Beetroot juice, a nutritious energy drink for muscle recovery

Beetroot Juice, a nutritious energy drink for muscle recovery

Nowadays, beetroot juice has become one of the most popular ergogenic supplements for athletes and adults as it is shown to have a significant impact on body functions during exercise.

It is a nutritious energy drink that can either be consumed before or after workouts, and as simply part of the regular diet.

The beetroot (beta vulgaris) is enjoyed as a food source, is used medicinally, and continues to grow in popularity as an ergogenic supplement.Although there are several varieties of the heart-shaped vegetable, the most common among health-conscious people are the red beetroot.

Beets are a rich source of potent antioxidants and also high in nitrate levels. Nitrate is a chemical naturally occurring in certain foods and is converted into nitric oxide when consumed.

Here are certain studies which prove its utility in muscle recovery.

Potential Post-Workout Drink

According to one research paper by Northumbria University in England, beetroot juice can possibly help muscles recover faster after a strenuous workout session. Twenty participants were segregated into three groups. One of them consumed 250 ml of beetroot juice, the second group had 125 ml of the beetroot juice and the last group was given a placebo. The participants were asked to take the juice 24 hours or 48 hours after performing 100 drop jumps.

The results showed that the group that had the highest dosage had reported the fastest rate of muscle recovery, compared to people in the placebo group. Since oxidative stress can occur as a result of high intensity exercises, it causes inflammation and the spread of free radicals. However, the nitrate component of the juice has the potential to bring down some of the inflammation after completing a tiresome workout.

Beet juice in gummies! click here

Swim test 

A study was published on beetroot juice supplementation and aerobic response in fourteen male swimmers.The participants were master athletes aged in their mid to late thirties and in excellent health. Controlled swim tests were conducted with and without beetroot juice supplementation. The athletes were evaluated throughout the swim test for maximum volume of oxygen (VO2) and aerobic energy cost.

The swimmers significantly increased their anaerobic threshold after beet juice supplementation compared to testing without. This means increased oxygen capacity allowed them to swim longer before reaching exercise failure after drinking beet juice. The athletes were also shown to have a decreased aerobic energy cost supplementing with beet juice. A lowered energy cost enabled the swimmers to sustain an increased exercise time.

The results indicate beetroot juice supplementation may enhance the athletic performance of master trained swimmers.

A 2018 study looked at the effects of betalain on 28 trained male cyclists. The cyclists received 100 mg of either beetroot concentrate or placebo every day for a week. Compared with the placebo group, the beetroot concentrate group had higher exercise efficiency and increased blood flow.

Also, researchers based in Spain identified 23 articles from online databases to accurately understand what (in beet juice) boosts cardiorespiratory endurance.

Drinking beet juice raises nitric oxide levels in our body by 

conversion of nitrates present in beetroot juice into nitric oxide. Research shows nitric oxide can increase blood flow, improve lung function, and strengthen muscle contraction.

Nitric oxide (NO), works by stimulating body functions affecting oxygen utilization. It opens up your blood vessels (vasodilation) increasing blood flow and feeding more oxygen to working muscles. Nitric oxide also functions as a signaling molecule communicating with our cells and body tissues. This communication ensures more blood flow to the muscle and adequate oxygen intake inside the muscle.This has stimulated athletes to supplement with beet juice for improved cardiorespiratory endurance and performance.

Beetroot juice can improve cardiorespiratory endurance in athletes by increasing efficiency, which improves performance at various distances, increases time to exhaustion at submaximal intensities, and may improve the cardiorespiratory performance at anaerobic threshold intensities and maximum oxygen uptake (VO2max).

Thus, beetroot juice shuold be included in our regular diet everyday as it allays fatigue and make us feel energetic and active throughout the day. It can also replace tea and coffee as a healthy refreshing drink. 

By

Sidharth

Refrences:

1. Clifford T, Howatson G, West DJ, Stevenson EJ. The potential benefits of red beetroot supplementation in health and disease. Nutrients. 2015;7(4):2801-22. DOI: 10.3390/nu7042801.
2. Domínguez R, Cuenca E, Maté-muñoz JL, et al. Effects of Beetroot Juice Supplementation on Cardiorespiratory Endurance in Athletes. A Systematic Review. Nutrients. 2017;9(1) DOI: 10.3390/nu9010043.
3. Petey W. MumfordWesley C. KephartMatthew A. RomeroCody T. HaunC. Brooks MobleyShelby C. OsburnJames C. HealyAngelique N. MooreDavid D. PascoeWilliam C. RuffinDarren T. BeckJeffrey S. MartinMichael D. RobertsKaelin C. Young.  Effect of 1-week betalain-rich beetroot concentrate supplementation on cycling performance and select physiological parameters. European Journal of applied phisiology, November 2018, volume 118, Issue 11, pp 2465–2476.
4. "Beetroot juice for muscle recovery: Does it work?" by  Seema Prasad.
5. "Beet your fatigue and supercharge your muscles with Beetroot" by Rami Allan, B.S, NASM-CPT.