
Betaine supplementation reduced exercise fatigue
“This article describes the effect of betaine, ONE of the substances of Stamox. Because Stamox is a full concentrate of red beet, more substances are present, and the overall effect of the athlete will be better then described in this article.”
– DR. NILS P. REITHER
Effect of 15 Days of Betaine Ingestion on Concentric and Eccentric Force Outputs During Isokinetic Exercise
Effect of 15 days of betaine ingestion on concentric and eccentric force outputs during isokinetic exercise. J Strength Cond Res 25(8): 2235-2241, 2011.
The purpose of this study was to examine the efficacy of 15 days of betaine supplementation on peak concentric (CON) and eccentric (ECC) force during isokinetic exercise in active college-aged men. Eleven men volunteered for this study (21.7 ± 5.1 years; height: 178.5 ± 6.4 cm; body mass: 79.8 ± 10.3 kg). Subjects were randomly assigned to either a supplement (BET) or placebo (PL) group.
Supplementation occurred for 15 days. Subjects reported to the Human Performance Laboratory on 5 occasions during this period, separated by 72 hours, for a testing and exercise session on an isokinetic chest press device.
After each exercise protocol, subjects rated their fatigue and muscle soreness on a 15-cm visual analog scale. Subjects then consumed no daily BET for 4 weeks but maintained familiarity with the exercise device once per week. After the washout period, subjects resumed the BET protocol using the opposite drink and repeated the same 15-day protocol. No differences were noted in maximum CON force output between pre (335.9 ± 78.3 and 321.6 ± 63.6 N) and post (330.3 ± 74.8 and 330.2 ± 71.6 N) workouts in both BET and PL, respectively. In addition, no differences were noted in maximum ECC force output between pre (352.0 ± 90.6 and 324.4 ± 85.2 N) and post (353.2 ± 98.2 and 366.9 ± 128.5 N) workouts in BET and PL, respectively.
No differences in subjective measures of soreness and fatigue were seen, but a significant reduction in Δ fatigue was observed in BET compared to PL.
Conclusion
In conclusion, 15 days of betaine supplementation did not increase peak CON or ECC force outputs during an isokinetic chest press but did appear to reduce subjective measures of fatigue to the exercise protocol.
References
Hoffman, Jay R1; Ratamess, Nicholas A2; Kang, Jie2; Gonzalez, Adam M2; Beller, Noah A2; Craig, Stuart A S3
Dr. Nils P. Reither
Veterinarian Graduated from Utrecht University, NL (1990). Practiced in Norway, Sweden and New Zealand
We will continue updating our website with scientific findings and user experiences from around the world. If you have questions, advice needed, experiences, or feedback, you can contact our Stamox team.