Abstract
Background: Beetroot juice (BRJ) supplementation has been shown to increase physical performance under hypoxic conditions and improve the recovery of athletes. In the present study, we investigated the effect of acute BRJ supplementation on performance and muscle soreness in Alpine skiers in moderate to high altitudes (3000m).
Methods: Ten male Alpine skiers received 220 ml of BRJ or placebo (59) on two days with a 7-day wash-out interval in a randomized, cross-over, placebo-controlled, and double-blind design. The 90s Box Jump (BJ90) results, agility Hexagonal obstacle Jump (Hex jump), and wall-sit tests were recorded each day. After the functional test, Slalom run performance was measured by time to complete two runs of the Slalom course; immediately after each Slalom run, the rating of perceived exertion (123) was recorded. Also, the Perceived Muscle Soreness (MS) was recorded using the visual analog scale (VAS) 24 (MS-24 h) hours after Slalom runs.
Results: The data were analyzed using paired T-tests at p<0.05. Compared with PLA, BRJ significantly improved wall-sit and BJ90 performances (p<0.05), while a significant reduction was observed in RPE, Hex jump, and MS (p<0.05). However, there were no significant differences between PLA and BRJ in time to complete Slalom runs (p>0.05); 1.74% shorter total time was observed in the BRJ compared with PLA.
Conclusions: Consuming BRJ appears to be an effective strategy for improving specific performance and reducing muscle soreness in Alpine skiers under hypoxic conditions. Additionally, BRJ had a relatively favorable impact on Slalom run performance, although it was insignificant.