Ron Lugbill Whitewater Slalom Racing Blog

beetroot juice to increase performance

Beetroot Juice to Increase Performance

Usually, in sports research we have to rely on studies from other sports such as running or swimming. Even other sports do the same thing.  We all extrapolate results from one sport and presume that another sport will have similar results. There isn't enough research money to do different research on each sport.

Sometimes, the results do vary from sport to sport. For example, most sports show increased performance from strength training. This has been repeated in many different sports. An exception is swimming. For some reason, strength training has had mixed results or no results from strength training. Nonetheless, most top swimmers do supplemental strength training.

In any case, here is a study that used elite flatwater kayak racers. OK, not whitewater racers, but as close as we are going to get. And the study found better performance after taking beetroot juice. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25202886

Beetroot juice has nitrates, which are supposed to help with oxygenation of the muscles. It has been studied in other sports and most results have been positive although some research has been inconclusive. It has been shown to help swimmers. And flatwater kayakers.

I thought that the benefit would be in recovery, but in the study, it helped performance when taken right before the activity. Long term use wasn't measured. It was a laboratory ergometer test. And if you look at the study, the numbers were low, I think 6 male and 5 females. So, with such a small size, it is not super reliable. But at least we aren't extrapolating from a different sport and assuming that it applies to whitewater slalom racing.

Here is a link to the study:  http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25202886

 

strength training reduces chance of injury but stretching doesn't

Strength Training Reduces Chance of Injury But Stretching Doesn't

To decrease your risk of injury, strength training is recommended, according to the studies on injury-prevention.  http://www.running-physio.com/strength-review/

Strength training in the range of 70% and up of 1 rep maximum helps to prevent injury significantly. Another component to decreasing injury risk is to avoid overtraining. Overtraining frequently results in injury.

Stretching, on the other hand, does not reduce the chance of injury. It may actually increase the risk of injury if done right before training or an event. I still believe it is helpful to increase range of motion and for recovery purposes.

In any case, doing strength training builds the muscles, the tendons and the ligaments, which decreases the risk of injury. According to the research, this is best done with heavier weights and lower reps. 10 reps or less with weights at least 70% of 1 rep maximum. Of course, proper technique must be maintained in weight training. In particular for Olympic lifts, using a coach or personal trainer to advise you on technique is important.

And working with a coach or personal trainer is valuable for your strength training. Strength training is not limited to just lifting weights. I highly recommend bodyweight exercises as a way to build strength and to avoid injury. Bodyweight exercises develop the core in addition to the limbs and they are functional. They use real movements that a person would actually carry out, rather than isolating muscles. 

Some people don't like hanging out in the gym lifting weights, so there are some sports that are just as effective as weight training. Gymnastics is a great way to train athleticism and strength. Rock climbing is also excellent for developing the body in a functional way. Parkour has become popular and uses bodyweight training to develop strength and movement. Wrestling is another sport that develops the body in a good, functional manner.

Here is the article on strength training and injury prevention:  http://www.running-physio.com/strength-review/