Brief creatine use improved lifting performance in a small crossover trial
Resistance-trained men completed more repetitions and moved weights faster with creatine than placebo. Heart-rate responses differed by lifting intensity, so the results do not support uniformly lower cardiovascular strain.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
Creatine was associated with better repetition performance and lifting velocity during bench press and back squat testing. Some jump-performance and soreness measures also favored creatine, but heart-rate findings varied with intensity. This small, brief trial supports a signal for short-term performance benefits in trained men, while leaving their size in everyday training and their durability uncertain.
The abstract does not report how many extra repetitions participants completed. This abstract-based assessment covers a small, brief trial in trained men, leaving sustained training benefits and relevance to other groups uncertain.
What researchers found
Repetitions completed
Creatine versus placebo during both test sessions; bench press and back squat across all tested lifting loads.
What the testing captured
The crossover design let participants complete testing under creatine and placebo conditions. Researchers measured lifting performance, jump performance, muscle soreness, and heart-rate variability to examine performance and recovery over the brief study.
Heart-rate results were mixed
Compared with placebo, peak heart rate was lower at the lightest tested load but higher at the heaviest. That mixed pattern matters when interpreting the authors’ broader claim of reduced physiological stress.
The original publication
Short-term creatine supplementation enhances strength, reduces fatigue, and accelerates recovery in resistance-trained athletes: a double-blind, randomized, crossover trial.
Salem A, Ammar A, Kerkeni M et al.
J Int Soc Sports Nutr · 2025
- PubMed ID
- 41579075
- Record checked
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