Does Creatine Make You Gain Weight? Let’s Discuss

Creatine is a nutrient powerhouse that helps to increase muscle mass, support bone density, and optimize cognitive function. It is safe and very well studied. For these reasons, creatine is one of the most common supplements I recommend in my nutrition clinic. 

When I tell my patients to start taking creatine, I always get the same response: “Okay, but will this make me fat?”

The word on the street is that taking creatine will cause you to gain weight and look fat. The truth is much more complicated. Though creatine does not cause any increase in body fat, it does increase the weight and volume of muscle cells.

In this blog post, I will explain what creatine is, if it causes weight gain or bloating, how to minimize side effects, and the best forms to take. Keep reading along if this sounds interesting to you!

What is Creatine and How Does it Work?

Creatine as an Energy Booster for Muscle Cells (1)

Creatine is a naturally occurring compound found in muscle cells. Our bodies obtain creatine through dietary sources or produce it on their own. Inside the muscle, creatine is stored as phosphocreatine, a small but highly potent energy reserve.

Phosphocreatine is a high-energy molecule that helps rapidly regenerate adenosine triphosphate (ATP)—the body’s primary energy currency. This allows for quick, intense bursts of energy during high-intensity exercise.

Think of it like keeping an emergency $20 bill in your wallet. It’s not enough to live off of, but it’s there when you need a quick snack or a business that only takes cash. Similarly, creatine acts as emergency energy for your muscle cells, helping you power through those last few reps or an explosive sprint.

How Creatine Helps Replenish ATP for High-Intensity Exercise

For all the fitness and science nerds, let’s break this down in more detail. But if you’re not into the nitty-gritty, feel free to skip to the next section for more actionable takeaways.

Why ATP is the Body’s Ultimate Energy Source

As I mentioned earlier, ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate) is the body’s main energy currency. It powers everything—from brain function and muscle contractions to digestion. Your muscles always keep a small reserve of ATP ready to use at any moment.

What Happens When ATP Runs Out? (The Role of ADP)

When ATP is used to contract a muscle, it loses a phosphate group and turns into ADP (Adenosine Diphosphate). To be used again, ADP must be converted back into ATP.

This is where food comes in. The glucose from our diet provides the energy needed to restore ATP levels. Without this process, life wouldn’t exist—ATP regeneration is the essence of staying alive.

Why Intense Exercise Requires Faster ATP Regeneration

Most cellular activities use ATP slowly enough that the body can keep up with demand. However, during intense exercise like sprinting or heavy lifting, ATP is depleted faster than the body can replace it, leading to fatigue.

How Creatine Steps In as an Energy Reserve

This is where creatine comes to the rescue. Your muscle cells contain a small stored pool of creatine in the form of phosphocreatine.

When ATP runs low, creatine donates a phosphate group to ADP, rapidly regenerating ATP. This process:

• Delays muscle fatigue
• Increases power output
• Allows you to sustain high-intensity efforts longer

Creatine from Food vs. Supplements—What’s the Difference?

Creatine is not an essential nutrient. This doesn’t mean that creatine is not important. It doesn’t even mean that creatine is not essential for survival. It just means that we are able to make enough creatine on our own without eating it or supplementing it.

As it stands, there are 3 ways for our bodies to fill its creatine pools: biosynthesis, diet, or supplements.

1. Biosynthesis
   1. Our bodies are capable of making creatine out of the protein in our diet. Specifically, arginine, glycine, and methionine are needed for creatine synthesis. Without supplemental creatine, our body can fill about 60-80% of our available creatine pools (2).
2. Diet
   1. A normal diet contains about 1-2 grams of creatine. Creatine is found in red meat, poultry, and fish. Therefore, vegetarian and vegan diets lack creatine. As such, total muscular creatine pools are about 10-15% lower in vegetarians than omnivores (3).
3. Supplement
   1. Supplemental creatine (2-3 grams) is able to increase our pools of creatine by about 20%. This brings the total muscle saturation of creatine up to around 100%, increasing muscle efficiency and strength during exercise (4).

Does Creatine Cause Weight Gain? Separating Fact from Myth

Now we know that creatine is super important for our health, but does it cause weight gain? The answer is a bit complicated, but essentially—“no, yes, no.”

Here’s what I mean:

• No, creatine does not cause fat gain.
• Yes, creatine can cause an increase in total body weight, but that’s due to water retention and muscle growth—not fat.
• No, the water retention won’t make you look bloated long-term.

