Why are high-level athletes in the NFL, NHL, NBA, and UFC using cannabidiol (CBD) supplements?

Athletes use CBD to help them recover faster between workouts and after an event. Faster recovery means they’re back into the gym sooner to continue training.

In this article, dailycbd.org explores what makes CBD popular for post-workout recovery, as well as recuperation after an injury. We’ll cover what the research says about the anti-inflammatory, analgesic, and muscle relaxant effects of the compound in more detail.

They also cover how CBD may help recovery by supporting sleep, combatting stress, and optimizing protein synthesis and stem cell differentiation in muscle tissue.

Here’s everything you need to know about using CBD to support muscle recovery.

 

So What Exactly is CBD?

Cannabidiol (CBD) is one of the active ingredients in the cannabis plant. It’s a close relative to tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) — which is what makes marijuana psychoactive.

CBD and THC are both cannabinoids — organic compounds found alongside over a hundred other cannabinoids in the cannabis plant. 

Don’t worry, CBD is completely non-psychoactive — meaning it won’t make you high.

Most companies selling CBD will source it from a specific form of selectively-bred cannabis called hemp — which is the same species as marijuana (Cannabis sativa) but won’t produce more than trace amounts (>0.3%) of the psychoactive ingredient, THC.

CBD supplements made from hemp are completely non-psychoactive due to the lack of THC. As a result, government regulators around the world don’t consider CBD a drug in the same way as marijuana. Most countries regulate CBD as a nutritional supplement instead — however, laws governing cannabis products change frequently, so be sure to check your local laws before placing an order.

CBD has a lot of suggested benefits — many of which have been backed up by scientific and anecdotal evidence. Supplements and pharmaceutical preparations containing CBD are being used by cancer patients to reduce side-effects of chemotherapy (such as nausea), by children with rare forms of epilepsy (such as Lennox-Gastaut and Dravet syndrome), and by millions of people around the world for symptoms like anxietypaininflammation, and insomnia.

How can CBD have so many suggested benefits?

CBD achieves all of this because of its ability to interact with a regulatory system — rather than one specific organ. This allows CBD to affect many different organs around the body directly and indirectly — including the muscular system.

How Does CBD Work?

CBD works through a subsystem in the body found in all mammals called the endocannabinoid system.

The endocannabinoid system (ECS) involves a collection of special G-protein-coupled receptors (called endocannabinoid receptors), and hormones designed to interact with these receptors (called endocannabinoids).

The ECS is used to help regulate homeostasis throughout the body — which basically means internal balance.

Everything from temperature regulation to hormone levels needs to remain within a specific range. Homeostasis is the process of keeping these metrics within the ideal ranges. If we fall too far outside these ranges, we become sick and die.

CBD is a modulator of the endocannabinoid receptors. It attaches to them in a unique way and modifies their structure slightly to allow our naturally-produced endocannabinoids to bind to them more effectively. It also inhibits an enzyme designed to break down our endocannabinoids (called FAAH). This essentially primes the ECS — giving it a boost to do its job more effectively.

CBD doesn’t stimulate the endocannabinoid system directly, rather it helps upregulate the system we already have in place.

Conversely, the psychoactive cannabinoid, THC, activates the endocannabinoid receptors directly (rather than modifying them). Some of the receptors THC activates result in a release of serotonin in the brain — which produces the characteristic high from marijuana plants.

CBD also activates other receptors in the body, including:

  • 5HT1A receptors (serotonin receptors) [15]
  • Vanilloid pain receptors [16]
  • PPARγ nuclear receptors [17]

How Can CBD Help With Muscle Recovery?

1. Reducing Inflammation

Perhaps the most important role CBD plays in the process of muscle recovery is in reducing inflammation. The most common method of reducing inflammation after an injury or post-workout is to apply ice to the area.

There’s some debate around whether or not putting icing is helpful for muscle recovery or not, and research is inconclusive — some studies suggest icing the muscles improves recovery times [1], while other studies have found that icing offers no benefit for shortening recovery time [2].

