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    7 Amazing Fitness Benefits of THC

    When people think about regular
    cannabis users, there is a stereotype of a lazy, couch sitting, snack eating
    stoner.

    However, when you look into the
    numbers, a different picture begins to emerge. In fact, cannabis users are less
    likely to be obese than people who do not use cannabis. One researcher,
    intrigued by this reality, surveyed more
    than 600 cannabis users
    in the US and asked them about their
    exercise habits and other health factors.

    What she found is that 4 out of 5 of
    these regular users used cannabis right before or after they exercise. What is
    even more interesting is that the cannabis users who combined the two
    activities actually spent more time exercising than the users who didn’t
    combine smoking and exercising.

    As the benefits of THC in cannabis
    are increasingly understood by the medical community and the public, you might
    be wondering how you can incorporate THC into your workout routine. Let’s take
    a look at some of the benefits of THC that specifically relate to exercise and
    working out.

    What
    Is THC?

    Before we get into the medical
    benefits of THC for your fitness workout, we should probably talk about what
    THC is exactly.

    THC stands for tetrahydrocannabinol.
    When you hear people talking about THC, they are actually talking about
    delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol.

    Recently, there has been increasing
    interest in delta-8-tetrahydrocannabinol. If this piques your interest, you can
    follow this link for more info.

    THC is by far the most well-known
    cannabinoid from the cannabis plant. However, there are actually more than 100
    naturally occurring cannabinoids found in marijuana. Another well-known
    cannabinoid that has been gaining popularity in recent years is CBD.

    Because the world of cannabis
    research is still in its infancy, the medical benefits of CBD and THC are
    something that researchers are still looking into. However, there is a lot of
    optimism about the potential health and medical uses of these powerful
    cannabinoids.

    How
    Can You Take THC?

    As THC and cannabis increasingly
    become legal, lots of different types of products have ended up on the market
    in states where it can be produced and sold.

    When many people think of cannabis,
    they just think of smoking the flower bud. That is certainly one option when it
    comes to ingesting THC, however, some fitness-minded people might be worried
    about the impact of smoking on their lungs.

    There are also a number of ways that
    people can ingest THC without smoking. They might buy cannabis in the form of
    marijuana edibles, THC tinctures or oils, sprays, or even topical methods.

    These different delivery methods can
    serve different purposes. It can take a different amount of time to feel the
    effects depending on how you take THC and it can also change the types of
    effects that you feel. For example, topical application tends to make you feel
    effects locally, and for this reason, are commonly used to help treat local
    aches and pains.

    1.
    It Can Help Relief Chronic Pain

    If you suffer from chronic pain, it
    might be pretty difficult to motivate yourself to start your workout for the
    day. More people suffer from chronic pain these days than heart disease,
    cancer, and diabetes combined. In fact, the most common cause of long-term
    disability in the US is chronic pain.

    In recent years, medical cannabis
    has become an increasingly popular alternative to the medications that have
    traditionally been used for pain relief. Opioids are one of the common
    medications used to treat pain, which come along with a lot of very negative
    side effects.

    Specific types of chronic pain,
    including pain that results from inflammation and nerve damage, might be
    particularly alleviated by cannabis.

    2.
    THC Might Help Improve Your Lung Capacity

    This one might surprise you. One of
    the medical benefits of THC is that it might actually help improve your lung
    capacity. While many people might worry about smoking cannabis because of the
    negative effects of smoking, one study from 2012
    found that not only did smoking once a day for seven years not adversely affect
    lung function, but it actually improved it.

    How is that possible?

    The reason that the study puts
    forward is that inhaling cannabis smoke actually gives the chest muscles and
    the lungs a bit of a workout. It is suggested by the research is that the way
    that people smoke marijuana might be where some of the pulmonary benefits are
    coming from. When people smoke weed, they typically inhale deeply, stretching
    the lung tissue and expanding the volume of the lungs.

    It also might help to strengthen the
    chest wall’s muscles.

    When your lungs are functioning
    better and more efficiently, you can have better workouts with better results.

    3.
    THC Is Linked to Managing Your Weight

    Many people associate cannabis and
    THC with getting “the munchies.” Considering this, using THC to help
    manage her weight seems like a strange idea.

    One study from the International Journal of
    Epidemiology
    actually found that people who regularly smoke cannabis are
    less likely to be overweight or obese compared to people who don’t. Another
    study from 2011 in the American Journal of Epidemiology had very similar
    findings.

    It has also been suggested by
    studies that cannabis users tend to have lower cholesterol levels and trimmer
    waistlines than people who do not smoke.

    Researchers have speculated that one
    of the medical benefits of THC is that it can help people lose weight. The
    hypothesis is that THC can cause changes in the microbiome of a person’s gut
    that is responsible for regulating digestion and weight loss.

