Why YOU should take creatine

When I added creatine to my “Poor Man’s Ozempic” last year, I had no idea how powerful that addition would be. I only added it because research shows potential cognitive benefits, and I always look for ways to keep my edge in that department.

I experimented with creatine in the 90s when I began my weightlifting journey. But then, in my 20s, I wasn’t exactly fastidious about tracking progress or even warming up very well. I was mostly freestyling it in the gym. I still made progress because youth goes a long way in helping overcome stupidity, but, man, could old me tell young me a few things.

Things like: write down your lifts. Make goals and try to improve. Warm up your shoulders before lifting heavy. And invest in Google when it becomes a thing.

Now, though, I do all that stuff and can quickly tell when things change for the better or the worse. And my lifts, especially upper body lifts, have taken off like I’ve never seen before.

I also don’t get nearly as sore as I used to after lifting heavy. I’m not sure about the cognitive benefits, although it looks like the most significant benefit is if one is sleep-deprived, which I never am. I sleep like a tired puppy.

But another benefit is that I’ve been in a calorie deficit since January, and I’m holding on to the lean mass while the fat is dropping away. The goal of dieting should never be sheer weight loss. It should be fat loss.

One of the problems people are experiencing on actual Ozempic is that they are losing a lot of both very quickly, and although losing a lot of weight can be healthy if you have a lot to lose, losing a bunch of muscle in the process is no bueno.

So, whether you’re trying my Poor Man’s version or the real thing, creatine would be helpful (especially if you’re doing some resistance exercise a couple of days a week).

A quick list of the benefits of creatine for those who prefer the bullet point format:

Improves strength gains

Possible improvement in cognitive function, especially when sleep-deprived

Improves anaerobic output

Improves muscle retention when dieting

Faster recovery from exercise

Reduction of sarcopenia in older individuals, especially when combined with weight lifting.

AND, the latest study that hit my inbox just this morning:

Improvements in symptoms of depression. Here’s the study.

My grandmother just turned 99 in December. Until her 93rd birthday, she still drove to the grocery store. But at 98, she started having falls, and once she went down, she couldn’t get herself back up (when I saw her last Thanksgiving, she told me, “I wasn’t uncomfortable; I was on the carpet.”)

She’s held on to her strength pretty well, but had she been doing some form of resistance exercise (and taking creatine), she may still be in her house instead of the assisted living center we moved her to last year.

The way to take it is simple: Add one scoop, which is five grams, to water or juice. (I add it to the psyllium husk/collagen combo I slam down every night after dinner.) Time of day doesn’t matter; get your levels up and reap the benefits.

The type of creatine you should take is monohydrate. It’s the most effective, cheapest, and easiest to find. I use Thorne, which we have here at the office and available at my Fullscript store, which you can find here. 

You have to make an account, but once you do and get into the site, there’s a tab called “community plans.” You will see the Poor Man’s Ozempic plan there, and you can add the creatine to your cart from there.

There’s one more way I’ve been making this diet phase easier than ever, but this has gone longer than intended already. More soon!