The Ultimate Athlete Stack for Recovery

For athletes, training hard is only half the equation — true progress happens during recovery. The hours you spend asleep are when muscles repair, joints strengthen, and your nervous system resets for the next day’s performance. Without enough quality rest, even the best training plans can fall short.

That’s where a sleep stack comes in. By combining specific supplements in the right amounts before bed, athletes can enhance both recovery and sleep quality. The result is deeper rest, faster repair, and waking up ready to perform at your best.

Recovery is just as important as training when it comes to athletic performance. Without proper rest, your body can’t rebuild muscles, repair joints, or restore energy levels needed for your next workout. That’s why many athletes are now turning to sleep stacks — a strategic combination of supplements taken before bed that maximizes both recovery and sleep quality.

Unlike generic sleep aids that simply “knock you out,” a well-designed sleep stack — such as the Dr. Andrew Huberman sleep stack — works with your body’s natural rhythms. It supplies the nutrients your muscles, nervous system, and brain need to repair overnight, helping you wake up stronger, less sore, and ready to perform at your best.

A sleep stack doesn’t need to be complicated. The key is choosing ingredients that calm the body, support deep sleep, and fuel overnight repair. Here’s what an ultimate athlete recovery stack looks like:

Magnesium is one of the most important minerals for athletes. It relaxes muscles, calms the nervous system, and helps regulate your natural sleep-wake cycle. Supplementing with a bioavailable form like magnesium bisglycinate before bed reduces cramps, supports stress management, and lays the foundation for restorative sleep.

Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid (GABA) is a naturally occurring neurotransmitter that quiets the brain’s activity. For athletes who struggle with racing thoughts or high cortisol levels at night, GABA helps signal the body it’s time to rest. It promotes a smoother transition into sleep without sedation, making it an essential part of any sleep stack. And if you’re curious whether or not it’s safe to take GABA and magnesium together, the answer is yes, it’s generally safe for healthy adults to take both simultaneously.

L-theanine, an amino acid found in green tea, enhances relaxation and focus. It reduces mental chatter, improves sleep quality, and supports vivid dreaming without causing grogginess. Combined with GABA and magnesium, it helps shift your body into the calm state required for recovery.

Sleep isn’t just about the brain — it’s when your body does the heavy lifting of repair. Adding collagen protein to your sleep stack provides amino acids that rebuild muscles, joints, and connective tissue. Athletes often notice reduced soreness, fewer cramps, and stronger joints when a collagen sleep aid is a regular part of their nightly recovery. (Check out our Collagen for Sleep FAQs if you want to learn more.)

Most importantly, collagen is about one-third glycine by molecular weight. Glycine has been shown in clinical studies to lower core body temperature and improve sleep quality, making collagen unique among recovery supplements: it supports both overnight physical repair and deeper, more restorative sleep. [1, 2, 3, 4]

The effectiveness of a sleep stack depends on both the ingredients and the timing. Here’s how to use the ultimate athlete stack to maximize results:

1. 30–60 minutes before bed: Mix one scoop of collagen powder with water. This delivers protein to fuel overnight repair.

2. At the same time: Take magnesium, GABA, and L-theanine. These compounds work together to relax the nervous system, calm the mind, and support a smooth transition into deep sleep.

3. Wind down: Use this 30 to 60-minute window to step away from screens, stretch lightly, or practice breathing exercises. This allows the stack to take full effect as your body prepares for restorative rest.

Many athletes reach for melatonin when they can’t sleep, but long-term melatonin use can disrupt hormone balance and cause morning grogginess.

The Thirdzy Rest & Recover sleep stack is completely melatonin-free, meaning it supports natural sleep rhythms without dependency or side effects. Instead of forcing sleep, it provides the nutrients your body uses to relax, recover, and repair overnight.

When athletes commit to a nightly sleep stack, the benefits add up quickly. Expect to fall asleep faster, experience deeper and longer sleep, and wake up with less soreness and more energy. By making recovery a priority, you’ll get more out of every training session and protect your long-term health and performance. If you’re over 30, check out our recovery tips for Masters athletes. 

A supplement stack is powerful on its own, but pairing it with smart nighttime habits can take your recovery to the next level. Here are a few simple strategies athletes swear by:

• Stay hydrated throughout the day: Dehydration makes it harder for your muscles to recover during sleep and can contribute to nighttime cramps. Aim to get most of your fluids in earlier, so you’re not waking up thirsty or for bathroom trips at night.

• Time your workouts wisely: Try to finish high-intensity training at least 3 to 4 hours before bed. This gives your nervous system time to settle and helps your sleep stack work more effectively.

• Shut down screens before bed: Blue light from phones and laptops suppresses natural melatonin production. A tech-free wind-down routine helps your supplements do their job.

• Pair with light stretching or breathwork: A few minutes of gentle mobility work or deep breathing can release tension, relax the body, and signal it’s time to recover.

• Keep your sleep environment cool and dark: Temperature and light are two of the biggest influences on sleep quality. Optimize your environment to make the most of your stack.

Yes — your body can handle both, and some athletes even mix collagen directly into their evening shake. Just be mindful of not adding too much sugar, which can interfere with sleep.

Not necessarily. Some products, like Thirdzy’s Rest & Recover Collagen, combine collagen with magnesium, GABA, and L-theanine in clinically studied amounts, making it easier to build your nightly stack.

A stack should be designed to support natural recovery, not sedate you. When you opt for a melatonin-free sleep supplement, like Thirdzy’s Rest & Recover Collagen, you wake up feeling energized, not sluggish.

Aim for 30 to 60 minutes before bedtime. This window gives the calming compounds time to take effect as you transition into rest mode.

Absolutely. While athletes may notice improved recovery and performance, anyone who struggles with poor sleep, stress, or soreness can benefit from this approach.

1. Bannai, Makoto, and Nobuhiro Kawai. "New therapeutic strategy for amino acid medicine: glycine improves the quality of sleep." Journal of pharmacological sciences 118.2 (2012): 145-148.

2. Bannai, Makoto, et al. "The effects of glycine on subjective daytime performance in partially sleep-restricted healthy volunteers." Frontiers in neurology 3 (2012): 61.

3. Kawai, Nobuhiro et al. “The sleep-promoting and hypothermic effects of glycine are mediated by NMDA receptors in the suprachiasmatic nucleus.” Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology vol. 40,6 (2015): 1405-16. doi:10.1038/npp.2014.326 

4. Yamadera W, Inagawa K, Chiba S, Bannai M, Takahashi M, Nakayama K. Glycine ingestion improves subjective sleep quality in human volunteers, correlating with polysomnographic changes. Sleep and Biological Rhythms. 2007;5(2):126-131. doi:10.1111/j.1479-8425.2007.00262.x.