I already know I have a problem. I rarely go to bed before midnight. I have a young son who demands my attention at first light. I’m sleep deprived, chronically tired and, despite nearing my 38th birthday, still train and work like I’m in my mid-twenties.

Essentially, I’m running on fumes. An inability to prioritise recovery is hobbling any gains I might hope to make in the gym, which in turn elevates my risk of illness and injury.

And yet, seemingly, I have no excuse. Driven by the likes of Whoop (last valued at $3.6bn), Fitbit ($2.1bn) and Hyperice ($700m), recovery tech is now big business. And it’s only getting bigger.

The Bon Charge Infrared Pemf Mat claims to enhance the body’s natural magnetic field to improve sleep and sharpen focus

Maybe you’re serious about optimising every hour of every day via ice baths and red light therapy, HRV monitors and compression boots. But, if not, why not? Could it be that, for all the latest gear and gadgets, nothing truly beats a good night’s sleep and balanced meal?

Less Can Be More

To unravel this riddle I need cold, hard, irrefutable data. For my month-long test – in which I plan to hammer the weights to see how well this tech can buffer against DOMS – I opt to use a Whoop 4.0 fitness tracker, which provides a daily report on my sleep performance, strain score, stress levels and recovery. A key metric related to all of the above is heart rate variability. HRV measures the variance in time between heartbeats while asleep. Higher is better. ‘HRV is basically the measure of your autonomic nervous system (ANS),’ Whoop’s Kristen Holmes tells MH from its HQ in Boston, Massachusetts. ‘That’s at the heart of recovery. It’s a measure of how your body is responding and adapting to external load, to external stress. HRV is a proxy for the robustness and resilience of your ANS.’

The company’s global head of human performance and an eminent psychophysiologist, Dr Holmes studies the link between psychological processes and physiological responses, scrutinising the impact emotional perception, sleep, alcohol and ice baths have on recovery. On the latter, two to three times per week is optimal, she’s discovered.

She also represented the US at field hockey, before a successful spell as a Division 1 head coach at Princeton University and assistant coaching role for the US national team. ‘I spent most of my playing career with what I can only describe as “cement legs”,’ she says. ‘I was just tired all the time from overtraining. More was seen as better.’

As a coach, Dr Holmes resolved to take a more nuanced approach, and decided to start documenting how her athletes were responding and adapting on a molecular level.

‘I was one of the very first coaches in the world to use HRV daily,’ she continues, adding that sporting giants of the Premier League and NFL were monitoring their players’ ‘load management’ during training sessions and matches, but ‘had literally no idea what was happening the other 20 hours of the day’.

The Mother of All Metrics

Once she started tracking her athletes 24/7, she realised what they were doing in training didn’t predict how they showed up tomorrow. ‘There was literally no association.’ Unless you’re especially unfit or smashing yourself in the gym, it’s the same for the average person, she adds.

‘Instead, it’s the other stuff. It’s your sleep, your hydration, your diet, the timing of when you eat, when you go to bed, your relationship to light and how you manage stress.’ Above all, she says, what moved the dial the most was getting her players to stick to a consistent sleep pattern, to tap into their natural sleep-wake circadian rhythms. ‘The mother of all behaviours is simply stabilising when you go to bed and when you wake up,’ she says, providing the example of setting your alarm for 7am, Monday to Sunday.

‘That is going to drive your sleep quality, the extent to which you’re able to drop into these deeper stages of sleep, you know, where REM and slow-wave sleep (SWS) is happening, when physical and mental restoration takes place.’ Dr Holmes also instilled in her team what she calls ‘the principle of non-neutrality’. There are no neutral choices, she says. ‘It’s either an upgrade or a downgrade.’

Normatec Compression Boots replicate natural muscle pumps to accelerate recovery

The way she puts it, recovery is a simple equation. ‘If you design a life where you are constantly trying to make your autonomic nervous system more robust, you can basically opt out of illness. I haven’t been sick in eight years,’ says the mother of two. ‘Like, literally, not a sniffle, not a fever. That’s because I know the stuff that works.’

By getting her players more attuned to their natural circadian rhythms and better educated on how their actions impacted their ability to recover, positive results – and titles – quickly followed.

‘We were one of the most successful teams in history. We won 12 championships in 13 years. We just won all of the time. Basically, it was because we were healthy, available to train and available to compete more than our competition.’

