MEET CBD — AN ATHLETES BEST MATE 🦁

7 reasons CBD is perfect for bodybuilders + fitness athletes 🌿

INTRO

CBD— aka Cannabidiol is a non-psychoactive component of the cannabis plant. It is mainly found in the stalk of the cannabis plant that includes marijuana + hemp. 

Scientific research proves CBD can act as a treatment for a wide range of conditions such as arthritis, diabetes, chronic pain, depression, epilepsy, PTSD and several other neurological disorders.

CBD has demonstrable Neuroprotective and Neurogenic effects and its anti-cancer properties are being looked into further at several academic research centres in America and Europe. Further evidence suggests that CBD is safe even at high doses.

Let's take a look at why CBD a great supplement for bodybuilders, fitness athletes + gym enthusiasts. Here are 7 reasons why CBD products are perfect for the bodybuilding + fitness industry. 

1. CBD = Improved Sleep

CBD reduces anxiety + stress and this has a positive affect on our sleeping habits. Some bodybuilders argue sleep is as important as diet when it comes to prep.

The famous saying "abs (muscle) are made in the kitchen" is very much accurate — but they are really made when we are asleep. Rest time is when the body repairs itself. If you are not getting enough sleep — you're losing gains! CBD can solve this problem. 

2. CBD = Reduced Joint Pain

CBD affects your immune system, which naturally makes it helpful for autoimmune conditions like rheumatoid arthritis.

A study published in the journal Rheumatology from Dr. Sheng-Ming Dai of China’s Second Military Medical University found that CB2 receptors are found in unusually high levels in the joint tissue of arthritis patients.

The use of cannabis is shown to fight inflammation in the joints by activating the pathways of CB2 receptors. We all know that lifting heavy and doing lots of cardio can be hard on the joints.

CBD goes a long way helping to reduce pain + inflammation in the joints. Instead of slamming a bottle of Motrin or Aleve — give an all natural remedy like CBD a try.  

3. CBD = Fat Burner

The active compounds in CBD increase our body's concentration of cellular mitochondria — which improves its activity.

These changes allow us to burn extra calories! Meaning we can "pig out" over Christmas and it won't matter at all. One specific reason CBD is a highly effective weight loss solution is its ability to trigger a procedure known as “fat browning”.

CBD works by transforming the White Adipose Tissues (stored in the human body) into Brown Adipose Tissues. It is the Brown Adipose Tissues that burn more energy faster, not the White Tissues. As CBD promotes fat burning, it also increases our metabolism. A big win over shred season!  

4. CBD = Stress Relief

One of the great benefits of using CBD to supplement anxiety related symptoms is that there are many studies that prove it can aid stress relief + promotes inner peace. 

Why is this important in relation to bodybuilding? Stress + anxiety can cause increased heart rate, blood pressure and an increase in cortisol.

If you’re always in a heightened state of anxiety whilst you are training and/or prepping, your body is going to constantly fight itself and it'll take longer to build muscle and recover from your workouts.

If you are a steroid user — CBD has a calming effect on the body, which is ideal if you take Trenbolone, as it keeps your head level! 

5. CBD = Improved Digestion

THC/Weed + "The Munchies", a tale as old as time... CBD sings a completely different tune. CBD won't make you feel HUNGRY, but it will improve the rate in which your body consumes + digests the food you eat. 

Cannabis is known to stimulate appetite but as research dives deeper into the world of marijuana, including CBD — we are discovering that it has many applications for the digestive system.

While a lot of the research is still fairly recent, its suggested CBD can be a powerful remedy for digestive issues because it interacts with the cannabinoid receptors concentrated in the brain, stomach, and intestines.

These CBD receptors (that exist inside us) include CB-1, CB-2 and serotonin receptors. The CB-1 receptor has been found to regulate nausea, vomiting, stomach acid regulation and protection from stomach acid. Studies show that CBD helps alleviate gastrointestinal inflammation too.

If CBD is great for digestion, why isn't every bodybuilder using CBD as standard practice? In the words of Rich Piana, "to get big, you need to eat big".

If our digestive systems struggle to digest the food we eat — we feel bloated and some even experience inflammation from stomach pain.

What about nutrients? If we can't digest our food properly (despite eating like Rich Piana or Martyn Ford), we are not able to benefit from the nutrients. 

If you have two bodybuilders or a couple of strongmen with the same genetics, the same training style, the same drugs, the only difference will be — how each of their bodies process nutrients. The athlete that has better nutrient absorption will win every time. CBD can fix this problem for you. 

6. CBD = Inflammation Reduction

Traditionally, we've been told to reduce muscle inflammation by taking anti-inflammatory drugs like Aspirin + Ibuprofen to speed up the recovery process. By taking these products, what we've actually been doing is halting our muscle growth and doing more internal harm than good!

Research demonstrates the anti-inflammatory agents in CBD has a particular way of interacting with our body's Endocannabinoid system and it is very encouraging for therapeutic application. 

What’s promising is that several studies demonstrated a very impressive calming of the immune system Microglia / Cytokine response along with promising anti-inflammatory improvements in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.  

7. CBD = Reduced Blood Pressure

In a recent American study, several male fitness volunteers were given 600mg of CBD, or placebo, in a randomised placebo-controlled, double-blind, crossover study.

Each of the subjects were monitored for Cardiovascular parameters using a Finometer and Laser Doppler. 

The study proved CBD does reduce resting systolic blood pressure (BP) (–6 mmHg; P < 0.05) and stroke volume (–8 ml; P < 0.05) but with increased heart rate (HR) and maintained cardiac output.

Subjects who had taken CBD had lower BP (–5 mmHg; P < 0.05, especially before and after stress), increased HR (+10 bpm; P < 0.01), decreased stroke volume (–13 ml; P < 0.01), and a blunted forearm skin blood flow response to isometric exercise.

In response to cold stress, subjects who had taken CBD had blunted BP (–6 mmHg; P < 0.01) and increased HR (+7 bpm; P < 0.05), with lower total peripheral resistance(8).

This data shows that acute administration of CBD reduces resting BP + the BP increase to stress in humans, associated with increased HR.

This is great news for bodybuilders — anyone who is looking for a natural way to lower their blood pressure, CBD is the answer!