Strategic Ingestion of Creatine Supplementation and Resistance Training in Trained Young Adults

Creatine supplementation improves measures of muscle accretion and performance compared to placebo during a resistance training program. However, the optimal creatine supplementation protocol for maximizing these improvements is unknown.

Study Overview

• Status: Recruiting
• Conditions: Muscle; Strength
• Intervention / Treatment: Dietary supplement: Placebo; Dietary supplement: Creatine monohydrate

Detailed Description

Creatine is a naturally occurring nitrogen containing compound endogenously produced in the body through reactions involving the amino acids arginine, glycine and methionine. Alternatively, creatine can be consumed in the diet (primarily from red meat and seafood) or through commercially manufactured creatine. It has been proposed that the strategic ingestion of creatine supplementation may be an important factor to consider during a resistance training program to increase muscle growth and performance. There is evidence that creatine supplementation only on training days has greater muscle benefits compared to placebo in healthy older adults. However, the effects of creatine on training days (compared to creatine on non-training days or placebo) in healthy young adults is unknown. Further, pre- and post-exercise creatine supplementation appears to produce similar muscle benefits (compared to placebo) in healthy older adults. It remains to be determined whether the timing of creatine ingestion (immediately before vs. immediately following training sessions) influences the physiological adaptations from resistance training compared to placebo in young healthy adults. It is also unknown whether differences exist in supplementing with creatine immediately before, during or immediately following resistance training sessions in young healthy adults.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 52
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Darren Candow; Phone Number: 3062090280; Email: Darren.Candow@uregina.ca

Study Locations

• Canada
  • Regina, Canada
    • Recruiting
    • University of Regina
    • Contact: Darren Candow; Email: Darren.Candow@uregina.ca
  • Saskatchewan
    • Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, S4S4H4
      • Recruiting
      • University of Regina
      • Contact: Darren G Candow, PhD; Phone Number: 3062090280; Email: Darren.Candow@uregina.ca
      • Principal Investigator: Darren G Candow, PhD

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Physically active (performing structured resistance training > 2x/week for ≥ 4 weeks)
• Males and females (age 18-39)

Exclusion Criteria:

• Pregnant or nursing
• Have consumed creatine monohydrate within 30 days prior to the start of the study
• Pre-existing allergies to the placebo

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Triple

Number of Arms

4

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Creatine Before Training; 5 grams of creatine monohydrate + 3 grams of placebo immediately before training sessions; 8 grams of placebo immediately after training sessions; 8 grams of placebo on non-training days.	Dietary supplement: Placebo; Corn-Starch Maltodextrin; Dietary supplement: Creatine monohydrate; Creatine
Experimental: Creatine After Training; 5 grams of creatine monohydrate + 3 grams of placebo immediately after training sessions; 8 grams of placebo immediately before training sessions; 8 grams of placebo on non-training days.	Dietary supplement: Placebo; Corn-Starch Maltodextrin; Dietary supplement: Creatine monohydrate; Creatine
Experimental: Creatine Non-Training; 5 grams of creatine monohydrate + 3 grams of placebo on non-training days; 8 grams of placebo immediately before training sessions; 8 grams of placebo immediately after training sessions.	Dietary supplement: Placebo; Corn-Starch Maltodextrin; Dietary supplement: Creatine monohydrate; Creatine
Placebo Comparator: Placebo; 8 grams of placebo immediately before training sessions; 8 grams of placebo immediately after training sessions; 8 grams of placebo on non-training days	Dietary supplement: Placebo; Corn-Starch Maltodextrin

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Body Composition	Whole-body lean mass (kg) using bioelectrical impedance analysis	baseline, week 16
Muscle Hypertrophy	Muscle thickness of the biceps, triceps, quadriceps, hamstrings and calf muscle using B-mode ultrasound (cm)	baseline, week 16
Strength	1-repetition maximum leg press and chest press (kg)	baseline, week 16
Endurance	Repetitions to fatigue for leg press and chest press (total number)	baseline, week 16
Power	Medicine ball throw (cm)	baseline, week 16
Hydration	Total body water (kg) using bioelectrical impedance analysis	baseline, week 16
Power	Vertical jump (watts)	baseline, weekn 16

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Regina
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Darren Candow, University of Regina

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): May 15, 2024
• Primary Completion (Estimated): December 30, 2024
• Study Completion (Estimated): August 30, 2025

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: May 16, 2024
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 29, 2024
• First Posted (Actual): June 3, 2024

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): June 3, 2024
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 29, 2024
• Last Verified: May 1, 2024

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Other Study ID Numbers: Bio-REB 4641

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No