Following Protocol

No more sick days. Now that’s something I’ll bet you and your employer could get behind. The next question is, how? The answer, I’m told, lies in South Kensington.

Hum2n is a leading longevity clinic run by GP Mohammed Enayat, offering advanced diagnostics, personalised therapies and cutting-edge science to future-proof bodies of the rich and famous. MMA fighter Michael ‘Venom’ Page is a regular. Heavyweight boxer Anthony Joshua has been known to pop in during training camps.

‘In deep sleep, you produce growth hormones, you regenerate and repair’

I’m booked in for the 90-minute Restore Protocol. It’s a three-step process: first, I’m hooked up to an IV drip by a nurse called Ashley while a fluorescent yellow cocktail of age-defying, immunity-boosting NAD+, B vitamin complex and magnesium drains into my veins. It briefly makes my arm tingle and legs feel 10 times as heavy.

‘That’s the vasodilation of blood vessels as the NAD+ takes effect,’ Ashley reassures me. Next, I spend 30 minutes in the pressurised cabin of a hyperbaric chamber, breathing in 100% oxygen, which is said to promote healing and reduce inflammation. ‘I tend to feel alert and energised after a session,’ the nurse tells me, as I realise the lethargy that had hung over me all morning has dissipated. To finish, I sit on a swivel chair, rotating like a rotisserie chicken, while basking in front of a panel of red lightbulbs. It’s a bit like a sauna but with marginally less sweat. ‘Red light therapy stimulates mitochondria to boost cellular repair,’ Ashley explains.

Dr Enayat’s theory is that optimal recovery is tied inextricably to energy conservation. ‘Think of yourself as a Duracell battery or power plant,’ he tells me. ‘You’re producing energy continually. You need a constant supply of oxygen, an efficient pump, and the plumbing needs to be watertight.’ Sleep is massive, he goes on. ‘In deep sleep, you produce growth hormones, you produce stem cells, you regenerate and repair.’

The awesome sleep hot choc formula contains magnesium, ashwagandha and chamomile extract

Nutrition is also vital. But in order to absorb and utilise all the essential macro and micronutrients on your plate, you need an efficient digestive tract. That’s where a good set of bloods can help identify underlying conditions or hormonal imbalances, says Dr Enayat. Stress is another factor. ‘Stress dysregulates your cortisol, your blood sugar, even your digestive tract. It’s a compounding issue.’ If – and it’s a big if – we can optimise sleep, nutrition and stress management, while minimising exposure to unavoidable toxins, such as microplastics and endocrine disruptors, and avoidable toxins, including alcohol, we’ll minimise energy expenditure. ‘The net result is that more energy can be used for optimal repair and recovery.’

Under the Microscope

‘You’ll sleep like a baby tonight,’ was Dr Enayat’s parting quip. But, in truth, I slept like a bloke with a blocked nose, low-grade fever and an incomplete tax return on the brain. ‘Some people can become restless after the mitochondrial therapy,’ was his response. ‘Good, clean nutrition in and around treatments is key.’

Not to be disheartened, I decide it’s time to knuckle down. Over the remainder of the month, I go full lab rat. I try contrast therapy via 1Rebel’s new Reset concept, alternating between an infrared sauna and an icy plunge in a Brass Monkey tub – and it takes me the rest of the day to stop shivering. I quickly conclude that I’m not built for the cold.

I start having a night-time hot chocolate formula from Awesome Supplements, packed with plant extracts, amino acids, cherry powder and ashwagandha root to up my intake of sleep-promoting magnesium. I take stretching more seriously, using the Pliability app’s guided routines before bed, and get trigger happy with my old Therabody Theragun Pro massage gun. I used to be sceptical of their benefit, but a 2023 review published in the International Journal Of Sports Physical Therapy noted ‘a significant relationship’ between a single application of percussive therapy and an acute increase in muscle strength and flexibility. Multiple treatments helped reduce the experience of musculoskeletal pain.

1Rebel’s new Reset Sauna is available in various London locations

After especially savage leg days, I also don the vaguely ludicrous-looking Hyperice Normatec Premier compression boots – much to my wife’s amusement. And with red light therapy all the rage, I even take to performing my pre-bed stretches on an Infrared PEMF Mat Max from Bon Charge.

