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Volume 75 | Smart Pressure
Smart compression, smarter recovery. Inside Suji × Justin Rose, new sauna longevity data, hydration intelligence, and the tech shaping athletic performance.
Alec Grawe
December 05, 2025
📰 The Pulse
Justin Rose Partners with Suji to Bring Smart Compression to Golf
Golf legend Justin Rose has joined smart-compression company Suji as an investor and ambassador, integrating its blood-flow–restriction (BFR) and smart compression tools into his own training and rehab. Suji’s connected system uses precise, sensor-guided compression to enhance strength, speed up recovery, and protect joints—without the guesswork of traditional BFR bands.
The Playbook Take — When a major winner puts their name behind recovery hardware, it’s a signal. Expect more golf academies and tour physios to bake smart compression into warm-ups, strength work, and return-to-play protocols. (More)
Ben Greenfield: New Sauna Data Flips the Script on “Hotter Is Better”
If you’re cranking your sauna to the max, a new Finnish 39-year cohort study (13,994 adults; 1,805 dementia cases) suggests you may want to rethink the protocol.
The study found that moderate, consistent heat — not extreme temperatures — mapped with the lowest long-term dementia risk. But too much heat can strain cerebral blood flow and the blood–brain barrier. (More)
Soho House Turns Members’ Clubs into Longevity Labs
Soho House is no longer just martinis and rooftop views. Under CEO Andrew Carnie, the brand is rolling out Soho Health Club and tech-heavy wellness amenities—think IV drips, hyperbaric oxygen chambers, saunas, red light therapy, and Pilates/padel studios—across its global locations.
They’re also introducing longevity-focused retreats and workshops that mix diagnostics, movement, and nutrition education.
Why it matters — “Wellness-first” is becoming the new membership flex. High-end social clubs, hotels, and gyms are all racing to bolt on longevity stacks—labs, protocols, and white-glove recovery—to keep their best members and attract performance-obsessed creators. (More)
Hawkin Dynamics x Sports Academy: Force Plates for Everyone
Hawkin Dynamics, the global leader in force plate tech, just announced a strategic partnership with Sports Academy, the multi-sport performance destination with sites in CA, TX, and beyond.
Sports Academy will roll out Hawkin’s wireless force plates and TruStrength dynamometers across its network—standardizing how they measure jump performance, asymmetries, and strength, from youth athletes to pros.
Why it matters — Force plates used to live only in pro labs and research centers. Now they’re becoming a baseline tool in large performance ecosystems, giving coaches real-time insight instead of guessing off “how it felt.” (More)
Nix Biosensors x Modo Yoga: Hydration Gets Hot
Nix Biosensors just signed a first-of-its-kind partnership with Modo Yoga International, bringing real-time hydration science to hot yoga studios across North America.
The play:
Modo members wear Nix’s upper-arm biosensor during class
The app tracks fluid and sodium losses in real time
Modo is launching its own electrolyte blend tailored to hot yoga
Together, they deliver a closed-loop hydration system: sweat data + targeted replenishment
Why it matters — Hot yoga is one of the most hydration-demanding studio workouts, but most people still “wing it” with water and hope. This partnership replaces guesswork with sweat science. (More)
🧬 The Shop
The Garmin inReach Mini 3 Plus is a compact satellite communicator aimed at endurance athletes and outdoor explorers who go beyond cell coverage. It offers:
Two-way messaging
SOS functionality via satellite
Integration with Garmin’s ecosystem for tracking and safety
If you’re pushing into big-mountain ultras or backcountry missions, this is a serious safety and logistics upgrade.
Peachy, portable energy gummies made for people with things to do. We call it pre-workout. But really, it’s pre-whatever you’ve got going on. Each pack delivers 95mg of natural caffeine from green tea plus Rhodiola Rosea, DuraBeet® Betaine, and prebiotic fiber for focus, stamina, and recovery.
Rapid rehydration formula with electrolytes, taurine, caffeine, and adaptogen support for peak performance and recovery. Coming in flavors Peach Mango and Black Cherry!
YETI expanded its Yonder line with the Yonder Shaker Bottle—a lightweight, shatter-resistant shaker built for on-the-go fueling. It’s designed for easy mixing, leak resistance, and daily abuse in the gym bag or travel kit.
Orangetheory’s new OTconnect Beat heart rate monitor is built to integrate tightly with in-studio screens and the OTF app, giving members real-time zone tracking, effort scores, and post-workout insights. It’s the latest evolution of their “train by heart rate” model.
