Hey Verb,

I know that some guys mix their creatine with their protein drink, but I never do. I do not like the way it mixes at all, and I also take them at seperate times during the day. I think some people mix it with their protein because it's one last drink to mix (as you know, it can get rather monotonous mixing 8 or 9 drinks a day). I think the other reason might be because creatine can be hard on some peoples stomaches. You may just be one of those people. I'll tell you how I mix mine. You may want to give it a try and see if it helps.

I mix anywhere from 6-8 grams of creatine (I weight around 235 lbs and I don't take 10 grams at a dose. For a 200 lbs guy just using it for the first time, I'd be really suprised if you needed more than 5 or 6. That could be what is irritating you). I mix my creatine with one of the following mixes:

Dose of creatine with 50 grams of dextrose, plus 12 ounces of water, plus something for flavoring, like Crystal light (because it has no sugar or carbs).

Or, I mix my creatine with 25 grams of dextrose, plus a nearly full bottle of Fruitopia. I just drink a big gulp out of the bottle of Fruitopia, and then mix in my creatine (I bought a little funnel to avoid any spillage), mix in my dextrose, put the lid back on and shake the shit out of the bottle. I keep the Fruitopia bottles afterwards, because I can reuse them with method 1, for mixing. They make great mixing shakers. Also, I've said this a few times, and I don't know if anybody else has tried it, but creatine disolves AWESOMELY in Fruitopia. Seriously, give it a try if you don't believe me.

Hope that helps,

Sincerly Raven, the President and CEO of the Fruitopia Corporation

(kidding! it really does work though)