Creatine with complex training for strength and muscle damage
What it found
In 30 male university athletes, 4 weeks of creatine plus complex training led to greater maximal leg strength and lower creatine kinase after training than placebo.
Creatine kinase is a marker of muscle damage.
What they found
Studies in people
Maximal strength
After training, the creatine group's 1-RM half squat strength was significantly greater than the placebo group's. Both groups improved from before training.
Muscle damage marker
Creatine kinase activity 24 and 48 hours after the first and last training bouts was significantly lower in the creatine group than in the placebo group.
Sprint and jump
Both groups improved their 30-m sprint times and jump performance after training, with no significant difference between groups.
Body composition
Body fat percentage, jump height and jump peak power improved in all subjects after training. Body mass and fat-free mass did not change significantly.
What the authors conclude
“This study concluded that creatine supplementation combined with complex training improved maximal muscular strength and reduced muscle damage during training.”
Also in their conclusions
- They conclude that creatine supplementation during complex training could increase maximal muscular strength after 4 weeks and reduce the muscle damage caused by the training.
- They suggest that conditioning coaches may apply these results to provide a proper training strategy to enhance performance.
How it was done
The authors wanted to see whether taking creatine during several weeks of complex training would improve sports performance and reduce muscle damage, because the combined effects had not been reported before.
Thirty male university athletes from baseball, basketball and tchoukball were split into a creatine group or a placebo group. They took 20 g of creatine or carboxymethyl cellulose daily for 6 days, then 2 g daily for the rest of the study, and did complex training 3 times a week for 4 weeks.
What it can’t tell you
- This was a small study in 30 young male athletes, so the results may not apply to other people or other training programmes.
- The study lasted only 4 weeks, so it cannot show what happens with longer use.
Who paid
- Funding
- Funded by Ministry of Science and Technology, Taiwan (from the PubMed record).
- Conflicts
- The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
- Authors work at
- National Taipei University of Business, Taiwan; National Taiwan Sport University, Taiwan; Taipei Medical University, Taiwan
The paper
- Title
- Effects of 4-Week Creatine Supplementation Combined with Complex Training on Muscle Damage and Sport Performance
- Type
- Randomised controlled trial
- Evidence
- Studies in people
- Summarised from
- Full text
- Licence
- CC BY. Words in quotation marks are the authors’; the rest is our summary.
- Cite
- Wang CC, Fang CC, Lee YH, Yang MT, Chan KH (2018). Effects of 4-Week Creatine Supplementation Combined with Complex Training on Muscle Damage and Sport Performance. Nutrients. doi:10.3390/nu10111640Free full textPubMed 30400221DOI
Summary written 29 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error