Staying hydrated can save us from many unnecessary issues with our health. While taking creatine as well, It is important to know the right amount of water to take daily that keeps us hydrated and works well with our system. If you would like to find out how much water you should drink on creatine, this calculator is for you.
What is Creatine used for?
Creatine is a natural substance found in muscle cells that helps produce energy during high-intensity exercise or heavy lifting. It is often used as a dietary supplement by athletes and bodybuilders to improve strength, increase muscle mass, and enhance exercise performance. Creatine has also been studied for its potential benefits in treating certain neurological diseases and preventing age-related muscle loss.
For the majority of healthy adults, it is usually regarded as safe, but it is crucial to speak with a healthcare provider before beginning any new supplement regimen, especially for people with particular medical concerns.
According to a review published in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, creatine supplementation can increase water content in the muscles, which may lead to dehydration if adequate water intake is not maintained. The review suggests that individuals taking creatine supplements should drink plenty of water to prevent dehydration and other potential side effects.
So, it is crucial to consume extra water when taking creatine supplements to help prevent dehydration and maintain hydration. And at that point, it becomes difficult to identify the right amount to take. So how do you know the right amount to take?
Before talking about how much water you should drink while taking Creatine, let’s talk about how much water you should drink daily in the first place.
How Much Water Do I Need to Take Daily?
Hydration is essential for maintaining good health and overall well-being. While there is no perfect procedure for determining how much water you should take daily, there are guidelines and estimates from international organizations. Although, ultimately the right quantity of water for you is the one that you feel comfortable with. Notwithstanding, here are some recommendations from some authoritative sources that conduct extensive studies on human nutrition and health.
European Food Safety Authority Daily Water Intake Recommendation
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) is a scientific organization that provides advice and recommendations on food safety to the European Union. In 2010, they published guidelines for daily water intake and according to them, adult males should consume about 2.5 liters of water per day, while adult females should consume about 2.0 liters of water per day. These recommendations include water obtained from beverages, food, and drinking water.
EFSA’s recommendations take into account individual variables in water needs based on factors such as age (just as female and male adults have a specific daily water intake, so do other age groups), gender, and physical activity level. They also note that individual water needs may vary depending on environmental conditions, such as high temperatures. However, the daily water intake mentioned above is the recommended amount of moderate environmental temperature and moderate physical activity levels.
The European Food Safety Authority’s recommendation can be used as a gauge for your daily water intake while you are not taking creatine supplements.
Institute of Medicine Daily Water Intake Recommendation
The Institute of Medicine is another body that has recommended the daily intake of water for everyone using factors like age and gender as gauges. According to the IOM, men should consume about 3 liters (or about 13 cups) of water per day, while women should consume more than 2 liters (or about 9 cups) of water per day.
The IOM’s guidelines provide a useful reference point for daily water intake and it’s good to start with that to know the range you should take because of your age. While individual water intake will still vary because of other conditions that are specific to them, we believe in your own recommendation.
Your Recommendation
While the 2 international bodies we have mentioned do not totally agree, we can find some similarities in their recommendation.
Their recommendations should be taken as reference points, interestingly, the ‘How Much Water Should I Drink on Creatine Calculator’ allows you to work with either of them.
This also highlights the fact that daily water intake recommendation is quite personal. There is no brick-and-mortar formula for how much should be taken.
Your perfect daily water intake is ultimately up to you to determine, while you use the mentioned recommendations as reference points.
How can you do this?
You can do this by paying attention to your body’s thirst cues, drinking water when you feel thirsty, taking more water when you have dry skin, as well as monitoring the color of your urine, which should be pale yellow or clear. So, just make sure to do you!
As earlier said, when taking Creatine Supplement more water should be taken in addition to the regular Daily water intake. Having concluded on how to determine the regular daily water intake let’s now talk about how much water you should take when using creatine.
How Much Water Should I Drink on Creatine Calculator
What is the perfect formula for calculating how much water I should take while using creatine?
When it comes to determining the perfect formula for calculating how much water you should take while using creatine, the truth is that there is no one-size-fits-all answer.
While there are various recommendations from different sources, most of these recommendations are based on convention rather than a specific formula.
