The Apollo wearable increased heart rate variability in 100% of athletes in an independent university pilot study.

The Study

Elite athletes and coaches are always looking for an edge. For over a decade, the impact of touch and heart rate variability training has been a critical part of athletic recovery, from massage and float tanks to stretching and compression. The objective was to assess how the Apollo Neuro technology would impact athletic recovery and performance in athletes.

The Design

40 healthy elite college athletes used Apollo for physical recovery and performance in pre and post-exercise challenges. Each athlete’s biometrics (i.e. heart rate, HRV, blood pressure, blood glucose) and performance pre- and post-challenge were measured, with and without Apollo vibrations. 

The Outcome

The use of the Apollo wearable improved HRV in 40 out of 40 athletes at Division 1 University Athletics Department. 

Those athletes who had the lowest HRV at baseline showed the most significant net gain in HRV and experienced the most noticeable improvement in how they subjectively felt after using the Apollo wearable. 

In addition, the Apollo Neuro technology:

• Improved how quickly athletes recovered from physical exercise, as measured by their heart rate (HR) and systolic blood pressure (SBP). On average, within 5 minutes of completing intense physical exercise, athlete’s HR and SBP lowered 10-15 points faster than their baseline recovery time when using Apollo following intense exercise. 
• Decreased the amount of glucose measured in the blood following a carbohydrate challenge when compared to baseline. This preliminary result is consistent with other activities that increase parasympathetic (rest and recover) activity in the nervous system, which generally improve insulin sensitivity allowing cells to take in glucose from the blood resulting in improved energy storage and utilization. 
• Enhanced the consistency of sustaining peak performance during intense workouts (e.g. athletes could perform more reps in the same amount of time consistently when using the Apollo wearable, compared to their baseline without it).

As neuroscientists and physicians, we know that there is good stress and bad stress. Physical exercise stresses the body, and by doing so, it makes us stronger and more resilient. But just like mental stress, too much of it with too little recovery leaves us depleted, tired, and unable to perform at our peak reliably. We’re very excited to see that the Apollo wearable can be an effective tool in the toolbox for boosting our physical recovery from exercise so we can bounce back quicker to do it all again.

See a published peer-reviewed study from the University of Pittsburgh on the Apollo wearable's impact on improving athletic recovery and HRV.