Thanks to the nutrients it contains, beetroot is one of the best foods for athletes. With a lot of iron, B vitamins and folate, it even supports the regeneration of your muscles.
Raw, already cooked, pickled, or even as chips – beetroot comes in all shapes. With its slightly sweet taste and intense colour, the tuber enhances many dishes. With only 42 calories per 100 grams, it is perfect for losing weight. But it can also convince with many other properties – especially athletes.
Why Is Beetroot So Healthy?
Beetroot contains valuable vitamins, important minerals and cell-protecting antioxidants. Beetroot is of particular interest to athletes because of its regenerative properties.
Beetroot Promotes Muscle Regeneration
You gave everything in sport – your muscles are exhausted and need to recover. Beetroot can help with regeneration: The nitrates and the B vitamin folate in the tuber lead to better blood circulation in the muscles and organs. As a result, your muscles are supplied with fresh oxygen faster, and your body can recover more quickly. The next workout can come.
Beetroot Boosts Your Metabolism
Beetroot ensures that your metabolism runs at full speed because hardly any other vegetable contains so much potassium and magnesium. Beetroot stimulates your energy metabolism with 336 milligrams of potassium and 25 milligrams of magnesium per 100 grams. With a sufficient supply of magnesium, the body can provide energy more quickly. In addition, potassium, the fourth most common element in your body, regulates muscle contraction and the water balance and the conduction of nerve stimuli. Thus, if consumed regularly, the beetroot ensures that you burn a few extra calories every day.
But the fibre contained in beetroot (2.8 grams per 100 grams) can also help you lose weight. The indigestible fibres swell in the stomach, which significantly increases the volume of food. The result: You stay full longer. At the same time, fibre serves as food for the good bacteria living in your intestines, also called intestinal flora – and a healthy intestinal flora not only lowers your risk of cardiovascular diseases but also strengthens your immune system.
Beetroot As A Potency Booster
The contained nitrates stimulate the production of nitric oxide in your body. This loosens your body vessels and improves blood circulation. Of course, this benefits your muscles, but also your best piece. Because this allows you to keep an erection longer, beetroot is also called “natural Viagra”.
Beetroot Protects Against Heart Disease
In addition to many vitamins, beetroot also contains 0.9 milligrams of iron per 100 milligrams. The trace element is responsible for the transport of oxygen in the blood and is required by the mitochondria, the power plants of the cells. And this is exactly what your heart muscle depends on.
By the way: Vitamin C ensures that the body can better absorb iron. It is best to combine beetroot with a squeeze of lemon. Parsley, paprika, Brussels sprouts and broccoli also contain a lot of vitamin C.
Beetroot can also reduce the likelihood of arteriosclerosis, the build-up of fat and calcium in the blood vessels, and a heart attack. Vitamins such as folate and the plant substance betaine, both of which are found in high amounts in the tuber, lower your cholesterol level considerably and thus ensure that the substance cannot adhere to the blood vessels
Tip: You can lower your blood pressure with just one glass of beetroot juice a day: An Australian study showed that the blood pressure of test subjects six hours after drinking 500 millilitres of beetroot juice was lower than that of the group who ate normally.
Beetroot Makes You Happy
With 93 milligrams of folic acid per 100 grams, beetroot stimulates the release of the hormone dopamine, which is a crucial messenger substance for your feeling of happiness. If you experience something that makes you happy, for example, social interaction, sport, or even music, your body releases more dopamine. That is why dopamine is also known as the happiness hormone.
You see, beetroot can be used in many ways in the kitchen. You can use them as a topping for your salad, for example, or eat them pickled with fried potatoes. Beetroot also tastes fantastic with sheep’s cheese and a little honey or as a soup.
Recipe: Baked Beetroot On Lamb’s Lettuce With A Vinaigrette
In addition to his tips on preparing beetroot, Johann Lafer also gave us his favourite recipe with beetroot. If your mouth doesn’t water:
Ingredients For 4 Persons):
- 3 pieces of raw beetroot
- 30 g butter
- 2 teaspoons of brown sugar
- 1 clove of garlic
- 1 chilli pepper
- 2 small shallots
- 1 teaspoon vinegar
- 500 g lamb’s lettuce
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 pinch of salt
Preparation:
- Preheat the oven to 160 degrees.
- Peel the beetroot, rub a little butter and sprinkle it with sugar. Wrap in aluminium foil and bake in the oven for an hour.
- Meanwhile, cut the shallots into cubes, chop the chilli pepper and garlic clove and fry in oil. Mix with vinegar and salt. Take it from the stove and let it cool off. Finally, mix with oil.
- Take the beetroot out of the oven and cut it into large pieces.
- Mix the lamb’s lettuce with the salad sauce and garnish with the beetroot.
Beetroot after a workout will help your muscles recover. At the same time, regular consumption of beetroot can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. Dare to grab the red tuber and use it for your next salad, or cook the recipe from Johann Lafer.
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