Evaluating The Effects Of Creatine Supplementation And Resistance Exercise On Psychosocial States In Women

Document Type

Article

Publication Title

Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise

Abstract

PURPOSE: Women’s participation in resistance exercise (RE) is influenced by psychological and social factors, as some seek to improve body image or self-esteem, while others avoid exercise due to anxiety or low confidence. Creatine (Cr) supplementation has been shown to enhance mood and cognitive performance in women, suggesting that Cr may confer psychosocial benefits alongside physical adaptations. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the combined and independent effects of Cr supplementation and RE on mood states, physical activity (PA) enjoyment, and exercise-related anxiety in recreationally active women.

METHODS: Thirty-four women (21.8 ± 3.6 yrs; 163.8 ± 6.1 cm; 62.9 ± 25.7 kg) completed an eight-week, double blind, placebo-controlled trial. Participants were randomly assigned to Cr with RE (Cr+RE; n = 12), placebo with RE (PL+RE; n = 10), or control (CNTL; n = 12). Twice-weekly, lower-body RE included leg press, leg extension, and leg curl (1 × 30, 3 × 15, 30% 1RM). Supplementation consisted of a 5-day loading phase (20g/day) followed by eight weeks of maintenance (5g/day), with Cr monohydrate or dextrose. Mood (Profile Mood States [POMS], PA enjoyment (Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale [PACES]), and exercise anxiety (Social Exercise and Anxiety Measure [SEAM]) were assessed at baseline (BL), four weeks (4wk), and eight weeks (8wks). 3 (Group Cr+RE, PL+RE, CNTL]) × 3 (Time BL, 4wk, 8wk) mixed-factorial ANOVAs were conducted to assess changes in all outcomes (α ≤.05).

RESULTS: No significant (p’s >.05) group × time interactions were observed. Main effects of time were observed for PACES (p =.025) and POMS subscales of tension (p =.011) and confusion (p =.033). Pairwise comparisons indicated PACES increased from BL (99.4 ± 2.8) to 8wk (105.14 ± 3.0; p =.043), while tension decreased from BL (39.8 ± 0.1) to 4wk (37.8 ± 0.8; p =.037). No significant differences were observed for confusion.

CONCLUSION: Small improvements in PA enjoyment and reductions in tension occurred independent of supplementation. These findings suggest RE alone may modestly improve mood-related outcomes, while Cr supplementation offers no additional psychosocial benefit under the conditions of this study. Future work should include larger samples and qualitative assessments to better capture psychosocial effects.

Research Highlights

  • The Problem: The study investigates the combined and independent effects of creatine supplementation and resistance exercise on mood states, physical activity enjoyment, and exercise-related anxiety in recreationally active women.

  • The Method: An eight-week, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial assigned 34 women to creatine with resistance exercise (n = 12), placebo with resistance exercise (n = 10), or a control group (n = 12), utilizing a twice-weekly lower-body resistance routine alongside psychosocial assessments at baseline, four weeks, and eight weeks.

  • Quantitative Finding: Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale scores increased from a baseline of 99.4 ± 2.8 to 105.14 ± 3.0 at eight weeks (p = .043); tension decreased from a baseline of 39.8 ± 0.1 to 37.8 ± 0.8 at four weeks (p = .037).

  • Finding: Resistance exercise modestly improves physical activity enjoyment and reduces tension independent of supplementation, while creatine supplementation offers no additional psychosocial benefits.

DOI

10.1249/01.mss.0001259260.84973.ef

Publication Date

10-2026

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