Nitrates in beet greens – a natural doping agent for athletes
If you’ve heard that beetroot juice enhances athletic performance, you already know a lot about the benefits of beet greens in sports. Beet greens and beetroot share a very similar mechanism of action: improved nitric oxide production during exercise.
Nitric oxide (NO) is a compound that causes blood vessels to widen, improves oxygenation of body cells, and directly supports athletic performance. Higher nitric oxide levels translate into improved oxygen access to cells, which is important during exercise. Nitric oxide provides you with tangible benefits during sports exercise. It is known to improve exercise adaptation by:
- modulating blood flow,
- improving muscle contractility,
- increasing glucose uptake by body cells,
- enhancing cellular respiration.
This reduces oxygen demand and improves exercise performance at the cellular level. As a result, you can get the same effect with less effort. This is especially important for people doing anaerobic exercise such as sprint workouts, interval training, HIIT or weight lifting.
It doesn’t only sound good in theory – it works well in real life, too! The beneficial effects of nitrates on athletic performance have been proven in multiple studies. [1,2,4] You already know that it’s a good thing to have an elevated NO level if you exercise. However, nitric oxide is chemically unstable, so it must be synthesized in blood vessels at a given time. You can’t supply it with food or supplements to “stock up” because your body is unable to store it for later use. Nitric oxide is produced naturally by the oxidation of L-arginine, one of the amino acids supplied to the body with food. However, the conversion of L-arginine to nitric oxide (NO) is most efficient under aerobic conditions. When you perform vigorous anaerobic exercise, such as fast swimming or sprinting, your cells can run out of oxygen for the synthesis of NO. But there is another, better way for your body to produce NO efficiently: you can get it from nitrites and nitrates supplied with food, such as beet greens and beetroot juice.
Beet greens are a particularly nitrate-rich food. Beets are generally known for being packed with nitrates and nitrites, but these compounds are most abundant in beet stalks, leaves and stems, that is beet greens. [4]
Beet greens in sport – best for whom?
All athletes can gain major benefits from eating beet greens. In the simplest terms, beet greens are good for your health, rich in vitamins, and low in calories. However, in the context of sports, the biggest gains will be achieved by those practicing sports of shorter duration. Beet greens are a “natural doping agent” for all those who:
- do 5-15 km runs at higher intensity, when there’s an increased risk of oxygen deficiency in muscles.
- do team sports: football, volleyball, basketball.
- practice swimming, climbing, boxing or any other intense but short exercise (<30 minutes).
- do strength training. Beet greens work great for triathletes, for example.
The beneficial effects of increasing the intake of nitrates and nitrites are especially pronounced in amateur athletes. Elite athletes may also benefit from increasing their intake of compounds increasing NO production, but they should not expect a very spectacular improvement in performance. This is because those who train very intensely have more vascular muscles. Consequently, they are better equipped to produce NO from the amino acid L-arginine, based on an increased activity of the enzyme NOS.
Other health benefits of beet greens
You already know that nitrates and nitrites in beet greens increase NO production, which improves athletic performance. But there is more. Since nitric oxide is known to play other important health-boosting roles, beet greens give you even more benefits:
- NO supports immune function and helps eliminate unwanted microorganisms, parasites and, according to some studies, even cancer cells. [3]
- Nitric oxide acts like a neurotransmitter, for example by carrying information between nerve and muscle cells. This improves your reflexes and reduces reaction time.
- In addition, NO prevents platelets from adhering to blood vessels, and relieves inflammation in arteries and veins. Based on these properties, nitric oxide contributes to preventing atherosclerosis. [5]
Beet greens are good for your health not only because of nitric oxide. Beets are among vegetables exhibiting the highest antioxidant potential. This is mostly due to betalains – compounds with anti-inflammatory properties that prevent the oxidation of LDL cholesterol. The highest content of betalains is found in red beet parts, but beet greens have plenty of them, too. As you can see, beet greens are great if you want to strengthen your heart, improve physical appearance, and get an overall health boost. [4]
Beet greens in the diet of physically active people – nutrition facts
Eat beet greens, even if their sports performance-enhancing properties are not your main focus because you stay active for fun and health rather than to break sports records. Beet greens are a superfood that is highly recommended for yet another – perhaps even more important – reason: they are rich in vitamins and minerals, and low in calories. In fact, beet greens are among the most energy-dense vegetables around. Add it to your daily diet and enjoy the benefits.
