Creatine and Muscle Health in Madrid's Walking Footballers.

NCT07891936 | Not Yet Recruiting

• 2 other identifiers: 2026-1182A027/26
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 20
• Locations: 0 countries
• Sites: N/A

Brief Summary

Healthy aging requires effective, accessible, and sustainable interventions capable of preserving functional capacity and preventing age-related decline. In this context, walking football has emerged as a safe, inclusive physical exercise modality with high adherence among older adults, demonstrating benefits for muscle health, metabolic profile, and psychosocial well-being. On the other hand, creatine monohydrate supplementation is backed by robust scientific evidence as a strategy to enhance exercise adaptations, promote muscle mass maintenance, and improve factors related to metabolic syndrome. The objective of this project is to evaluate the effects of creatine supplementation combined with regular walking football practice on muscle quality and metabolic profile in older adults, as well as to explore the underlying biological mechanisms using a cell culture-based experimental model. The ultimate goal is to determine the potential of this intervention to promote healthy longevity through functional, muscular, and metabolic indicators associated with healthspan. Specifically, the study will analyze the intervention's effects on body composition, physical fitness, and metabolic syndrome markers; evaluate its impact on psychosocial well-being, quality of life, and cognitive function; and investigate the molecular mechanisms related to muscle health, protection against oxidative stress, and the modulation of senescence using an ex vivo/in vitro model. The project will be carried out in two complementary phases. First, a longitudinal experimental study will be conducted in older adults participating in walking football programs and supplemented with creatine. Subsequently, skeletal muscle cultures will be exposed to conditioned sera obtained before and after the intervention to investigate its biological effects. This approach will integrate the evaluation of clinical efficacy with the study of the underlying mechanisms, generating applicable knowledge for designing personalized, sustainable, and cost-effective strategies to prevent sarcopenia and metabolic syndrome.

Conditions

Muscle Adaptation; Body Composition; Physical Activity in Adults

Keywords

Walking football; Creatine monohydrate; Physical exercise; Sarcopenia; Muscle quality

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Muscle Quality

  It is defined as the capacity of skeletal muscle to generate strength relative to its mass, integrating both structural and functional aspects. It will be expressed as the ratio between the estimated 1-RM strength and muscle mass measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA)

  From enrollment to the end of treatment at 32 weeks

Secondary Outcomes (63)

• Nutritional profile

  From enrollment to the end of treatment at 32 weeks

• Body composition

  From enrollment to the end of treatment at 32 weeks

• Body composition

  From enrollment to the end of treatment at 32 weeks

• Body composition

  From enrollment to the end of treatment at 32 weeks

• Body composition

  From enrollment to the end of treatment at 32 weeks

Other Outcomes (3)

• Characterization variables (collected through interview and individual history)

  At enrollment time

• Characterization variables (collected through interview and individual history)

  At enrollment time

• Characterization variables (collected through interview and individual history)

  At enrollment time

Study Arms (1)

Creatine + Walking Football training Group

EXPERIMENTAL

Single-arm, prospective interventional trial with a within-subject (pre-post) design, where each participant serves as his or her own control.

Dietary Supplement: Monohydrate Creatine supplementation during Walking Football training

Interventions

Monohydrate Creatine supplementation during Walking Football training DIETARY_SUPPLEMENT

Participants will be assessed at baseline, after 16 weeks of supervised Walking Football training, and again after a further 16 weeks of Walking Football combined with daily creatine monohydrate supplementation. This within-subject design allows each participant to serve as their own control when evaluating the effects of creatine supplementation beyond those attributable to Walking Football training alone.

Creatine + Walking Football training Group

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 50 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Individuals over 50 years of age
• Minimum physical activity level recommended by the World Health Organization (≥150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity or ≥75 minutes of vigorous-intensity activity per week)
• Men and women with regular participation (≥2 times per week) in walking football training for at least 6 months
• Voluntary acceptance to participate in the study after having read, understood, and signed the informed consent form.

You may not qualify if:

• Presence of metabolic, neuromuscular, cardiovascular, or joint diseases that contraindicate moderate-to-vigorous physical activity and/or creatine supplementation
• Current use of creatine nutritional supplements or other ergogenic compounds
• Having any comprehension difficulties or presenting musculoskeletal alterations that influence the assessments
• Being under pharmacological treatment that may alter muscle mass or function
• Cognitive impairment or alteration that prevents following the protocol indications.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Universidad Europea de Madrid: lead
• Universidad Politecnica de Madrid: collaborator
• Crown Sport Nutrition: collaborator

Related Publications (9)

• Candow DG, Zello GA, Ling B, Farthing JP, Chilibeck PD, McLeod K, Harris J, Johnson S. Comparison of creatine supplementation before versus after supervised resistance training in healthy older adults. Res Sports Med. 2014;22(1):61-74. doi: 10.1080/15438627.2013.852088.

