Pure Sports Nutrition have released a new Performance+ range, including their foray into nitrate supplements with Race Ready Nitrates. Each sachet delivers 500mg of nitrates, along with anthocyanins and Vinitrox, to be mixed into water and consumed as part of a loading protocol before big events.
What Are Nitrates?
Once seen as a mythical sports supplement with more hype than evidence, nitrates are now well-supported by research. Found naturally in foods like beetroot, nitrates work by enhancing the availability of nitric oxide (NO) in the body – particularly important when oxygen is limited, like in muscles during intense exercise.
The nitrate–nitrite–NO pathway is key here. Ingesting dietary nitrate increases blood nitrate levels, which can boost NO bioavailability and potentially enhance performance – especially in high-intensity, oxygen-limited situations.
Read more Pure Sports Nutrition Reviews:
– Pure Performance+ Race Recovery
– Pure Recovery Shake
– Pure Hydration Mix
– Pure Gels, Chews and Hydration mix
Nitrate supplementation is now classified as a Group A supplement by the Australian Institute of Sport, indicating strong evidence supporting its use in sport when implemented using evidence-based protocols. According to the AIS, “dietary nitrate supplementation can enhance muscle power, sprint, multiple-sprint, and high-intensity intermittent exercise performance.” Sounds like mountain biking to us.
What’s in the Mix?
Pure delivers the nitrate dose via a blend of beetroot juice concentrate and an amaranthus extract called Oxystorm. They’ve also included:
- 500mg Vinitrox, a blend of polyphenols from apples and grapes, for general health support
- 150mg anthocyanins from blackcurrant powder, claimed to offer adaptogenic support to aid recovery
Using Race Ready Nitrates
Pure recommends a five-day loading phase before a key event to prime the body for performance – conveniently, each box contains five sachets. However, there’s evidence that both loading and single-dose approaches can be effective, so it’s worth experimenting with both to find what works best for you.
A small caveat: the research suggests that highly trained athletes (those with a VO2 max over 65 ml/kg/min) may see less dramatic improvements from nitrate supplementation. Fortunately for me, I’m still clawing my way out of several years of dad-bod, so I’m likely to be more responsive. Read more about Vo2 Max here.
How Did It Go?
Taste-wise, it definitely leans into beetroot territory. But thanks to the inclusion of blackcurrant powder and sugars (dextrin and cane sugar), the final flavour is far more palatable than raw beetroot juice – more unique than unpleasant.
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I trialled the product over a couple of days, then headed out for a long aerobic time-trial. One caveat: I was just coming off a week-long bout of gastro, so my legs weren’t exactly primed. In fact, I’d accidentally dropped back to my teenage race weight (silver linings?), despite being in my forties.
Starting out on a 37 minute hill climb, I didn’t feel great. My legs were flat and my body felt under-fueled in the wake of the gastro. Still, I stuck to my regular race fueling strategy and pressed on.
The result? Just one minute off my best time. I genuinely couldn’t believe it, given the lead-in conditions and sensations during the ride. I was expecting to be well off the pace. While this isn’t a controlled scientific test, the result was impressive enough to make me take notice – especially when everything else pointed toward a sub-par ride.
Final Thoughts on Pure Nitrates
With strong scientific backing and real-world effectiveness (even under less-than-ideal conditions), Pure’s Race Ready Nitrates is definitely a product to consider before your next big event. I’m looking forward to retesting it with a more optimal setup – both as a one-off pre-race dose and using the full five-day loading protocol.
Considering how nitrates work to boost performance, it’s likely that any cross-country or gravity-focused mountain biker could benefit from their sprint and high-intensity performance effects.
If you’re aiming to ride hard and recover well, this is one supplement that’s worth adding to your prep routine.
RRP: $54.99 (5 sachets)
Website: puresportsnutrition.com
Pros
✓ Tasty, if you like beetroot
✓ Increased performance despite poor lead in
Cons
✗ Expensive
✗ One pack lasts five days
