Inside the Evolution of NBA Champion Josh Hart’s Wellness & Recovery Routine

After winning this year’s NBA championship, the Knicks’ guard spoke with ATN about how he’s embraced tools like saunas and red light, along with a focus on nutrition and sleep

To win an NBA title in a league packed with talented, multi-skilled players, you have to be dialed in — not only in your training, but in everything else that supports your performance.

For Knicks starting shooting guard Josh Hart, it wasn’t until this season that he became locked into his recovery and wellness routine.

“The term wellness kind of changed throughout my career. At first, I thought it was just eating healthy and sleeping,” Hart told Athletech News. But now, Hart’s routine has evolved to include supplements, saunas, cold plunging and red light therapy along with a strong focus on nutrition and sleep.

“Last year, I felt like we made a good run into the Eastern Conference finals, but that was the longest I’ve ever played. 
And I felt like towards the end I just didn’t have that energy,” Hart said. That’s when he hired a nutritionist, got bloodwork done and started taking supplements to fill any gaps his team found.

“They kind of created a little concoction of pills and supplements that they put on my smoothies and I don’t know everything that they put in,” he admitted. A core part of that nutrition plan has been hydration, he pointed out, as he’s partnered with Vita Coco coconut water to help support the 30 minutes per game he averaged last season.

When it comes to his recovery protocols, Hart invested in both an at-home infrared sauna and red light bed as well, both of which he was using three to five times per week during the season, in addition to cryotherapy a few times per week. He’s also a fan of the Hyperice Normatec compression boots, which he said he was using daily.

When he first entered the league a decade ago, Hart explained, he didn’t have to worry as much about these things — but now he’s noticed a major difference in how they’ve impacted his performance and how he feels day-to-day.

“Once I hit 30, I woke up, my back was hurting, knees were aching, shoulders hurting. I’m just like, ‘man, this is terrible,’” Hart said. On top of that, he’s been playing more than ever the past few seasons as the Knicks have progressed further into the playoffs, ultimately winning their first NBA title in 53 years this past June.

“All those things I think help keep my body fresh and allow me to play good basketball,” he said, even 100 games into the season. “My biggest judgment of that was how I felt last year and then how I felt this year.”

While the Knicks have steadily performed better throughout the years, their 2025-26 season will go down as one of the franchise’s best in history, capped off with a record playoff and finals run. Hart attributes a portion of that success to the renewed focus on wellness that not only he’s participated in, but also his teammates.

“I think this is the first time us as a whole team really focused on it,” he noted.

“(Jalen Brunson) kind of did a lot of the same things that I did; Miles McBride did a lot of the same things I did. OG (Anunoby) was really in touch with it…he’s really big into nutrition,” Hart said.

Post-game recovery doesn’t always have to be high-tech, though,

“I think (Mitchell Robinson) just kind of vibed last year,” Hart said. “I think his recovery process was getting away mentally and being with his truck, his daughter, his dogs — that was his recovery.”