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Caffeine counteracts the ergogenic action of muscle creatine loading

K Vandenberghe, N Gillis, M Van Leemputte, P Van Hecke, F Vanstapel, P Hespel
J Appl Physiol (1985) 1996 80(2):452-457

Bibliography

PubMed
PMID 8929583
DOI
10.1152/jappl.1996.80.2.452
Funding
No explicit funding statement was located in the accessible PubMed or publisher records during Biohack Blueprint's 2026-10-02 audit. This is an audit-status statement, not confirmation that the study received no funding.
Competing interests
No explicit competing-interests statement was located in the accessible PubMed or publisher records during Biohack Blueprint's 2026-10-02 audit. This is an audit-status statement, not confirmation that no competing interests existed.

Study snapshot

DesignControlled human supplementation trial
ModelHuman
Sample9 healthy male volunteers
InterventionCreatine 0.5 g/kg/day alone or with caffeine 5 mg/kg/day, compared with placebo
Duration6-day supplementation periods
EndpointsMuscle phosphocreatine; Dynamic torque; Repeated maximal exercise

What the study showed, in plain terms

Small foundational human trial that generated much of the concern that caffeine could blunt creatine's performance effect.

Key findings

Creatine alone and creatine plus caffeine both increased muscle phosphocreatine by about 4–6%, but dynamic torque improved with creatine alone and not with the combined creatine-plus-caffeine condition.

What this study can and cannot tell us

Very small sample of nine men, unusually high creatine loading, one exercise model and an older protocol. The result should be interpreted alongside larger and later studies rather than treated as a universal interaction rule.

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Dr. Khaled Mahmoud, MBBChCritical Care Medicine, Longevity Science & Editorial Direction