I’m loving this alkalizing, nitrate-rich green drink. Dietary nitrates found in greens are known to boost athletic performance. Yes, you heard that right! Leafy green veggies such as arugula, spinach, basil, grasses and collards may help you go harder in your HIIT workouts.

My Green Drink Concoction

1 scoop your favorite Supergreen Powder

1 teaspoon barley grass juice powder      

1 teaspoon magnesium powder

Juice from ½ lemon or 1 Tbsp lemon juice concentrate

Mix until dissolved. I use my mini frother, which works great for breaking up clumps.  

Greens and Athletic Performance

If you’ve ever done a high-intensity interval training workout, you likely remember that “sucking some wind” feeling. However, when exercisers consumed nitrates three hours before a sprint cycling routine, they experienced a blood-flow boost to their muscles while they workout out. After five weeks of eating greens pre-sweat, the cyclists increased their fast-twitch muscle fibers — the ones that help you to run fast, react quickly, and jump high.

The more greens you eat, the easier it is to sustain short bursts of all-out effort, likely due to their ability to dilate blood vessels and boost blood flow to your muscles.

Other greens high in dietary nitrates include beet greens, spring greens, basil, butterleaf lettuce, cilantro, rhubarb and arugala.

Tip: Drink green drink or green juice or eat a leafy green salad a few hours before your interval workout. 

In Health and Happiness,

Kelly Harrington, MS, RD

Registered Dietitian for Healthy Goods