Get £130 In FREE Gifts: 0DAYS 0HOURS 0MIN 0SEC

Pro rugby's best recovery tool isn't the ice bath. It's sleep.

Scotland scrum-half and British & Irish Lion Ben White on the night routine behind his recovery, and the part anyone who trains hard can copy.

Ben White playing keepy-up with a rugby ball in training

Ben has every recovery tool money can buy.

Ben White is 28. He plays scrum-half for Toulon in France's Top 14 and for Scotland, and toured Australia with the British & Irish Lions in 2025. A season like that means a collision-heavy match most weekends and hard training on the days in between.

At that level, recovery is a full-time job: physios, ice baths, compression, nutrition plans, GPS data on every session.

None of them work without sleep.

Sleep is when muscle repairs, when growth hormone peaks and when the nervous system resets. Miss it, and the rest of the kit can't make up the difference.

Ben White playing for Toulon

What most of us tell ourselves:

“I'm not a pro athlete. I don't need to recover like one.”

You need it more than he does. Deep sleep, the stage where most of that repair happens, falls steadily from your thirties onwards. At 50 you get less of it than a 28-year-old, and you're asking it to do the same job.

Ben White relaxing on the sofa in blue-light glasses

Ben's night, in 4 moments.

9pmScreens down, blue-light glasses on. The day is over, and his body needs to know it.
10pmTwo capsules of Sleep & Recovery, 30 to 45 minutes before lights out.
10:30pmCool room, eye mask, earplugs. Nothing left to chance.
7amUp before the alarm, ready to train.
Ben White putting on an eye mask

The enemy of recovery: stress that won't switch off.

It comes down to one hormone. Cortisol.

Cortisol is the stress hormone, and it runs on a clock. It climbs in the morning to get you going and is meant to fall through the evening, so that by bedtime your body can let go.

Your body doesn't separate a hard session from a hard day at work. Both are stress. Train in the evening, answer emails until ten, and cortisol has two reasons to stay high when it should be falling.

Ben White before a match
Cortisol over 24 hours
  • a normal day
  • a day I couldn't “fall asleep”

When it doesn't fall, you sleep light and wake early. The hours look fine on paper, but the deep, repairing sleep never really comes.

That's why pros protect the switch-off.

Ben's routine isn't about falling asleep. It's about telling his body the stress is over. Most of us never do that on purpose.

Why melatonin, magnesium and sleeping pills don't fix it.

People like you don't do half measures. By the time they write to us, most have tried every one of these:

  • Melatonin made you drowsy and foggy the next morning, and you still woke at 3am.

    Melatonin

  • Magnesium relaxed your muscles. It did nothing for your head.

    Magnesium

  • A supplement stack with no real doses on the labels, so you never knew which part, if any, was working.

    A supplement stack

  • Sleeping pills work like a switch. The next morning, and your training, pay for it.

    Sleeping pills

Then the protocols: no screens after nine, blue-blocking glasses, a cold room, mouth tape, the sauna before bed. Most of them help a little. None of them fix it.

That's because they either make you sleepy or tidy up the edges. None of them turn the stress off. And if the stress is still on, you don't stay asleep, however disciplined you are.

A night that actually restores you goes in an order: your muscles relax, your mind slows down, the stress switches off, you stay asleep, and then your body repairs. Most products work on one of those steps.

So I built a formula that switches the stress off.

I'm Mathias, the founder of 8HOURS. I spent years as one of these people: training hard, working harder, sleeping badly, and assuming it was the price of the life. I went looking for something that would turn the stress off at night instead of just making me drowsy. I couldn't find one I'd take.

So I built it. 8HOURS Sleep & Recovery. Two capsules, 30 to 45 minutes before bed. No melatonin, no sedative, nothing habit-forming. Six ingredients: one for each of those five steps, and one that helps your body absorb the rest.

  • MAGNESIUM BISGLYCINATE MAGNESIUM BISGLYCINATE 800mg - 100mg elemental · your muscles relax
  • L-THEANINE L-THEANINE 200mg · your mind slows down
  • APIGENIN APIGENIN 50mg · the stress switches off
  • MYO-INOSITOL MYO-INOSITOL 250mg · you stay asleep
  • TART CHERRY TART CHERRY 400mg · you recover
  • BIOPERINE BIOPERINE 15mg · you absorb all the other ingredients

Every ingredient is at the dose the research used, printed on the label. Every batch goes to an independent lab, and we publish the last test date. If you read labels the way you read a training plan, you'll find nothing hidden.

Ben White holding a jar of 8HOURS Sleep & Recovery in bed
8hours Sleep & Recovery – Europe's leading natural sleep supplement with magnesium bisglycinate, L-theanine and apigenin
TRY SLEEP & RECOVERY RISK-FREE
25K+ Happy Customers 4.8/5
90-Day Money Back GuaranteeFree Shipping

Why a British & Irish Lion takes it before bed.

