If you’ve spent any time on fitness forums in 2022, then you’ve undoubtedly heard turkesterone mentioned at least once.
Interest in turkesterone began skyrocketing in 2021 thanks in large part to extensive coverage from the YouTube channel More Plates More Dates.
But why?
Well, there is some evidence that suggests turkesterone may help increase muscle protein synthesis, which in turn can build lean muscle and increase strength. I must emphasize that this evidence is scant and none of it is based on human trials.
All of this attention on turkesterone naturally leads people to wonder how it compares to other nutritional sports supplements.
Today we’ll look at how turkesterone compares to creatine, the OG of sports supplements.
If you take neither, which should you start with?
Can you take creatine and turkesterone together?
Which is better supported by research?
We’ll cover all this and more. Let’s go!
Table of Contents
Should You Take Creatine or Turkesterone?
If you do not take creatine or turkesterone and you’re wondering which one is right for you, the answer is clear: creatine.
Why?
Creatine is probably the most well-researched and effective legal sports supplement.
Time and time again, human trials find that creatine reliably increases strength and power output, making it an ideal supplement for sports that involve short bursts of intense activity (e.g. powerlifting, weightlifting, sprinting, swimming, etc.).
When it comes to the quality and consistency of research and effects, comparing creatine to turkesterone is like comparing a rocketship to a bicycle. It’s not even close.
The best part? Creatine is considerably less expensive than turkesterone by a wide margin.
Our top recommended creatine is Kaged’s creatine HCL, but you can also check out our list of the best creatine monohydrate supplements for more suggestions.
High quality, patented, pure creatine HCL with zero fillers.
Available in unflavored powder (for mixing into other drinks), lemon lime powder, or vegetable capsules (vegan).
If you’d prefer to shop around for your creatine, then check out our list of the best cheap creatine.
If you’re still interested in checking our turkesterone for yourself, we recommend Dark Labs Turkesterone. Not only is it fully dosed, but they’ve also provided a certificate of analysis that proves it is adequately potent and sourced from Uzbekistan.
Finally restocked!
Dark Labs' Turkesterone supplement is standardized to 10% turkesterone, yielding 50 mg of pure turkesterone per 500 mg serving.
Dark Labs has provided a certificate of analysis for their product, proving its potency and that it is sourced directly from the turkesterone capital of the world: Uzbekistan.
Discount codes:
LV15 = 15% off at Muscle Factory
Turkesterone vs Creatine
The most important difference between turkesterone and creatine is that creatine has substantially more research supporting its efficacy and safety. Creatine has many years of consistent research findings based on human trials, whereas turkesterone has limited in vivo research supporting claims of increased muscle protein synthesis.
Differences
Here is the full list differences between creatine and turkesterone:
- Creatine is supported by robust, consistent human trials that demonstrate it can increase power output and strength. Turkesterone has limited supporting research and none are human trials. Ecdysteroids, which is the family of compounds that turkesterone belongs to, has a few human trials suggesting that they can increase muscle growth (study 1, study 2, study 3), but additional research is needed to corrobate these findings.
- Creatine is an amino acid derivative and turkesterone is an ecdysteroid.
- Creatine works by increasing the phosphocreatine stores in your muscles, which in turn help convert ADP to ATP, an energy source for muscles.
- Turkesterone’s proposed method of action is through the estrogen receptor-beta receptor and PI3K/Akt signaling pathway.
- Creatine supplements are substantially less expensive than turkesterone supplements.
Similarities
Here are some similarities between creatine and turkesterone:
- Neither creatine or turkesterone are androgenic-anabolic steroids.
- Both creatine and turkesterone are considered relatively safe to take and have limited negative side effects, though turkesteone has significantly less evidence to support this claim.
If you’re still determined to try turkesterone for yourself, then check out our round-up of the turkesterone suppliers we think are selling a legit product.
The Best Turkesterone Supplements
Check out our round-up of the best turkesterone supplements currently available.
Frequently Asked Questions about Turkesterone and Creatine
Yes, it is fine to take creatine with turkesterone.
Creatine has a substantial amount of consistent research showing that it reliably increases strength and power output.
Turkesterone has a small number of in vivo studies that suggest it may be able to increase muscle protein synthesis, but more research is needed, including more human trials. Ecdysteroids in general do have some human trials suggesting they may be able to increase muscle mass and improve strength, but the findings are inconsistent and some of the studies are low-quality. Again, additional research is needed to better understand the potential effects of turkesterone and ecdysteroid supplementation.
Creatine is the better supplement choice for beginners when compared to turkesterone. Not only is creatine more effective than turkesterone, it’s also less expensive.
No, turkesterone is not an androgenic-anabolic steroid. It does not activate the body’s androgen receptors. It does not appear to increase liver toxins and does not require post-cycle therapy (PCT).
No, creatine is not a steroid. It is an amino acid derivative.
Yes, the available evidence supports teenagers being able to safely take creatine supplements without significant side effects. For more information, check out our list of the best creatine for teens.
Turkesterone vs Ecdysterone
This article has more information on the research surrounding turkesterone supplementation.
High quality, patented, pure creatine HCL with zero fillers.
Available in unflavored powder (for mixing into other drinks), lemon lime powder, or vegetable capsules (vegan).