One school of thought suggests that it is recommended to drink an additional 8-10 cups (or 2-2.5 liters) of water daily while using creatine. This recommendation is based on the idea that taking creatine supplementation with less water can cause weakness, headaches, dizziness, muscle cramps, and thirst. You can as well add 100 ml of water when you take more than five grams of creatine.
Another school of thought suggests that you have to take 300-500 ml of water along with a 3-5 gram serving of creatine and a total of about four to five liters of water intake daily for sufficient hydration during creatine supplementation.
So how do we determine how much water you should take? Let’s dig further
How Much Water Do I Need to Take While Taking Creatine?
After much research, we found an unpopular opinion.
The International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN) recommends that individuals who supplement with creatine should consume additional water to ensure adequate hydration. According to their position on creatine supplementation, the ISSN suggests that individuals who supplement with creatine should consume 0.03 liters of water per kilogram of body weight per day, in addition to their normal daily water intake. This recommendation translates to approximately 2.3 liters (or 78 ounces) of water per day for a 75 kg (165 lb) individual.
International Society of Sports Nutrition
We chose to go with this method because they proposed a specific formula that can be used to determine water intake for any amount of creatine taken. It is more specific and research-based.
What is the International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN)?
The International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN) is an organization that provides evidence-based recommendations on sports nutrition, including the amount of water intake one should consume while using creatine. They are a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting and advancing the science and practice of sports nutrition by providing information on athletics nutrition and supplements to athletes, coaches, and other fitness professionals.
How Does the How Much Water Should I Drink on Creatine Calculator Work?
The calculator comprises two parts. First is to know the daily water intake according to the school of thought which we discussed earlier; the European Food Security Authority and the Institute of Medicine. Then, the other part is to determine your daily creatine water intake. These two parts give a total of the amount of water to take while on creatine daily.
Follow the steps below to make use of the calculator more effectively:
First, determine your daily water intake by selecting your gender from birth which is either male or female on the calculator. Then, select your age.
Do note that nothing below the age of 18 is available on the calculator. This is because creatine is not advisable for teenagers and children.
For females, there’s a question you need to answer and that is to choose if you are pregnant or breastfeeding or not. Simply check on the box provided to select between the three options; no, I am pregnant and I am breastfeeding.
At this point, the next thing is to answer if you know the amount of your daily water intake already. If you do, you can choose to enter it either in liters, ml, oz, or in cups. If you do not, then, you can use the recommended intake by the European Union or the Institute of Medicine, America.
After following these rules, your daily water intake will appear in the result section. It will be presented in liters, ml, oz, and in US cups.
The next stage is to fill in the creatine water intake calculation.
First, you need to enter your weight either in kg or lb which will be converted either way. Then, your water intake for creatine will be seen in liters, ml, oz, and US cups.
In total, your daily water intake while on creatine will be shown below. This will also be presented in liters, ml, oz, and US cups.
Do note that the amount of water for creatine calculation is based on the recommendation from the International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN).
FAQs about the How Much Water Should I Drink on Creatine Calculator
1. The suggested intake is outrageous, what should I do?
The daily water intake might cause the number to be high, but you are free to set a custom daily amount. You can as well go only with the calculations from the creatine daily water intake section. Our Daily water intake calculations are based on the data from the EFSA and IOM, we do not claim that they are perfect.
2. How important is water when taking creatine?
Very important. It’s best not to skip the daily amount of water you need to take. This is because this supplement pulls in water into your cells and not taking enough water causes dizziness amongst many other things. You can find a few listed above.
3. How do I know if I’m drinking enough water on creatine?
You see adequate results. There are side effects that may appear when you do not take enough water while on creatine such as dizziness and headaches including muscle cramps. If you do not experience such, know that your water intake is fantastic.
4. Is the ‘How Much Water Should I Drink on Creatine Calculator’ a medical tool?
No! It’s not. While we put in our best efforts to make this calculator as perfect as possible, it is at best an educational tool. It’s results are not to be taken as final. You’re advised to consult with your medical doctor or other health practitioners.
You are the Judge
Your body has a way of letting you know when your water intake isn’t enough. While we advise that you follow some of the recommendations of international and identified bodies, you are the best judge when it comes to your daily water intake.