Sports supplement creatine makes no difference to muscle gains, trial finds
General views on supplements
- Several commenters argue most supplements add little beyond a good diet; anything with large effects tends to be regulated and riskier.
- Others counter that some legal aids (beta‑alanine, caffeine, beetroot/nitrates, creatine) have measurable but small performance benefits, and can be more practical than eating specific foods (e.g., organ meats).
What creatine is generally thought to do
- Widely described as:
- Increasing phosphocreatine stores → faster ATP regeneration for short, high‑intensity efforts.
- Acting as a pH buffer to delay fatigue.
- Increasing intramuscular water (“cell volumization”), making muscles look fuller.
- Most agree creatine doesn’t build muscle “by itself”; it may let you do a few more reps or recover slightly faster, which over time could yield small extra gains—if you actually train hard.
Interpretation and criticism of the UNSW trial
- Trial: 54 untrained adults, 12 weeks of supervised full‑body resistance training, ~5 g/day creatine vs placebo, no loading phase.
- Main reported outcome: no significant difference in lean body mass gains between groups after training, beyond initial water retention.
- Critical points raised:
- Very small N with large error bars → likely underpowered, especially given expected ~5% effects.
- Beginners’ “newbie gains” and individual diet/creatine status may swamp small supplement effects.
- No direct measurement of muscle creatine levels or diet creatine; no separation of responders/non‑responders.
- Use of RPE and RM may or may not fully capture subtle endurance/recovery differences.
- Some note that sex‑specific graphs can be misread; others call the headline overstated given the nuance in the paper.
Anecdotal experiences and variability
- Many lifters report clearly improved intra‑set endurance, faster recovery between sessions, and visible water weight on ~5 g/day.
- Several note cognitive benefits (better concentration, less “brain fog”), especially vegetarians.
- Others report no noticeable effect, or significant gastrointestinal distress, sometimes tied to loading phases or timing with food.
- Commenters emphasize variability: meat‑eaters or those already near saturation may see little benefit; vegans and some older people may see more.
Creatine vs steroids/TRT and other aids
- Multiple comments contrast creatine’s small, indirect effects with steroids/TRT, which can increase muscle mass even without training and carry serious side‑effect and fertility risks.
- Caffeine and nitrates are cited as better‑documented for endurance performance than creatine; creatine is seen as more relevant to short, intense efforts than to long‑distance running.
Single trial vs broader evidence
- Several point to meta‑analyses and reviews finding small but real average benefits of creatine with resistance training, especially for strength.
- Others highlight the broader reproducibility problems in nutrition/exercise science, arguing that both individual trials and meta‑analyses must be viewed cautiously.