Athletic Recovery & Performance

Stuck on a Performance Plateau You Can't Train Through?

Whether you're managing heavy training loads, lingering soreness, competition demands or recovery from injury, explore whether Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy could form part of your wider recovery approach — through our Naas or Dublin clinics or from your own home.

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Does This Sound Familiar?

When Recovery Starts Holding Back Your Performance

Training harder isn't always the answer. Heavy training loads, competition, injury and inadequate recovery can affect how you feel and perform — from persistent soreness and fatigue to sleep, focus and readiness to train again.

Lingering soreness & stiffness
Poor recovery between sessions
Training fatigue
Reduced focus & readiness
Poor sleep & low energy
Joint or muscle discomfort
Recovery from sports injury
Difficulty maintaining training load
Recovery is influenced by training load, sleep, nutrition, conditioning, injury, stress and individual physiology. HBOT doesn't replace these foundations, physiotherapy or appropriate sports medicine — it's a potential supportive tool that may be considered as part of a wider recovery approach.

The Science

How HBOT May Support Athletic Recovery

Training and competition place repeated demands on muscles and other tissues. Recovery involves restoring energy, responding to exercise-induced stress and inflammation, repairing tissue and preparing the body for the next training or competition load.

Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy increases the amount of oxygen dissolved in the blood plasma. Under pressure, this creates a temporary increase in oxygen availability throughout the body. Researchers are investigating whether this may influence processes involved in exercise recovery, metabolic recovery, inflammation and tissue repair.

HBOT isn't a shortcut to athletic performance and doesn't replace appropriate training, sleep, nutrition, physiotherapy, rehabilitation or medical care. Research into its role in athletic recovery is developing, and individual responses vary.

Increases Oxygen Availability

HBOT substantially increases the amount of oxygen dissolved in plasma during treatment, increasing the oxygen available to tissues involved in recovery and repair.

May Support Metabolic Recovery

Research in athletes has examined whether HBOT may influence post-exercise metabolic recovery, including blood lactate levels, although findings differ depending on the protocol and outcome measured.

May Influence Inflammatory Processes

Intense exercise and injury can trigger inflammatory responses. HBOT can influence biological pathways associated with inflammation and oxidative stress, which is one reason it is being studied in sports recovery.

Supports Tissue Repair Processes

Oxygen plays an important role in cellular energy production, collagen synthesis and tissue repair. These processes are relevant when the body is recovering from heavy training or musculoskeletal injury.

The Research

What Does the Research Say?

Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy has been studied in relation to exercise recovery, muscle damage and athletic performance. Some research has reported potential benefits in areas such as recovery from exercise-induced muscle damage and post-exercise metabolic recovery, while other studies have found limited or no improvement in soreness or performance measures. The evidence is still developing, and results vary according to the HBOT protocol, timing and outcome being measured.

2026 Systematic Review & Meta-Analysis · 299 Participants

Researchers analysed 10 studies involving 299 participants to examine HBOT following exercise-induced muscle injury. The analysis reported improvements in several markers associated with recovery from exercise-induced muscle damage, but did not find a significant overall improvement in muscle soreness.

Important limitation: the studies used different exercise protocols, HBOT pressures and treatment schedules, making it difficult to establish one optimal approach for athletic recovery.

View the Research on PubMed →

2026 Systematic Review & Meta-Analysis · Athletic Recovery

This review examined HBOT in healthy athletes and found lower post-recovery blood lactate levels in the pooled analysis, suggesting a possible effect on metabolic recovery. Benefits for short-term power output and force production were limited.

Important limitation: only six studies were included in the meta-analysis and researchers found considerable variation between HBOT protocols.

View the Research on PubMed →

2021 Systematic Review & Meta-Analysis

This review examined HBOT used before, during and after exercise. Overall, HBOT before or after exercise did not significantly improve performance or recovery across the pooled results.

Important limitation: participant numbers were relatively small and treatment protocols differed considerably between studies.

