The Effects of Creatine on Blood Pressure Before, and After High Intensity Training

Abstract

It is known that systolic blood pressure (SBP) drops five to seven mmHg for 22 hours immediately after a workout in individuals the have moderate hypertension, and that in individuals with optimal blood pressure (BP), one can expect to see a drop of four to five mmHg for over the following 22 hours. Creatine (CRE), one of the most recognized supplemental aids to enhance performance of high-intensity exercise, has convincingly substantiated its ergogenic potential (Naderi et al. 2016). However, little has been researched on the connection between creatine and blood pressure. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of CRE on BP after a bout of high intensity strength training on Division III football players at Gustavus Adolphus College. This study is a one sample research design. Each athlete had their blood pressure measured four total times. One resting BP was taken before the consumption of CRE and the other was taken 18-22 hours after the consumption of creatine. The same was done when each subject participated in the control group as well. The subjects were given the creatine or placebo (control) at random for their first trial and then given the opposite for the second trial one week later. The independent variable was consumption of CRE. The dependent variables were SBP and diastolic blood pressure (DBP). The difference in SBP and DBP between the trials were calculated and analyzed using a paired sample t-test. Results showed that CRE trial BPs were slightly higher than in control trials although the difference was not significant (p<0.05). The results of the study gave a better understanding of the effects of CRE on BP after a high intensity strength training session.