Thorne Creatine Review: Sports Certified Quality

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Creatine is one of the heaviest researched supplements, with its effectiveness proven in many scientific studies.

It’s immensely popular, and there are countless sellers. It’s hard to know which one to buy.

But that’s why I’m here; I love supplements and guiding others on their supplement journeys.

Thorne sets itself apart in the fitness supplement market by its rigorous lab testing and high-quality standards.

Their creatine product is no exception. It’s NSF Certified for sport, meaning every batch has to be tested to comply with the label claims.

You’re confident of getting exactly what you’re ordering, which should be the case with any supplement, but unfortunately isn’t always the case.

Is Thorne’s micronized creatine monohydrate the perfect creatine supplement for you? Well, let’s find out.

In this article, I’ll be reviewing Thorne Creatine.

Grab your favorite popcorn machine, pop some kernels, and find out if Thorne Creatine is next on your supplement list.

Practical Information about Thorne Creatine

Weight: Thorne Creatine comes in a tub of 450 grams (15.87 ounces).

Serving size: one scoop of 5 grams.

Supply duration: You don’t need a loading phase, so you’ll get a 90-day supply.

Where to buy it: Thorne Creatine can be purchased on Amazon or the Thorne webshop.

Thorne Creatine Explained

Thorne Creatine is heavily tested on quality, so we assume it’s a 100% pure micronized creatine monohydrate powder.

It does not contain calories, sugars, or artificial flavors. The daily recommended serving is 5 grams.

5,000 mg of Micronized Creatine Monohydrate

Creatine Monohydrate is creatine bound to one water molecule (mono-hydrate).

Creatine is found naturally in our muscle cells, where it helps our muscles produce energy. It’s mainly beneficial for heavy lifting and high-intensity (short-duration) exercise.

“Micronized” means that It’s micronized around 20 times. This results in creatine being more soluble in water.

It’s easier to mix, and the absorption is better and faster. However, micronized or not, it’s still the same substance (creatine monohydrate).

Therefore, the effects of micronized and normal creatine monohydrates will probably be the same long term.

Micronized will have fewer clumps, which is nice.

What does creatine do?

The energy source of your muscles is called ATP, or adenosine triphosphate.

For example, you go to the gym on Monday, and it’s international chest day. You secure a bench and start to bang out your first working set of bench presses.

After 10 reps with a certain weight, you can’t (without sacrificing your firstborn) perform the 11th rep. After the 10th rep, your chest/ shoulder/ tricep muscles ran out of ATP to use.

Your body produces and loses ATP simultaneously during a set, but production is slower, which means eventually, you run out.

Creatine is excellent because it helps your muscle to produce more ATP, which means you can do a couple more reps with a given weight.

Over time these extra repetitions and sets will result in more muscle mass, strength increases, and better performance.

Benefits of Thorne Creatine

Creatine is one of the most studied fitness supplements that can tremendously benefit your fitness journey.

I’ve been using creatine daily for over six years, and I don’t plan to quit anytime soon.

Most benefits are the same for any (high-quality) creatine supplement. What can you expect from taking Thorne Creatine?

Strength Progression

The increase in ATP in your muscle cells allows you to do more repetitions with any given weight.

Your body will recover and adapt to more weight lifted/ repetitions done, making a real difference in strength progress over time.

Muscle Mass

Just like your strength will adapt to more repetitions, your muscles will grow noticeably faster.

When we lift weights, we create micro-tears in our muscles. Our bodies repair these micro-tears and strengthen our muscles to handle the lifted weights in the future.

Extra repetitions using creatine lead to more micro-tears, which means more adaptation (bigger muscles).

Fat Loss

As a result of increased muscle mass faster, Thorne Creatine can greatly support fat loss.

More muscle means your body uses more energy (increased metabolism), expediting your weight loss efforts.

Better body composition

Creatine helps your body composition both during a muscle-gain and fat-loss phase. Building more muscle will improve your muscle-to-fat ratio.

Doing more repetitions during a fat loss phase will retain muscle mass (and strength), thus improving the muscle-to-fat ratio.

Explosive Movements/ Cardio

Creatine positively affects short-duration high-intensity movements or cardio, like sprinting, jumping, or cycling.

During these types of cardio, ATP is used as the primary source of energy by your muscles.

As creatine increases ATP, this will make you more explosive and improve your performance in these areas.

Great mixability

Because the creatine monohydrate from Thorne is micronized, it’s way more soluble while mixing in liquid.

Overall this is a way more pleasurable way of getting in your daily creatine without the hassle of dealing with clumps.

Possible side effects and safety of Thorne Creatine

I’ve never had any side effects or adverse reactions from taking creatine monohydrate.

Creatine monohydrate is entirely safe for most healthy adults. It’s one of the most studied dietary fitness supplements.

In some uncommon cases, it may cause kidney damage, liver damage, kidney stones, weight gain, bloating, dehydration, muscle cramps, digestive concerns, compartment syndrome, and rhabdomyolysis.

The (severe) side effects are very unlikely if you stay hydrated while taking creatine.

People with kidney or liver disease or diabetes can best avoid creatine supplements. It’s also not recommended for people below 18 years old (I purged in this regard).

A minority of people get an upset stomach, cramping, diarrhea, feel nauseous, or have some unwanted water retention from creatine monohydrate.

