Benefits of Beets for Athletes

You’ve probably heard that beets are good for you. Maybe from your mom as she served you a fragrant and alarmingly red bowl of them, or the goateed barista at your local juice bar, or maybe fromRunner’s World or Instagram or some other corner of the internet claiming them as the next athletic super supplement to instantly boost performance 358% and guarantee you a speedy new PR while simultaneously curing all your chronic ailments and bringing you complete life enlightenment.

*friendly reminder not to believe everything you read on the internet

The reality is, beets bring a lot to the table, and not just for turning your pee pink. They’re full of nutrients and can be eaten plenty of ways that don’t make them taste like slightly smooshy perfumed dirt. (Sorry mom, you made plenty of other redeeming side dishes). Roasted, pickled, juiced, and yes, even with chocolate in your bowl of morning oatmeal, we're here for adding beets to our weekly menus.

Their main claim to superfood fame is a rich nitrate content which your body helpfully converts to nitric oxide. Known to dilate blood vessels, nitric oxide helps increase blood flow to muscles (and your brain!) and helps your mitochondria - your cells’ energy power houses, if you’re a few days graduated from junior high biology - perform more efficiently. In a study involving a group of cyclists, the ones who ingested beetroot before their rides “exhibited a 7-11% improvement in power output with no increase in oxygen cost of exercise. Simply stated, they all exhibited increased economy.” <source> Work smarter, not harder - thanks, beets!

This is why Elyse incorporated them into our Can’t Beet Chocolate Performance Oatmeal (as well as many other recipes in her cookbooks) - for their athletic performance benefits! Other than giving Can’t Beet Chocolate its beautiful magenta hue, we felt it was time to shine some light on the star ingredient of our most popular (on Instagram) Oatmeal flavor. With those hard-working nitrates, blood pressure lowering potassium, and an earthy, unique flavor, beets are as nutritionally beneficial as they are fun to eat.

Benefits of Beetroot for Athletes (and everyone!)

• Full of nitrates, which have shown to aid cardiovascular performance and energy efficiency
• Good source of potassium and sodium - electrolytes, whaddup!
• Vitamin C for mineral absorption and bone health
• While suspected to improve cognitive function (by dilating blood vessels flowing to the brain), beets will definitely NOT help you forget the pain of the race you just finished while signing up for another one

Through February 11th, get your beet fix (or any other flavor of Picky Oats) and receive a free packet of Trail Butter! All new, non-subscription orders containing our Performance Oatmeal will include one.

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