How to Take Beetroot Nitrate: Dosage, Timing, Duration

You can only benefit from beetroot nitrates with correct dosing: too little and there is no effect, too much and there is only gastric discomfort. The editorial team gathered research data on the dose, timing, and course duration and turned it into a practical guide.

How much nitrate is needed

The main rule of nitrate dosing is to count not the milliliters of juice and not the grams of powder, but the amount of the nitrate itself. It is expressed in milligrams or millimoles: 1 mmol of nitrate corresponds to approximately 62 mg. The nitrate content in different products varies several-fold, so 'a glass of juice' is an unreliable measure.

The dose-response study by Wylie and colleagues (2013) showed that about 4 mmol of nitrate (approximately 250 mg) produces a noticeable rise in blood nitrite but a weak effect on performance. A dose of about 8 mmol (approximately 500 mg) improved endurance performance, while an increase to about 17 mmol gave no additional benefit.

The IOC consensus (Maughan et al., 2018) and Jones's reviews (Jones, 2014; Jones et al., 2018) point to a range of approximately 6-8 mmol (about 370-500 mg) of nitrate as the typical effective single dose for most people. Some researchers allow that well-trained athletes may need the upper limit of this range or a little more.

For comparison: 70 ml of a concentrated beetroot shot, the form most often used in studies, contains about 6-6.5 mmol of nitrate. The same amount can be obtained from about 500 ml of ordinary beetroot juice, but the nitrate content of ordinary juices is very inconsistent.

• Minimum working dose: about 6 mmol (≈370 mg).
• Typical dose for endurance: 6-8 mmol (≈370-500 mg).
• Above ~16 mmol no additional effect has been shown, while gastric symptoms become more likely.

When to take it before training

The timing of intake is determined by pharmacokinetics. After consuming nitrate, part of it must pass through the salivary glands and the bacteria of the oral cavity to be converted into nitrite. So the peak of nitrite in plasma occurs not immediately, but after approximately 2-3 hours.

Accordingly, in most studies participants took beetroot juice 2-3 hours before exercise. If competitions are early, this forces some athletes to wake up earlier or to combine intake with a pre-start breakfast. Nitrite remains elevated for several hours, so for exercise lasting up to an hour this window is usually sufficient.

For competitions lasting several hours (for example, a tournament of several matches), some practitioners use an additional intake, but there is little quality research on such a strategy. A more reliable approach is preliminary saturation over several days, which we will discuss below.

Taking nitrate right before the start, 'at the line,' is ineffective: the body does not have time to convert nitrate into nitrite before work begins, and the liquid in the stomach can cause discomfort.

A single intake or a course

There are two main regimens. The acute one - a single dose 2-3 hours before exercise. The chronic one - daily intake over several days, with the last dose on the day of the start. Both regimens improved results in studies, but the chronic one, according to the reviews by Jones et al. (2018), may produce a more stable effect, especially in high-intensity and intermittent exercise.

In practice this means 3-7 days of daily intake before important competitions. Already in the first works of Larsen (2007) and Bailey (2009), it was precisely a multi-day intake that was used. Probably, during this time changes occur at the level of the muscle tissue, for example in the calcium metabolism of fast fibers.

Long-term intake over months has been studied much less, mainly in the context of blood pressure (Kapil et al., 2015). There is no convincing data that constant intake is better than targeted use before competitions, so the editorial team regards nitrates as a 'competition' supplement.

It is also worth considering that during daily intake beeturia may be constant, and the stomach has to adapt to regular juice consumption. So it is better to begin the saturation period not in the week of the most important start, but to test it in advance during the training cycle.

What can reduce the effect

The most insidious 'enemy' of nitrates is antibacterial mouthwash. The study by Govoni and colleagues (2008) showed that it sharply reduces the rise of nitrite in plasma after nitrate intake. Kapil and colleagues (2013) demonstrated that regular use of a chlorhexidine mouthwash even raised blood pressure in healthy people. So during the period of taking nitrates it is better to give up antiseptic mouthwashes.

Probably, antibacterial chewing gums and courses of antibiotics that change the oral microflora also affect effectiveness. Ordinary tooth brushing with toothpaste, according to available data, does not have such a strong effect.

Another factor is stomach acidity. Part of the nitrite is converted into nitric oxide in the acidic environment of the stomach, so drugs that suppress acidity can theoretically affect the result. There is less data here, and you should definitely not stop prescribed medications on your own.

Finally, the effect decreases as training level rises (Porcelli et al., 2015). If you are a high-level athlete and do not feel a difference, this may be the norm rather than a sign of a poor-quality product.

Practical tips for intake

The most important rule of sports nutrition is nothing new on competition day. First, test your chosen product and the timing of intake over several training sessions that imitate the competition load. This will let you assess gastric tolerance and the actual feeling of the effect.

1. Choose a product with the nitrate content per serving indicated.
2. Calculate a dose of 6-8 mmol (≈370-500 mg) of nitrate.
3. Take it 2-3 hours before the main exercise.
4. Before an important start, consider 3-7 days of daily intake.
5. Do not use antiseptic mouthwashes during this period.
6. Warn yourself about possible pink coloring of the urine.

People taking blood pressure medications, PDE-5 inhibitors, or with kidney disease should discuss intake with a doctor in advance. Concentrated shots are not intended for children.

The vegetable route works too: a large salad with arugula, spinach, and beetroot can contain a comparable amount of nitrate, but dosing it precisely is impossible. For competitions, standardized products are more convenient, and in everyday life - simply more green vegetables.

Editorial conclusions

The effective single dose of nitrate for most people is approximately 6-8 mmol (≈370-500 mg), taken 2-3 hours before exercise. A few days of saturation before the start can produce a more stable effect, while doses above ~16 mmol bring no additional benefit.

In order not to negate your efforts, give up antiseptic mouthwashes and test the scheme in advance. Count nitrate, not milliliters of juice.

We also recommend our articles 'Beetroot nitrate: product forms and which to choose,' 'What to combine beetroot nitrate with,' and 'Side effects of beetroot nitrate.'

References

1. Wylie LJ, Kelly J, Bailey SJ, et al. Beetroot juice and exercise: pharmacodynamic and dose-response relationships. J Appl Physiol. 2013;115(3):325–336.
2. Maughan RJ, Burke LM, Dvorak J, et al. IOC consensus statement: dietary supplements and the high-performance athlete. Br J Sports Med. 2018;52(7):439–455.
3. Jones AM. Dietary nitrate supplementation and exercise performance. Sports Med. 2014;44(Suppl 1):S35–S45.
4. Jones AM, Thompson C, Wylie LJ, Vanhatalo A. Dietary nitrate and physical performance. Annu Rev Nutr. 2018;38:303–328.
5. Bailey SJ, Winyard P, Vanhatalo A, et al. Dietary nitrate supplementation reduces the O2 cost of low-intensity exercise and enhances tolerance to high-intensity exercise in humans. J Appl Physiol. 2009;107(4):1144–1155.
6. Govoni M, Jansson EA, Weitzberg E, Lundberg JO. The increase in plasma nitrite after a dietary nitrate load is markedly attenuated by an antibacterial mouthwash. Nitric Oxide. 2008;19(4):333–337.
7. Kapil V, Haydar SM, Pearl V, et al. Physiological role for nitrate-reducing oral bacteria in blood pressure control. Free Radic Biol Med. 2013;55:93–100.
8. Porcelli S, Ramaglia M, Bellistri G, et al. Aerobic fitness affects the exercise performance responses to nitrate supplementation. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2015;47(8):1643–1651.