Creatine is a naturally occurring compound found in muscles and the brain. It helps produce energy during high-intensity, short-duration activities like lifting, sprinting, or intense training. Foods high in protein such as beef, fish, and animal milk contain naturally-occurring amounts of creatine. 

Creatine monohydrate is the most researched and trusted form. It’s been proven to be safe, effective, and well absorbed by the body. While other forms exist, none have shown better results in peer-reviewed research.

Supplementing with creatine helps support strength, power, endurance, and muscle recovery. It increases the body’s natural production of ATP—the fuel your muscles use to perform—making it easier to train harder and recover faster. It’s also been studied for benefits in brain performance and healthy aging.

For most people, a daily dose of 3 to 5 grams of creatine monohydrate is effective for maintaining muscle saturation and supporting performance. However, high-performing athletes or those engaged in intense, frequent training may benefit from a brief loading phase—typically 20 grams per day, split into 4 doses, for 5 to 7 days. This approach can help accelerate muscle saturation and performance benefits, especially when time is limited before competition or training cycles.

Regardless of whether you load or not, the key to results is consistency. Taking creatine daily—on both training and rest days—helps maintain optimal levels for strength, power output, and recovery.

The “creatine muscle phase” is a phase of creatine usage generally recommended for high-performance athletes that compete in high-intensity, strength-dependent sports such as track and field and weightlifting.  In short, by consuming higher amounts of creatine at the onset of creatine usage, creatine monohydrate saturates muscle stores of the body quickly, and therefore, has been shown to support and improve performance at higher levels compared to lower dosages. A typical creatine loading phase, meanwhile, includes 20-25 grams of ingested creatine monohydrate/day, and typically lasts for 5-7 days.

At DFS, we recommend taking creatine either directly before or after a workout (i.e. around 90 minutes before or after a workout has been completed). Certain studies have shown that post-workout creatine consumption is slightly more beneficial, as muscles are more receptive to nutrients after-the-fact.

However, more than post or pre-workout consumption, consistency of usage matters the most.

At this moment and time, no scientific evidence supports the claim that creatine directly causes hair loss.

For premenopausal women, creatine has been shown to provide many supposed benefits, including but not limited to*:

• Improved muscle growth
• Athletic performing improvements (i.e. weightlifting, sprinting, and jumping-based exercises)
• Bone health improvement and support
• Expedited post-workout recovery
• Reduced cognitive fatigue

Yes it does! However, if stored in a cool, dry place, DFS’ Creatine Monohydrate can last for upwards of two years.