Standing for pulsed electromagnetic field, PEMF is supposed to enhance the body’s natural magnetic field to improve deep sleep and induce a state of zen. But I’m more interested in how it can emit high irradiance 660nm red light and 850nm near infrared light in the comfort of my own home, making it infinitely more accessible than Hum2n’s alternative. That said, Dr Enayat tells me he’s dubious of any product that offers red light therapy in isolation. ‘From experience, any benefits are short-lived,’ he says.

How the Pros Bounce Back

So, how do I feel after a month spent micromanaging all my recovery metrics? Well, frankly, exhausted. And the data backs that up. My Whoop tracker indicates an average recovery score of a mere 51%. Over 30 days, I managed just two in the green (67% to 99% recovered) and an alarming six in the red (below 33%). Interestingly, one of those red days was after my visit to Dr Enayat’s clinic, one was after my interview with Dr Holmes – which presumably set my mind racing about all the lifestyle choices that were contributing to my downfall – and one was after a rare booze-fuelled date night at Brixton Academy.

It makes me wonder, how do the pros do it? Are elite athletes operating at 51% year-round, or are there tricks of the trade that could trickle down to weekend warriors like me? With the Six Nations in full flow at time of writing, I thought James Hairsine, technical lead for sport science at the RFU, might have the answers I’m looking for. Hairsine has a stacked CV. He’s previously rubbed shoulders with greats of English football and British boxing. Athletes like Nicola Adams, Anthony Joshua and, lately, Maro Itoje.

‘As soon as the final whistle blows at the end of a Test we have a 20- to 30-minute window to refuel, repair and rehydrate,’ he tells me. For Itoje, that means onboarding water, electrolytes, protein and carbs while navigating the media duties after his first match as England captain.

Back in the paddock, Itoje will jump straight in an ice bath to manage inflammation and swelling. ‘The rule of thumb is one minute for every one degree between 6°C and 10°C,’ Hairsine explains. For example, if set to 8°C Itoje would spend eight minutes in the bath. Next, the team doctor will check him over, using compression and localised ice to manage any knocks and contusions. Then Itoje, along with the rest of the squad, will be reunited with friends and family, and encouraged to decompress however possible.

‘There are huge benefits to be had, but you have to believe in them for them to work’

‘For me, recovery is all about restoration to a former state,’ says Hairsine. ‘We’re trying to reduce stress hormones and reduce cortisol, to help our athletes destress and switch off, to stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system to help their bodies rest and digest.’

Later that day, Itoje will go through what Hairsine calls ‘game readies’ – a subjective questionnaire that’s proven especially beneficial for the Red Roses, the dominant women’s side in world rugby. Scored out of seven, it will include questions on sleep quality and consistency that should reveal patterns of behaviour.

Before bed, the players might supplement with casein for slow-release protein and CherryActive supplements, which contain high levels of anti-inflammatory and antioxidant compounds that research has shown can reduce soreness. They might use meditation or breathwork practices if they struggle to unwind.

‘The morning after the match is all about regeneration,’ Hairsine continues. That means active recovery with a cycle or walk, myofascial release with foam rolling and, more recently, Hotpod Yoga. ‘Heat with an active stimulus helps get plasticity back into the tissues and muscles,’ he says.

Blood flow restriction is another tool used to flush away inflammation from joints and muscles. It’s becoming increasingly popular in elite rugby circles, with one 2017 study finding it can reduce measures of muscle damage and soreness one and two days post-workout.

Players will wear shorts and T-shirts with in-built compression cuffs while performing light exercise for four minutes on, two minutes off, for four rounds. Assuming everything goes to plan, Itoje will then be back at it, ready to train the house down on Monday morning.

Belief Underpins Everything

Hairsine is also at pains to point out that you can’t take a cookie-cutter approach.

‘Beyond the obvious of alcohol, poor food choices and a lousy night’s sleep, the worst thing you can do is be scattergun or think one-size-fits-all,’ he says. Yes, most of the time we’re trying to blunt and reduce inflammation, he continues, but not all the time. ‘Sometimes we need to stress the system, we need to damage the system for it to repair and adapt. In pre-season, for example, we want inflammation.’ In his role with the FA, Hairsine implemented a structure called ‘Tight, Tired or Sore’. ‘If you’re feeling tight, it’s mobility, flush or heat. If you’re sore, it’s ice or cryotherapy. Then if you’re tired, it’s either the pool, contrast, meditation or breathwork.’

