CBD is best known for promoting relaxation and calmness. However, more exercise enthusiasts, including professional athletes, are using CBD in their training regimens.
Let’s get something out of the way. You will never read the below headline or anything remotely close to it in the news.
“Russian Weightlifter’s Gold Medal Revoked After Testing Positive For CBD.”
CBD, the non-psychoactive ingredient in the cannabis sativa family of plants, is legal for competitive athletes. Marijuana, its psychoactive counterpart, is not.
But it’s precisely the calming and balancing effect that’s the reason why exercise enthusiasts are using CBD. If CBD can help relax blood vessels, which it has been suggested to do in studies like this one, then more blood flow can reach muscles. Increased blood flow can help you perform more reps of squats, lunges, biceps curls and the like. In addition, by relaxing the blood vessels, CBD can help lower blood pressure, which is required for longer bouts of endurance exercise.
And by activating the endocannabinoid system, CBD can help lower the pain and inflammation response in the body. That’s great news for athletes who need these benefits the most, including NFL players. Earlier this year, NFL players demanded that the labor union that represents them, the NFLPA (‘PA’ = Players Association), allow the use of CBD products for pain management. Fortunately, the NFL now allows players to use CBD oil products.
Athletic performance isn’t just about getting bigger, faster and stronger. Critical to performing at peak ability, whether one is a professional athlete or a weekend warrior, is managing pain, inflammation, reducing anxiety and stress as well as getting high-quality sleep to help the body recover.
High-quality CBD oil has demonstrated all these benefits in preliminary research studies. And by doing so, athletes may recover faster from strenuous workouts and injuries.
Does Research Support CBD For Sports Performance And Recovery?
Yes. Preliminary research studies in this field are promising. Consider this study from the journal, Sports Medicine, which says: “[E]vidence … suggests that CBD may protect against gastrointestinal damage associated with inflammation and promote healing of traumatic skeletal injuries.” The co-authors conclude, “CBD may exert a number of physiological, biochemical, and psychological effects with the potential to benefit athletes.”
When we think of athletes, young, fit, strong warriors come to mind. But even seniors who enjoy a round of golf or tennis every now and then may experience an improvement in performance by using CBD. Of course, the number one enemy that hinders mobility is joint pain. Animal experiments found CBD to improve arthritis which could mean seniors may benefit from using a high-quality full-spectrum CBD supplement on a regular basis.
CBD For Exercise: Conclusion
Exercise, especially strenuous activity, is a form of stress. By encouraging homeostasis (balance) in the body, CBD helps the body adapt to stress of all kinds, including exercise-induced inflammation. This in turn, may help enhance athletic performance. Many serious athletes are using CBD as part of both a pre- and post-exercise routine.
