5 benefits of CBD for bodybuilding & fitness
You may have seen various gym-goers, bodybuilding fanatics, and fitness influencers using CBD all over social media at the moment, not to mention spotting people in the gym with their CBD oil bottles! But why is this compound so popular amongst the fitness community?
At Honest Hemp, we create a wide range of CBD oils, CBD topicals, and CBD edibles, as well as our Organic Hemp Protein Powder. We’ve found that many bodybuilders, yogis, and athletes use our products to help assist their active lifestyles. This is why we wanted to explore and share the top 5 benefits of CBD for bodybuilding and fitness.
1. Post-workout pain
First and foremost, CBD is thought to help relieve post-workout pain. This essentially means you are able to get back to moving sooner, and you will experience less discomfort.
Exercise – especially weight training – causes microscopic damage to our muscles in the form of small tears. This damage is what allows our muscles to grow. However, it can also cause pain & inflammation which may inhibit our ability to carry on training in the following days.
CBD is known to have anti-inflammatory properties – plus, it’s thought to be one of the safest ways to provide such effects. This means it may be able to reduce inflammation in the muscles which would reduce pain and improve recovery.
In addition to this, CBD is thought to have separate pain-killing abilities. Many people use CBD for pain relief – whether this is for headaches, chronic pain, arthritis, or whatever else. So, CBD may be able to relieve the post-workout muscle pain associated with bodybuilding in this way too.
2. Improved sleep
You may be wondering; “What does sleep have to do with bodybuilding – surely sleep is the exact opposite to being active?!” Well, sleep is absolutely vital for proper recovery after working out.
As we mentioned before, we experience microscopic damage to our muscles when we exercise. A huge amount of the recovery to this muscle damage occurs whilst the body is asleep – the body rebuilds and repairs the muscle tears to improve both strength and muscle mass.
So, if you don’t get enough sleep, your body will struggle to synthesize protein into muscle and – essentially – recover.
CBD is thought to help improve our quality of sleep. Research suggests that it helps to regulate the sleep-wake cycle and also decrease feelings of stress and anxiety. This means you may fall asleep more easily, stay asleep throughout the night, sleep more deeply, and feel more awake and refreshed during the day.
As a result, this improved sleep would help you to be more successful in muscle building and recovery – not to mention feeling more motivated and energised for your workout.
3. Improved energy
One of the hardest things about working out is getting to the gym in the first place! And no, we don’t mean travel arrangements! The energy and motivation required to get to the gym and begin your workout is half the struggle – that’s why sufficient energy levels are crucial.
It’s thought that CBD may regulate our blood sugar levels which regulates the level of insulin that the body produces. If we are able to maintain lower insulin levels, then the body will burn more glucose into energy rather than fat. So, CBD could help to boost our energy levels and help us to burn fat more effectively. CBD could help us to improve the quality and frequency of our workouts, meaning more successful bodybuilding results.
4. Boosted metabolism
If CBD can help to boost the metabolism, this would be a great application for those looking to lose fat. Metabolising is the process of the body converting food into energy rather than fat – a slower metabolism will be less successful at this, meaning less energy and more body fat.
The Mitochondria is the part of the cell that converts sugars, fats, and protein from food into energy. Imbalances with the Mitochondria can affect this process, slowing down the metabolism and making it harder to lose weight.
CBD is said to help regulate mitochondrial activity which would help us to achieve metabolic balance. Therefore, if you suffer from a slower metabolism, CBD may be able to help boost this. As a result, CBD could make it easier to burn fat and lose weight meaning the muscle gained from bodybuilding becomes more prominent.
5. Reduced stress
Did you know that when we produce too much cortisol – the ‘stress hormone’ – it can slow muscle growth?
Not only this, but reduced stress can improve our ability to stay motivated, focus in the gym, and balance our lives. A good life balance means you are able to dedicate time to your fitness without feeling as though you don’t have enough hours in the day.
So overall, reduced stress can improve our ability to work out more effectively & consistently, and prevent slowed muscle growth!
Many people use CBD for stress-relief and anxiety-relief, and research has supported that CBD can be effective for these uses. This is thought to be due to the way CBD can balance the endocannabinoid system and the production of endocannabinoids in the body. Endocannabinoids are a special type of neurotransmitter responsible for regulating many bodily functions, including our stress response.
If you’d like to try CBD to help improve your fitness, there are a few different product choices you can make. Things like CBD oils and CBD capsules are best if you’re looking for a solution to internal issues – such as stress, sleep, energy, or metabolism.
Alternatively, CBD topicals – such as creams, balms, and gels – are best if you’re looking for a solution to more surface-level problems. By this, we mean things like muscle pain, soreness, and inflammation. CBD topicals are excellent for site-specific discomfort as you can apply the product directly to the area that needs help.
For high-quality, rigorously tested, organic CBD products, check out the range at Honest Hemp. P.S… don’t forget to try the Organic Hemp Protein powder if you’re looking for a plant-based boost to your protein intake!