Frederick Jace
Ready to feel the heart beating out of your chest and a rush of adrenaline jolting your entire body like electricity? Different extreme sports combine tall heights, high speeds, and real risks. With their mounting popularity in movies and media, as well as a myriad of competitions with big-name sponsors, there are more than 1000 types of extreme sports. But the lack of immediate medical care, not to mention the inherent perils of some stunts in some extreme sports, can result in various injuries, some life-threatening.
Preparing the body with proper nutrition and supplements is always important but vital when participating in various competitions. Athletes tend to be incredibly harsh on their bodies. Proper fuel, on the other hand, helps boost exercise and athletic performance and promotes proper recovery afterward.
CBD-infused products or simple cannabidiol became a wellness trend in the sports world, and there’s no wonder why. Cannabidiol is natural, non-toxic, and has many potential benefits for athletes. As studies have shown, cannabidiol possesses numerous benefits for training-induced inflammation, pain, anxiety, and a lack of energy and focus. Today, with hundreds of CBD products hitting the shelves, athletes can choose the most appropriate concentration for their extreme routine. Let’s see how cannabidiol helps improve performance in sports.
CBD in Sports
In 2018, the WADA removed cannabidiol from the list of prohibited substances for professional athletes, including the international federation. This occurred after recognizing many beneficial effects that CBD has on the human body, especially on an athlete’s building.
Therefore, it’s vital to understand that it is almost impossible to extract 100% cannabidiol as a pure form from a cannabis plant since most CBD oils and extracts contain a mixture of several cannabinoid substances.
Extreme sports athletes who exercise at a high level – are regularly subjected to checks and anti-doping rules – must therefore stop administering CBD oils and other products when they have a competition. Yet, an alternative is to ensure that the products they use contain no more than 0.3 THC and other cannabinoids that do not violate the anti-doping legislation.
#1 CBD Reduces Stress
Perhaps the biggest advantage of CBD for athletes is stress reduction. It does sound great – but not everyone knows what it really means. To answer that, we should first take a closer look at what stress is.
Stress is an emotional or mental strain or tension resulting from adverse or challenging circumstances. In 1936, a progressive-thinking endocrinologist named Hanse Selye described psychological stress as “the non-specific response of the body to any demand for change”.
While in animal experiments stress could enlarged adrenal glands, cause gut health breakdown, and other effects -the results of chronic stress were even worse: animals had strokes, developed arthritis, and succumbed to heart attacks during the research. ‘
But what does stress have to do with athletes?
It does, a lot actually. Extreme sports themselves are a form of stress- one that needs to be adapted to just like anything else.
Extreme sports lovers already experience this battle. A smart training plan should carefully balance rest and work, carefully balance the nervous system on the fine line between overtraining and freshness, and cannabidiol could make it easier. Consistent daily supplementation with CBD such as delta 8 flower from OCN might allow athletes to better manage stress-induced limitations – pushing themselves to new frontiers in the process.
#2 CBD as an Adaptogen
Traditional adaptogens include echinacea and reishi mushrooms, but cannabidiol has joined this list of performance-boosting and stress-reducing plants. The reason? CBD fits the definition perfectly.
Adaptogens are non-toxic herbs and plants meant to bring us back to the middle. They possess protective abilities which are vital for our neuroendocrine and nervous system. They protect our nervous system from overreaching itself. Sounds familiar? That’s exactly what cannabidiol does. By stimulating our ECS, a signaling network of internal cannabis-like substances, CBD promotes good balance. With the endocannabinoid system activation comes the type of vitality and health where homeostasis can be maintained.
#3 Adaptogens Promote Faster Recovery
For extreme sports lovers, cannabidiol and the rest of hemp’s active compounds may help them better adapt to their training. To put it simply, the metabolic state that follows a tough workout: the cortisol levels through the roof, and body temperature high. Also, muscle proteins have run out, and stored sugar in the form of glycogen is nearly completely exhausted -that’s not exactly a perfect picture of balance.
But CBD helps! Recent studies went so far as to question whether cannabinoids were performance-enhancing medications that should be banned in pro athletics. Not to mention that things could get even better when one takes cannabidiol alongside other adaptogens. According to research, most adaptogens work by activating AMPK enzymes to upregulate fat burning and regulate energy balance. It’s also possible to take cannabidiol and other adaptogens for synergic effects. In other words, these two compounds could actually work wonders together.
#4 CBD Improves Sleep
One of the most noticeable effects new CBD users notice is that it helps their sleep. That said, it’s not uncommon for a single dose of CBD to lead to a more restful sleep that very same night. Backed by numerous anecdotal reports, CBD has been shown to provide relief from multiple diverse medical conditions – including sleep disorders. Considering that strenuous athletic routines aren’t always fit for good sleep – this particular benefit holds great promise for extreme sports practitioners.
Cannabidiol may also lower stress hormones like cortisol that usually impedes the normal sleep cycle. There’s a reason why pro athletes sleep a lot: more sleep equals more time for muscles to recover. If you’re having problems sleeping, don’t worry – cannabidiol may help you get three. Unlike traditional sleep aids, CBD does not activate any other receptor system enough to bring on drowsiness when you’re out and about during the day. Your daily CBD might promote a type of energy balance that works with your environment and your routines – not against them.
