Mushrooms for recovery

Reishi comes first, because recovery is mostly sleep and it is the one extract we sell that is taken at night. Cordyceps is second and goes in the morning: in a human trial, three weeks of a blend containing it was associated with a longer time to exhaustion. Both are 10:1 hot water extracts from fruiting bodies, tested to at least 30% beta-glucans. Getting the timing right is the main thing.

Our top picks

ReishiGanoderma lucidum

the evening half, and the most studied

Start here. Recovery happens while you sleep, and this is the only extract we sell that belongs in an evening routine.

Extraction: Hot Water 10:1
Beta-D glucans: ≥30%; USDA Organic

CordycepsCordyceps militaris

the morning half, measured on exertion

Second, and the one with the exercise trial. If your recovery question is really about training volume, this is the relevant entry.

Extraction: Hot Water 10:1
Beta-D glucans: ≥30%; USDA Organic

A bundle built for this

How they compare

#	Mushroom	Key compound	Best for	From
1	Reishi	Triterpenes, beta-glucans	Evening wind-down	$29.99
2	Cordyceps	Cordycepin, adenosine	Exercise tolerance	$29.99

Reishi: the evening half, and the most studied

Ganoderma lucidum

Start here. Recovery happens while you sleep, and this is the only extract we sell that belongs in an evening routine.

Reishi is the hard, lacquered bracket fungus of the Chinese materia medica, genuinely bitter, which is why most people take the capsules.

Ours is a 10:1 hot water extract from fruiting bodies, tested to 30% beta-glucans. Take it an hour or two before bed. It is described in the traditional literature as calming rather than sedating, and it is not a sleeping tablet.

Extraction: Hot Water 10:1
Beta-D glucans: ≥30%
Best for: Evening wind-down; USDA Organic

What the research says

A 2025 systematic review pooled 17 randomised controlled trials across 971 participants and found significant improvements in BMI, creatinine, glutathione peroxidase and resting heart rate.

A separate pilot reported improved fatigue and physical wellbeing scores in 48 breast cancer patients undergoing endocrine therapy (Zhao 2012). That is a clinical population under treatment and it used spore powder rather than a fruiting body extract, so it is context rather than a claim about this product.

Shop Reishi

All Reishi extracts →

Organic Reishi Mushroom Powder 10:1 Extract

-13%

Subscription

Organic Reishi Mushroom Powder 10:1 Extract. Relax, Restore, Rejuvenate (3.5oz / 100g)

$34.99

~~$39.99~~

Organic Reishi Capsules Mushroom 10:1 Extract

-14%

Subscription

Organic Reishi Capsules Mushroom 10:1 Extract (120 count) Relax, Restore, Rejuvenate

$29.99

~~$34.99~~

-27%

Organic Bulk Reishi Powder Mushroom 10:1 Extract (1 KG / 2.2 LB) (10 Bags)

$290.00

~~$399.90~~

Cordyceps: the morning half, measured on exertion

Cordyceps militaris

Second, and the one with the exercise trial. If your recovery question is really about training volume, this is the relevant entry.

Cordyceps militaris is farmed and orange, harvested as a fruiting body, and not the caterpillar fungus. Ours is a 10:1 hot water extract tested to 30% beta-glucans.

Take it in the morning and take it daily. A dose before a session does nothing; the trial result came from three weeks of continuous use.

Extraction: Hot Water 10:1
Beta-D glucans: ≥30%
Best for: Exercise tolerance; USDA Organic

What the research says

Three weeks of daily supplementation was associated with a longer time to exhaustion and a higher ventilatory threshold, while a single dose produced nothing (Hirsch 2017). It tested a six-mushroom blend, so it points at a direction rather than at one species.

A 2025 review of the human work notes small samples and preparations that are rarely characterised the same way twice, and asks for better trials. That is a fair criticism and worth knowing before you buy.

Shop Cordyceps

All Cordyceps extracts →

Organic Cordyceps Mushroom Powder 10:1 Extract

-13%

Subscription

Organic Cordyceps Mushroom Powder 10:1 Extract. Energy & Endurance Unleashed (3.5oz / 100g)

$34.99

~~$39.99~~

Organic Cordyceps Capsules Mushroom 10:1 Extract

-14%

Subscription

Organic Cordyceps Capsules Mushroom 10:1 Extract (120 Count) Energy & Endurance Unleashed

$29.99

~~$34.99~~

-27%

Organic Bulk Cordyceps Powder Mushroom 10:1 Extract (1 KG / 2.2 LB) (10 Bags)

$290.00

~~$399.90~~

How long until it works

Week 1 Reishi in the evening, Cordyceps in the morning if you are taking both.
Weeks 2 to 3 The Cordyceps trial ran three weeks.
Weeks 4 to 8 The window the Reishi trials use.
Ongoing Daily rather than around sessions.

