Supplements After 50: Creatine

This article is part of a series called “Supplements After 50”. You can view the first 5 posts here: fish oil, vitamin D, magnesium, leucine and protein.

This article was first published August 27, 2018. It was updated September 9, 2021.

What Is Creatine?

Creatine is a chemical that is found in your body, in both muscle and brain tissue. It’s also one of the most studied performance-enhancing supplements on the market. Creatine is used during energy production for activities that are short, explosive, powerful movements like short sprints and powerlifting that last 10-15 seconds. When plenty of creatine exists in your body, you’re able to refuel that energy system quicker and more often after those explosive bouts of exercise.

Why Take A Creatine Supplement?

I’ve already hinted at the answer to this question, but it lies in your body’s ability to refuel after exercise. Your body’s natural store of creatine will only last so long. Adding creatine to your diet will allow you to repeat those sprints or lifts more often, and with shorter recovery times between reps.

In contrast to the other supplements in the “Supplements After 50” series, I would categorize this supplement as an option for athletes, especially power athletes. Creatine supplementation won’t do much for a distance athlete, since long-term aerobic exercise system doesn’t rely on the ATP-PC (adenosine triphosphate – phosphocreatine) energy system.

(Two articles that are great in explaining this more fully are this one from Pubmed and this one from Brickhouse Nutrition.)

In addition to athletic performance, though, a growing body of evidence shows that creatine has cognitive benefits as well as performance benefits. In vegetarians and vegans,  who typically have lower levels of creatine (since its primary source is meat), creatine supplementation was shown to increase brain function. A study by Terry McMorris et. al showed that creatine supplementation increased cognitive performance in elderly men and women (mean age 76.4 years) after only two weeks! Finally, some have proposed creatine supplementation as an intervention for traumatic brain injury (something us rugby players should be interested in!)

Sources of Creatine

You can supplement your creatine naturally through high protein foods like red meat, wild game, and fish such as salmon and tuna.

Creatine supplements are available as Creatine Monohydrate or “micronized” Creatine Monohydrate, with a smaller particle size for quicker uptake. Most supplement suppliers have some form of creatine supplement available, either as a powder or capsule. Personally, I buy mine from BulkSupplements on Amazon (Affiliate link). Several creatine supplement powders I’ve purchased in the past recommend a “loading” phase. Personally, I skip the loading phase and use a straight dose. I add it to my morning shake daily, and will cycle off for a couple of weeks after I finish a bag.

Final Thoughts

Again,  this is an optional supplement for athletes. As a lifter and a rugby player, I’m engaging in some kind of explosive exercise almost every day. Maximizing every edge, especially at my age, is important.  That’s why I add creatine to my diet. However, with creatine’s long safety history and it’s recent evidence of cognitive performance, I don’t know why everyone – especially those over 50 – aren’t supplementing with creatine daily.