You won’t notice much of a difference if you stop taking creatine for a week. Your body and muscles will usually become saturated with creatine after about 3 weeks of adding about 5g per day. When you stop using it, it takes 3 weeks for these creatine stores to leave the body. So realistically if you stop taking creatine for a week, your muscles will still have ample stores. Also, don’t forget that creatine is produced naturally in muscle cells and is also found in many food sources.

A week is not that long

I will categorically state that if you stop taking creatine for a week it will not make a difference.

In fact, if you “feel” like your energy levels or workouts are suffering after a week off, it may be the placebo effect.

When you take it, you flood your muscles with creatine, which helps your muscles produce energy.

This of course can lead to better strength and muscle gains.

However, it usually takes about 3 weeks of adding 5g per day to flood your muscles with creatine.

This also explains why there is a charging phase that basically allows you to get there faster.

So the goal is to flood the muscles with creatine and then go back to a maintenance dose of 3-5g per day.

Now, in fact, yours the muscles being flooded with creatine means they cannot deplete their stores overnight.

In fact, your creatine stores will not begin to deplete until at least 2 weeks after you stop taking it.

For most lifters taking the recommended dosage it will take 3 weeks for the creatine stores to completely leave the body.

That being said, depending on how much you take, it can take 4-6 weeks.

In other words, not taking creatine for a week will make very little difference.

You should also remember that the muscles produce a baseline level of 1-2g of creatine per day.

Also, many foods, especially red meat and fish, contain high levels of creatine, which means you can “supplement” it naturally through your diet.

Don’t believe the Creatine Hype

You will often hear that if you stop taking creatine for a day or two, for a week, it will affect you.

Some will argue that you will lose a little weight, which is mostly water weight, as your muscles become less saturated.

Then there are those who claim that their strength has decreased in the days since they stopped taking creatine.

And there are those who will tell you that they lose size and muscle in a week.

As I already mentioned, if your muscles are saturated through creatine supplementation, it will take at least 2 weeks before creatine depletion occurs.

So if someone notices immediate differences, this is either the placebo effect again, or simply that the muscles were not saturated with creatine.

That being said, it’s completely ridiculous to say that you’ve lost size or strength in a couple of days.

In fact, as I’m sure you’ll realize, your gains are made outside of the gym while you recover.

So your muscles are repairing themselves and getting bigger and stronger when you’re not training.

“The Holiday Effect”

This also explains why you can often return from vacation in better shape than when you left.

You knew you were going on vacation, so your workout levels went through the roof in anticipation.

In fact, you were close to overtraining.

Then you spend a week or two eating, drinking, relaxing, and maybe only hitting the hotel gym a couple of times a week.

And yet, somehow, you look great.

So anyone who says that stopping creatine for a few days or a week has made a big difference in size and strength is talking nonsense.

I will even say that the companies that manufacture and sell creatine will specifically tell you not to miss a day.

To me, this is just marketing hype to keep you buying and taking more creatine.

Don’t believe the hype.

Should you cycle creatine?

You will read so much confusing and conflicting information about creatine that it is enough to make you stop taking it altogether.

And sorry if I add to your woes.

Once again there will be people who swear cycling creatineand those who think there is nothing wrong with taking it forever.

Honestly, I think this comes down to personal choice, as well as how your body reacts to creatine.

You’ll often hear that you should load up on creatine for a week, take it for another 7-10 weeks at maintenance, and then take a week or two off.

The reason for this is that your body will usually adjust to the supplements, so it’s a good idea to reset everything internally and then go back to taking creatine.

Then there are people who will tell you that there is no need to cycle creatine.

Well, there’s actually no need to stop taking creatine completely (since you’ll be cycling anyway).

This should lead to a higher dose, say 10g, for about 4-5 days before returning to the maintenance level again.

In fact, your body has adapted, so you’re moving up the ranks to literally mess up your body.

I’ve always preferred to cycle creatine, but that’s just me.

What happens if you stop taking creatine altogether?

Deciding to stop creatine supplementation comes with some physiological changes, especially if your body has previously responded positively to it.

It is estimated that up to 30% of people are “creatine non-responsive”, meaning that creatine has no effect on them.

So if you’re one of the 30% of people, stopping creatine supplementation won’t make a blind difference.

Initially, one of the most noticeable effects is the reduction of water retention within the muscle cells.

Creatine has the property of improving the absorption of water in the muscles, it helps to look fuller and to gain a little weight.

When you stop supplementing, this effect is reversed, resulting in a reduction in muscle mass and possibly a slight reduction in overall weight due to water loss.

Beyond immediate vision and weight changes, stopping creatine can affect your performance, especially in activities that require quick bursts of energy or high-intensity exertion.

Creatine plays a crucial role in the rapid renewal of ATP (adenosine triphosphate), the main energy carrier of the cells, which is especially important during short and intense physical activities.

Without the added boost of supplements, you may find a slight decrease in your ability to sustain peak performance levels, affecting your strength, power and recovery speed between workouts.

🚫 Stop creatine? What to expect 🚫
Non-responsive creatine	30% of people don’t see an effect from creatine, so stopping has no effect.
Time to run out of creatine stores	3-6 weeks for most people.
Immediate effects	Water weight loss and muscle fullness.
Long-term effects	Potential reduction in strength and power, affecting gym performance.
Brought to you by mybodyweightexercises.com 💪

Your body will eventually adjust

However, the human body is very adaptable.

Usually over three to six weeks, your body will adjust to the absence of creatine supplementation.

Natural creatine synthesis within the body, along with dietary sources, will begin to compensate, although not to the levels achieved with supplementation.

This adaptation phase varies between individuals, but ultimately involves stabilization of performance measures and physical abilities to pre-supplementation levels.

It is worth noting that the effects of stopping creatine supplementation are not permanent.

If you choose to reintroduce creatine into your regimen, previous benefits such as improved muscle water retention, improved high-intensity performance, and faster recovery can be restored.

This reversible nature emphasizes creatine’s effectiveness as a supplement and the body’s ability to adapt to dietary changes.

So while stopping creatine supplementation may lead to some noticeable changes, especially for those who respond well at first, these adjustments are part of a natural process as the body returns to baseline.

Understanding these changes can help manage expectations and maintain a balanced approach to your fitness and supplement strategy.

Final Thoughts

So I hope you have a better idea of ​​what happens when you stop taking creatine for a week.

Actually, very little.

It takes at least 2 weeks to start depleting your creatine stores, and up to 3 weeks (4-6 weeks in some cases) for creatine to completely leave your body.

There’s a lot of marketing hype that says you shouldn’t miss a single day of creatine supplementation.

However, after saturating your muscles you have nothing to worry about a bit yet.

I recently discussed another popular question regarding supplements, namely It is okay to take creatine without protein.