Beginner Takes CREATINE for 30 Days (RESULTS & SIDE EFFECTS)

Introduction

Creatine is often described as the legal version of steroids, making you bigger, stronger, and more athletic. But just how big of a difference can it make for the average Joe? And are there any harmful side effects you should know about? Meet Raza, our guinea pig, a beginner who has never taken creatine. Over the next 30 days, we're going to track his weight, muscle size, and strength to see just how much this supplement helps or hurts him.

Raza's Background

My name is Raza Catal. I'm 26 and I work at Build with Science. I'm actually getting married in three days, right after this challenge ends, and I want to look thick and juicy in my suits. I want to be looking built like my boss and my coworkers, so let's see how this turns out.

Understanding Creatine Saturation

When you first start taking creatine, it won't work right away. You actually won't experience any benefit until you reach what's known as full saturation. This is a point when your muscles' creatine stores are completely full. Typically, if you take one five-gram scoop of creatine a day, you can reach full saturation in about three weeks. However, you can experience the benefits faster, in as little as a week, if you use what's known as a loading protocol. This involves taking 20 grams of creatine every day for a week. However, for some individuals, ingesting this much creatine at once can create a lot of stomach discomfort.

The Challenge Begins

Day 1-3: The Initial Struggles

My stomach hurts. My bathroom bowel movements are really messed up. The first three days of taking creatine were absolutely hell. I went out for dinner with my fiancée, where we were chilling and relaxing, and the creatine really started kicking in. I told my fiancée if I don't go home in the next 20 minutes, I would shit myself. I got a speeding ticket because I went through a red light because I could not stop hurrying up. I had to quickly get home to use the restroom—it was so bad. Day two, I had stomach pains out the wazoo. It was bad. I was in bed and just agony and pain, and felt like something was stabbing me in the stomach, and I was bloated like my face felt fat. It was just a nightmare.

Fixing the Issues

So to soothe Raza's stomach pains, we spaced out his servings throughout the day and also fully dissolved each dose with water instead of dry scooping it. We also made sure he stopped taking his creatine with his pre-workout or any caffeine. There's not only some evidence suggesting that taking creatine with caffeine may make it less effective, but it also seems to greatly increase the odds of stomach discomfort. Making these fixes seemed to do the trick.

Results After 30 Days

Weight and Muscle Gains

Alright, so after the seven days of loading, by now the creatine should be fully saturated in your muscles, and this is when it'll start working. This is when you should scale back your dose to just 5 grams per day to simply maintain your elevated creatine stores. However, not everyone responds to creatine. In fact, it's estimated that about 20 to 30 percent of people are non-responders. Once you do reach full saturation, there are a few benefits and side effects you want to look out for to tell if it's working.

I gained roughly around one and a half pounds in the first week. Oh, this is a problem. It was a big "oh" moment because I had these suits that were tailored to my body. If I don't fit into my suits, my fiancée will not be happy.

Strength Improvement

Day 10 is when I noticed that my pull-ups were changing. Before taking creatine, I could do about 9, 5, and 5. Taking creatine, I was able to push out 12, 11, and 11. That was a huge indicator for me that something is going on in my body.

If you're a responder to creatine, you should notice a slight strength boost across most of your exercises. In fact, a meta-analysis reviewing 22 creatine studies found that on average, trained lifters can expect roughly an eight percent boost in strength and 14 percent boost in the number of reps. For less experienced lifters like Raza, however, they seem to reap larger benefits, with one study showing an average strength increase of 30 percent in untrained individuals.

Bench press, I was able to increase five pounds in all my sets. Shoulder press, I'm able to do almost 55 to 60 pounds on each side, and it feels like a dream seeing all this weight change, but it's happening. I just hit an all-time PR in low incline dumbbell press—60 pounds on each side for each arm. Raza has been able to increase almost all his exercises by around five pounds or so, as well as do at least a couple more reps, which seems to align well with the research.

Hair Loss Concerns

One thing I'm really worried about is losing my hair. It's already thinning, and apparently, creatine can make it worse. I'll talk to Jeremy about this and see what he has to say.

Why is hair loss a popular concern when it comes to creatine? This goes back to a study published in 2010. Researchers took 20 rugby players and split them into a placebo group or creatine group, where they followed the loading phase for seven days and then dropped down to maintenance afterwards. Now, throughout this period, researchers measured what's known as DHT, a hormone known to contribute to male pattern baldness and hair loss in those who are genetically predisposed to it.

So what happened? The creatine group actually experienced a significant increase in their DHT levels by about 56 percent after the loading phase, which then reduced down to a 40 percent increase during the maintenance phase. So does this mean hair loss is a legitimate concern? Well, first of all, the creatine group had lower than average DHT levels to begin with, and the increase they experienced was still within normal levels. Also, no other study has yet to replicate the results. So I honestly think it's not a concern, but we will keep an eye on Raza’s head of hair and see if we notice any differences.

Recovery Rate

In addition to the strength benefits, one study surveying 52 NCAA athletes found that 81 percent of them reported faster recovery from training after taking creatine. So once you do reach full saturation, pay attention to how fast you recover between your workouts, as that's another indicator that it's working.

Final Results

Alright, my man. It's day 30. Yeah, it's exciting. Let's see where we're at. Going into day 30, I did not know what to expect. Damn. You look good, man. Your shoulders look a bit wider, arms look a bit juicier.

• 38 centimeters—from 36 centimeters, so a two-centimeter increase.
• Just over 125 centimeters—started at 120 centimeters.

Just from this area, I'm a little worried now I have to fit into my wedding suit. Taking creatine is not a magic pill. I still had to watch my nutrition, and I still had to train hard, but it still gave me that little boost being a beginner, and I'm definitely going to keep taking it.

Conclusion

Raza's improvements were impressive. His arms and shoulders increased significantly over 30 days. Although most of this could be attributed to water retention, the creatine also helped him look bigger. The supplement will definitely help with muscle gains over time if he continues taking it. Raza’s wedding suit just barely fit because of his gains, but he did get his wish of looking a bit more thick and juicy. Best of all, he managed to keep his hair intact, and his barber didn’t notice any changes.

Proper nutrition and hard training will always do more than any supplement. But creatine can give you that extra boost. Whether you're considering it for your fitness journey or looking for ways to become more efficient, understanding how to properly use such a supplement and managing its side effects can make all the difference.

Keywords

• Creatine
• Muscle Saturation
• Loading Protocol
• Stomach Discomfort
• Hair Loss
• Strength Improvement
• Body Weight
• Recovery Rate

FAQ

Q: How long does it take for creatine to work? A: It typically takes about three weeks to reach full saturation with a daily 5-gram dose. You can speed this up to about a week using a loading protocol.

Q: Can creatine cause stomach discomfort? A: Yes, ingesting large amounts initially can cause stomach discomfort. Spacing out the servings and dissolving them in water can mitigate this.

Q: Does creatine cause hair loss? A: There is a study that showed an increase in DHT levels, a hormone linked to hair loss, but the results have not been widely replicated. So the risk seems minimal.

Q: How much body weight can I expect to gain with creatine? A: On average, about one to three pounds due to water retention shortly after starting creatine.

Q: Does creatine help with recovery? A: Yes, 81 percent of athletes in a study reported faster recovery from training after taking creatine.