Beetroot shots, anyone tried?

ugo.santalucia

The 70 ml shots with 400 mg of nitrate... anyone has any experience of use in training/racing to share?

I like beetroot juice, so taste is not an issue for me

jgsi

Used to....minimal if nil value to performance on reflection - placebo effect.
But, digestion system had benefit...fibre intake of the juice variety..the shots, less so I would think.

ugo.santalucia

yeah, I am always a bit sceptical about the miracle foods... but there is "scientific evidence" of a 2.7% improve in performance...

That is 308 Watt where it was 300... a couple of seconds up a 3-4 minute climb

imposter2.0

Used to, when I was racing. I stopped bothering, as the sheer horror of the beetroot taste easily outweighed any potential benefit...

harry-s

There's a proven gain IIRC, mostly to do with vasodilation. It's hard to say if the gain is perceptible, I don't think we're geared up physiologically to feel those sorts of changes, but as you say, it appears to be measurable.
I've used them on long events, and managed to freak a guy out at an adjacent urinal at the end of one, - your pee will come out bright red. I told him it was all to do with "the suffering"...

ugo.santalucia

Yes, broadly speaking Nitrogen oxide dilates vessels allowing for improved oxygenation of tissues, a bit like having a higher VO2 max in the end... probably needs to be the right dose at the right time... too late and you just carrying around fluids, too early and the effect is gone.
I was thinking for TT and hill climbs might work, as you know your start time exactly and the event is really short, so you can maximise the effect.

Side effects: yes, beetroot makes me go too, but typically it is a day after issue and yes pee comes out a salmon shade of pink... not a biggy, quite entertaining actually

joeyhalloran

Just a quick note, eating beetroot and drinking juice won't be the same as the shots which are specifically farmed and treated to increase levels of NO2.

ugo.santalucia

joeyhalloran said:

Just a quick note, eating beetroot and drinking juice won't be the same as the shots which are specifically farmed and treated to increase levels of NO2.

Yes, the amount in a shot is about the same as a pint of juice. Drinking a pint of juice before a race doesn't seem like a great idea, hence I thought of the shots...