When you work out, your body gets fuel from the carbohydrates, fats, and to a lesser degree, protein in your diet. But plant foods have other components called phytonutrients that have other benefits when it comes to health and exercise performance. According to recent research, a phytonutrient called quercetin may help to boost exercise endurance and increase aerobic capacity.
Exercise Endurance and Quercetin: What is Quercetin?
Quercetin is a plant phytonutrient in the class of natural compounds called flavonoids and is most abundant in the skin and peels of apples, onions, citrus fruits, and berries. Red wine and tea are other good sources of this plant compound. Quercetin has natural antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties and may reduce the symptoms of allergies by blocking the effects of histamine. Some studies also show that quercetin supplements lower blood pressure and reduce the risk of heart disease.
Can Quercetin Increase Exercise Endurance?
What marathon runner wouldn’t want to boost their exercise endurance and aerobic capacity? According to a meta-analysis looking at a number of studies on exercise endurance and quercetin, quercetin supplements boosts V02 max or aerobic capacity by 3%. Studies in rodents showed that quercetin had even greater benefits, increasing exercise endurance by as much as 37%. It works by boosting the number of mitochondria, organelles inside cells that fuel aerobic activity. It had benefits even when the mice didn’t exercise.
Small studies in humans aren’t as impressive, but when you look at these studies as a group, quercetin does appear to slightly increase aerobic capacity – and when it comes to running a race, every little bit counts. Even though it increases exercise endurance, another study showed that it didn’t decrease ratings of perceived exercise exertion in a group of ultra-marathon runners, so it doesn’t make running a marathon feel any easier.
Quercetin for Exercise Endurance?
To get the benefits of quercetin, you’d have to eat a lot of quercetin-rich foods, which wouldn’t necessarily be practical, but quercetin supplements are available at some health food stores. The average person gets between 20 milligrams and 40 milligrams of this natural phytonutrient in their diet every day, but you would need at least ten times this amount to benefit exercise performance. The results with quercetin so far haven’t been impressive enough to merit taking a supplement for exercise endurance alone, especially when caffeine has more of an ergogenic effect.
Still, quercetin has other health benefits that make it a good addition to your diet. It has a natural blood pressure lowering benefits and reduces inflammation within arteries that can lead to heart disease. It also helps to prevent clot formation that can lead to a heart attack or stroke.
The Bottom Line?
Quercetin modestly boosts exercise endurance, but it may have even greater benefits for heart health. You can get this heart-healthy, endurance-boosting flavonoid naturally by enjoying more apples, onions, citrus fruit, berries, and tea – and there’s more good news. These whole foods have other health benefits as well.
References:
J. Nutr. November 1, 2007 vol. 137 no. 11 2405-2411.
Res Sports Med. 2009;17(2):71-83.
Inter. J. Sport Nutr. Exerc. Metab. 20: 1-13 (2009)
Life Extension Magazine. “The Quest for a Better Quercetin”
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