A 100 g portion of beet greens contains:
- 22 kcal
- 2.2 g protein
- 0.13 g fat
- 4.4 g carbohydrates
- 3.7 g dietary fiber
- 15 µg folates (ca. 15% of RDA)
- 0.22 mg vitamin B2 (ca. 17% of RDA)
- 6,326 IU vitamin A (ca. 211% of RDA)
- 30 mg vitamin C (ca. 50% of RDA)
- 400 µg vitamin K (ca. 333% of RDA)
- 762 mg potassium (ca. 16% of RDA)
- 2.57 mg iron (ca. 32% of RDA)
- 70 mg magnesium (ca. 18% of RDA)
These properties make beet greens a food that is perfect for everyone. Athletes benefit from their performance-enhancing properties. Those looking to lose weight can improve the nutritional value of their diet without consuming excess calories. And everyone without exception gets the added benefit of improved cardiovascular health. [6]
Ways to eat beet greens to improve health and athletic performance Recipes and meal examples
If you’re keen to get the most out of beet greens, simply add them to your diet. To take advantage of this unique vegetable, you don’t need to devote a lot of effort to integrating it into your pre-workout or post-workout meals. Here are some simple ideas to sneak beet greens into your diet:
Protein-rich cold beet greens soup (serves 2)
Ingredients:
- 1 bunch beets with greens (ca. 260 g)
- 1 cucumber
- 2 boiled potatoes (ca. 150 g)
- 1 bunch chives
- 1 handful fresh mint or dill
- 600 ml kefir (2% fat)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- black pepper
- 2 hard boiled eggs
Preparation:
- Boil and cool the potatoes. Dice them or mash with a fork.
- Separate new beets from beet greens.
- Steam the beets and stems for about 10 minutes. Add beet greens for the last minute of steaming.
- Cut the beets and stems into small cubes. Chop the leaves.
- Grate the cucumber on a coarse grater.
- Chop the chives and dill.
- Hard-boil the eggs.
- Mix the beets, beet greens, chives, cucumber, and dill.
- Combine the ingredients with kefir.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Serve with a hard boiled egg.
Macronutrients/serving:
- Energy: 280 kcal
- Protein: 22 g
- Fat: 11.5 g
- Carbohydrates: 22.5 g
Nitrate-rich nutrition bomb: salad with beet greens, beetroot and rocket leaves
Ingredients (serves 1):
- 2 handfuls beet greens
- 1 cooked beetroot
- 1 handful rocket leaves,
- 20 g walnuts
- 60 g light mozzarella cheese
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
Preparation:
- Wash the beet greens. Chop them up and mix with the rocket leaves.
- Add the chopped beetroot and mozzarella cheese.
- Sprinkle the salad with roasted nuts and drizzle with lemon juice.
Macronutrients:
- Energy: 310 kcal
- Protein: 20 g
- Fat: 15 g
- Carbohydrates: 19 g
Pre-workout beet green smoothie
Ingredients (serves 1):
- 1 handful beet greens (approx. 30 g)
- 250 ml milk (2%) or sugar-free plant-based beverage
- banana
- 150 g frozen strawberries
- 30 g cooked millet groats
Preparation:
- Put the ingredients into a blender.
- Blend until smooth.
Macronutrients:
- Energy: 330 kcal
- Protein: 12 g
- Fat: 6 g
- Carbohydrates: 54 g
References:
1. Larsen FJ, Weitzberg E, Lundberg JO, Ekblom B. Effects of dietary nitrate on oxygen cost during exercise. Acta Physiol (Oxf). 2007 Sep;191(1):59-66. doi: 10.1111/j.1748-1716.2007.01713.x. Epub 2007 Jul 17. PMID: 17635415.
2. Hord NG, Tang Y, Bryan NS. Food sources of nitrates and nitrites: The physiologic context for potential health benefits. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2009;90:1-10. DOI: 10.3945/ajcn.2008.27131
3. James SL. Role of nitric oxide in parasitic infections. Microbiology Reviews. 1995;59:533-547. DOI: PMCID: PMC239385
4. Baião, D, Silva, D i wsp., Vânia, Nutritional, Bioactive and Physicochemical Characteristics of Different Beetroot Formulations. 2017
5. Machha A, Schechter AN. Dietary nitrite and nitrate: A review of potential mechanisms of cardiovascular benefits. European Journal of Nutrition. 2011;50:293-303. DOI: 10.1007/s00394-011-0192-5
6. Mirmiran P, Houshialsadat Z, Gaeini Z, Bahadoran Z, Azizi F. Functional properties of beetroot (Beta vulgaris) in management of cardio-metabolic diseases. Nutr Metab (Lond). 2020;17:3. Published 2020 Jan 7. doi:10.1186/s12986-019-0421-0
7. USDA FoodData Central: https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/