Beetroot Power Booster

From a sports nutrition perspective, beetroot has some special properties that make it interesting for athletes:

Improving endurance performance

Beetroot can increase endurance performance ( 1 ):

• Studies show an improvement in exercise tolerance of 15-25% during various endurance exercises;
• Steady-state VO2 (oxygen uptake) was reduced by 5% during moderate-intensity exercise;
• In trained cyclists, performance in the 10 km time trial improved by 1.2%.

Increase in nitric oxide availability

The high nitrate content in beetroot leads to increased nitric oxide production in the body:

• This improves blood circulation and oxygen supply to the muscles;
• Lactate accumulation in the muscles is reduced.

Improving regeneration

Beetroot can support regeneration after training:

• The nitrates and folic acid contained in it lead to better blood circulation in the muscles.
• This accelerates the recovery and oxygen supply to the muscles after exercise.
• Antioxidants contained reduce known inflammatory effects in the body and support the immune system.

However, there is also an effect that is not necessarily intended. The antioxidants contained in the product may inhibit desired, training-induced adaptation effects. Therefore, such antioxidants should generally only be used in a very targeted manner during training. See our article " Antioxidants in Sport ".

Practical Application

Current recommendations can be summarized as follows:

• Drink 250-500 ml of beetroot juice 2.5-3 hours before physical activity;
• Continuous intake over several days can further increase the effect.

It is important to note that the effect seems to be more pronounced in recreational and moderately trained athletes than in high-performance athletes. In addition, the effects vary depending on the sport, with cyclists appearing to benefit particularly. Overall, beetroot can be a valuable natural supplement in sports nutrition that supports endurance performance and regeneration.

However, special nutritional supplements are not necessarily required to achieve the effect. It is usually sufficient to incorporate beetroot more into your daily diet and perhaps use beetroot juice. However, further research is needed to determine the optimal dosage and application for different groups of athletes.