Why Creatine Deserves a Place in Women’s Health (Not Just the Gym)

If you were sitting opposite me in clinic and asked me to recommend you one supplement that could genuinely support your energy, training, hormones and long-term health - creatine would be up at the top of the list.

Creatine is one of the most effective and well-studied supplements we have in nutritional science. Yet it’s still widely misunderstood, particularly by women. It’s often framed as something only relevant for bodybuilders or elite athletes, when in reality it can be a powerful tool for supporting female physiology across the menstrual cycle, through perimenopause and beyond.

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Why women respond so well to creatine

Women naturally store less creatine than men. That’s partly due to differences in muscle mass, but also because oestrogen influences how creatine is synthesised (made) and stored in the body. This means that when women supplement with creatine, the benefits will be more noticeable and occur at lower doses.

At a cellular level, creatine supports the rapid regeneration of ATP, your body’s immediate energy currency. Any tissue with high energy demands relies on this system, which means creatine doesn’t just act in muscle, but also in the brain and nervous system. This is important because our hormones don’t just affect reproduction, they influence how efficiently we produce and use energy, how well we recover, how resilient we feel emotionally, and how stable our blood sugar is.

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Creatine across the menstrual cycle

Hormonal shifts across the cycle change how your body uses fuel. In the luteal phase, rising progesterone increases overall energy demand and reduces carbohydrate efficiency. This is why workouts often feel harder, fatigue appears more quickly, recovery slows, and cravings (particularly for sugar) increase.

Creatine supports this phase by ensuring rapid energy availability at the cellular level. When ATP can be regenerated efficiently, power output is maintained and perceived exertion is lower. Basically - your workouts don’t suddenly feel like you’re pushing through treacle and you don’t feel wiped out later that day. 

This doesn’t just matter for physical progress, but actually for emotional wellbeing too. When you can maintain your routine, you maintain momentum - and that consistency is what really helps mood, motivation, positive body image - and even self-trust.

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Blood sugar, mood and motivation

There’s also a critical knock-on effect going on here. Muscle is metabolically active tissue. When your hormones make blood sugar regulation more fragile - which commonly happens premenstrually and in perimenopause - active muscle helps buffer those fluctuations.

By supporting training consistency, creatine indirectly supports blood sugar stability, which in turn supports:

• Steadier energy
• Fewer mood dips
• Reduced cravings
• Better motivation and mental clarity
  
  

This is one of the reasons creatine can feel like a bit of a ‘missing piece’ for women who are already eating well but still feel flat, inconsistent, easily derailed, or that their physical efforts with exercise aren’t producing the results they expect. .

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Long-term female health: bone, muscle and beyond

Reproductive hormones also play a major role in maintaining bone density, which is why women are at greater risk of bone loss as oestrogen declines. 

Resistance training is one of the most powerful protective tools we have, but only if you can recover well enough to do it consistently. By improving strength, recovery and training capacity, creatine supports musculoskeletal health, which then feeds into longer-term outcomes including reduced cardiovascular disease risk through perimenopause and later life. 

And that’s why I’m increasingly recommending creatine not just for performance, but as a foundational supplement for female health and longevity.

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My recommendations for creatine

If you’re going to use creatine, quality really matters. If you’re looking for a well-studied, high-impact supplement that supports energy, training, mood, blood sugar and long-term resilience, look no further. 

Bare Biology High Flyer is my absolute go-to recommendation. It’s a pure, high-quality creatine monohydrate with no fillers or unnecessary extras. 

In terms of how best to take it - you’ll often see recommendations for a ‘loading phase’ of 20g per day for 5–7 days followed by a maintenance dose. While this works, it’s rarely the best option for women.

Instead, I usually suggest a slow saturation approach. This achieves the same muscle concentration but without a sudden surge that will draw water into muscle tissues creating that ‘thick’ sensation most women generally don’t enjoy. 

• 3–5g daily if you lift weights 3–5 times per week, do HIIT, or are actively trying to build muscle
• 2–3g daily if you’re newer to strength training, have lower muscle mass, or do lower-intensity exercise
• Lower doses for endurance athletes, increasing only during heavier training blocks
  
  

Creatine will not make you bulky. If your goal is muscle tone, strength and resilience rather than hypertrophy, simply stay at the lower end of the dose range.

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Avoiding side effects (and body-image stress)

Any temporary ‘puffiness’ from creatine is due to water being stored inside muscle cells, which is actually part of how it improves performance and recovery - it is not fat gain! 

That said, how you feel also matters.

To stay comfortable:

• Always take creatine with a carbohydrate source to improve uptake and avoid digestive upset
• Stay well hydrated and use pure unflavoured electrolytes so your body handles fluid properly
• If water retention bothers you, take it only on training days or reduce the dose
• In the luteal phase, lower the dose or pause if you feel puffier/have a tendency to water retention at this point in your cycle.
  
  

None of these responses indicate harm; they are just the mechanism by which creatine works.  Creatine is one of the safest supplements available - but confidence and body trust are just as important as biochemistry.

The bottom line

Creatine is fabulous when used thoughtfully.

Get the dose right for your body, cycle and goals, and it will support strength, energy, resilience and long-term health. All without compromising how you feel in your own skin!

And if you’re choosing one, Bare Biology’s High Flyer is a fabulous place to start.