Beetroot benefits for athletes: performance, physiology, and nutritional Solutions

The integration of plant-based functional foods to optimize sports performance is a major research area in exercise nutrition. Among these superfoods, beetroot has become an essential reference, validated by leading scientific bodies such as the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Once confined to traditional cuisine, beetroot has undergone a rapid commercial transition, evolving from a niche ingredient for knowledgeable endurance athletes to a major functional component in performance nutrition and overall cardiovascular health..

What are the nutritional benefits of beetroot for athletes?

Beetroot's reputation in sports nutrition stems from its exceptional nutritional density. This root vegetable is a powerhouse of bioactive compounds, essential vitamins, and minerals that work together to support athletic performance and overall health..

Beyond these nutrients, beetroot's characteristic purple color is due to betalains (mainly betanin), nitrogenous plant pigments with remarkable antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. During intense physical exertion, oxygen consumption drastically increases, leading to increased free radical production and oxidative stress. Betalains neutralize these unstable molecules, protecting cellular integrity, limiting muscle damage, and reducing inflammation markers such as C-reactive protein.

How does beetroot improve performance and muscle strength?

Beetroot's primary benefit for athletes lies in its exceptional concentration of nitrates, which trigger a cascade of beneficial physiological transformations.

The metabolic pathway of nitric oxide

After ingestion, dietary nitrates embark on a well-known biochemical conversion pathway:

• Oral conversion: Nitrates are absorbed in the digestive tract, then concentrated in the salivary glands. During saliva secretion, anaerobic bacteria on the surface of the tongue reduce nitrates NO3 to nitrites (NO2.

• Systemic conversion: Once swallowed, these nitrites are converted to nitric oxide (NO) by gastric acid and pass into the bloodstream and then into muscle tissues, particularly under conditions of relative hypoxia and mild acidosis induced by exertion.

The use of antiseptic mouthwashes or antibacterial chewing gums destroys the oral flora necessary for this first conversion step, thereby nullifying almost all of beetroot's effects.

The transition to mitochondrial efficiency

Historically, the scientific community attributed beetroot's beneficial effects solely to an overall increase in blood flow to active muscles due to nitric oxide's vasodilatory properties. However, rigorous clinical research, particularly conducted by Penn State University, has shown that beetroot does not significantly increase overall muscle blood perfusion during exercise.

Beetroot's beneficial effect is instead explained by a remarkable improvement in the efficiency of mitochondria, the energy powerhouses of our cells. Nitric oxide acts as a regulator of mitochondrial respiration, allowing the synthesis of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) while consuming less oxygen for a given level of exertion. Muscles thus become more energy-efficient, reducing the oxygen cost of exercise, delaying lactic acid accumulation, and postponing fatigue.

The benefits of beetroot for muscle strength and power

While beetroot is historically an ally for endurance sports, it is equally relevant for strength and bodybuilding athletes. Nitric oxide improves calcium release and reuptake at the sarcoplasmic reticulum (a specialized structure within muscle cells. Its primary role is to store and release calcium (Ca²⁺), an essential element for muscle contraction), which optimizes the contractile efficiency of skeletal muscle fibers, especially type II (fast-twitch) fibers involved in explosive efforts. Standardized beetroot juice significantly increases muscle contraction speed (+6.5%), maximal power (+19.5%), and total repetition volume during high-intensity exercises like bench press (+9.4%).

What does science say? Deciphering the 2026 meta-analysis

A meta-analysis published in Frontiers in Nutrition (updated July 2026) synthesized data from 33 controlled clinical studies to quantitatively assess the impact of beetroot juice on aerobic and anaerobic performance.

The meta-analysis also highlighted important modifying factors that guide athletes' nutritional strategy:

• Athlete profile: Gains in anaerobic performance (HIS) are more pronounced in amateur athletes, while professionals in individual sports react more selectively, showing increases in VO2max primarily with acute intakes of specific formulations.

• Choice of formulation: Improvements in mean power output (MPO) are closely correlated with the use of beetroot juice or concentrate guaranteeing a precise nitrate intake. Conversely, improvements in VO2max also respond very well to fresh, homemade formulations.

• Identified limitations: The authors highlight small sample sizes in certain subgroups, the absence of long-term studies on the safety of massive nitrate supplementation, and the lack of precise data to establish a strict dose-response relationship.

What are the dangers, contraindications, and side effects of beetroot?

Although beetroot is a natural and healthy food, its intensive consumption as a supplement requires some precautions.

Urine and stool discoloration

This is a common and completely harmless phenomenon characterized by a pink to dark red discoloration of urine or stool. This reaction is simply due to the renal and intestinal elimination of betanin, the purple pigment in beetroot, and poses no health risk.

Risk of kidney stones (oxalates)

Beetroot is particularly rich in oxalates, chemical compounds that can combine with calcium in the urinary tract. People prone to calcium oxalate kidney stones or with a predisposition to renal lithiasis should consume beetroot in moderation and seek medical advice.

Drug interactions and hypotension

By increasing nitric oxide production, beetroot promotes arterial wall dilation and induces a clinically significant drop in blood pressure (approximately -3.5 to -8 mmHg). While this effect is excellent for overall cardiovascular health, athletes already suffering from hypotension or taking antihypertensive medication should be vigilant. A cumulative effect is possible, risking dizziness or excessive fatigue during postural transitions.

