WHOOP
Screenless wrist strap tracking strain, recovery and sleep
No display at all. This subscription wearable is built around a daily strain and recovery score, derived from heart rate variability, resting heart rate and sleep, and it appeals to people who train hard and want a number telling them to back off. Like all wearables it is better at trends than at absolutes, and it is a recurring cost rather than a one-off purchase.
People on record
Sorted by strength of stance
Does it: documented as part of their own routine. Recommends: explicitly advises other people to do it. Discusses: covered it substantively without clear personal adoption; this can include criticism or disagreement.
- Bryan JohnsonDoes it
Founder · Blueprint longevity protocol
Nightly sleep and recovery come off a wearable, and the scores go out publicly as one of his headline metrics.
Source: bryanjohnson.com: Project Blueprint - Chris WilliamsonDoes it
Host · Modern Wisdom
Calls it the only tracker he has ever stuck with, four years in at the time of writing, and rates the sleep staging, resting heart rate and workout tracking. The write-up sits in the life hack slot of his newsletter and links to a WHOOP page set up for Modern Wisdom, with a free first month attached.
Source: chriswillx.com: 3 Minute Monday, Intrasexual Competition, Landlords & Citadels Footballer · Portugal captain and five-time Ballon d'Or winner
Wears the strap while training, sleeping and recovering, and calls it one of the most important tools for monitoring his health. Whoop says he had been a member for years before he became a paid global ambassador and investor in May 2024, which is the context for the endorsement.
Source: SportsPro: Cristiano Ronaldo joins Whoop as global ambassador and investor- Michael PhelpsDoes it
Olympic swimmer · Most decorated Olympian in history
He told the WHOOP podcast he has worn the strap since 2015 and still reads it like an athlete. His targets are roughly 20 percent deep sleep and 20 percent REM, and he knows his baseline well enough to spot a change: resting heart rate near 42, respiratory rate 14 to 15. A 1 percent recovery score, he said, traces back to the day before.
Source: WHOOP Podcast #171 with Michael Phelps, WHOOP write-up Ultra-endurance athlete · The Rich Roll Podcast
Recovery-focused wearables have come up on the show. WHOOP is one of the podcast's listed sponsors.
Source: richroll.com: sponsors page- Stacy SimsDiscusses
Exercise physiologist · Women Are Not Small Men
A caveat rather than a dismissal. Current wearable algorithms do not detect the HRV decline of the menopause transition, she writes, so through it they cannot predict true recovery. What she suggests instead is watching HRV, respiratory rate and sleep quality as trends: a lower HRV alongside a higher respiratory rate is the cue to back off.
Source: Dr Stacy Sims: How Your Female Sex Hormones Affect HRV
Aimed at the same thing
Other entries filed under fitness or sleep.
- Gear$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.
Apple Watch
Apple's wrist computer for activity, sleep and notifications
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - Gear$$$Expensive: Several hundred dollars and up.
Apple Watch Ultra
Apple's biggest watch: titanium case, brighter screen, more than a day of battery
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - App$$$Mid: Roughly $50 to $500, or up to $50/month.
Centr
Chris Hemsworth's training, nutrition and meditation app, built with his own team
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 recommends it - Habit$$$Cheap: Roughly under $50, or under $15/month.
Respiratory rate tracking
Watching overnight breathing rate as an early fatigue and illness signal
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - Protocol$$$Expensive: Several hundred dollars and up.
Whole-body cryotherapy
Two to three minutes standing in a chamber cooled by liquid nitrogen vapor
On record from 1 of 62 tracked people: 1 does it - Gear$$$Expensive: Several hundred dollars and up.
Home gym
A private training space at home, from a garage rack to a fully equipped room
On record from 7 of 62 tracked people: 5 do it, 2 recommend it
Gear entry · notes paraphrased from cited sources, quoted excerpts copied from the transcript they link to. Not medical advice. Not affiliated with, endorsed by, or reviewed by anyone listed. How this works.