Creatine for endurance athletes: what are its benefits and risks?

Creatine has long been one of the most researched food supplements on the market. While its benefits for building muscle mass, strength and explosiveness in combination with strength training are well proven, in endurance sports the situation is more complicated. So what are the real benefits of creatine for endurance athletes and in which situations can it slow us down instead?

Why does creatine have no significant effect on endurance performance?

During endurance exercise most cellular energy (ATP) is restored through the aerobic burning of carbohydrates and fats (oxidative phosphorylation in the mitochondria), and so the overall contribution of phosphocreatine breakdown to energy production is minimal. The creatine we take in and store in the muscles is converted into phosphocreatine, which serves as a store of fast energy for very intense anaerobic muscle contractions (sprinting, strength training and so on).

There is admittedly a link between creatine and aerobic metabolism in the form of the so-called “shuttle system" (transport system). Within this mechanism creatine works as an intracellular courier which takes over the high-energy phosphate group from the ATP created in the mitochondria and carries it directly to the place where it is used – that is, to the contracting muscle fibres. Scientific data, however, confirm that during steady submaximal exercise the availability of creatine and phosphocreatine for this diffusion is simply not a limiting factor.

Creatine also has no effect on oxygen consumption, respiratory gas exchange, or even on the concentration of lactate in the blood. Within aerobic physical exercise, the amount of phosphocreatine is therefore not a limiting factor for the cells (Jones et al., 2002).

Where can creatine help endurance athletes?

Even so, there are certain scientific data showing that creatine may make sense for endurance athletes in specific situations (Forbes et al., 2023):

When can creatine slow us down? The pitfall of body weight

The main mechanism by which creatine can harm endurance athletes is an increase in body weight. Supplementation (especially in the loading phase) typically leads to water retention and an increase in body weight of roughly 1 to 2 kilograms, or even more if we add on the increase in muscle mass.

This increase in body weight divides endurance sports into two categories:

Practical summary

Creatine has a smaller, but theoretically not negligible role in endurance sport, especially if in your discipline the pace changes, there are attacks or a sprint finish decides the outcome.

Conclusion for endurance athletes

For most endurance athletes creatine is not a food supplement for long endurance exercise itself or for “race day", but it can be a valuable supplement in demanding training blocks for maximising recovery and building muscle for the next load. Endurance athletes should, however, use creatine in the context of their goals and bear in mind the negative effect in terms of increased body weight.

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