Updated on February 3, 2022.
Next time you’re looking for a workout beverage, try thinking outside the bottle. Recent research puts the spotlight on an unusual choice: beet juice, also called beetroot juice.
Multiple studies have demonstrated benefits to exercisers and athletes who drink the red stuff. It has been shown to improve heart and lung endurance by increasing efficiency. The result: better performance and a longer time before hitting exhaustion level. That means exercise can actually feel easier.
A fitness booster
Beet juice's exercise-enhancing power likely comes from the nitrates in beets. This is supported by a 2017 study of 32 soccer players published in Nutrients. The participants were split into two groups—one drinking regular beet juice each day and the other drinking beet juice stripped of its nitrate content. None of the participants knew which of the two juice types they were drinking.
Sure enough, exercise became easier only for the juice-with-nitrates group. The nitrate group was able to run farther at fast speeds, with a lower heart rate.
Big beet benefits
Our bodies convert the nitrates in beet juice to nitrites, helpful compounds that can dilate blood vessels, increase blood flow, and reduce the amount of oxygen muscles need to do work. Beets also contain antioxidants that may help protect against oxidative stress caused by exercise.
Here are a few more strategies for making your workouts feel easier:
- Give yourself a musical distraction. The right tunes can increase your endurance.
- Use the power of visualization to pep yourself up.
- Fuel up for fitness with foods that prime you for peak performance.
