Can CBD help you reach your fitness goals? More and more elite and professional athletes are stepping up and becoming more vocal about CBD and improved performance.
There is a growing body of research about CBD and how it can benefit athletes. There’s also a lot of misinformation. Do you want to know fact from fiction when it comes to CBD and fitness?
Read on to discover the key benefits of using CBD for fitness and how to get started.
What Is CBD?
CBD is short for cannabidiol. It’s a component of the marijuana and hemp plants. These plants are made of many different chemicals and molecules. You might already be familiar with THC, which is one of the main chemicals found in marijuana. That’s the chemical that gets you high because of the way it interacts with the brain.
CBD is an active chemical in cannabis plants, but it interacts with the brain and body a little differently. It turns out that the human body produces its own cannabinoids, which are called endocannabinoids.
These are found in the nervous system. When CBD interacts with these endocannabinoids, they bind to one another. These receptors then work to regulate pain, inflammation, anxiety, and so much more.
Benefits of Using CBD for Fitness
How can CBD help you in your fitness routine? Whether you’re a weekend warrior or an active recreational athlete, there are a number of benefits to using CBD.
Reduced Inflammation
Whenever athletes have sore muscles, or they experience any type of pain, the first thing they do is pop ibuprofen. While ibuprofen works to reduce swelling and pain, CBD can do the same thing.
CBD has been shown to reduce inflammation and pain for people with arthritis. It can help athletes manage sore muscles and joints so they can move better and recover more quickly.
Improved Sleep
Sleep is necessary for athletes because it is when the body works to repair itself. During a training session, you are creating small tears in your muscle fibers. These muscle fibers rely on rest in order to repair themselves and create muscle growth.
If you don’t sleep well, there’s no way that your body can recover and repair itself. CBD does help people with insomnia and it helps people get higher-quality sleep.
How to Use CBD in Your Fitness Routine
How can you use CBD in your fitness routine? You’ll want to start by consulting with a doctor. Even though CBD is relatively harmless, it could interact with medications that you’re currently taking.
You just want to make sure that you are taking the proper precautions before you start to take CBD. These are some of the top fitness cannabidiol products you’ll want to consider for yourself.
Use a Lotion or Topical
A CBD lotion or other kind of topical is good for targeting a localized area. For example, if you have inflamed joints or knee pain, using CBD in that specific area can promote healing and
CBD Bath Bombs
Have you ever had a good soak in the tub after a big workout? A CBD bath bomb can be great for soaking the muscles and getting them to relax and recover.
CBD in Your Smoothie
If you have a fitness routine, you probably enjoy smoothies or protein shakes. You can pop a little bit of CBD oil in your smoothie or shake for a full-body effect.
CBD Oils
There are CBD oils and tinctures that you can use in tea or just put a dose directly under your tongue.
Buying the Right CBD
Do you think that CBD is great for fitness? Are you ready to try CBD yourself? Before you go out and order CBD, there are some things that you’ll need to learn right away.
To start with, you’ll need to know the type of product you want. That will largely depend on your level of activity and your fitness goals. If you just need something for joint pain in one stubborn area, then a topical will be the most beneficial product.
Once you figure that out, you need to figure out the dosage. CBD is measured out in milligrams. You’ll need to consider your body weight and body fat percentage. It’s good to start with a small amount and then work your way up. For example, start with a dosage between 1-5 milligrams of CBD.
Keep in mind that the way you take CBD will impact the effectiveness. Eating or otherwise ingesting CBD products will cause them to lose some of the efficacy. The body will process CBD that’s ingested through the liver and kidneys, where much of the CBD will be converted into waste.
The other details that you should be familiar with are the extraction methods, especially when buying CBD oils. The extraction method has an impact on the quality of the end product.
For example, a product like ACDC cannabis oil uses broad-spectrum extraction. Broad-spectrum extraction maintains many of the minerals and vitamins that are in the plant. They also maintain many of the CBD molecules of the plant.
With broad-spectrum extraction, the THC molecules are removed. That allows many athletes to safely consume CBD without fear of failing a drug test.
CBD Can Improve Your Fitness Routine
While there is a lot about CBD that remains to be studied, it is clear that CBD can improve your fitness routine.
Using CBD for fitness can help you reduce muscle inflammation and speed up the recovery of sore muscles and injuries. It can help athletes manage pain, so they can do more and push themselves further than before.
You’ll want to research the different types of CBD products and decide which ones are going to be the best for you. You also have to know the dosage and quality of CBD products before buying.