The ASICS GEL-NIMBUS 28 continues the line’s reputation as a highly cushioned daily trainer. With a soft yet responsive midsole, improved upper comfort, and tuned geometry, it’s built for runners logging higher mileage who still want a forgiving ride.
Experience premium comfort with cloudlike cushioning in the new GELNIMBUS 28 shoe. Arriving in select regions Dec 4, and landing globally in January
🌱🏃♂️➡️ The Energy Hot Chocolate
Running one marathon. Every day. For over 90 days.
Meet Brooks Bash — the founder behind Earthy, an energy hot chocolate built from real ingredients. He got tired of misleading labels and overdosed energy drinks.
So he built Earthy — and then put it to the ultimate test:
26.2 miles a day until he sells 5,000 bags.
It’s clean, stable, jitter-free energy from ingredients your body actually recognizes:
🍫 Cacao — antioxidant-rich and mood-lifting
🍄 Functional mushrooms — focus, immunity, resilience
❤️ Beets — nitric oxide support for endurance
🌿 Guayusa — clean caffeine without the spikes or crashes
✨ Cinnamon + nutmeg — natural metabolic support and warmth
So whether you’re looking to stay locked in at work, train smarter, or leave caffeine crashes behind. Earthy isn’t just another drink — it’s a smarter energy system for your day.
Your order might be the one to help this man stop running!
👉 Use code PLAYBOOK for 15% OFF
🎙️ On The Podcast
This week on The Playbook Podcast, we sat down with Brooks Bash — founder of Earthy and the guy who’s currently on Day 102 of running a marathon every single day.
That’s 2,500+ miles… while building a startup… and being a present husband to his pregnant wife.
Brooks launched Earthy — his cacao-based “performance hot chocolate” — to bring cleaner energy to athletes and high-performers without synthetic caffeine, crashes, or shady proprietary blends. And instead of buying ads, he turned himself into a billboard: he’s running every day until Earthy sells 5,000 bags (they’re now at 2,725).
We talk:
• What inspired the challenge
• The real issues inside the supplement world
• How guayusa leaf delivers smooth, steady energy
• Entrepreneurship when everything goes wrong
• His Flow Stack: Earthy AM/PM, Hylo running shoes, cold plunges, sleep, meditation, and plant-based fueling
If you’re looking for cleaner, better energy — or a great holiday gift — this episode is a must-listen.
Earthy might just become your new daily ritual.
💰 The Boardroom
Orion Raises $17.5M to Scale Smart Sleep
On the back of its Smart Cover platform, Orion closed a $17.5M seed round to expand its AI-powered sleep-tech ecosystem—combining sensor-activated covers with a subscription analytics layer to give users deeper insight into sleep quality and recovery.
The Playbook Take — Sleep is already the most important recovery tool. The next edge is precision: minute-by-minute environment control, integrated biometrics, and coaching layered on top. Orion is trying to be that layer. (More)
Enhanced to Go Public in $1.2B SPAC Deal
Enhanced, the controversial sports and performance company behind the Enhanced Games, has entered a definitive agreement to go public via SPAC merger with A Paradise Acquisition Corp (APAD) at a $1.2B valuation. The combined entity is expected to list on Nasdaq as Enhanced Group Inc. (ticker: ENHA), subject to regulatory approval.
Enhanced’s model spans:
Performance-enhanced competition (the “steroid Olympics”)
Telehealth and longevity products
Direct-to-consumer performance and health offerings
Media and event revenue
The Playbook Take — Whatever you think of it ethically, Enhanced is a case study in how far the performance + longevity narrative can be pushed—and how much capital is willing to back that bet. The ripple effects across sports governance, sponsorship, and athlete health will be massive. We are here for it.
Posana Raises $500K To Make Protein Fun
Posana is an emerging food brand focused on high-protein, better-for-you pantry staples — with a particular emphasis on students and young professionals who need stable energy and focus. The company has been raising a pre-seed round (targeting around $500K, with a portion already secured) to scale its on-campus presence and product lineup. (More)
The Playbook Take — Campus is where habits start. If Posana can own the pantry in dorms and college apartments, it can build long-term loyalty with the next wave of high-performers. Founder Adi is a what you like to see in every start-up founder. Obsessed. (More)
Cristiano Ronaldo Join The MMA
Superstar Cristiano Ronaldo has become a shareholder in the Spanish Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) promotion WOW FC (Way of Warrior Fighting Championship).
He aims to help elevate the sport and inspire the next generation, focusing on expanding the sport's reach in Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East. (More)