The controversy revolves around what role inflammation plays during the recovery process.

How Inflammation Helps The Muscles Recover

Indeed, the process of inflammation is designed to help damaged muscle fibers recover — it brings in blood flow to the area, delivering essential nutrients and oxygen along with it. Additionally, the increased blood flow helps to clear out cellular debris, damaged proteins, and byproducts of muscle contraction like lactic acid from the area.

Inflammation also stimulates stem cells (called satellite cells) in the muscle to turn into new muscle fibers.

Inflammatory markers like IL-10, TGF-β, TNF-α, and NF-κB are all thought to stimulate the satellite cells of the muscles after an injury [3] — leading to faster recovery and a return of strength to the muscles.

How Inflammation Slows Recovery

On the other hand, post-workout muscle damage, or injuries to the muscles often involve specific regions of muscle — yet the inflammatory process affects larger groups of muscles and joints that haven’t been affected. The inflammatory response can cause collateral damage to these regions of muscle and joints — leading to a slower recovery process.

This is the main reason athletes use anti-inflammatories or ice after a workout or injury. Reducing inflammation limits the damage caused to nearby muscle and joint tissue.

Athletes often use ice immediately following a workout, and NSAID medications like Aspirin or Ibuprofen to limit inflammation for the remainder of delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS symptoms for the next few days.

CBD offers something even better — and may be able to reduce most of the unhelpful inflammation without compromising its benefits towards the recovery process.

CBD has been shown to inhibit a wide range of inflammatory molecules but has little effect on reducing TGF-β and IL-10. In some studies, CBD even caused an increase in IL-10 [4].

This could explain how CBD may alleviate inflammation in the muscle tissue without compromising recovery times. The important role of IL-10 in the activation of new muscle cell differentiation could have a big impact on our ability to recover from muscle damage.

2. Lowering Muscle Tension

One of the characteristic symptoms of DOMS is muscle tension. When it comes to injuries, tension in the muscles surrounding the affected area can make the pain much worse — which is why muscle relaxants are so popular for alleviating pain during recovery from exercise or injuries.

Some forms of prescription muscle relaxants used for treatment-resistant muscle tension are benzodiazepine drugs like Valium. These medications work through the GABA receptors — which are a key regulator of muscle relaxation [5,18].

Benzodiazepines are powerful drugs and come with a significant risk of side-effects like sedation, depression, confusion, dizziness, and trembling — all of which are not conducive to optimal athletic function.

CBD and other cannabinoids have similar effects on GABA as benzodiazepines — only without the risk of severe side-effects [6,7]. Some research even suggests the use of cannabis as a supportive agent for benzodiazepine addiction due to the overlap of effects between the two [8]. This is dangerous and requires monitoring by a doctor, of course. You should never attempt this on your own.

Therefore, CBD may be a useful muscle relaxant for easing muscle tension and pain following an injury or rigorous workout.

3. Alleviating Pain

CBD is suggested to be a powerful pain-killer — as evidenced by both anecdotal and scientific research. This effect may allow CBD to offer symptomatic support for muscle injuries or post-exercise recovery. With less pain, you’ll find it easier to get yourself back into action faster, and feel more comfortable between exercise.

CBD is thought to stop pain through three main mechanisms:

  1. Inhibit pain transmission in the spinal cord and brain [9,10]
  2. Reduce inflammatory messenger activity [4]
  3. Lower sensitivity to pain through vanilloid receptors [11]

To read more from dailycbd.com, follow the link below.

 

 

 

 

About Wellness BioSciences Rx (WBRx)

Wellness BioSciences Rx (WBRx) is a global innovator in the delivery of science-based wellness consumables in partnership with health care providers directly to their respective patient base. Our products specialize in the development of the highest grade 100% USA-grown hemp oil rich in CBD, CBDA, CBG, CBN, CBC, and terpenes. WBRx was founded by Barry Cocheu and Sean Baker. 

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