The Results Are In: 90 Days on Creatine Plus

Ninety days ago, 12 REP Fitness employees began a creatine supplementation trial designed to see what Purist® Creatine Plus was capable of doing for strength, body composition, recovery, and performance. 

Ten participants completed the full 90-day supplementation protocol, while nine completed all final testing metrics, including body composition scans and performance assessments. The results below reflect the available data collected at the conclusion of the study.

Over the course of the study, we tracked participants strength gains, muscle growth, and conditioning, while they logged weekly updates to how they felt pertaining to sleep, recovery, cognitive performance, and side effects.

Check out our article on how our test subjects felt and performed at the halfway mark, and peruse the full 90-day results below:

Purist® Creatine Plus

Creatine is the most widely studied supplement, shown to be safe and effective for the general population, and is used by a wide swath of individuals to support strength gains and brain health.

Purist® Creatine Plus combines 5g of Creapure® creatine monohydrate — the purest form of creatine — with Chromax® chromium picolinate to support strength, recovery, and body composition.

Participants in this creatine study supplemented with 5g of Purist® Creatine Plus every day for 90 days, while maintaining their regular workout routines.

The Study Parameters

With Purist Nutrition just entering the market, Ashley Boyer, the study's Principal Investigator, Editor-in-Chief for REP Fitness and Purist Nutrition, master's candidate in Sports Performance and Conditioning at Southern Utah University, and ACE-CPT, wanted to see if the products we were selling performed. Here are the parameters she set:

• 1. Participants needed to have never taken creatine before
• 2. Daily creatine supplementation for 90 days
• 3. No major changes to training routines
• 4. Weekly participant surveys
• 5. Day 1, day 45, and day 90 testing with a trap bar deadlift 1RM and 4-minute AMRAP conditioning workout
• 6. InBody scans measuring weight, body fat %, muscle mass, and BMI

In addition to participants filling out a weekly survey that detailed how they felt, we wanted to track physical changes. “We measured progress through the 90 days by putting participants through a fitness test and a body scan, where we measured weight, BMI, body fat percentage, and muscle mass," says Boyer.

90-Day Results

On days 1, 45, and 90, participants tested their strength and endurance, while measurements were taken of their chest, bicep, and legs. InBody scans were also used to track changes in body weight, body fat percentage, and muscle mass throughout the study. 

Our theory was that supplementing with Purist® Creatine Plus would support improvements in strength and performance, but the testing was designed to evaluate more than just lifting numbers. By tracking body composition, muscular development, and conditioning alongside strength output, the study aimed to provide a more complete picture of how training paired with supplementation could impact overall fitness and body composition.

The results of the Purist® Creatine Plus study showed consistent improvements across strength, body composition, and muscle development. The impressive 45-day mark results were just the beginning of what continued evolving into measurable full-body recomposition and performance gains for nearly every participant.

Strength Results — Day 1 vs. Day 90

By day 90, participants demonstrated substantial improvements in both maximal strength and workout performance, highlighting the cumulative impact of consistent training paired with Purist® Creatine Plus supplementation. Across the group, 100% of participants improved their one-rep max (1RM), with the average participant adding approximately 50lbs to their primary lift over the course of the study.

Biggest Strength Gains from Day 1 to Day 90

DeRonte' W.: +154lbs

DeRonte' W., Customer Support Supervisor at REP Fitness, improved his trap bar deadlift 1RM from 361lbs to 515lbs over the course of 90 days. A 154lb increase over the course of 3 months.

Easton A.: +38lbs

Easton A., Customer Support Representative at REP Fitness, improved his trap bar deadlift 1RM from 262lbs to 300lbs over the course of 90 days.

Lauren J.: +41lbs

Lauren J., Partnerships and Affiliate Manager at REP Fitness, improved her trap bar 1RM deadlift from 273lbs to 314lbs by the end of the 90-day study.