Gastrointestinal discomfort during exercise

In the form of highly concentrated raw juice, beetroot can be aggressive for sensitive digestive mucous membranes. Taken in large quantities just before an intense workout, fresh juice can cause nausea, bloating or accelerated transit, which can be detrimental to performance.

Raw or cooked beetroot: what's the best option for performance?

The method of preparing beetroot influences both its digestive tolerance and the preservation of its valuable nutrients.

• Raw beetroot (and fresh juice): This option ensures optimal preservation of water-soluble vitamins (especially vitamin C) and heat-sensitive antioxidants such as betanin. It is the preferred form for maximizing antioxidant effect and raw nitrate intake. However, the tough fibers of raw beetroot are difficult to digest and can be irritating to the digestive tract during exertion.

• Cooked beetroot: Cooking softens the fibrous structure of the vegetable, making it much more tender and digestible. It is ideal for sensitive stomachs. To preserve a maximum of nitrates and minerals (potassium, magnesium), it is advisable to steam cook gently rather than prolonged boiling in water, as the latter leads to the leakage of active compounds into the cooking liquid.

An innovative and digestible energy solution: Mulebar's Strawberry-Redcurrant-Beetroot compote

Drinking large volumes of beetroot juice before or during prolonged exertion (such as a marathon, triathlon or ultra-trail) has obvious practical limitations: a pronounced earthy taste causing nausea, logistical burden and digestive discomfort linked to the influx of liquid into the stomach compressed by exertion.

To solve this complex equation, sports nutrition science is turning to synergies of natural and digestible ingredients. Modern research has shown that carbohydrate absorption during exercise is optimized by combining different sugar sources (such as glucose and fructose in an ideal 2:1 ratio), allowing a high oxidation rate (up to 90g of carbohydrates per hour) while minimizing intestinal problems.

It is in this approach of naturalness and performance that the energy compote from the French sports nutrition brand Mulebar is positioned, developed to meet the physiological demands of endurance sports.

A synergistic, 100% natural formulation

Mulebar's Strawberry-Redcurrant-Beetroot energy compote cleverly combines two red fruits and beetroot to offer a first-rate antioxidant and energy profile:

• Brown rice syrup (56%): Made from natural rice fermentation, this syrup provides a constant supply of high-glycemic-index glucose, ensuring a gradual release of energy to sustain effort without causing insulin spikes followed by reactive fatigue.

• Strawberry puree (15%): A natural source of vitamin C and powerful antioxidants, it brings a fresh, fruity note that is highly appreciated during physical exertion.

• Redcurrant puree (15%): Rich in organic acids, it provides a subtle acidity that awakens the taste buds, prevents a pasty mouth sensation, and breaks the monotony of sweet taste during long efforts.

• Red beet puree (14%): It provides a natural and stable source of organic nitrates to optimize muscle oxygenation and push back the fatigue threshold, while giving the compote its intense red color.

Practicality of use and tolerance to effort

Unlike classic thick and sticky gels, this compote offers a fluid and digestible texture that goes down easily, even when the heart rate is high. Packaged in a flexible pouch with a resealable cap (Gualapack technology), it allows for fractionated intake. This gradual ingestion (e.g., every 15 to 20 minutes) avoids overloading the stomach and prevents gastrointestinal discomfort.

A practical tip from field experience: consume a Strawberry-Redcurrant-Beetroot compote fifteen minutes before the start of an event. This simple protocol allows for nitrate saturation of the body and initiation of carbohydrate reserves in an extremely digestible way, without burdening the stomach before the first ascents. During exertion, alternating with energy gels or energy bars helps vary nutrient intake and maintain a consistent pace until the finish line.

Conclusion

Red beetroot is asserting itself as one of the most solid and documented natural nutritional tools for improving athletic performance, both aerobically and anaerobically. By optimizing oxygen economy in the mitochondria and protecting cells with its antioxidant pigments, it provides a valuable performance gain. To reconcile these major scientific benefits with the digestive realities of intense effort, the use of innovative nutritional formats, combining energetic fruit purees and beetroot, is emerging as a future strategy for athletes concerned about their performance and digestive well-being.

This is for informational purposes only. For any medical advice or diagnosis, please consult a professional.

Answers to frequently asked questions from athletes about beetroot

When should I drink beetroot juice before exercise?

To fully benefit from the effects of beetroot, timing of ingestion is crucial. The peak plasma nitrite concentration generally occurs between 2 and 3 hours after ingestion (with peak efficacy precisely measured at 2h30). It is within this time window that intake should be planned before a training session or competition.

How much beetroot juice should be consumed to be effective?

Clinical protocols recommend a minimum dose of 400mg of nitrates per serving to induce a significant ergogenic effect. In practice, this corresponds to consuming 250 to 500ml of classic beetroot juice for a training session, and up to 400 to 600ml before an important competition.

Should beetroot juice be taken as a course before a competition?

A single acute dose already shows real benefits in terms of effort economy and power. However, several studies suggest that a cumulative effect occurs when beetroot is consumed as a loading course for 5 to 12 consecutive days before a sporting objective. Due to the lack of long-term scientific data on intensive nitrate consumption, it is advisable to limit loading courses to a maximum of two consecutive weeks.

Is beetroot beneficial for the liver and digestion?

Beetroot contains betaine, a bioactive compound with remarkable hepatoprotective action that helps prevent fat accumulation in liver cells (steatosis). Additionally, its richness in soluble and insoluble dietary fiber supports the intestinal microbiota, promoting the production of anti-inflammatory molecules by colonic bacteria and regulating transit.