Steroids out, beet juice in for energy-hungry Olympians

The latest performance enhancer for Olympians needing some go-go-go is … beet juice? Absolutely. Not to be confused with, er, "Beetlejuice," the homely root vegetable is bursting in nitrates -- chugging a good amount of its juice will significantly aid muscles in using oxygen (as much as 3 percent in events that last up to 30 minutes). There is one minor downside: Users say it tastes like sweet dirt, and that anything that comes out the other end is going to be purple. Oh, and something else: It's legal. Which takes all the fun out of dodging the Olympic doping police. [Source]