In the first few weeks of creatine supplementation, your body starts holding onto more water than usual. This happens because creatine pulls water into muscle cells, increasing total body water. Since water has weight, you may notice the number on the scale creeping up within the first week or two.

Some people experience minor bloating in the initial phase. This is simply your body adjusting to the increased water retention. However, by the end of three weeks, nearly all of this water becomes intramuscular—meaning it’s stored inside muscle cells, not under the skin.

If the idea of extra water weight worries you, it’s important to remember that this is a good thing. Here are some of the benefits of increased intramuscular water:

• Muscle performance – More hydrated muscles = better strength, endurance, and recovery. This means more reps, heavier lifts, and faster sprints—all of which lead to greater muscle growth over time (5).
• Reduction in injury – Better hydration = better elasticity and function of muscles. Research shows that creatine can reduce muscle cramping, strains, and overall injury risk by improving muscle cell hydration and resilience.
• Female aesthetics – Creatine won’t make you “bulky” (a common myth). Instead, it enhances muscle tone, definition, and firmness, helping create a leaner, more sculpted look. Women tend to experience less noticeable bloating from creatine compared to men.
• Male aesthetics – For men, creatine gives that fuller, more muscular look by enhancing muscle volume and hydration. More intramuscular water = bigger, rounder, and denser muscles. Instead of looking “puffy,” creatine helps muscles pop with better definition.

How Much Weight Can You Expect to Gain on Creatine?

Creatine and Water Weight: What to Expect in the First Week

The amount of weight gained from creatine varies between individuals, but research suggests that any iwncrease is small and primarily due to water shifting into muscle cells. A systematic review found that women taking creatine experienced an average weight fluctuation of 1.24 to 1.37 kg (~2.7 to 3.0 lbs), but this change was not statistically significant, meaning it fell within the normal range of daily weight variations (6). 

Additionally, long-term studies show that creatine does not cause persistent water retention beyond muscle hydration. In other words, while the scale may increase slightly, this does not equate to excess water retention or fat gain. Instead, it reflects better muscle hydration, improved performance, and potential muscle growth over time (7).

Long-Term Weight Gain: Muscle vs. Fat

As I’ve mentioned, creatine can increase body weight by enhancing skeletal muscle hydration. However, it can also lead to long-term increases in total muscle mass, making the weight gain more permanent—but in a beneficial way.

Creatine provides muscle cells with extra energy for high-intensity work. In the context of resistance training, this means more reps, heavier lifts, and greater overall training volume. Over time, these performance improvements translate into greater muscle growth from consistent exercise.

Because creatine helps increase lean muscle mass, it does not contribute to fat gain. In fact, having more muscle can increase your basal metabolic rate (BMR), potentially leading to lower body fat over time. Rather than being a concern, the small increase in body weight from creatine is a reflection of improved strength, endurance, and body composition.

Why Does Creatine Cause Water Retention?

Water always moves toward areas with a higher concentration of solutes—a process known as osmosis. A solute is any molecule dissolved in a solvent, and in the case of creatine supplementation, about 95% of creatine is stored inside muscle cells (8). As a result, water follows creatine into the muscles, increasing intracellular hydration.

Since creatine causes intramuscular water retention, it does not cause bloating. Bloating occurs when water accumulates in the extracellular space (outside of cells), leading to a puffy or swollen appearance. Because creatine primarily pulls water inside muscle cells, it enhances muscle fullness rather than contributing to fluid retention under the skin.

How Long Does Water Retention Last?

Creatine-related extracellular water retention is temporary, while intracellular water retention remains stable over time. Any initial bloating or fluid imbalance resolves within three weeks as the body adjusts.

In the long term, creatine does not cause excessive water retention. Instead, the increased intracellular water improves muscle hydration, making muscles look fuller and more toned. This effect is visually different from bloating, as the water is stored inside the muscle, not under the skin.

How to Minimize Water Retention from Creatine

Should You Skip the Loading Phase?

The loading phase involves taking 20g of creatine per day for 5-7 days to saturate muscle stores quickly. While this approach works faster, it also increases the likelihood of short-term water retention as muscles rapidly pull in creatine and water.

Skipping the loading phase and taking 3-5g per day instead allows for slower, more gradual saturation, minimizing any temporary bloating. Unless you’re in a time crunch and need fast results, there’s no downside to the lower-dose approach—you’ll still reach full muscle saturation, just over a few weeks instead of days.

Herbal Support for Water Balance

Some herbs and natural diuretics can help regulate water retention by supporting kidney function and electrolyte balance. Nettles, coffee, and dandelion root are well-known for their ability to reduce excess extracellular water without disrupting essential hydration levels. While these won’t prevent creatine’s normal intramuscular hydration effect, they may help ease temporary bloating for those sensitive to water shifts.