Ben White training with a rugby ball

At Ben's level, everything that goes into his body gets checked. A supplement has to be clean, and it has to earn its place.

That's why it matters that 8HOURS is triple lab tested and certified by a doping authority.

For a player who takes hits every weekend, sleep isn't rest. It's where the next match gets won.

First change: you wake up ready to train.

Ben White in the morning

Not “better sleep” in the abstract. What the next day looks like when your body actually switched off the night before.

You're awake before the alarm. Your recovery score is green more often than red. Your legs feel fresh in the warm-up, not halfway through it. And you still have energy for the people at home.

Here's what customers tell us, roughly in the order it happens.

First, the nights stop being a fight:

“I have not slept properly for years, so going to bed has been a nightmare… I have been taking 8hours for nearly 2 months and I immediately noticed a change. I fall asleep very quickly, cutting out the dread of going to bed.”

Graziella B.

Verified buyer · 10/06/2025

Then the mornings come back:

“I would always wake up at 3am and then struggle to get back to sleep, leaving me groggy and foggy the next day… now I'm able to get back to sleep easily and there's no grogginess in the morning.”

Amy H.

Verified buyer · 19/06/2025

And the people around them notice:

“I have been taking them now for about 5 weeks and can honestly say I feel like a completely different person. Even my children say my mood is much better.”

Candice C.

Verified buyer · 07/02/2025

And the one that sounds most like me:

“As someone who runs a business, I often find it hard to switch off… Since I started taking 8hours, I wake up feeling more refreshed and I'm sharper throughout the day.”

Mark T.

Verified buyer · 30/05/2025

Reported results
Results

89%

report deeper, more restful sleep

74%

report sleeping through the night

91%

report waking up clear-headed

84%

report recovering faster

*Based on self-reported data of 85 participants after 45 nights of 8hours Sleep & Recovery. Individual results may vary.

TRY 8HOURS SLEEP & RECOVERY RISK-FREE
25K+ Happy Customers 4.8/5
90-Day Money Back GuaranteeFree Shipping

How long until I stop lying there wide awake?

Some people feel it on night one. Most don't, and I'd be wary of anything that promises you will: that's a sedative's job.

Zineb R. was waking between 2 and 5am for over a year. Two weeks in it started to shift; she's now gone six weeks without one.

Give it 30 nights. A body that's been on alert for years won't calm down in three.

What to expect, in 3 stages.

Day 14The nights: into bed tired and staying tired. Fewer 3am wake-ups.
Day 30The days: no third coffee, patience at four, awake before the alarm.
Day 60+It stops being something you notice. It's just how you sleep.

So here’s my offer:

Start with the 3-month plan: £33.30 a month, £1.11 a night, and the first box comes with £130 of gifts, including a 45-minute call with a sleep expert. Give it 90 nights. If your nights haven't changed, you get your money back.

Sleep & Recovery

Sleep & Recovery, 3-Month Supply

Two capsules a night · pause or cancel anytime

£45£33.30/mo
Blue Blocking Glasses

Blue Blocking Glasses

£60Free
Deep Sleep Earplugs

Deep Sleep Earplugs

£25Free
Bedside Glass Jar

Bedside Glass Jar

A jar lives on your nightstand, so two capsules at 10:30 becomes a thing you do, not a thing you remember.

£15Free
Deep Sleep Blueprint

Deep Sleep Blueprint

The written protocol: light, timing, caffeine, travel. What took me two years to work out, in one short read.

£30Free
Gifts £130 of gifts, free with your order.
TRY SLEEP & RECOVERY RISK-FREE
25K+ Happy Customers 4.8/5
90-Day Money Back GuaranteeFree Shipping

I'll also make you a simple promise

If your sleep hasn't changed after 90 nights, email us and you get your money back.

I can offer that because 75,000 pouches have gone out: about 2.25 million nights, on real people. Nights change around day 14, days around day 30, so 90 is long enough to see it on your own data.

Worst case, you're out nothing.

You don't need to be a pro. Just track it.

Most of our customers aren't professional athletes. They train seriously, work hard and want to feel it paying off.

So don't take it on trust. You already measure your HRV, your resting heart rate and your deep sleep. Give it 30 nights and look at the data. If the numbers don't move, the 90-night guarantee means it cost you nothing.

Get £130 In FREE Gifts: 0DAYS 0HOURS 0MIN 0SEC

Sleep & Recovery

60 Capsules (30 Servings)

An all-natural formula, designed for deeper sleep and faster overnight recovery

4.8/5 ∙ 419 reviews

Ships by Fri, Oct 30 • Royal Mail Tracked · 2–4 Working Days

No risk, 90-day guarantee with less than 1% of customers asking for their money back.