If this is the case, creatine HCL might be a better option because it’s even more bioavailable (better absorbed), and you need a lower dose. I can recommend Beyond Raw Creatine HCL (click here for a review), which is the best value for the highest quality I’ve found.

Mixability and Flavor of Thorne Creatine

As expected, the Thorne creatine has great mixability and doesn’t smell or taste like anything. It’s a very fine powder and has no noticeable clumps.

I add it to my morning coffee, which dissolves immediately. Hot liquids seem to work best for any creatine supplement.

Sometimes I mix it with my pre-workout, which works fine as well. No complaints on my part.

Price of Thorne Creatine

Thorne Creatine is priced at 34.20 dollars for 450 grams on Amazon. For one 5-gram serving, this comes out to around $0.38.

This is cheaper than the vast majority of creatine supplements I’ve reviewed. This is surprising for the NSF Certified quality and rigorous testing.

I’ll make two comparisons with my two favorite creatine supplements I’ve reviewed:

Below you can find a comparison with the other creatine supplements I’ve reviewed.

The ones I believe are of the highest quality to value are highlighted with “Recommended.”

If you have side effects from creatine monohydrate, I recommend trying HCL or PH 12-14 creatine.

• (Recommended) Bulk Supplements: $0.30 per 5-gram serving (micronized creatine monohydrate | Review)
• (Recommended) Nutricost: $0.32 per 5-gram serving (micronized creatine monohydrate | Review)
• (Recommended) Muscle Feast: $0.57 per 5-gram serving (patented CreaPure creatine monohydrate | Review)
• (Recommended) EFX Kre-Alkalyn: $0.27 per 2-capsule serving (patented PH 12-14 creatine monohydrate | Review)
• (Recommended) Beyond Raw: $0.42 per 2-gram serving (patented creatine HCL | Review)
• BPI: $0.38 per 5-gram serving (micronized creatine monohydrate)
• Cellucor: $0.42 per 5-gram serving (micronized creatine monohydrate)
• BodyTech: $0.47 per 5-gram serving (creatine monohydrate)
• Optimum Nutrition: $0.57 per 5-gram serving (micronized creatine monohydrate)
• Beast Creature: $0.83 per 4-gram serving (creatine complex)
• CON CRET: $1.15 per 2-gram serving (patented creatine HCL same as Beyond Raw)
• PMD CR5: $2.10 per 8-capsule serving (creatine complex)

Note: Supplement prices change frequently.

Experiences with Thorne Creatine

Many people find Thorne Creatine a cut above competing products and none as effective as Thorne.

They experience noticeable benefits (as explained above) and don’t switch brands anymore.

The powder dissolves quickly, even in cold water, and it’s flavorless without an aftertaste.

Overall, people consider Thorne to be the best creatine supplement.

It’s worth mentioning that, as with any creatine monohydrate supplement, a small minority of people feel sick (diarrhea, stomach cramps, etc.) when taking it.

In this case, trying a more bioavailable (more soluble) creatine HCL might be better. You can check out Beyond Raw (patented, lab-tested, and high-quality) creatine HCL.

Thorne Creatine gets 4.6 out of 5 stars on Amazon (and Amazon’s Choice).

Is Thorne Creatine Worth It?

Out of every creatine supplement I’ve reviewed, Thorne Creatine is one of the best-micronized creatine monohydrate supplements.

Thorne is known for its thorough testing, and its creatine is NSF Certified for sports.

This means every batch HAS to get tested, and no banned, or harmful substances will be in the product. You can expect a very consistent, high-quality creatine powder in every tub.

Because of its pureness, the increase in strength, muscle mass, and performance might be more pronounced than in other brands.

It dissolves much better than most creatine supplements and is completely flavorless without an aftertaste.

I recommend Thorne Creatine if you want to be 100% certain of a high-quality creatine monohydrate supplement that does what’s promised.

You can find Thorne Creatine on Amazon here.

If you experience (a minority of people) stomach discomfort, nausea, or diarrhea from creatine monohydrate, then I recommend trying creatine HCL. Your best bet will be Beyond Raw Creatine HCL, which has a high-quality, lab-tested, and patented HCL formula. It comes around the same price as Throne Creatine.

You can find Beyond Raw Creatine on Amazon here.

FAQ

When should I take/ use Thorne Creatine?

On workout days, taking Thorne Creatine may be beneficial before or after you work out.

On rest days, take your dose of creatine in the morning with breakfast or any other time of the day.

Is Thorne Creatine bad for you?

Thorne Creatine is safe to consume in a responsible dose for most healthy adults.

People with kidney or liver disease or diabetes can best avoid creatine supplements.

It’s also not recommended for people below 18 years old (I purged in this regard).

Will Thorne Creatine keep you awake?

No, Thorne Creatine is not a stimulant supplement.

Does Thorne Creatine break a fast?

No, Thorne Creatine contains no calories and will not break a fast.

Does Thorne Creatine contain caffeine?

No, Thorne Creatine does not contain any caffeine.

Where to buy Thorne Creatine?

You can easily buy Thorne Creatine on Amazon or other webshops online.

Does Thorne Creatine come with a scoop?

Thorne Creatine does not come with a scoop, but you can use a teaspoon instead (5 grams).