Dietary nitrate supplementation via Beet It beet juice has been associated with improvements of 4-25% in exercise time to exhaustion and of 1-3% in time trial performances in multiple sports, including running, cycling and rowing. To put these improvements into perspective, the difference between 1st and 12th place in the 10,000m men’s running final at the 2012 London Olympics was only 0.66%. Therefore, the evidenced-based improvements offered by Beet It Sport can be particularly meaningful to endurance athletes in competition.

Potential underlying mechanisms include improved oxygen delivery through vasodilatory effects of nitric oxide, reduced oxygen cost of exercise and alterations in cellular energetics.

Dietary nitrate supplementation (400-800mg) over 5-7 days, has been shown to improve sprint performance by 3-5%, and improve reaction time and decision making by 3.5%.

Dietary nitrate intake from Beet It beet juice has been shown to increase blood flow to type II (fast-twitch) muscle fibres, which are used during sprinting and also increase blood flow to the brain, which may explain the beneficial effects of beet juice to cognitive function during exercise.

Intake of dietary nitrate supplementation via Beet It beet juice has been shown to increase muscle speed and power production. The consumption of just one Beet It Sport shot has been shown to increase muscle speed (+6.5%), power (+19.5%) and total repetitions completed (+9.4%), during bench press exercises. The intake of two Beet It Sport shots has been shown to increase muscle power production by 15-25% during squat exercises.

The benefits of beet juice for strength and power production are due to possible increased neuromuscular efficiency, increase contractile efficiency, the reduced energy cost of exercise and fibre-type specific effects of boosted nitric oxide.

Exposure to altitude can have a negative effect on exercise performance, as the environment decreases blood vessel function and subsequently the amount of oxygen that reaches the lungs, blood and muscles.

A team of Norwegian and Swedish researchers decided to test whether dietary nitrate supplementation via beet juice could improve blood vessel function at a high altitude during a 39-day expedition to Kathmandu and also at 3700 metres in the Rolwaling Valley, Nepal.

Results found that dietary nitrate supplementation improved blood vessel function, causing them to relax and return to normal function at altitude, whereas the placebo group presented no effect.

Svein Erik Gaustad, the lead author of the report, noted that “next time you plan a trip at high altitude, maybe it is worth carrying a bottle of ‘Beet It’ beet juice in your backpack. It may be the extra boost your body needs to deliver enough oxygen to your tired muscles and keep you healthy when you are climbing a high mountain.”