    There is still much to be learned
    about the relationship between THC and weight loss. Also, one should not expect
    to magically lose weight by smoking weed but not exercising or eating well.
    However, it seems that ingesting THC in combination with a solid exercise
    routine might help you shed those pounds a little easier.

    4.
    It Can Help With Repetitive, Long Workouts

    Some days you feel more into working
    out than others. While THC might not be that helpful for complicated or heavy
    workouts, it can be great or repetitive, long workouts.

    Something kind of magical happens
    when you combine THC and exercise. It can help to amplify the “runner’s
    high” that you experience from doing exercise alone. It can also help to
    make workouts more tolerable because of its ability to reduce the experience of
    pain.

    Cannabis can also help you increase
    your focus, relax your muscles, and change your perception of time. This means
    that if you are doing a particularly dull exercise like a long session on a
    stationary bike they can help you push through and get to the end.

    5.
    THC Can Help Encourage You to Do Your Cardio

    Have you ever tried using THC before
    going on a long run or a bike ride? There is something so enjoyable about this
    combination that you might find yourself looking forward to your cardio workout.

    Put on your favorite music, tie on
    your running shoes, and get going. As a side note, if you are ever
    recreationally using cannabis and finds that you are feeling a bit anxious or
    overwhelmed, getting a bit of exercise like going on a run might be just what
    the doctor ordered.

    In the survey mentioned in the
    introduction, 70% of the cannabis users said that exercise was more enjoyable
    when they used cannabis beforehand. While some people might think that using
    marijuana might make any activity more fun, it is been suggested that there
    might be a specific chemical interaction occurring when people use cannabis and
    exercise.

    When some people are exercising,
    they experience a feeling of euphoria that is referred to as a “runner’s
    high.” This experience is thought to come from the release of endorphins
    in the brain, but this is not known for sure. Another possible explanation is
    that this euphoric feeling actually comes from the endocannabinoid system, which is the same system
    that THC and CBD interact with.

    It has been hypothesized, therefore,
    that using cannabis might allow people to “jumpstart” the euphoric
    feelings that they can receive from working out.

    However, it can be a good idea to save
    it for long runs or rides rather than using it every single day. This is
    because you can build up a tolerance and it can end up leading to dependency
    issues in certain circumstances for certain people.

    6.
    It Can Help You Recover From Injuries

    If you’re working out every day, no
    matter how careful you are, you will likely experience an injury at one point
    or another. It is absolutely essential that you consider recovery of part of
    your workout and you don’t hurt yourself worse powering through when you’re
    injured.

    Some studies have found that THC
    might be just as effective in treating pain as opiates. However, THC is far
    less addictive and does not have the same negative side effects.

    Even if you aren’t working out today
    or for a few weeks because of an injury, THC might help you recover. You should
    think long and hard before taking prescription painkillers for your injury, as
    the consequences of doing so might be much worse than the pain itself.

    It can also help you with your
    regular recovery days that you should be taking even if you aren’t injured. In
    the same study mentioned in the introduction, 77% of cannabis users who also
    exercise said that it helped them with their recovery.

    7.
    It Can Be a Great Part of Your Mindfulness Routine

    It’s important to keep your physical
    body in shape, but it’s just as important if not more important to stay on top
    of the health of your mind.

    There are a lot of different
    benefits to practicing mindfulness training.

    For one, mindfulness and meditation
    can help to improve your physical health. They can do this by lowering your
    blood pressure, helping you get better sleep, reducing pain, reducing digestive
    distress, and improving cardiac conditioning.

    It can also help to enhance
    serotonin levels. Serotonin works as a natural mood stabilizer and is a
    chemical that is produced in your nerve cells.

    Your immune system, chronic pain,
    and cognitive decline might also be helped by mindfulness practice.

    Practicing mindfulness can also help
    to reduce your stress, help to treat depression, help you recover from injuries
    or illness faster, and focus more effectively professionally and personally.

    THC and CBD can be a wonderful
    addition to a mindfulness routine. Particularly if you find yourself always
    distracted and unable to calm down, THC can help you get into the zone. You
    might find that this helps you go deeper into your meditations, which can in
    turn help improve your fitness practice.

    THC is wonderful for helping you
    relax into an experience. Certain strains might be better than others for you,
    you might want to do some research into the different changes before trying
    this.

    The
    Benefits of THC: Are You Going to Incorporate It Into Your Fitness Routine?

    It might be a big surprise to some
    that using cannabis might be beneficial for your fitness goals. As recreational
    cannabis use is only legal in certain states, only a portion of the population
    can legally find out whether or not THC can benefit them in their workouts.
    It’s always a good idea to talk to your doctor if you are going to try out new
    things when it comes to your health.

    Did you find this article on the
    fitness benefits of THC interesting? If so, be sure to check out the rest of
    our blog for more fascinating and informative content!

     

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