The Potential Synergistic Benefits of CBD And Exercise

If you regularly work out — whether your goal is to lose excess body fat, add lean muscle, or simply just look and feel your best — of course you want to maximize the payoff from all your effort by whatever (safe and effective) means available.

The market is saturated with pre and post-workout supplements, but few have the same safety or efficacy profile — as established by clinical research that we’ll explore here — as the potent cannabinoid molecule CBD.

Let’s discuss why and how to incorporate CBD supplementation into your daily regimen to augment the results you aim to achieve through exercise.

New science: The ‘runner’s high’ is actually like caused by activation of the endocannabinoid system

If you’re a distance runner – or you engage in similar endurance exercises like long-distance swimming or cycling – you might be familiar with the beautiful sensation dubbed in common parlance the “runner’s high” as described in the British Medical Journal:

“The runner’s high has been described subjectively as pure happiness, elation, a feeling of unity with one’s self and/or nature, endless peacefulness, inner harmony, boundless energy, and a reduction in pain sensation.”

image source: Adobe Stock

For a long time, conventional wisdom within the scientific community dictated that the runner’s high is the result of a cascade of “feel-good” neurotransmitters, particularly endorphins.

However, discoveries of late about the underlying physiological mechanisms related to the runner’s high actually suggest that it’s the result not of neurotransmitters, but of the activated endocannabinoid system, a network of endogenous cannabinoids and cannabinoids receptors located in every major organ, with a particularly high concentration in the brain.

image source: Adobe Stock

Via the British Medical Journal:

“Recent data in our laboratory showed that endurance exercise activates the endocannabinoid system,13 suggesting a new mechanism underlying exercise induced alterations of mental status.”

They found that, following about 50 minutes of running on a treadmill at about 80% capacity resulted in a “dramatic” increase in anandamide (AEA) levels – one of the body’s two endogenous endocannabinoids that acts via multiple pathways on the ECS.

image source: Adobe Stock

In particular, the research team found that the cannabinoid cascade resulting from exercise produced a profound analgesic (pain-killing) effect by way of this mechanism – one that “rivals that of morphine” – as well as:

• sedation (post-exercise calm)
• anxiolysis (neutralized anxiety)
• a generalized sense of wellbeing

Can you boost the physiological benefits of exercise with CBD supplementation?

Having established strong evidence that the post-exercise “runner’s high” is caused by activation of the endocannabinoid system, the question becomes: is it possible to maximize those physiological benefits with exogenous cannabinoids – such as, for instance, cannabidiol (CBD) – that also act on the ECS?

The answer may be yes, since CBD supplementation has been shown to boost AEA levels. Since heightened AEA levels likely account for the exercise-related benefits we’ve described so far – euphoria (runner’s high), sedation, anxiolysis, and a general sense of well-being – it follows that boosting your AEA levels further with CBD supplementation + exercise will lead to further benefits.

Other potential cannabinoid-mediated exercise benefits to amplify with CBD

The endocannabinoid system doesn’t just induce anxiolysis and the runner’s high in the context of exercise – it also provides other critical pay-offs.

Literature published in Springer Journal points to additional roles for endocannabinoids like AEA:

“The endocannabinoid is [a molecule] by which muscles communicate with other tissues and organs, mediating the beneficial effects of exercise on health and performance, including increased glucose uptake, improved insulin action, and mitochondrial biogenesis.”

Let’s take these on one by one:

•  Increased glucose uptake. Exercise increases glucose uptake both in the skeletal muscles and whole-body glucose uptake (of particular benefit to patients with metabolic disorders like type 2 diabetes). Improved glucose uptake optimizes physical performance as well as mental (cognitive) performance by boosting brain glucose metabolism.
• Improved insulin action. Insulin is the hormone that shuttles blood sugar into the cells where it serves as fuel and regulates metabolism through various signaling pathways. Insulin sensitivity (the opposite of insulin resistance seen in patients with diabetes and prediabetes) is a boon to overall health, facilitating greater cellular and tissue reactivity to insulin. The effect of this is that the body utilizes insulin more efficiently and, in turn, reduces the concentration of insulin in the blood.
• Mitochondrial biogenesis. Bacteria called mitochondria are the cell’s “batteries”; they produce the biochemical juice that powers the machinery of the cell. Greater activity levels of mitochondria inside cells translate into greater energy levels throughout the day. Research shows the ECS “could potentially modulate mitochondrial function by several different pathways.”

CBD may add to the brain benefits of exercise

Beyond the physical perks, one of the most impressive benefits of exercise is its favorable impacts on brain health – particularly as it concerns increases in brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a protein that directs the creation of brand-new brain cells through a process called neurogenesis.

Greater BDNF expression is tied to improved cognition and reduced risk of neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, so it’s a must-have for anyone serious about protecting their brain health as they age. 

CBD further augments neurogenesis by itself increasing BDNF levels:

“[CBD’s] acute antidepressant effects (30 min) were associated with increased expression of synaptophysin and PSD95 in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and elevated BDNF levels in both mPFC and hippocampus (HPC).”

Use CBD to potentially recover more quickly and fully after exercise

Adding to the long list of exercise-associated benefits of CBD supplementation, the versatile cannabinoid is also proven to reduce the severity of delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS) – a condition characterized by sore muscles following an intense workout in which muscle fibers are torn or damaged and then rebuilt (the destruction-creation process being how you add lean muscle, for instance, in a weightlifting program).

A cornucopia of high-potent CBD products to add to your post-workout cocktail

We’ve got a vast selection of reasonably-priced, high-quality CBD products available in our Georgia Hemp Company online store.

It has everything you could want CBD-wise to fuel your exercise performance and enhance your recovery – from edibles to vapes to Massage & Body Oil 1000mg CBD.

If staples are what you’re after – a no-nonsense, high-grade independent third-party lab-tested CBD workhorse — then check out our 3000mg Full Spectrum Hemp Extract Oil, which delivers a whopping 3 full grams (3000 milligrams) of purity-tested full-spectrum CBD.

Georgia Hemp Company’s 3000mg Full Spectrum Hemp Extract Oil

(Full-spectrum means that the CBD product contains all of the natural compounds that occur in the cannabis plant that, together, produce the much-vaunted “entourage effect.” Learn more about why you need the entourage effect in your life.)

If smoking is more your style, reward yourself after a hard run or lifting session with a pre-rolled indica CBD joint:

Indica Hemp Flower 1g Pre-Roll

All of our products are secured by our solid refund policy.

Contact Georgia Hemp Company to learn more about the combined benefits of CBD and exercise

For more authoritative information about the potential combined benefits of CBD and exercise or to get your hands on more educational resources, don’t hesitate to reach out.

Contact us by contact form, phone, or social media message – whatever method floats your boat – and we’ll be sure to get back to you in a jiffy. 

Or, if you’ve got the time, come by any of our Sandy Springs, Woodstock, or Decatur stores sprinkled across the Atlanta metro area.