Hydration and Sodium Management

It may sound counterintuitive, but not drinking enough water can actually increase water retention. When dehydrated, the body holds onto more fluid to compensate for the lack of intake. The best way to avoid excess water retention is to stay well-hydrated, allowing your body to naturally regulate fluid balance.

Sodium intake also plays a role. While electrolytes are essential, consuming too much processed sodium can lead to temporary bloating, especially if paired with dehydration. Focusing on whole, unprocessed foods while drinking plenty of water helps maintain fluid balance and prevents unnecessary fluctuations.

Does Creatine Make You Fat?

No, creatine does not make you fat. It contains zero calories and has no direct impact on fat metabolism or fat storage. Unlike excess food intake, creatine does not contribute to a caloric surplus, which is required for fat gain.

Any weight gain from creatine comes from water retention and muscle growth, not fat accumulation. The initial increase in scale weight is due to intramuscular water storage, which helps enhance muscle function and recovery. Over time, creatine may support lean muscle development, but it does not promote fat storage.

In fact, having more muscle can increase your basal metabolic rate (BMR), meaning you may actually burn more calories at rest. Rather than causing fat gain, creatine helps improve body composition by supporting muscle mass and performance (9).

Best Types of Creatine for Muscle Growth

Creatine Monohydrate: The Gold Standard

Creatine monohydrate is the most researched, most effective, and most affordable form of creatine. Studies consistently show that it enhances strength, power, and muscle growth, making it the go-to choice for most users. Despite newer formulations, no other type has been proven to outperform monohydrate in terms of effectiveness.

Creatine HCL: More Soluble, but Not More Effective

Creatine hydrochloride (HCL) is often marketed as being more water-soluble, meaning it dissolves better and may cause less stomach discomfort for some people. However, research shows that it does not lead to greater muscle uptake or better performance results than monohydrate. While it may be a good alternative for those with digestive sensitivities, it is not superior in muscle-building benefits.

Buffered and Micronized Creatine: Overhyped Claims

Buffered creatine and micronized creatine claim to offer better absorption and less bloating, but studies do not support these claims. While micronized creatine may mix more easily in water, it does not enhance muscle uptake or performance beyond what creatine monohydrate already provides. These alternatives often come with a higher price tag without offering any clear advantage.

Bottom Line

Creatine monohydrate remains the most effective and well-supported option for muscle growth. While other forms may offer slight solubility advantages, they do not provide superior muscle-building benefits. If you’re looking for the best bang for your buck, stick with creatine monohydrate.

How to Take Creatine for Best Results

Daily Dosage Recommendations

For most users, 3-5g of creatine per day is enough to maintain full muscle saturation. This dosage is effective for performance, muscle growth, and recovery, without causing excess water retention.

There is no need to cycle off creatine. Research shows that long-term use is safe, and stopping creatine will only result in a gradual decline in muscle creatine stores over a few weeks.

When Should You Take Creatine?

There’s no significant difference between taking creatine pre- or post-workout. Some studies suggest a slight edge for post-workout timing, but what matters most is consistency—taking creatine daily is more important than when you take it.

Mixing Creatine: What Works Best?

Creatine dissolves best in warm water or juice, which may improve absorption. Dextrose-containing drinks (like fruit juice) can enhance uptake, but creatine is still effective with plain water as long as it’s consumed regularly.

Final Verdict: Should You Take Creatine If You’re Worried About Weight Gain?

Short-term weight gain from creatine is water retention, not fat. This temporary increase is due to muscles pulling in more water, which improves hydration and performance.

Long-term creatine use leads to increased lean muscle mass, not fat gain. As muscle grows, it may contribute to a slight increase in scale weight, but this reflects better body composition, not excess fat.

If weight gain concerns you, stick to 3-5g per day and skip the loading phase. This allows for gradual muscle saturation without the initial water retention spike.

Creatine is safe, highly effective, and well-researched. If you want better performance, faster recovery, and improved strength, it’s one of the best supplements you can take.

Want Expert Guidance on Your Nutrition and Supplements?

As a functional dietitian, I help my clients cut through the noise and build a personalized, science-backed approach to nutrition, weight management, and performance.

Whether you need help optimizing your supplement routine, improving your metabolism, or uncovering hidden barriers to your health goals, I can guide you every step of the way.

Book a free discovery call today, and let’s create a plan that works for you.