Taking Creatine While Fasting: Does Creatine Break A Fast


An intermittent fasting protocol to cut or lose weight can be a great way to get results. But the question is, does creatine break a fast, and is taking creatine supplements during fasting periods a smart thing to do?

Creatine supplementation will not break a fast and is perfectly fine to take during a fasting window. Flavorless creatine monohydrate does not contain any calories and does not create an insulin response.

This is great news for those who want to enjoy the benefits of fasting while being able to take creatine supplementation…

Below, I’ll dive deeper into having creatine while on a fast, how these supplements and fasting work together, some tips on using creatine, benefits, and more!

Guy Meditating With Three Fasting Signs

Can I Have Creatine While Fasting

As you already know, you can absolutely enjoy the benefits of creatine and intermittent fasting together.

And here’s why…

Taking creatine will not break a fast since there are no calories in this supplement, and it will not cause an insulin spike within your body.

Here’s my recommended creatine supplementation. Check prices on Amazon Here.

Generally, your body goes into a state of ketosis after not eating for 12 hours. (1) During this state of ketosis, your body will rely on burning stored fat as fuel.

This is one of the reasons why intermittent fasting and having a fasting window are so popular! Many people want to try and take advantage of this benefit in order to burn fat and lose weight.

Also…

Using an intermittent fasting period can also help individuals restrict their calorie intake.

These two benefits can result in positive body composition changes if this diet is maintained consistently and coupled with a good training routine, diet, and recovery.

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Does Creatine Cause An Insulin Spike

In general, you’ll break a fast whenever you consume anything with calories. You’ll also get kicked out of ketosis once you raise your blood sugar and insulin levels.

That’s why creatine supplements can be taken during your fast since it has no calories and will not invoke an insulin response from your body.

You can take creatine monohydrate during intermittent fasting or during your eating window. As long as you are not combining creatine supplementation with any drink that has calories

Below, I’ll go over how creatine supplementation and intermittent fasting can work together…

How Do Creatine Supplements And Fasting Periods Work Together

Now, let’s talk about how you can benefit from creatine supplementation when’s the best time to take creatine monohydrate, how it’s stored, and more…

What Is The Benefit Of Taking Creatine During Fasting Periods

Creatine is a naturally created compound your body produces. It’s stored in your muscle cells and can help with muscle contraction and endurance.

When you start taking creatine supplements, it’ll help saturate your muscle cells more and help produce more ATP.

ATP is an energy source that your body uses. It helps your body with high-intensity exercise.

Also, some studies have shown that taking creatine supplementation has been found to help enhance muscle growth, endurance, and performance and sometimes even increase muscle mass, especially during weight lifting. (2)

When some people fast, they may see a decrease in endurance and performance in the gym, especially if they decide to train in a fasted state.

If you are training in a fasted state, then taking creatine supplementation, and even pre-workout supplements, may help you see benefits like improving exercise performance and a boost of energy or endurance in the gym.

This is why using creatine while fasting is popular among many fitness enthusiasts.

Clock With Person Sleep In Background

When’s The Best Time To Take Creatine Supplements While Fasting

When I used to incorporate intermittent fasting into my routine, I personally liked to consume creatine powder before my training sessions.

This is a personal preference, but you can take your creatine supplementation whenever it is most convenient for you and your schedule.

What’s important to remember with many creatine supplements is there is usually a loading phase you’ll have to go through for the first week, and then you’ll have to take creatine supplementation on a daily basis.

This is so you can maintain the saturation of this supplement within your muscle cells in order to get all the benefits you can.

The recommended dose is 5g of creatine a day

Guy In Hoodie Taking Supplements

Can You Take A Creatine Supplement On An Empty Stomach

This is a great question and one that I’ve seen being asked around a lot on the forums and within the fitness community.

Creatine can be taken on an empty stomach, but most people prefer to take creatine with food or mix it with their protein shakes or other drinks. But, if you have a sensitive stomach, you may want to consider consuming creatine with some food.

The most common way to consume creatine is by mixing it with your protein shake.

And if you have questions like, should I mix my creatine with protein, then read that article I just linked to.

It will answer any questions you may have on that topic, the benefits of doing so, and the one thing you need to remember when mixing those two supplements together.

Benefits On Post It Note

Benefits Of Taking Creatine While Intermittent Fasting

The main benefit of taking creatine while fasting is the boost in performance you get in the gym and during weight lifting.

This can be helpful if you choose to train in a fasted state since you will usually be low on glycogen reserves in your muscles after a prolonged fast.

You may see better performance and feel better while in the gym while supplementing creatine in a fasted state.

Final Thoughts On Does Creatine Break A Fast

Does creatine break a fast? Well, now you should know the answer to that question if you read the post above…

But if you are a rebel and sneaked all the way down here without reading, then you’ll be happy to hear that creatine will not break your fast and that it can actually help you perform better in the gym.

Just make sure you are taking creatine on a regular basis if you want to see all the benefits this supplement can offer you.

I recommend taking it before your training session. And I personally love to train after eating. I feel like I get better workouts and perform way better in the gym than I would if I was in a fasted state.

But it’s completely up to you if you and your schedule if you want to train fasted or not.

Whatever you choose to do, I wish you the best on your fitness journey!

Jordan Arenas

My name is Jordan Arenas and I am the owner and author of RFKN Fit. I created RFKN Fit to help others achieve their fitness goals. My mission is to share helpful workouts, nutrition tips, delicious recipes, tips on mindset, some motivation, and some good ol' gym humor with this blog of mine. Hope you enjoy!

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