Bethany Rae, BotaniQ columnist
The idea that cannabis and fitness can go hand in hand surprised me at first.
As I was relearning cannabis, I was discovering that the right cannabis choices could support my active lifestyle.
I am a very active person.
I do boot camp and yoga classes during the week and on the weekends I can be found outdoors hiking, mountain biking, trail running, snowboarding or paddling, depending on the time of the year.
These kind of outdoor sports hurt. I’m dealing with wrist pain from the downhill biking, hip and back soreness from the long hikes, aches in my knees from all the running and muscle pain after a day on the ski hill.
See also: PART ONE: An introduction to healthy cannabis consumption
See also: PART TWO: An introduction to healthy cannabis consumption
See also: PART THREE: An introduction to healthy cannabis consumption
What I started to notice was that cannabis was providing me with pain relief before, during and after a workout. It was assisting with daily relief from a lingering sports injury, and it was speeding up my muscle recovery after an intense workout.
Now cannabis for fitness makes complete sense to me.
Extreme sport athletes, marathon runners, strength trainers, really anyone participating in high impact sports, deal with muscle and joint pain and sports injuries on a daily basis.
I think the misconception for athletes, who balk at the thought of consuming cannabis, is that cannabis involves smoking or having to get high.
Neither are necessary.
The number one way that I consume cannabis for fitness is a cannabis-infused topical lotion.
I apply to the targeted area and the active compounds in cannabis, namely THC and CBD, work in that targeted area to reduce inflammation and therefore soreness.
In general, cannabis topicals, don’t enter the bloodstream and cross into the blood brain barrier. This is why I have never experienced a high from applying a cannabis balm or cream.
Cannabis for fitness is a conversation that’s here to stay as we continue to explore and understand how cannabis can be consumed as part of a healthy and active lifestyle.
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Bethany Rae is the founder of Flower & Freedom, an education platform and community, empowering people to explore cannabis as part of an active lifestyle. Originally from Australia, Bethany is a cannabis education advocate and international speaker. By removing stereotypes and simplifying the science Bethany makes understanding cannabis in legalization a lot less intimidating. Follow Bethany’s cannabis industry adventures on Instagram and Twitter.
