CBD and Fitness: Hacks for Athletes, Yogis, and the Rest of Us
Learn/CBD and Fitness: Hacks for Athletes, Yogis, and the Rest of Us
What separates the pros from the amateurs? We believe it’s the little details that count. Just like the benefits of adding an extra rep to your workout stack up over time, there’s a low-impact (but impactful) step you can take to keep your body in prime condition: Turning to the all-natural power of CBD for muscle recovery.
You may have read some of our previous posts on CBD benefits such as its ability to improve our yoga, our meditation, and even our sex lives! But today, we’re going to focus squarely on the topic of CBD for muscular pain. As it turns out, scientists have been investigating CBD’s anti-inflammatory and analgesic potential for years now. And what they’ve found may just have a profound impact on your post-workout routine.
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CBD for Muscular Pain: A Natural Way to Address Strain
No matter if you’re a dedicated pro athlete or an amateur fitness buff, feeling a little sore after a workout is a fact of life. There’s even a name for it: "Delayed onset muscle soreness," or “DOMs.” There are many ways to tackle that feeling of discomfort so that it doesn’t negatively impact your routine. Historically, many athletes have leaned on “heat rubs” such as Bengay or Ebanel. But these preparations rely on numbing or distracting us from muscle pain, and that’s not necessarily a great idea. For one thing, some fitness experts believe there’s little evidence these creams actually work.
Then there’s CBD for muscle recovery. The second most common cannabinoid—or “major active ingredient”—in cannabis and its cousin hemp, CBD naturally partners with our bodies. We mean that literally: Instead of distracting us—or overwhelming our pain-signaling mechanisms with brute force—cannabinoids such as CBD interface with a crucial bodily network called the Endocannabinoid System (ECS).
In essence, CBD “speaks our body’s language.” Interacting with specialized receptor cells, the plant-based cannabinoids are closely related to the endocannabinoids, or those produced by our own bodies. And based on a growing body of evidence, we believe this is key to understanding how CBD acts as an anti-inflammatory and even partners with the immune system to help modulate the experience of discomfort, sensory perception, and other crucial regulatory functions.
Of course, you may already have learned this through personal experience, just like Papa & Barkley’s founder did when he formulated our very first Releaf Balm to help care for his ailing father. Ever since then, we’ve handcrafted each and every CBD product we make with the goal of making a beneficial difference in the lives of those around us.
CBD Benefits: The Role of Stress in Wellness
As promised, we focused on CBD for muscular pain in today’s post. But there’s another important (but little-discussed) factor to be aware of when it comes to athletic performance: The role of stress. Whether you’re a pro athlete preparing to take on an opponent before a sold-out arena or a fitness buff set on upping your game at the local gym, stress can have a major effect on your performance.
Fortunately, CBD can be just as effective inside our bodies as it is on the outside! Whether it’s the wayCBD and the class of plant medicines called adaptogens benefit our bodies—or howCBD can help us tame stress while improving sleep—it may be the right time to add CBD to your list of essential supplements.
Do you have other questions about using CBD for muscle recovery? Just ask! We’re here to help.
