WHOOP Podcast

Portland Trail Blazers guard Josh Hart is coming off the best season of his career, something he attributes to an increased focus on rest, recovery, and nutrition. He explains how WHOOP plays a critical role in his performance and tells us what he’s learned from his WHOOP insights both on the court and off. Josh details his dreams of being a professional athlete (1:55), nighttime practice sessions with his dad as a kid (3:15), his experience as a college athlete at Villanova (9:35), winning the 2016 national championship (12:06), getting his nutrition locked in (14:30), improving his sleep (15:58), the best game of his career and how his WHOOP data showed he was primed for success (18:52), eating habits (25:41), making sacrifices for better recovery (29:40), mindfulness and meditation (34:09), his advice to younger athletes (38:14), and getting in-game insights from WHOOP (41:23). Support the showFollow WHOOP:Sign up for WHOOP Advanced LabsTrial WHOOP for Freewww.whoop.comInstagramTikTokYouTubeXFacebookLinkedInFollow Will Ahmed:InstagramXLinkedInFollow Kristen Holmes:InstagramLinkedInFollow Emily Capodilupo:LinkedIn 

This week’s guest is Malaika Mihambo, the reigning Olympic, European, and World champion in long jump. Malaika has been named the German Sportswoman of the Year for three consecutive years, the first person to accomplish that feat since tennis legend Steffi Graf. Malaika speaks openly about the self-doubt she experienced leading up to the Tokyo Olympics, and details how writing in her journal and using mindfulness practices helped her overcome the anxiety she felt approaching the Olympic competition. She also discusses her journey to sport (2:02), staying grounded (3:45), preparing for Tokyo (6:31), journaling (9:37), the night before winning gold (12:30), believing in yourself (18:09), mindfulness and meditation (20:34), using WHOOP (24:49), being a vegan athlete (27:38), and habit tracking (32:40). Support the showFollow WHOOP:Sign up for WHOOP Advanced LabsTrial WHOOP for Freewww.whoop.comInstagramTikTokYouTubeXFacebookLinkedInFollow Will Ahmed:InstagramXLinkedInFollow Kristen Holmes:InstagramLinkedInFollow Emily Capodilupo:LinkedIn 

Brad Faxon is one of the best putters the PGA Tour has ever seen. He led the PGA Tour in putting average three times, and set the single season putting record in 2000, edging out Tiger Woods in what was Tiger’s best season on Tour. He sits down with Will Ahmed to discuss his beginnings in sport (2:24), how he overcame his early career struggles (8:41), the difference between playing scared and playing nervous (12:12), using WHOOP (14:18), the mental side of golf (17:24), becoming a great putter and the mindset for success (20:09), learning to accept your misses (26:37), The Masters (32:40), Tiger Woods and his impact on golf (34:28), and his favorite courses (40:22).Support the showFollow WHOOP:Sign up for WHOOP Advanced LabsTrial WHOOP for Freewww.whoop.comInstagramTikTokYouTubeXFacebookLinkedInFollow Will Ahmed:InstagramXLinkedInFollow Kristen Holmes:InstagramLinkedInFollow Emily Capodilupo:LinkedIn 

Adam Thielen has become one of the most recognizable names in football, but his success in the NFL was far from guaranteed.  He joins the WHOOP Podcast to detail his journey from an overlooked Division II athlete to a star wide receiver for the Minnesota Vikings, and explains how his determination led him to the NFL after going undrafted. Adam discusses his lifelong dream to play sports (2:32), why he chose football (5:16), his "good delusion" and how it helped him pursue the NFL (6:36), the mental side of performance (9:51), proving yourself (13:55), his mindset (17:36), injury prevention and overcoming setbacks (21:28), preparing for Sunday (25:17), using WHOOP (27:36), the importance of sleep (33:43), defining the many types of talent (34:51), and fulfilling your potential (37:30).Support the showFollow WHOOP:Sign up for WHOOP Advanced LabsTrial WHOOP for Freewww.whoop.comInstagramTikTokYouTubeXFacebookLinkedInFollow Will Ahmed:InstagramXLinkedInFollow Kristen Holmes:InstagramLinkedInFollow Emily Capodilupo:LinkedIn 

Kristen Holmes, Emily Capodilupo, and Dr. Shon Rowan of West Virginia University detail a first-of-its-kind study with WHOOP on pregnancy and exercise. The research revealed that participants experienced an increase in resting heart rate and a decrease in heart rate variability for much of their pregnancies, but saw a bounce back in those metrics in the weeks before birth. The participants also reported higher HRV scores postpartum compared to their heart rate variability baseline before pregnancy. Kristen, Emily, and Dr. Rowan discuss the exclusion of pregnant women from studies on exercise (4:10), the current guidelines for exercise during pregnancy (8:36), the myths about exercise for women.(12:09), diet and exercise during pregnancy (13:39), the study findings (14:56), HRV during pregnancy (18:09), Postpartum data and HRV increases (22:05), and menopause (30:35).Support the showFollow WHOOP:Sign up for WHOOP Advanced LabsTrial WHOOP for Freewww.whoop.comInstagramTikTokYouTubeXFacebookLinkedInFollow Will Ahmed:InstagramXLinkedInFollow Kristen Holmes:InstagramLinkedInFollow Emily Capodilupo:LinkedIn 