Dr Tom Gurney
“The science is clear - quality sleep is the unfair edge for high performers”
Dr Tom GurneyChief Science Officer
Full ingredients list
  • Magnesium - as Magnesium Bisglycinate (100mg)
  • L-Theanine (200mg)
  • Apigenin (50mg)
  • Myo-Inositol (250mg)
  • Montmorency Cherry Extract 50:1, standardised (400mg)
  • BioPerine® (15mg)
  • Bamboo silica (5mg) - Natural & keeps moisture out.
  • HMPC Capsules (Natural & Plant Based )
Key Benefits

SLEEP & RELAXATION

Supports normal nervous system and muscle function, helping the body unwind and transition into sleep naturally.*
Designed to support relaxation without sedatives or forced sleep.

NERVOUS SYSTEM BALANCE

Supports normal psychological and nervous system function, helping maintain balance during periods of stress and high demand.
Designed to support recovery as part of a consistent nightly routine.*

REDUCTION OF TIREDNESS & FATIGUE

Contributes to the reduction of tiredness and fatigue, supporting overnight recovery and how rested you feel the next day.*
Consistent sleep quality supports both physical and mental readiness.

Shipping & delivery

Order Processing:

Orders placed after 10:00 PM or on weekends/holidays will be processed the next business day.

Dispatch:

Orders are typically shipped within 1 business day from the time you receive an order confirmation.

Estimated Delivery Times:

Netherlands & United Kingdom: 1–3 business days
European Union (EU): 2–6 business days
International (outside EU): 2–15 business days

Got a delivery issue or want to track your shipment?
Head over to our Tracking Page.

Real Customers, Real Reviews

Mikaela Nilsson
Deeper Sleep
Pete Pastides
Sleep for Athletes
Femke de Voogd
Less Night Wake Ups
Max Hamil
Switch Off Faster
Joanna G.
Deeper Sleep
Nathaniel John King
Faster Recovery
Lucy Henderson
Improved Sleep Quality
Ivar Visser
Enhanced Recovery

Used everyday by high performers and elite athletes.

Niki van Sprang
Niki van SprangOlympian
Erin Gilchrist
Erin GilchristTriathlete
Ross Moldavsky
Ross Moldavsky Creator & Triathlete
Henni Maurersberger
Henni Maurersberger Pro Hyrox Athlete
Pete Pastides
Pete PastidesGB Triathlete
Lucas Parker
Lucas ParkerPro Hyrox Athlete
TRY SLEEP & RECOVERY RISK-FREE
25K+ Happy Customers 4.8/5
90-Day Money Back GuaranteeFree Shipping

FAQs

Is this just melatonin in a nicer box?

No. There's no melatonin, valerian or sedative in it.

  • Tart cherry is a natural source of melatonin precursors, which supports your body's own production rather than replacing it.
Will I feel groggy?

No. L-Theanine promotes calm without drowsiness and Magnesium Bisglycinate supports natural muscle relaxation rather than forcing sleep.

91% of the 45-night group reported waking clear-headed.

Will I become dependent on it?

No. Nothing in it is habit-forming. Stop any time, no rebound. That was one of my rules.

I've tried magnesium. It did nothing.

Almost certainly the form and the dose.

High-street magnesium is often oxide or citrate at a fraction of the elemental content.

This is Bisglycinate at 800mg (100mg elemental), printed on the label so you can check it.

How long before I notice something?

Weeks 1–2, easier to wind down. Weeks 2–4, deeper, less interrupted nights.

Month 2 onwards, daytime energy and recovery. Give it 30 nights before you judge it.

Can I take it if I compete?

Yes. Every Batch is tested for banned substances and Informed Sports and NZVT (Dutch Doping Authorities) certified. Every batch is also independently lab tested for everything from purity to heavy metals but also to check that everything that's on the label is also in product. All tests are published straight to our lab testing widget on site.

Why does a supplement come with a phone call?

Because we were a habits company before we were a capsule company, and we still think the capsule is the second half.

At 8hours we work on three non-negotiable principles:

  • Real science: Every ingredient we use is backed by solid scientific evidence and selected for its proven effectiveness, not market trends.
  • Optimal and safe doses: We formulate in the amounts that science indicates as effective, guaranteeing results without saturating your body or generating dependence.
  • Uncompromising quality: We only use pure extracts, without unnecessary excipients, with international quality certifications and a transparent manufacturing process in top-level laboratories.

Furthermore, our formulas are designed to work together, offering comprehensive and natural support to your mind and body.

Research doses on the label. No proprietary blends. Every batch triple lab tested.

Recover like a pro for 90 nights, risk-free.

Ben White portrait

Path one: close this page and keep training hard on half-finished recovery.

Path two: do what Ben does. Two capsules, 30 to 45 minutes before bed. Give it 14 nights before you judge it and 90 before you decide.

You already put the work in. This is how you get it back.

— Mathias

PS: If you want to argue with any of this, email me. I read them: mathias@8-hours.com.

TRY 8HOURS SLEEP & RECOVERY RISK-FREE
25K+ Happy Customers 4.8/5
90-Day Money Back GuaranteeFree Shipping