Breathwork expert Rob Rea has shared his daily routine, detailing how he combines early rising, movement, breathwork and recovery practices to manage stress and performance. His approach centres on the idea that recovery, not stress, is the key challenge, and that breathing is a powerful, often overlooked tool.
Morning routine and breathwork
Rea wakes between 5.45am and 6.30am, depending on when his son Forest acts as his alarm. He uses the Eight Sleep system as a dashboard rather than to obsess over his sleep score, adapting his training if his recovery looks poor. He then focuses on five to ten conscious breaths and stays in silence for two to five minutes before moving, calling it a tiny habit that changes the direction of the day.
After taking his son downstairs to play, he drinks hot water and lemon, followed by 10 to 20 minutes of breathwork or meditation, mobility work, resistance training or Zone 2 cardio. He finishes his shower with cold water for the final ten breaths. His supplements are simple: creatine, omega-3, and vitamin D in winter. Breakfast is often Greek yoghurt with berries, nuts and seeds, or eggs; lunch is protein, vegetables and something colourful; dinner is often Mediterranean-inspired, cooked by his wife. He states he is more interested in metabolic flexibility than dietary ideology.
Movement and recovery philosophy
Movement is non-negotiable for Rea, whether lifting weights, doing yoga, or walking through a forest without headphones. He believes exercise has been overcomplicated and that bodies simply want to move in many different ways. For recovery, he uses the sauna when he can, does cold immersion twice weekly, and practises breathwork daily, describing breathing as the most underused recovery tool.
Rea does not try to eliminate stress, which he says is not the enemy; rather, the inability to recover is. He uses one or two minutes of breathing to reset his nervous system throughout the day, likening it to pressing save on a computer before opening another file. Meditation is daily, sometimes for 20 minutes, sometimes two. He says it has shifted from improving performance to reminding him who he is beneath performance, a distinction that changed his life.
Biohacking, attention and sleep
Having experimented with red light, cold exposure, nootropics and hyperbaric oxygen, Rea concludes that the highest return on investment comes from sleep, movement, breathing, relationships and purpose. He tries not to let his phone be the first or last thing he experiences each day, thinking of his attention like a bee tempted by thousands of flowers; the quality of life depends less on how many flowers he visits and more on where he chooses to land.
Evenings are for family. Once his son is asleep, he and his wife often watch a show together, then read or meditate, or simply talk. He emphasises that great sleep is about the basics: a cool room, consistent bedtime, no heavy meals late and minimal alcohol. If the nervous system thinks it is solving tomorrow's problems, sleep becomes harder. He suggests starting small: for one minute, twice a day, slow your breathing — five seconds in, five seconds out — and notice how your body changes.
Rea concludes that everything becomes easier when your nervous system believes you are safe. Ten years ago he thought high performance meant pushing harder; today he believes it is about recovering better. Those performing at the highest level are not those with the strongest nervous systems, but those who can move fluidly between stress and recovery.
