I like to think that I’m not an easily influenced person who chases every trend. But what can I say? It can be hard to resist the power of the almighty algorithm. So let me confess that I find myself in the throes of the world’s most basic midlife crisis. I have not found God (religion is back in fashion, apparently), but I have found creatine.
It’s possible that you too have discovered creatine: the supplement is all the rage right now. For those who haven’t started mainlining it every morning, a quick primer. Creatine is a fitness supplement that used to be the preserve of male bodybuilders looking to build big muscles. Now, however, it’s being touted as a wonder product that can do everything from improving your memory to boosting your mood to controlling your blood sugar.
Creatine is a naturally occurring compound, and because women tend to have 70-80% lower baseline creatine stores than men, it’s now being marketed as particularly beneficial for women. The female creatine craze builds on increased awareness that strength training is super important for women over 40 to stave off declining muscle mass. In short: more and more women are trying to get jacked and using creatine to do so. Which I think is an excellent development: it’s great seeing women try to get bigger and stronger instead of making themselves smaller.
Unlike many supplements hawked by snake oil salesmen, there is a huge amount of research underpinning a lot of the claims around creatine. This isn’t to say everyone should be ingesting it with abandon: you are advised to avoid it if you have existing kidney or liver problems. But for most healthy adults, it’s considered safe for long-term use. It’s also pretty affordable.
The real question is this: has taking it for the last few weeks changed my life? Can I now open cans of spinach with my forearms like Popeye? Not quite. Putting creatine in my overnight oats has not given me overnight abs or superhuman strength. But I do think it’s helped me push harder in the gym and improved my mood. I’m planning to keep the experiment going for a while. My only concern is how to pack large amounts of white powder in my suitcase when I go on holiday. Nothing like getting detained by ICE to undo all my gym gains.
• Arwa Mahdawi is a Guardian columnist