View the Research on PubMed →
What does this mean for athletes?
Current research suggests HBOT may have a role as an adjunct to athletic recovery, but the evidence doesn't support treating it as a guaranteed way to improve performance or accelerate every aspect of recovery. ReWell therefore considers HBOT as one potential tool within a wider approach that also recognises the importance of training, nutrition, sleep, rehabilitation and the individual athlete.
A 2026 systematic review of 19 clinical studies involving 612 patients across musculoskeletal conditions found that evidence for exercise-induced muscle damage and DOMS remained limited, while results differed across ligament, tendon and bone conditions. View the review on PubMed →

A 2025 systematic review also examined HBOT in ligament and tendon injuries, although the evidence included both human and animal research and varied substantially between studies. View the review on PubMed →

Your Options

Three Ways to Access HBOT

Whether you'd prefer to start with a clinic session or want more regular access around training, competition and recovery, ReWell offers three ways to get started.

Try It First

Clinic Sessions

A guided session in our Naas or Dublin clinic — a simple way to experience HBOT before deciding whether more regular access would suit your recovery routine.

  • ✓ No commitment
  • ✓ Guided support
  • ✓ Sessions from €85
Book a Session
Most Popular

Best For Consistency

Home HBOT Rental

For athletes who want more regular access, a home chamber makes it easier to fit HBOT around training, competition, work and recovery without repeated clinic travel.

  • ✓ Regular access at home
  • ✓ Delivered across all 32 counties
  • ✓ From €1,229 · Klarna available
View Rental Options

Long-Term

Chamber Ownership

For athletes, households or organisations wanting long-term HBOT access, ReWell can help you understand the available chamber options before purchasing, with support through delivery, setup and ongoing use.

  • ✓ Long-term home access
  • ✓ Rent-to-buy credit available
  • ✓ From €9,999
Explore Ownership
The ReWell Pathway — Try, Extend, Own. Start with a clinic session or home rental. If you decide that ownership is right for you, eligible rental payments can be credited towards purchasing your chamber through ReWell's rent-to-buy option. Ask us about the available rent-to-buy options on your discovery call.

GAA Recovery

Playing GAA and Looking for More Recovery Support?

Explore our dedicated guide to HBOT for GAA players — from demanding training and match schedules to hamstring, quad and other soft-tissue injuries.

Explore GAA Recovery →
Davitt Meenaghan, Founder of ReWell Ireland

Founder & Director · ReWell

IBUM

Certified Safety Officer

100+

Verified Client Reviews

32

Counties Served

Your Guide

Recovery Isn't Just About Doing More

For Davitt Meenaghan, athletic recovery fits into a much bigger picture: giving the body the conditions it needs to recover, adapt and continue doing what we ask of it.

Davitt is the Founder of ReWell and an IBUM-certified Hyperbaric Safety Officer. His wider work is centred on functional medicine, biohacking, longevity and the factors that allow people to flourish. At ReWell, that means HBOT isn't viewed in isolation from the foundations that influence recovery — including nutrition, movement, sleep and lifestyle.

That wider perspective is particularly relevant for athletes. Training load, recovery, sleep, movement, rehabilitation, stress and individual physiology all interact, and what works for one person, sport or stage of training won't necessarily be right for another.

If you're exploring HBOT for athletic recovery, Davitt can help you understand the technology, available chamber and pressure options, safe chamber use and the different ways you can access HBOT through ReWell — whether that's starting with clinic sessions or considering more regular access through rental or ownership.

Bioindividual, not one-size-fits-all.

ReWell recognises that there is no single perfect programme or approach for everyone. How HBOT fits into your recovery should be considered in the context of you — your sport, circumstances, existing recovery foundations and why you're considering it.

Speak With Davitt

The Process

How Getting Started With ReWell Works

From your first conversation to accessing HBOT, here's what to expect whichever route you choose.

01

Discovery Call

Tell Davitt about your sport, training schedule, recovery goals and why you're considering HBOT. He can talk you through the practical considerations and available ways to access it through ReWell.

02

Individual Guidance

Your sport, circumstances, intended use and existing recovery approach are considered so you can understand where HBOT may fit and which access option makes practical sense for you.

