Did you look at any of the studies that showed placebo effects comparable to creatine? It is insane, as we know the mechanism for how creatine does its thing. Still, the social effects of being told it is effective seems to be the dominant reason it is as effective as it is.
Creatine is one of the most studied supplements out there though so would think the empirical data supports it at this point.
I'm speaking anecdotally of course. I used to cycle creatine but now I just always take it. When I'd cycle off I'd lose 5-10 lbs every time. Thats mostly water weight but my lifts would decrease about 10% as well. Not to mention the extra energy (more reps not just more weight)
It is one of the more studied drugs, agreed. We are very confident it works. Which is why the studies that show being told it works is a major driver are insanely interesting and worth checking on.
