Also known as: Beta vulgaris, Dietary nitrate, Beetroot juice, Nitrate, Beet powder
EnduranceStrong evidence
A dietary nitrate source and one of the best-evidenced ergogenic aids in endurance sport. What matters is nitrate content in millimoles, not grams of beetroot powder — a distinction most products obscure.
Typical dose
400.0–800.0 mg per day
2-3 hours before the session; avoid antibacterial mouthwash that day
What it is
Beetroot is notable in sports nutrition for one reason: it is unusually rich in inorganic nitrate. Other nitrate-rich foods include rocket, spinach and celery, and it is the nitrate rather than anything uniquely beetroot that produces the effect.
This creates the central problem with the category. Nitrate content in beetroot varies enormously with growing conditions, and many powders and extracts contain very little. A product sold as beetroot extract may deliver almost no nitrate at all.
The figure that matters is nitrate content, ideally stated in millimoles. Research protocols use roughly 6-8 mmol, equivalent to around 400-500 mg of nitrate. If a label does not state nitrate content, you cannot know whether it does anything, and the beetroot content in grams tells you nothing useful.
How it works
Dietary nitrate is reduced to nitrite by bacteria on the surface of the tongue, then converted to nitric oxide in the body. Nitric oxide relaxes vascular smooth muscle, widening blood vessels and improving blood flow to working tissue.
This pathway is separate from the one that uses arginine and citrulline, and it works particularly well when oxygen is limited, which is precisely the situation during hard exercise.
The most striking finding is improved muscular efficiency: nitrate supplementation reduces the oxygen cost of a given workload, meaning the same effort requires less oxygen. That is unusual and is the main reason the evidence here is graded strong. One practical consequence of the mechanism: antibacterial mouthwash kills the tongue bacteria that start the process and abolishes the effect entirely.
What the evidence shows
Endurance performance is well supported. Numerous controlled trials and meta-analyses report improved time to exhaustion and reduced oxygen cost of submaximal exercise, with effects most consistent in efforts lasting roughly 5 to 30 minutes.
An important qualifier: benefits are clearest in recreationally trained individuals and diminish in highly trained endurance athletes, whose nitric oxide systems are already well developed. This pattern is consistent across the literature.
There is also reasonable evidence for repeated high-intensity efforts and for blood pressure reduction, the latter being one of the more reliably demonstrated effects of any food-derived supplement.
Dosing
Dose by nitrate content: 400-800 mg, or 6-13 mmol. Around 6-8 mmol is the standard research dose.
Timing matters more here than for most things. Nitrite peaks in the blood 2-3 hours after ingestion, so take it 2-3 hours before the session rather than immediately before. Taking it 20 minutes out will do nothing.
Several days of daily loading appears to work better than a single acute dose. And do not use antibacterial mouthwash on the day — it kills the tongue bacteria the pathway depends on and cancels the effect completely. Expect harmlessly red urine and stools.
Plasma nitrite peaks 2-3 hours post-dose and remains elevated for several hours
Timing
2-3 hours before the session; avoid antibacterial mouthwash that day
Competition status
Permitted — not on the WADA Prohibited List
Category
Endurance
Safety and side effects
Beetroot is a food and is well tolerated. The most common effects are entirely harmless but alarming if unexpected: red or pink urine and stools, caused by the pigment rather than anything to worry about.
Digestive upset can occur with concentrated juice shots, particularly on an empty stomach.
Because nitrate widens blood vessels and lowers blood pressure, take care if yours is being managed, and check with your doctor before use if you take regular medication. Beetroot is also relatively high in oxalate, which is worth knowing if you have had kidney stones.
Who should avoid it
Take care if your blood pressure is being managed, and speak to your doctor before use if you take regular medication, particularly anything affecting blood pressure or circulation. Keep intake modest if you have had kidney stones, given the oxalate content. Not established at supplemental doses in pregnancy or breastfeeding.
This entry is provided for information only. Food supplements should not be used as a substitute for a varied and balanced diet and a healthy lifestyle. Consult a qualified healthcare professional before use if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, taking medication or under medical supervision.
