it would be mainstream, not just a workout product.

You can get weird results from any given small study. I would have faith in the study if there were other similar studies or a large study showing the same boost in DHT, but it is a very random thing to study and nobody tried to repeat the results. Because these results don’t fit with what I see in the real world (creatine doesn’t cause baldness or boost libido in normal men and women,) I don’t believe has any significant effect on DHT.

However, creatine has absolutely been proven to boost athletic performance. It is a must for all competitive athletes. You can lift a little more weight, run a little harder, etc. This has been absolutely proven in many studies you can find on Pubmed.

So, taking creatine will allow you to gain more hormonal benefits from your workouts by allowing you to do more in the gym. That’s why it is a great supplement.

You can either do the mega doses for a week (20g per day,) or just take normal doses (5g) daily and reach the max levels within a month. The mega doses help the creatine company sell more product, so that’s why they recommend it, but it’s up to you. A 3g dose is also fine and likely above the amount you need to stay at max levels once your muscles are fully saturated with creatine.

If you want to megadose creatine, please spread it out over the day - take 5g on waking, 5g with lunch, 5g with dinner, and 5g before bed. If you haven’t urinated since your last 5g, it’s too soon to take more. This helps you absorb the creatine better, and it also reduces the work for your kidneys, and reduces the odds of stomach pains and issues with defecating.

The stuff is not pleasant to consume, I wouldn’t want to take 20g all at once and there is no reason to not spread it over the course of a day instead.

I always take a mouthful of water and then dump the creatine in and do it that way, rather than ruining a glass of water and prolonging the unpleasant experience. You could also mix it into a post-workout drink.

You do not need to take none, less, or extra creatine while you’re on prohormones. Your body has a natural level of creatine, but it can absorb a LOT more - the maximum - with the supplement.

I recommend “German Creatine” because it’s made in Germany, which I think is the least likely country to spike it with testosterone or anything else. CD has a brand that he likes and I’m sure that is also a good brand.

Creatine monohydrate should be fine. A bodybuilder YouTuber I liked who died at 47, Rich Piana, had a product called Crea-Ten which supposedly had ten types of creatine in it, but as far as I know, creatine monohydrate gives you all the benefits of creatine.

The warning for creatine is that you must not take it if you have kidney problems, or if you have a bad reaction to it.

Also don’t get a cheap garbage brand, pay a bit more for a good brand.

I have been off of creatine and I am going to start mega dosing for the next 6 days, thanks for the reminder.

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Thanks a lot for your input. There is a lot of helpful information there, and addresses all of my questions. Of course I want to hear that, yes, it does in fact seem to spike DHT, but then I figure all of us here would be hearing a lot more about it than we do. Ran across a Reddit thread where many guys claim their hair loss quickened after starting it, but who knows (really funny that I now take an interest in things which likely exacerbate hair loss. What a difference a year makes 😄).