Auburn’s football team before each game, between team warm-ups and the opening kickoff take sips of small pouches of beetroot concentrate.
“We were doing beet juice,” says Auburn dietitian Scott Sehnert.
Is this the Tigers secret elixer?
“The worst thing in the entire world,” said Auburn tight end C.J. Uzomah. “It is nasty.”
But they aren’t drinking it for the taste. In recent years, sports scientists have seized on the discovery that beetroot juice is rich with nitrate. That has led to multiple studies revealing possible performance benefits that range from increased muscle efficiency to decreases in fatigue levels.
Beetroot juice, in other words, could energize players with that extra oomph as the game goes on. Last season, for example, Auburn won four games despite trailing in the fourth quarter, including their win-for-the-ages over rival Alabama. Auburn tied that game in the final minute and then won it on a game-ending 100-yard missed field-goal return.
Source: WSJSports