  PMID: 24392772 BACKGROUND

• Amiri E, Sheikholeslami-Vatani D. The role of resistance training and creatine supplementation on oxidative stress, antioxidant defense, muscle strength, and quality of life in older adults. Front Public Health. 2023 May 2;11:1062832. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1062832. eCollection 2023.

  PMID: 37206869 BACKGROUND

• Dobrowolski P, Prejbisz A, Kurylowicz A, Baska A, Burchardt P, Chlebus K, Dzida G, Jankowski P, Jaroszewicz J, Jaworski P, Kaminski K, Kaplon-Cieslicka A, Klocek M, Kukla M, Mamcarz A, Mastalerz-Migas A, Narkiewicz K, Ostrowska L, Sliz D, Tarnowski W, Wolf J, Wylezol M, Zdrojewski T, Banach M, Januszewicz A, Bogdanski P. Metabolic syndrome - a new definition and management guidelines: A joint position paper by the Polish Society of Hypertension, Polish Society for the Treatment of Obesity, Polish Lipid Association, Polish Association for Study of Liver, Polish Society of Family Medicine, Polish Society of Lifestyle Medicine, Division of Prevention and Epidemiology Polish Cardiac Society, "Club 30" Polish Cardiac Society, and Division of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Society of Polish Surgeons. Arch Med Sci. 2022 Aug 30;18(5):1133-1156. doi: 10.5114/aoms/152921. eCollection 2022. No abstract available.

  PMID: 36160355 BACKGROUND

• Chilibeck PD, Kaviani M, Candow DG, Zello GA. Effect of creatine supplementation during resistance training on lean tissue mass and muscular strength in older adults: a meta-analysis. Open Access J Sports Med. 2017 Nov 2;8:213-226. doi: 10.2147/OAJSM.S123529. eCollection 2017.

  PMID: 29138605 BACKGROUND

• Masfiah S, Kurnialandi A, Meij JJ, Maier AB. Definitions of healthspan: A systematic review. Ageing Res Rev. 2025 Sep;111:102806. doi: 10.1016/j.arr.2025.102806. Epub 2025 Jun 14.

  PMID: 40523529 BACKGROUND

• Cruz-Jentoft AJ, Bahat G, Bauer J, Boirie Y, Bruyere O, Cederholm T, Cooper C, Landi F, Rolland Y, Sayer AA, Schneider SM, Sieber CC, Topinkova E, Vandewoude M, Visser M, Zamboni M; Writing Group for the European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People 2 (EWGSOP2), and the Extended Group for EWGSOP2. Sarcopenia: revised European consensus on definition and diagnosis. Age Ageing. 2019 Jan 1;48(1):16-31. doi: 10.1093/ageing/afy169.

  PMID: 30312372 BACKGROUND

• Oudot A, Martin C, Busseuil D, Vergely C, Demaison L, Rochette L. NADPH oxidases are in part responsible for increased cardiovascular superoxide production during aging. Free Radic Biol Med. 2006 Jun 15;40(12):2214-22. doi: 10.1016/j.freeradbiomed.2006.02.020. Epub 2006 Mar 23.

  PMID: 16785035 BACKGROUND

• Goddard G, Rajagopal S, Wahbah Makhoul G, Raji MA. Metabolic Syndrome in Older Adults: Through the Lens of Institute for Healthcare Improvement's (IHI) 4Ms Framework and Social Determinants of Health. Life (Basel). 2025 Aug 28;15(9):1370. doi: 10.3390/life15091370.

  PMID: 41010311 BACKGROUND

• Short KR, Vittone JL, Bigelow ML, Proctor DN, Nair KS. Age and aerobic exercise training effects on whole body and muscle protein metabolism. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 2004 Jan;286(1):E92-101. doi: 10.1152/ajpendo.00366.2003. Epub 2003 Sep 23.

  PMID: 14506079 BACKGROUND

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Motor Activity; Sarcopenia

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Behavior; Muscular Atrophy; Neuromuscular Manifestations; Neurologic Manifestations; Nervous System Diseases; Atrophy; Pathological Conditions, Anatomical; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms; Signs and Symptoms

Study Officials

• Tamara Iturriaga Ramirez, PhD

  Facultad de Medicina, Salud y Deportes, Departamento de Ciencias del Deporte, Universidad Europea de Madrid

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Central Study Contacts

Tamara Iturriaga Ramirez, PhD

CONTACT

+34 91 414 66 11; tamara.iturriaga@universidadeuropea.es

Catalina Santiago Dorrego, PhD

CONTACT

+34 91 414 66 11; catalina.santiago@universidadeuropea.es

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NA
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: OTHER
• Intervention Model: SINGLE GROUP
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: PhD

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: October 1, 2026
• First Posted: October 23, 2026
• Study Start: October 20, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): June 20, 2027
• Study Completion (Estimated): December 1, 2027
• Last Updated: October 23, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-10

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share