Creatine is a fascinating subject after all. Quickly, volumizing is about water within the muscle cells. Dehydration is relatin more to the vital organs and subcutaneous fluid retention. The restriction in the hands could come from the bodies desperate attempt to hold on to some water and swelled the hands during heavy use periods. This is much like the pregnant woman who swells in her feet in the last months of pregnance and with no previous or post pregnancy symptoms. Sorry, it's just the easiers example and I'm just coming in from a nutritional conference in North Carolina. I'll address this more thoroughly tomorrow, since it seems you really want the skinny. Vik