Intrinsic to that rationale is to get the players’ full buy-in. ‘Belief underpins everything,’ Hairsine says, pointing to a 2013 study that measured individual perceptions on the efficacy of recovery via cold-water immersion and subsequent sprint performance in rugby players. Fundamentally, the higher the participants rated the recovery intervention, the faster they ran. Perceptions dictate outcomes, Hairsine explains. ‘Ice baths are a prime example. There are huge benefits to be had but you have to believe in them for them to work.’

The Theragun Pro Massage Gun

In that case, I guess you could call me a non-believer. After a month of rigorous testing, it’s safe to say I’m lukewarm about ice baths, cold water therapy, even cold showers. I’m also on the fence about red light therapy and PEMF.

Some things will stay: 15 minutes of stretching, breathwork and a cup of antioxidant-infused cocoa is now part of my bedtime ritual. I plan to stick with a consistent wake and sleep time. Post-workout saunas are a must. And for the time being, I intend to keep tabs on my HRV and sleep metrics in the hope that I can gradually start climbing the recovery charts.

However, Hairsine warned me that an overreliance on sleep tech can lead to unintended negative consequences. ‘We want the guys waking up on match days feeling like a million bucks,’ he said. ‘But what do you do if you’ve had a bad night’s sleep? Absolutely nothing. It’s what you do next that’s important.’

For Dr Holmes, however, the genie is already out of the bottle. It’s what we do with the data that matters. ‘Technology, for better or worse, is going to tell you what those four glasses of wine did to you before bed,’ she says. ‘It’s going to tell you what that high-fat, high-carb meal did to you. It’s going to tell you what overtraining or under-fuelling is doing to you. So you’ll be able to see the cost of your behaviours very clearly. They’re either allowing you to be the person you aspire to be in the world – or they’re not.’

In other words: recovery is a choice, one that’s tied to every decision you make. Do you go hard every day or dial it back when starting to flag? Crack open another cold one or knock it on the head? Doomscroll into the early hours or impose a digital curfew? The power, ultimately, is in our hands. For those working on the front lines of this field, it’s exciting, no doubt, but personally, I can’t help thinking the nuts and bolts of recovery are the same as they’ve always been. Don’t overdo it, eat a nutritious meal, get a good night’s sleep and your body will take care of the rest.

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Are You Tight, Tired or Sore?

Use the FA’s recovery matrix to plot your path back to full fitness.

Tight = Mobility, flush or heat

Active recovery and compression is the order of the day. Mobilise your body with a Hotpod Yoga session, flush out toxins with myofascial release and go for a light stroll or cycle.

Tired = Pool, contrast, meditation or breathwork

Hit the pool for low-impact active recovery, use contrast therapy alternating hot and cold in the sauna and cold plunge to flush away toxins.

Sore = Ice or cryotherapy

Address any localised swelling with ice and compression or full immersion in a cryotherapy chamber. Check in with the team doctor to monitor any injuries and outline your return to play.

How Industry Insiders Maintain Their A-Game

Cody Mooney, Pliability Swears by… EightSleep Pod 3

‘I run really hot. My wife is the opposite. With Eight Sleep, I can split the bed in half, crank my side to cold, then use its autopilot setting to optimise my temperature through the night.’

Annika Bizon, Samsung Swears by… Calm (and the Samsung Galaxy Ring)

‘My daily sleep and energy scores tell me if I need to be kinder to myself and allow more time to recover. And if I can’t get outside, I’ll use Calm’s guided meditations to keep stress at bay.’

Dr Jonathan Leary, Remedy Place Swears by… Kohler x Remedy Place Ice Bath

‘I don’t think there’s a single natural practice that can transform you mentally, physically and emotionally in just six minutes more than submerging yourself in cold water.’

Eleanor Hoath, Healf Swears by… Bon Charge Mini Light

‘This portable light therapy device has been a game-changer to regulate my circadian rhythm, improve sleep and maintain energy. Plus, it’s compact enough to take anywhere.’

Anthony Katz, Hyperice Swears by… IV drips and infrared saunas

‘I’m a huge fan of IV hydration to boost immunity and energy levels, especially when travelling. And I like to use infrared saunas to improve recovery and destress.’

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