Different studies on cannabis and its significant potential to treat an assortment of medical conditions has been growing since the past many years. One of the noticing studies interpreting cannabis capability is how the compound can influence sports performance or do its adverse side-effects outweigh its health benefits?
Now, irrespective of the limited research on cannabis for sports, there is an accumulating interest in the use of marijuana and its cannabinoids for enhanced performance, especially for athletes. Now, before understanding how exactly does marijuana works towards influencing an athlete’s performance, let us know more about cannabis and its different constituents.
What is cannabis?
Cannabis, also popularly known by the names of weed, pot, hash, or ganja, are dried leaves and flowers of Cannabis Indica or Cannabis Sativa plants. The ‘herbal drug’ contains hundreds of cannabinoids and the two most prevalent ones are CBD (cannabidiol) and THC (tetrahydrocannabinol).
CBD enjoys a high demand due to its therapeutic properties while THC is the psychoactive part which produces euphoric feeling or the ‘high’ that people generally associate with marijuana consumption. Along with other minor cannabinoids present in the cannabis plant, CBD and THC are majorly responsible for producing the relaxing effects that most of the sports players look for post their workout session.
Well, not only a sports person but the common public also with debilitating medical conditions consume legal cannabis with a medical marijuana card online.
Can cannabis influence sports performance?
Now, the main question is ‘can cannabis actually influence sports performance’? Well, depending upon the available data, there are pro athletes who take CBD as a daily part of their workout routine. Some studies also suggest that research on marijuana for performance enhancement is limited but the results are promising in chronic pain management which is one of the major health concerns why most of the sports freak consume marijuana.
After a deep analysis of how marijuana works for sports players, below are some of the ways how cannabis influences athletic performance.
Help treat muscle spasms
Muscle spasms or muscle cramps are common amongst gym rats. Owing to marijuana’s anti-inflammatory properties, the compound takes less time for muscle recovery and reduces muscle spasms associated with intense physical exertion. Not only does the plant help athletes recover from muscle cramp but it also reduces spasms resulting from diseases such as Parkinson’s and Multiple Sclerosis.
Having said that, scientists still believe that a more detailed study focused on cannabinoids influence in sports recovery is needed.
Reduce inflammation
Marijuana consumption in the right amount can help treat muscle and joint inflammation. Cannabidiol (CBD), one of the constituents of cannabis, can help ease inflammation or other pain affected areas. Even certified yoga instructors and gym trainers share the fact that they recommend their clients to use CBD for pulling off better in class as the compound can push up the serotonin levels in the brain resulting in mood upliftment.
Offers better sleep
Marijuana can probably be one of the best sleeping aids for athletes considering how important recovery is for them to give a better performance the next day. CBD from hemp plants and THC in moderation are widely used for body relaxation and hence to restore your sleeping cycle. Even the compound acts as a magical drug for patients suffering from PTSD as it can help treat sleep apnea and suppress weird dreams.
Helps with soreness and pain
Marijuana’s pain-alleviating properties are backed by different medical studies that suggest the compound to be a significant agent of various types of pain. From chronic pain, arthritis to acute pain, patients use CBD products to get fast pain relief.
What’s the best way to take cannabis for sports recovery?
Growing popularity of cannabis and its cannabinoids has given people the privilege to access a wide range of cannabis products ranging from edibles, drinks to topicals. For athletes who are looking to get relief from pain associated with muscle spasms or any other injury can rely on cannabis topicals to get fast relief. However, if you wanna hype up before your routine workout session, CBD or THC gummies can work the best.
Bottom line
Concluding the above discussion and the results of different studies, it can be said that medical and recreational cannabis usage among athletes reflects changing social experiences. People engaged in high-risk sports are more likely to consume cannabis while there’s no existing data completely supporting the plant’s use in enhancing performance. Having said that, as mentioned earlier, there are players who take cannabis to get better at their sport.
Story by Adriana Jones
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