What customers report. Individual experience varies; none of this is a clinical claim.

Shop all recovery mushrooms

-13%

Subscription

Organic Reishi Mushroom Powder 10:1 Extract. Relax, Restore, Rejuvenate (3.5oz / 100g)

$34.99

~~$39.99~~

-13%

Subscription

Organic Cordyceps Mushroom Powder 10:1 Extract. Energy & Endurance Unleashed (3.5oz / 100g)

$34.99

~~$39.99~~

-14%

Subscription

Organic Cordyceps Capsules Mushroom 10:1 Extract (120 Count) Energy & Endurance Unleashed

$29.99

~~$34.99~~

-14%

Subscription

Organic Reishi Capsules Mushroom 10:1 Extract (120 count) Relax, Restore, Rejuvenate

$29.99

~~$34.99~~

-27%

Organic Bulk Cordyceps Powder Mushroom 10:1 Extract (1 KG / 2.2 LB) (10 Bags)

$290.00

~~$399.90~~

-27%

Organic Bulk Reishi Powder Mushroom 10:1 Extract (1 KG / 2.2 LB) (10 Bags)

$290.00

~~$399.90~~

Frequently asked

Which one should I take for recovery?

Reishi, in the evening, because recovery is mostly sleep and it is the only extract we sell for that end of the day. Add Cordyceps in the morning if your question is really about training volume rather than rest.

Is there research on mushrooms and post-exercise recovery specifically?

The Cordyceps trial measured exercise tolerance, and three weeks of daily use was associated with a longer time to exhaustion and a higher ventilatory threshold. Reishi brings 17 pooled randomised trials. Together they cover the two halves of recovering well: working harder and resting better.

Can I take both?

Yes, and that is the usual approach: Cordyceps in the morning, Reishi at night. They do different jobs at opposite ends of the day.

Will Reishi help me sleep?

It is described as calming rather than sedating and it is not a sleeping tablet. What people report is falling asleep more easily. Our sleep page covers this in more detail.

Is Cordyceps worth taking on rest days?

Yes, if you are taking it at all. In the trial the effect came from three weeks of daily use, not from dosing around sessions, so skipping rest days would be missing the point of how it was studied.

How long before I judge them?

Three weeks for Cordyceps, four to eight for Reishi. Neither is fast.

References

The nutritional significance of Ganoderma lucidum on human health: a GRADE-assessed systematic review and meta-analysis of clinical trialsJafari A, Mardani H, Mirzaei Fashtali Z, Arghavan B
The widest survey of the Reishi literature: 17 clinical trials covering 971 participants, at doses from 200 to 11,200 mg a day. Pooled analysis found significant improvements in BMI, serum creatinine, glutathione peroxidase and resting heart rate. Many other markers did not move, and the reviewers rate the certainty of the underlying trials as low and call for better-designed studies, which is the usual state of a field this active and this young.
Food Science & Nutrition · 2025
Cordyceps militaris improves tolerance to high-intensity exercise after acute and chronic supplementationHirsch KR, Smith-Ryan AE, Roelofs EJ, Trexler ET, Mock MG
Three weeks of daily supplementation was associated with a longer time to exhaustion, a higher ventilatory threshold and a higher VO2max; after one week, only time to exhaustion had improved. Read it for what it tested: the supplement was PeakO2, a six-species blend of mycelial biomass grown on oats, so nothing here is attributable to Cordyceps alone, and the three-week result comes from the 10 of 28 participants who continued that far. An encouraging early signal in a field that deserves a bigger trial.
Journal of Dietary Supplements · 2017
Spore powder of Ganoderma lucidum improves cancer-related fatigue in breast cancer patients undergoing endocrine therapy: a pilot clinical trialZhao H, Zhang Q, Zhao L, Huang X, Wang J, Kang X
A pilot trial in 48 patients undergoing endocrine therapy reported improved fatigue and physical wellbeing scores using Reishi spore powder. A different preparation from a fruiting body extract and a clinical setting, and an encouraging signal from a mushroom taken for exactly this reason for centuries.
Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine · 2012
Current evidence of ergogenic and post-exercise recovery effects of dietary supplementation with Cordyceps militaris in humans: a narrative reviewReview
A survey of the human research on Cordyceps militaris in exercise and recovery. It gathers the positive findings so far and calls for larger trials on consistently characterised preparations, which is the natural next step for an area attracting this much interest.
Nutrients · 2025