Tour de France: How Beetroot Nitrate and Cherry Antioxidants Help Riders Endure, Recover, and Win
- Beet It Sport Malaysia
- Aug 12
- 6 min read
On July 5th, the 112th Tour de France kicked off in Lille. 184 riders from 23 teams embarked on one of the most notorious endurance tests in sport today. The...
On July 5th, the 112th Tour de France kicked off in Lille. 184 riders from 23 teams embarked on one of the most notorious endurance tests in sport today.
The race, comprised of 21 stages, will see cyclists push through flat, hilly, and mountainous sections.
With a race as depleting as this, the athletes need to listen to the sports nutrition science to best refuel, rehydrate, and recover both physically and mentally between each stage.
A feat like this greatly affects an athlete’s body. Depending on which stage of the race an athlete is in, the body will exert different functions. As the race carries on for three weeks, physical maintenance is key.
The Beet It Sport team here is fascinated by how improving sports nutrition - in particular, optimising natural dietary nitrate and antioxidant intake - can significantly support elite cyclists across all these phases + support athletes across many sports!
Let’s dive into what we know about the science - but first, here’s a quick overview of what the cyclists battle through on the Tour.
(pss…keep an eye out for extra Tour de France facts throughout!) 👀
The Many Demands of the Tour
Sprint finishes
During long, flat stages, cyclists will attempt to maintain a consistent speed, their bikes in higher gears, muscles working hard.
Riders will spend hours in the saddle, meticulously positioning themselves for maximum speed and efficiency - a mental workout as much as a physical one.
As they near the end of a 180km section, riders explode into sprints over the final 200-300 meters.
These short, high-intensity bursts after relentless hours of pedalling demand rapid recruitment of fast-twitch muscle fibres, testing neuromuscular coordination and anaerobic reserves after hours of steady effort.
Mountain stages & summit finishes
Mountain stages and summit finishes consist of long, sustained climbs at moderate-to-high intensity.
Riders often hover around their physical limits, working close to lactate threshold and VO₂ max.
In these key endurance performance moments, oxygen delivery, muscle efficiency, and fatigue resistance become critical, as every pedal stroke tests endurance, focus, and the body’s ability to hold off exhaustion.
Time trials & rolling terrain
The Tour includes two time trials - solo races where riders compete against the clock, not as a team. These trials are highly technical and physically demanding.
Racers must balance precise pacing, steady power output, and aerodynamic positioning.
All the while, they push their cardiovascular system in a sustained, controlled effort that tests both racing strategy and endurance limits.
How Beet It Sport Supports Each Phase
Over 300 independent research studies have explored how dietary nitrate shapes athletic performance. Not just in theory, but where it matters most:
in endurance, muscle efficiency, and pushing limits under fatigue.
The evidence has captured the attention of top athletes and teams worldwide.
Let’s explore how this science directly intersects with the demands, pressure, and pursuit of marginal gains at the Tour de France.
This includes covering the full performance arc:
from nitrate loading before an event and ‘pre-covery’ cherry loading,
to natural in-race nitrate-carb support,
to post-stage/race antioxidant recovery.
Sprint performance
Remember those sprint finishes we talked about? Well, studies have shown that beetroot-based dietary nitrate can reduce the oxygen cost of high-intensity effort.
The impact on the Tour? Cyclists could potentially sprint faster, for longer.
McQuillan (et. al., 2016) found that the consumption of dietary nitrate supplements improved cycling time trial results by 2.4%, decreasing time by 0.7% - which translates to about 4 seconds faster over a 10-minute time trial.
Marginal gains like these can be decisive in shaping the race’s final outcome, especially in a sport where victory is often determined by mere seconds or the narrowest of margins.
Because of the masses of research and the standardised dosing per Nitrate 400 shot (400mg nitrate), Beet It Sport is trusted by pro teams and individual athletes, including world-leading cycling teams. 🚲
Beet It’s Nitrate 400 Shot lays the strong foundation, while the Energy Gel Top Up 100 delivers a nitrate and natural carbohydrate boost mid-race to help sustain intensity when it matters most.
Beet It Sport’s nitrate energy gel is a more functional, natural endurance tool to push further, for longer.
Climbing endurance
The Tour’s brutal climbs test riders with long, sustained efforts at the edge of their physical limits. Nitrate supplementation has been shown to improve muscle efficiency, endurance performance and increase the intensity athletes can sustain before lactate accumulation limits performance.
Once consumed, dietary nitrate is first converted into nitrite and then into nitric oxide in the body, supporting better blood flow and oxygen delivery to working muscles.
On legendary ascents like Hautacam or Mont Ventoux, where every pedal stroke and every breath matters, this advantage can be the difference between hanging on, dropping back or dropping out.
Recovery between stages
Recovery is key for riders. Over the course of three weeks of racing, they typically get only 1–2 full rest days.
Stages vary in length, with some lasting around 30 minutes and others stretching up to 6 hours. With so little rest, optimising recovery is critical.
Following intense physical exertion, the body begins a natural process of recovery and repair: damaged muscle tissue heals, and increased blood flow helps clear metabolic waste from working muscles.
This fresh blood supply also delivers nutrients that support muscle repair and adaptation (Cunningham, 2025).
Good circulation is essential for this process, and nitric oxide - produced from Beet It Sport’s dietary nitrate - can help enhance it by promoting vasodilation.
Antioxidants and anti‑inflammatory compounds found in Beet It Sport’s Cherry Regen+ shots can further support recovery by helping manage exercise-induced inflammation and oxidative stress.
The regen shot is used by athletes both as ‘pre-covery’ - taken before intense efforts to help the body prepare - and as recovery support, thanks to its potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties as well as nitrate benefits.
A growing body of research has explored how tart cherry concentrate supports recovery in endurance athletes and cyclists. Studies by Bell et al. (2014, 2016, and 2020) have shown that tart cherry supplementation can reduce exercise-induced inflammation and oxidative stress, lessen muscle soreness, and improve the recovery of muscle function after strenuous activity.
Levers et al. (2016) further reported improved recovery of maximal strength following intensive exercise. These recovery benefits can play a meaningful role in multi-stage endurance events like the Tour de France, where day-to-day consistency matters as much as peak performance.
Key Takeaways: Proven Gains, Backed by Science
Sprint power:
Dietary nitrates reduce the oxygen cost of high-intensity efforts, helping riders sustain repeated sprints.
A small gain here could mean the difference between winning and missing a crucial wheel length at the finish.
→ McQuillan et al., 2016: ~2.4% faster cycling time trial performance.
Climbing efficiency:
Nitrates improve muscle efficiency, helping to delay fatigue on brutal climbs like the Galibier or Ventoux.
Even a 1–2% gain in power-to-weight ratio can reshape GC standings on iconic mountain stages.
Recovery & consistency:
Enhanced blood flow from dietary nitrate, as well as strategic antioxidant intake from sour cherry supports faster recovery between stages - vital over 23 relentless days of racing.
In a race where tomorrow’s performance hinges on today’s recovery, this natural edge is priceless.
→ Bell et al., 2014: Tart cherry shown to reduce inflammation and muscle soreness.
Landmark evidence:
A major new scientific review of 180 studies (PubMed PMID: 40085422) affirms that beetroot-derived nitrate supplementation improves endurance, oxygen efficiency, and sprint power - reinforcing its role as a proven tool for athletes aiming for peak performance.
Conclusion
On a final note, the Tour de France isn’t just about climbing the fastest or sprinting the hardest. It’s about consistency, recovery, and performing day after day under immense physical and mental demands.
Hard work, preparation, and the mindset to push through are what carry athletes forward.
Beet It Sport is proud to help athletes get more out of their efforts - supporting endurance, enhancing recovery with natural sports nutrition, and helping them stay ready for every stage:
Training and pre-race nitrate loading with the Nitrate 400 Shot
providing in-race natural carbs and extra nitrate support with the Energy Gel Top Up 100
supporting ‘pre-covery’ and recovery with the Cherry ReGen+ shot.
We’re cheering on every rider chasing greatness at the Tour, and every endurance athlete pushing their limits, showing up, and striving for their personal best. You are incredible!