ROOT · MATERIA №20
Beetroot
Beta vulgaris
The deep-red root that supports nitric oxide and endurance.
- Family
- root
- Origin
- Cultivated worldwide
- Format
- Concentrated powder
- Best taken
- Pre-workout
Beetroot is dense in dietary nitrates, which the body converts to nitric oxide via a two-step microbial pathway in the mouth and the body.
Used by endurance athletes for two decades for its effect on oxygen efficiency.
How it works in the body
Nitrate is reduced to nitrite by oral bacteria, then to nitric oxide in tissues. Nitric oxide relaxes blood vessels, improving blood flow and oxygen delivery to working muscle.
What you can expect
Endurance
Improves oxygen efficiency in steady-state efforts.
Good for: energy · recovery
Blood-flow support
Supports nitric oxide signalling in vessels.
Good for: recovery
04 — PROTOCOL
5–10 g of concentrated powder 1–2 hours before training.
05 — SOURCING
Concentrated powder with disclosed nitrate content. Cheap powders rarely deliver a meaningful dose.
06 — CAUTION
May lower blood pressure. Avoid antibacterial mouthwashes the day of use — they kill the oral bacteria needed for the conversion.
What the studies say
Beetroot's active is dietary nitrate, converted in the body to nitric oxide. The blood-pressure and exercise-performance signals are among the most reproducible in the entire functional-food literature.
Honest caveatAntibacterial mouthwash blocks the oral nitrate-to-nitrite conversion and abolishes the effect — an unusual but real interaction.
- 01META-ANALYSIS
Inorganic nitrate and beetroot juice supplementation reduces blood pressure in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Siervo M, Lara J, Ogbonmwan I, Mathers JC · Journal of Nutrition · 2013
“Inorganic nitrate and beetroot juice supplementation significantly reduced systolic blood pressure in adults, with a clinically relevant effect size.”
Plain EnglishPooled trials show beetroot/nitrate lowers systolic blood pressure by a clinically meaningful amount.
- 02META-ANALYSIS
Factors that Moderate the Effect of Nitrate Ingestion on Exercise Performance in Adults: A Systematic Review with Meta-Analyses and Meta-Regressions
Various · Sports Medicine · 2022
“Nitrate ingestion produced significant improvements in exercise performance, with moderating effects from dose, timing, training status and habitual diet.”
Plain EnglishPerformance benefits are real but dose-, timing- and population-dependent.
All citations link to PubMed, PubMed Central or the original publisher. We do not reproduce full study text. References last verified by SACRAHAUS editorial.
08 — PRODUCTS
Products with Beetroot
08 — PAIRS WELL WITH
Build the stack
SUPPORTS
What Beetroot can help with
APPEARS IN THESE RITUALS
Honest answers
- Why does my mouthwash matter?
- The conversion of nitrate to nitric oxide depends on oral bacteria. Antibacterial mouthwash blunts the effect.
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