Doing a bit of googling on natural foods to improve cardio endurance stumbled upon the amazing power of BEET juice.
Seems there have been scientific studies as well as well as as well as athletes trying out there own private studies showing almost INSTANT cardio improvement by adding BEETS to their diet.
I'm talking easily measurable differences, such as the following showing a whopping SIXTEEN percent improvement:
Beet juice and nitrates have been gaining more and more attention for their ability to improve athletic performance and reduce blood pressure. It's been well documented for some time now that a diet rich in vegetables can improve cardiovascular health, due to high nitrate content. While all vegetables contain some nitrates, they are more abundant in beets, leafy greens, spinach, celery, endives, fennel, arugula (rocket or rucola), leeks and parsley.
Several studies have now confirmed the effects of nitrates on athletic performance including a study done at the University of Exerter's School of Sport and Health Sciences, using beet juice. The study looked at eight male cyclists consuming half a liter (500ml) of beet juice (approx. 2 cups), containing nearly 700 mg of naturally occurring nitrate, for six days. The control group with the placebo drank 500 ml of black currant cordial containing very minimal nitrates for the same amount of time.
The beet juice group was able to cycle an average of 16 percent longer. The men also had lower resting blood pressure after consuming the beet juice compared to the currant juice. The author, Professor Andy Jones, noted: "Our study is the first to show that nitrate-rich food can increase exercise endurance. We were amazed by the effect of beet juice on oxygen uptake because these effects cannot be achieved by any other known means, including training."
The results from the study are as follows;
As the exercise intensity increased, the extra oxygen demand to provide this increased power output rose more slowly in those taking beetroot juice (the beetroot condition required an extra 8.6 mL of oxygen per minute per additional watt of power output whereas the placebo required an extra 10.8mL per minute per additional watt).
The time-to-exhaustion in the 'severe test' was significantly extended when beetroot juice was taken compared to placebo (675 seconds vs. 583 seconds, an increase of 16 percent!).
The "slow component" of oxygen uptake (you can think of this as the "lag" in the aerobic system while oxygen supply catches up with demand) was reduced by about 0.2 L per minute in the severe test when beetroot juice was taken, indicating that the aerobic system was more efficient at getting up to speed during intense exercise.
Whether you are a professional athlete or a fitness enthusiast, these significant findings are great news! Who doesn't want to naturally boost their performance? The performance boost, researchers say, is due to the high levels of nitrates in beetroot juice.
Tour De France competitors have been drinking beet juice for a few years now. When we are talking about professional and amateur athletes, any legal edge they can get can make the difference between first and second place. And as we know races like the TDF can be won by mere seconds.
I tried my own very unscientific test : during an evening finding a leftover can of beets stashed away for Y2K disaster I ate half then, the other half about 2-3 hours before an aerobic session.
Web research showed just one dose not as effective as multiple over time.
My aerobic session was FAR easier than I expected !
Is it all in my mind via placebo effect? Or are BEETS magic?
I'll do more testing and post.
Try your own tests and POST!
Jack Savage
Www.hikuta.net
No comments:
Post a Comment