During sports and exercise, the cardiovascular system, respiratory system, musculoskeletal system, nervous system, endocrine system, and immune system play an active role. With the start of exercise, sympathetic activity in the body increases and parasympathetic activity is suppressed. With the end of the exercise, sympathetic activity decreases, whereas parasympathetic activity increases and contributes to the recovery process of the individual. The contribution of the parasympathetic system to the restructuring/recovery during the rest period is important in terms of reducing the fatigue of the athletes and enabling them to recover in the early period. Stimulation of the vagus nerve, which is the main branch of the parasympathetic system, can affect many cardiovascular, pulmonary, and metabolic parameters both during rest and exercise. Our article aims to evaluate the potential benefits and effects of using auricular vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) for sports purposes on the recovery and performance of athletes in light of the literature. Recovery after exercise can be accelerated with auricular VNS. The negativities caused by overload and excessive training can be reduced. Thanks to better rest and early recovery, the performance in the following training program can be increased. Injuries that may occur due to insufficient recovery can be prevented or injuries can be reduced. We can expect that the auricular VNS method will be used soon in light of sufficient scientific data due to its effects that cannot be considered doping.
Keywords: Auricular vagus nerve stimulation, autonomic nervous system, exercise, sportive performance, sportive recovery.