Conditioning Results — Day 1 vs. Day 90

To evaluate conditioning and workout performance, participants completed Boyer’s 4-minute AMRAP — As Many Rounds As Possible — challenge on day 1, day 45, and day 90. The workout consisted of: 5 box jumps, 10 kettlebell swings, 10 wall balls, 10 ring rows, and 5 sit-ups. Full points would be score for a completed round, and any incomplete rounds would have each rep of each movement tallied.

Participants completed as many rounds and reps as possible within four minutes, with kettlebell and wall ball weights tracked throughout the study to account for increases in intensity.

By day 90, 100% of participants were completing more total reps — and even more impressive, many were doing so with heavier kettlebells and medicine balls. Across the board, workout efficiency, recovery between movements, and sustained output all improved compared to day 1.

Standout Performance

Shaina S. posted one of the largest improvements at the 45-day checkpoint, but continued to build on that momentum through day 90. She tackled 1 round and 30 reps on day 1, but jumped up to 2 rounds and 24 reps by day 90.

Alessia C. improved from 2 rounds and 32 reps to 3 rounds and 21 reps, nearly a full round improvement while also increasing kettlebell weight from 30lbs to 35lbs and wall ball weight from 8lbs to 10lbs.

Kathryn K. showed continual improvements through each round of testing, from 2 rounds and 26 reps on day 1, 2 rounds and 39 reps on day 45, to 3 rounds and 4 reps on day 90. 

90-Day Body Composition Results

On days 1, 45, and 90, each participant took an InBody Scan to measure changes in weight, muscle mass, and body fat percentage. We also measured their biceps, chest, and thighs to track changes. On day 90 we saw some impressive changes:

• 80% of participants increased bicep size
• With an average change of +0.65".

• 90% of participants increased thigh size
• With an average change of +1.94".

• 70% of participants lost overall body weight
• With an average change of -0.21lb, highlighting strong recomposition.

• 100% of participants reduced body fat percentage
• With an average loss of ~2lbs of body fat.

• 90% of participants increased muscle mass
• With an average increase of ~6lbs of muscle mass.

Participant Final Week Report

By the conclusion of this 90 day study, participants noted limited side effects, better mood and focus, improved work in the gym, and a lower sense of soreness post lift. Here are some participant thoughts from their final weekly report:

Ryan H.: "Even though we are nearing the end of the study, I am confident that I'll be continuing to take creatine as part of my supplement routine going forward. I have experienced enough positive change to keep it as part of my process."

Easton A.: "No side effects. Felt good this week. Had less time to workout, but got in what I could. Felt really good lifting this week despite being more crunched for time."

Michelle S.: "Focus and brain fog have still been so much clearer since taking the creatine. Recovery has been great, not nearly as sore when lifting and feel as though if I take time off my soreness isn't nearly as bad as it was in the past."

Kathryn K.: "Sharper mentally, easier to focus on tasks. Better recovery, less sore. Sleep has been back and forth. Slightly higher energy."

Alessia C.: "My leggings are looser around [my] waist. Not sore considering I recently started running. No change in energy. No negative side effects."

90 Day Results

Our findings show us that training paired with supplementation of Purist® Creatine Plus leads to increased work capacity — 100% of participants improved their deadlift 1RM and their AMRAP score. And from that increase in ability, recomposition follows, as participants lowered their body fat percentage, increased muscle mass, and built size in key muscle groups. 

Over the 90-day period, our lab rats demonstrated clear improvements in body composition and strength, showing that consistent training combined with daily supplementation of Purist® Creatine Plus can support increases in performance, lean muscle development, and overall physical progress.

"Seeing people find out how strong they are. Seeing the excitement on their face when they pick up this heavy, heavy weight, was amazing," says Boyer.

Rosie Borchert is a NASM-CPT, former Nike Volleyball coach, and writer whose work has appeared on BarBend, Tonal, ABC, Netflix, and Amazon Studios. 

This article was reviewed by Ashley Boyer, ACE-CPT and Fitness Nutrition Specialist, for accuracy.