For young, active guys taking creatine, adding carbs doesn’t seem to make it work better for boosting power, strength, or stamina—even though we thought insulin from carbs might help the body absorb more creatine.

If you take creatine along with a big dose of sugar (93 grams), your body releases more insulin than if you take creatine by itself — at least in healthy men.

If young, healthy guys take sugar supplements for 5 days, their muscles store more energy, but taking creatine doesn’t do the same — so sugar seems to fill up muscle fuel better than creatine when not working out.

If young, healthy guys take a lot of creatine with a high-carb diet after a tough workout, their muscles store more creatine within just a few days — and it keeps going up the longer they take it.

If you take creatine with carbs after working out, your body absorbs about 25% more of it because the carbs raise your insulin, which helps shuttle creatine into your muscles.

Taking creatine for five days boosts creatine in muscles, but doesn’t change how much glycogen (energy) is used during intense cycling in healthy young guys — so more creatine alone doesn’t help save energy stores during endurance workouts if muscles weren’t already drained.