7 Ways CBD Oil Can Benefit Athletic Performance

CBD has gained a lot of respect in the fitness sector as a performance-enhancing treatment and also for its use in post-workout recovery, which reduces muscle fatigue and prevents tissue injury. Whether in the form of muscle building, weight loss, or enhanced physical performance, all forms of physical exercise have positive effects on the body.

However, intense physical workout also has the potential to put stress on the joints and muscles, which is why it's important to establish an effective workout treatment that enhances performance and reduces tension in the body.

Used as a mild relaxer, CBD oil has excellent benefits used as a post-workout supplement, especially for serious athletes and fitness enthusiasts. The non-psychoactive compound is used widely in the fitness sector for its soothing effect and its ability to prevent pain and inflammation.

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Let's take a look at 7 other ways CBD oil can enhance athletic performance:

1. Reduces Stress Hormones Released through Physical Activity

This fact may come as a surprise for some people, but physical activity can increase the level of stress hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol. Physical activity causes the entire body to work harder than usual, and that includes the adrenal system which releases hormones to prepare the body for working out.

By rapidly preparing to give the brain and muscles maximum energy, high blood pressure, dysfunctions in the metabolic process, and general fatigue take over the body.

To counteract this type of stress reaction, CBD has a calming effect on the adrenal system and disengages the fight-or-flight response to allow the body to relax. When there are lower amounts of stress hormones in the blood, performance is likely to improve as well as post-performance recovery.

2. Powerful Pain Reliever

Pain is a common element of intense workouts, and, in order to continue a long-term exercise routine without generating too much physical pain, it’s important to add pain relief into your workout recovery. CBD Central promotes Cannabidiol as a pain reliever, but it also has the benefit of promoting healing so that the user doesn't suffer tissue damage over time as a result of numbing the pain. When used daily, it reduces pain and also keeps you functioning at best without inflammation, irritation, or pain that is attributed to exercise.

3. Insulin Sensitivity Promotion

For anybody who works out as part of a weight loss program, metabolic processes can sometimes make it harder to shed the weight regardless of the effort you put in at the gym. Insulin sensitivity is one such problem that encourages storage of excess fat in the muscles and liver and losing weight becomes even more of a challenge. CBD oil regulates insulin sensitivity to encourage normal metabolism, and this reduces the chance of developing diabetes and other weight-related conditions.

4. Cortisol Reduction

The stress hormone cortisol can have very destructive effects when released in large amounts into the bloodstream. Aside from raising your stress levels, cortisol also causes muscle breakdown, sleep disorders, high blood pressure, among many other problems. Unfortunately, high cortisol levels often go hand in hand with anxiety issues, but CBD reduces the amount of stress-related hormones that get released, and encourages anti-anxiety effects to appear by blocking the mechanism that releases stress hormones, and determines the release of calming hormones like anandamide.

5. Reduces Fears & Anxieties

Athletes are among the most anxious people, especially before an event. CBD is known for its anti-anxiety effects, and one way that athletes can benefit from its use is by managing intense feelings of anxiety, especially if there are lingering fears about performing in an event. The pressures of high performance can cause intense feelings of anxiety, which if not treated correctly, can reduce your overall performance and hinder your ability to use all your skills and energy.

There's a lot of research targeting social anxiety and how CBD can be used to manage anxious and fearful states. In general, CBD acts on all feelings of anxiety and fear to induce a sense of calmness that allows people to function better - and this includes sports performers.

6. Helps in Weight Management

Cannabis is traditionally known to cause the munchies and naturally, this has raised concerns among people who worry that CBD products can lead to weight gain. In reality, you only experience food cravings when under the influence of THC, which is not present in CBD, and truth be told, not all people experience the munchies when using cannabis. However, it's important to stress that CBD regulates CB2 receptors in a way that encourages proper weight management. Current research directly points to a link between the endocannabinoid system, CBD, and weight management.

7. Provides Restful Sleep

If getting rock-hard abs is your plan, then you're going to need a lot of quality shut-eye every night. What's important about sleep is the fact that it allows the body to build itself and heal from the workload exerted on it the previous day. So how does CBD improve sleep? Again, this has to do with brain receptors that regulate sleep patterns and determine the quality of sleep. In this case, adenosine receptors can prevent restful sleep when activated by THC or caffeine, but in moderate doses CBD reduces brain function and induces rest, making it possible to sleep through the night.

What type of CBD is best for you?

When using CBD, you have the option of applying ointments for muscle and joint pain, using tinctures for anti-anxiety effects, or vaping if that's your thing. The method you use to take CBD can determine how you feel the effects, and to what extent the treatment helps you.

[tweet_box float="left" width="50%" design="box_4"]The beauty of CBD is that it works in all areas of the body to enhance performance, reduce anxiety, prevent illness, and increase productivity.[/tweet_box]

There are also a few other factors to consider like the extraction process, which to a large extent determines how powerful the product is.

Generally, extraction methods that use CO2 are thought to be more effective as the plants’ trichomes remain intact, and the oil retains much of its purity. Remember, CBD oil gets preserved through high pressure, low temperatures, and CO2.

Because hemp plants grow in different environments, it's worth looking into the plant’s origins, as this will give you a better idea of what to expect.

Bear in mind that some low-level strains might get sold at a lower price, but they may also contain high levels of soil contaminants like lead and mercury. Heavy metals are destructive when consumed in any fashion, even in CBD, so avoid shady deals online.

The last thing worth looking into is bio-availability, which means the amount of pure CBD entering the bloodstream. When ingested through a tincture or vaped, CBD enters the body in higher amounts than you get from say, topical application.

Again, this goes towards your reason for using the product, but for quicker and better effects it's probably a good idea to get it into the body through vaping, smoking, or if you are serious about not losing any amount, there's always rectal absorption which gets administered through a suppository.

But if you find it a challenge to get your body to absorb CBD following these recommendations, then it's possible to enhance the experience by mixing it with turmeric and black pepper. On the plus side, is that you can really get more of the oil into the body, but the downside, you might find the taste unpleasant.

The beauty of CBD is that it works in all areas of the body to enhance performance, reduce anxiety, prevent illness, and increase productivity. When used as part of a workout recovery supplement, it can improve performance over time and allow athletes to reach a higher potential.