Creatine Loading Phase Calculator

Creatine loading is a supplementation strategy designed to rapidly saturate your muscles with creatine, a naturally occurring compound that helps produce energy during high-intensity exercise.

Loading Phase Formula: Daily dose = Body weight (kg) × 0.3 g/kg

This is typically split into 4 equal doses throughout the day for 5–7 days.

Maintenance Phase Formula: Daily dose = Body weight (kg) × 0.05 g/kg, held between 3 and 5 g

After the loading phase, a smaller daily dose maintains elevated creatine stores.

What each variable means:

• Body weight is your current weight in kilograms or pounds
• 0.3 g/kg is the standard loading dose coefficient (approximately 20 g/day for a 70 kg person)
• 0.05 g/kg is the maintenance coefficient, which lands between 3 and 5 g/day across normal body weights and reproduces the reference table below. The International Society of Sports Nutrition’s position stand gives maintenance as a flat 3 to 5 g a day, and this page scales across that range by weight so a heavier lifter lands nearer 5. Some papers write it as 0.03 g/kg instead, which is close to the 2 g or so the body breaks down each day and sits at the bottom of the same range.

When to use this calculator:

• Starting a creatine supplementation program
• Adjusting doses after a significant weight change
• Deciding between loading and no-loading approaches

Practical example:

A 180 lb (81.6 kg) person takes about 24.5 g/day during loading, split into 4 doses of roughly 6 g each, for 5 to 7 days, then switches to about 4.1 g/day for maintenance.

Tips:

• Take creatine with a meal or carbohydrate-rich drink for better absorption.
• Drink as you normally would. The ISSN position stand finds no link between creatine and cramps or dehydration.
• To turn these doses into scoops, or to see how many days a tub lasts with and without the load, use the Creatine Dosage Calculator.
• Creatine monohydrate is the most researched and cost-effective form.
• You can skip loading and just take the maintenance dose. At 3 g a day the muscles reach the same saturation in about 28 days, which is why loading is a shortcut rather than a requirement.
• Consult a healthcare professional before starting any supplement regimen.

Reference values: