Beetroot vs L-Citrulline for performance
Short answer: For performance, users rate them about the same: 100% report improvement with Beetroot (19 reports) and 98% with L-Citrulline (45 reports).
Beetroot has 74 meta-analyses and 360 randomized trials on PubMed; L-Citrulline has 14 and 101.
Based on 78 reports about Beetroot and 231 about L-Citrulline. Not medical advice.
| Beetroot Supplement | L-Citrulline Supplement | |
|---|---|---|
| Users say it helped | 80%helped31 reports · medium confidence | 77%helped99 reports · medium confidence |
| Verdict | Mostly positive | Mostly positive |
| Research | AResearch: Strong | AResearch: Strong |
| Meta-analyses / RCTs | 74 / 360 | 14 / 101 |
| Mainly used for | ||
| Performance % reporting improvement | 100% (19) | 98% (45) |
| Libido % reporting improvement | 100% (7) | 98% (48) |
| Heart & lipids % reporting improvement | 85% (13) | 95% (22) |
| Energy % reporting improvement | 100% (3) | 100% (11) |
| Common side effects | kidney stones, pink staining | cold sore, dizziness, headache, increased urination |
| Typical dose reported | 5 g / daily | 8 g / 3x/week |
Other NEAs, including creatine, beetroot juice or glycerol, need further investigation to strengthen the evidence for performance enhancement in combat sports. Caffeine is the only NEA that has shown strong evidence for performance enhancement in combat sports.
Nutrients, 2022 ↗“Beet Root helps boost nitric oxide and relax blood vessels. I take 4 1,000 mg 2x daily and I notice better workouts and more blood flow.”
Foods rich in polyphenols and nitrate provide trivial benefits for endurance exercise performance, although these effects may be food dependent. Highly trained endurance athletes do not appear to benefit from consuming nitrate-rich foods but may benefit from polyphenol consumption. Further research into food sources, dosage and supplementation duration to optimise the ergogenic response to polyphenol consumption is warranted. Further studies should evaluate whether differential sex-based responses to nitrate and polyphenol consumption are attributable to physiological differences or sample siz
J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 2021 ↗“Something I found that makes my meds work way better is Citrulline 2g + Arginine 2g twice daily.”
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Percentages come from first-hand user reports and are not clinical outcomes. Talk to a doctor before starting, stopping or combining anything. How we rate