03

Clinic Visit or Home Access

Start with a clinic session in Naas or Dublin, or choose home access if more regular use suits your circumstances. For rentals and purchases, ReWell arranges nationwide delivery and setup with guidance on safe chamber use.

04

Ongoing Support

Support doesn't end after your first session or once a chamber arrives. The ReWell team remains available for practical questions, chamber-use guidance and ongoing support throughout your time using HBOT.

Why ReWell

A Wider View of Athletic Recovery

At ReWell, we believe the human body has an extraordinary capacity to heal, adapt and thrive when it is given the right conditions. HBOT is one technology that may support those conditions — but technology sits around the foundations of health and should enhance them, never replace them.

Bioindividual by Nature

There is no single perfect recovery programme for every athlete. Your sport, training demands, physiology, circumstances and goals are individual, and that context matters when exploring HBOT.

Foundations Come First

Movement, nourishing food, sleep, recovery and time in nature remain fundamental. Technology can sit around these foundations and support them, but should never replace them.

Technology With Guidance

ReWell combines access to HBOT with qualified hyperbaric safety oversight and practical support, helping you understand the technology and the different ways it can be accessed safely.

100+
Verified Client Reviews
IBUM
Certified Hyperbaric Safety Officer
32
Counties Served
Bioindividual
Individual Guidance
Rent-to-Buy
Credit Options Available
Nationwide
Delivery & Installation

Common Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

How may HBOT support athletic recovery?

HBOT increases the amount of oxygen dissolved in the blood plasma. Researchers are studying whether this increased oxygen availability may influence processes involved in exercise recovery, metabolic recovery, inflammation, muscle damage and tissue repair. Some studies have reported potential benefits, while findings across the wider evidence base remain mixed.

Can HBOT improve athletic performance?

Research doesn't currently support treating HBOT as a guaranteed performance enhancer. Some studies have investigated outcomes such as blood lactate, endurance, power and recovery, but findings vary. ReWell therefore approaches HBOT as a potential supportive technology within a wider recovery approach rather than promising improvements in athletic performance.

Can HBOT be used while recovering from a sports injury?

HBOT has been studied in a range of musculoskeletal and soft-tissue conditions, but the evidence varies considerably according to the type of injury and treatment protocol. It shouldn't replace assessment, physiotherapy or a structured rehabilitation and return-to-play programme.

Is there one HBOT programme that works best for athletes?

No universally established HBOT programme exists for athletic recovery. Published studies use different pressures, session lengths, frequencies and timing. ReWell also recognises that people are bioindividual, so your sport, circumstances, intended use and existing recovery approach all matter.

Can HBOT prevent sports injuries?

There isn't sufficient evidence to say that HBOT prevents sports injuries. Injury risk is influenced by many factors including training load, conditioning, technique, sleep, nutrition and previous injury. HBOT is better considered as a potential recovery tool rather than an injury-prevention treatment.

Is HBOT safe for athletes?

HBOT is generally well tolerated, but it isn't suitable for everyone. Possible side effects can include pressure-related ear or sinus discomfort, temporary vision changes and, less commonly, other complications. ReWell provides guidance around appropriate and safe chamber use, and suitability should be considered before starting.

Where can athletes access HBOT through ReWell?

ReWell offers clinic sessions in Naas and Dublin, as well as home HBOT chamber rental with delivery and installation across all 32 counties. Chamber ownership is also available for people who want long-term access, with eligible rental payments able to be credited towards a purchase through ReWell's rent-to-buy option.

Conditions & Research

Explore HBOT by Area of Interest

Explore the research behind HBOT and learn how it may support different areas of health, recovery and performance.

What Clients Are Saying

Real experiences from people who have used ReWell for clinic sessions, home HBOT rental and ongoing support.

Not Sure Where to Start?

Exploring HBOT for Athletic Recovery?

Speak with Davitt about your sport, training demands, recovery goals and why you're considering HBOT. He can help you understand how the technology works, the available options and whether clinic sessions, home rental or chamber ownership makes the most practical sense for you.

Book a Free Discovery Call Book a Session — From €85 View Rental Options