Table 2. The effect of creatine supplementation on repeated interval swim set performance.

	Subjects	Supplementation Protocol	Test Protocol	Results
				Performance	Body Composition
Havenetidis et al. 1996	21 (11 Male; 10 Female) Elite swimmers	2 identical supplementation periods; 4 months apart 5g Creatine OR 5g placebo 5 x per day, 4 Days No randomisation, double blinded	Stroke not specified 10x50m sprints at 1min intervals 8x100m sprints at 2min intervals 15x100m sprints at 1min 40sec intervals	Greater improvements in performance for the creatine group compared to the placebo group following the first supplementation period. Further improvements in performance following the second supplementation period for the creatine group.	Not specified
Grindstaff et al. 1997	18 (7 Male; 11 Female) ~ 15 yrs Regionally/nationally competitive amateur swimmers	21g Creatine monohydrate + 4.2g maltodextrin OR 25.2g maltodextrin 9 Days Randomised, double blinded	Freestyle 3x100m sprints 60sec passive rest between sprints	Swim 1 and 2: Improved performance for the creatine group oOnly. Swim 3: No changes in performance in either group Trend towards reduced cumulative sprint time in the creatine group.	No significant differences between groups in changes in total body mass and percent body water. Changes in fat free mass tended to be greater in the creatine group. Changes in fat mass and percent body fat tended to be lower in the creatine group.
Peyrebrune et al. 1998	14 (Male) ~ 20-21 yrs National level swimmers	3g Creatine + 1.5g maltodextrin + 1.5g glucose OR 6g glucose 3 x per day, 5 Days Randomised, double blinded	Preferred stroke 8x50yd sprints at 1min 30sec intervals	Significant reduction in cumulative swim time (2%) in the creatine group.	Not specified
Theodorou and Cooke 1998	12 (8 Males; 4 Females) ~ 17 yrs Elite Swimmers	Acute loading period: 5g creatine 5 x per day, 4 days Maintenance period: 5g creatine OR 5g placebo 1 x per day, 8 weeks Randomised, blinding not specified	Stroke not specified 10x50m sprints; 60sec - swim time recovery 8x100m sprints; 2min - swim time recovery	Significant improvements in mean swim time (2%) after acute Loading. No significant difference in mean swim time between post acute loading and the end of 2 months.	Not specified
Leenders et al. 1999	32 (18 Male; 14 Female) ~ 19 yrs Competitive university swimmers	Acute loading period: 4 x 5g creatine dissolved in 150ml 6% maltodextrin solution OR 150ml 6% maltodextrin solution 4 x per day, 6 days Maintenance period: 5g Creatine dissolved in 150ml 6% maltodextrin solution OR 150ml maltodextrin solution 2 x per day, 7 days Randomised, double blinded	Preferred stroke 6x50m sprints at 3min intervals 10x25yd sprints at 60s intervals	Significant improvement in velocity (2%) over 6x50m interval set in males only following creatine supplementation. No improvements in velocity over 10x25y interval set in males or females following creatine supplementation.	No significant changes in body mass, fat free mass and percent body fat.
Theodorou et al. 1999	22 (12 Male; 10 Female) ~ 19 yrs National level swimmers	Acute loading period: 5g creatine monohydrate 5 x per day, 4 days Maintenance period: 5g creatine monohydrate OR 5g polythene glycol 4000 1 x per day, 8 weeks Randomised, blinding not specified	Stroke not specified 10x50m sprints; 60sec - swim time recovery 8x100m sprints; 2min - swim time recovery 15x100m sprints; 2min - swim time recovery	Significant improvements in mean swim time (1.5%) after acute Loading. No significant difference in mean swim time between post acute loading and the end of 2 months maintenance for either group.	Significant increase in body mass (0.6%) following acute creatine loading.
Mendes et al. 2004	18 (12 Male; 6 Female) ~ 19 yrs Competitive swimmers	5g Creatine + 20g CHO OR 20g CHO 4 x per day, 8 Days Double blind, placebo controlled	Preferred stroke 3 x 3 x 50m sprints 30 second intervals between sprints 150 second intervals between sets	No effect on performance in either Group.	Significant increase in total body mass, lean body mass and body water in the creatine group only. No change in bone or muscle mass.
Mero et al. 2004	16 (8 Male; 8 Female) ~ 17-18 yrs National level swimmers	5g Creatine OR 5g maltodextrin 4 x per day, 6 Days 0.3g Maltodextrin OR 0.3g Sodium Bicarbonate per kg of body weight on the test day	Freestyle 2 x 100m sprints 10 minutes passive rest between sprints	Increase in swim time between the 2 sprints was greater in the placebo group than the combination creatine and sodium bicarbonate group.	No significant changes in body weight or percent body fat.
Theodorou et al. 2005	10 (6 Male; 4 Female) ~ 17-18 yrs High performance swimmers	5g Creatine OR 5g creatine + 500ml glucose syrup 5 x per day, 4 Days Randomised, blinding not specified	Preferred stroke 10x50m sprints; 60sec - swim time recovery 8x100m sprints; 2min - swim time recovery	Significant improvements in swimming velocity for both groups (2% Cr only group; 0.7% Cr + CHO group) No significant difference in the magnitude of improvement between groups	Most swimmers gained weight. Mean weight gain was larger in the creatine + carbohydrate group than the creatine only group. Significant and positive correlation between increase in mean velocity and increase in mean body mass in creatine and carbohydrate group only.