This week's episode is a deep dive on sleep debt and how sleep deprivation affects your body. VP of Performance Kristen Holmes is joined by sleep expert Dr. Allison Brager, a neuroscientist and a Major with the United States Army. Dr. Brager's research has covered survival in extreme environments under sleep deprivation and stress, and serves on fatigue management and neuroenhancement working group for NATO, the Office of the Army Surgeon General, the Department of Defense, and NASA. She discusses what sleep debt is (3:38), why sleep need is highly individualistic (5:17), how mindset plays a role in sleep, recovery, and performance (13:00), what caffeine does to your body (16:48), sleep fragmentation (20:28), the toll sleeplessness takes on your body (23:06), sleep and wake timing (28:47), eating close to bedtime (35:05), and tips to manage insufficient sleep (37:54). Support the showFollow WHOOP:Sign up for WHOOP Advanced LabsTrial WHOOP for Freewww.whoop.comInstagramTikTokYouTubeXFacebookLinkedInFollow Will Ahmed:InstagramXLinkedInFollow Kristen Holmes:InstagramLinkedInFollow Emily Capodilupo:LinkedIn 

Robert Moeller, WHOOP Associate Vice President of Government and a former Navy SEAL, sits down with Coast Guard Commander Scott Austin for a discussion on leadership, performance, and how data can be used to help our servicemen and women. Commander Austin is a helicopter pilot who recently completed a study that evaluated how Coast Guard crew member perceptions of fatigue and alertness compared with WHOOP data on sleep and recovery. He discusses the treacherous conditions he and his crews often encounter during search and rescue missions (2:43), the danger fatigue can cause in aviation (7:54), the culture of sleeplessness in the military (11:00), his thoughts on strong leadership (14:55), the details of the study the Coast Guard conducted with WHOOP (18:43), what the study revealed (26:57), what can be learned from WHOOP (31:34), how fatigue affects your physiology (37:39), and the importance of sleep (41:32). Support the showFollow WHOOP:Sign up for WHOOP Advanced LabsTrial WHOOP for Freewww.whoop.comInstagramTikTokYouTubeXFacebookLinkedInFollow Will Ahmed:InstagramXLinkedInFollow Kristen Holmes:InstagramLinkedInFollow Emily Capodilupo:LinkedIn 

Olympic bobsledder Lauren Gibbs sits down with Mike Lombardi for a discussion on how it’s never too late to chart a new course for your life. Lauren started bobsledding at 30 years old, and less than 4 years later, she was representing the United States at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang. She won a silver medal at those games with her teammate, Elana Meyers Taylor, and also won a gold medal at the 2020 World Championships. She discusses how she started bobsledding as "a joke" (2:35), finding your path in life (7:24), understanding your personal power (10:09), going "all in" (14:04), WHOOP and recovery (18:30), promoting parity in women's sports (25:34), body image and weight (31:32), how she found motivation on tough days (37:49), and how making little changes leads to major improvements (43:45).Support the showFollow WHOOP:Sign up for WHOOP Advanced LabsTrial WHOOP for Freewww.whoop.comInstagramTikTokYouTubeXFacebookLinkedInFollow Will Ahmed:InstagramXLinkedInFollow Kristen Holmes:InstagramLinkedInFollow Emily Capodilupo:LinkedIn 

The CrossFit Open begins this week, and we’re excited to have one of the best CrossFitters on the planet join us on the podcast – Noah Ohlsen. Noah won the Open in 2016 and has been a perennial contender in the CrossFit Games for years, finishing 2nd at the Games in 2019. He sits down with our resident CrossFit expert Mike Lombardi for a discussion that covers everything from overcoming disappointment, the power of a positive mindset, and understanding what’s really important as you pursue your goals in sport and in life. Noah details his goals in sport (2:17), his journey to CrossFit (6:43), getting to the CrossFit Games (9:24), pursuing his dream of a championship (11:29), why it's important to enjoy the process (13:49), reframing your training mindset (18:50), overcoming injury and disappointment (27:38), how the WHOOP Podcast inspired him to rethink his mental performance (29:25), and how he uses WHOOP in his day-to-day life (35:14).Support the showFollow WHOOP:Sign up for WHOOP Advanced LabsTrial WHOOP for Freewww.whoop.comInstagramTikTokYouTubeXFacebookLinkedInFollow Will Ahmed:InstagramXLinkedInFollow Kristen Holmes:InstagramLinkedInFollow Emily Capodilupo:LinkedIn 

Dr. Michele Lastella, a sleep and athletic performance researcher, joins VP of Performance Kristen Holmes to discuss the role of sexual activity in sleep quality, physiology, and emotional well-being. They explore the hormonal response triggered by sex, the reduction of sleep latency, sleep and libido, and the health-promoting aspects of sex. They also reveal new WHOOP insights on sex and masturbation data, discuss changing sex habits as we age, and examine the impact of events like Valentine's Day and the Super Bowl on sex behaviors.