With steroid abuse being condemned in the sports world, substances like cannabis with cannabinoids, for instance, THC or Tetrahydrocannabinol and CBD, have become an emerging issue in recovery, pain treatment and performance enhancement. This phenomenon may sound weird at first for athletes who value their health, as tobacco smoking impedes fitness. However, a lot of athletes have more reasons to use it.
Why Do Athletes Smoke Weed: A Look at Cannabinoids and Sports Performance
Athletes are increasingly embracing weed, which was once regarded as taboo. So, why do some athletes smoke weed? Let’s take a look at the use of cannabinoids in athletic performance.
Relief of pain
Pain relief is the foremost reason why many athletes turn to using marijuana. There is always physical exertion as well as injuries, which is par the course in the athletic sphere, and pain sometimes comes across as an impediment to maintaining performance. A sizable number of athletes, including players in aggressive contact sports such as football with most extreme divisions or mixed martial arts, do use cannabis as an herbal approach to pain medications.
For a long time, opioids have been the most effective form of pain management. However, opioids are associated with addiction and many adverse reactions. On the other hand, cannabinoids such as THC and CBD are effective for pain relief with minimal side effects. THC reduces the perception of pain by interacting with the endocannabinoid system; CBD has anti-inflammatory effects that help muscles recover.
Chronic pain suffers, and former NFL players such as Ricky Williams and Rob Gronkowski have been supporters of the usage of cannabis for pain relief for many years. They've created awareness for patients by advocating the use of marijuana for pain relief as an alternative to narcotic drugs.
Inflammation and Muscle Recovery
Cannabis is gaining more and more attention from athletes for its inflammation reduction benefits which are essential for an athlete who tries to recover within the shortest time possible from training. Intense physical exercise tends to bring about microtrauma, which leads to inflammation as the body tries to repair. While normal inflammation should be encouraged as it is part of the healing process, too much inflammation delays healing and will adversely affect performance.
CBD is one type of cannabinoid and non-psychoactive that is claimed to reduce inflammation. Evidence shows that CBD can reduce muscle damage during exercise and promote recovery through immune system receptor interactions. Athletes who regularly use CBD products by smoking, taking edibles, or applying topicals experience shorter recovery times and less soreness after exercising.
Focus and Reduce Anxiety
While many athletes will attempt to win a competition with physical prowess and skills, psychological torture, such as focusing and handling anxiety, is equally important. The zeal to emerge victorious, the fear of matches, and the pressure of too much exercise can alter the mindset.
To minimize performance anxiety and level of distraction before a competition, athletes may benefit from using specific cannabis strains that have high CBD content. THC is also known for its ability to induce relaxation and calmness in users. As studies have shown, Cannabidiol does lower anxiety and causes you to relax, which is beneficial to athletes when performing under stress.
Famous sports figures, including Kevin Durant and Nate Diaz, openly talked about the role of marijuana in their life and career, more specifically, on how cannabis eases the mental side that professional athletes experience. When it is either suppression of anxiety or even helping in the quality of sleep, there’s no debate that cannabis can be pivotal in mental state.
Sleep Improvement
Rest is critical in the sports recovery process. In the absence of sufficient hours of sleep, athletes recover more slowly, perform less well, and are more prone to sustain injuries. There is a paradox, where most competitive athletes will suffer sleeplessness due to physical injuries or emotional strain often experienced in sports.
Some athletes have used Cannabis, particularly high THC strains, to assist in sleeping. THC makes people sleepy and, therefore, makes it easier to go to bed, while CBD has been known to make sleep more restful by alleviating conditions that lead to sleeplessness, such as worry and pain. Since cannabis influences sleep positively, it might help in making a recovery quicker and improving performance more.
Substitute for Alcohol or Other Substances
Cannabis use might have beneficial effects in that some athletes use it as an alternative to alcohol, which unduly delays the recovery process, leads to cell dehydration, and further deteriorates performance. Like most other intoxicating beverages, alcohol is also associated with poor sleep and longer reaction times, which is antagonistic to athletes who wish to be at their optimum performance.
Unlike alcohol, weed does not have the same standard of dehydration. Many sportspersons state that they tend to get less worn out and more active after taking cannabis rather than coming out of an alcohol binge. Cannabis, especially when used in moderation or at prescribed doses, offers athletes ways to relax without the negative effects of alcohol.
Changing views and adapting regulations
Citing the legalization of cannabis in the US and other parts of the world, the stigma associated with using marijuana is receding. A number of sports organizations are changing their policies towards cannabis. Professional athletes, moreover, do not only speak about the old sports associations that have imposed a ban on cannabis, but they also believe that it can take its place properly within the regulations of many current sports leagues. Recognizing the changing political and social climate realistically, for example, the MLB in 2019 lifted the ban on the use of marijuana. The fighters of the UFC, as opposed to before, have now come to a situation whereby the athletes can use hemp for medicinal purposes, but only when they are not competing.
Many athletes have long been perceived to be very discreet, and it was rare to hear them speak in regard to cannabis usage. This change is moving towards the acceptance of cannabis as not only a form of treatment but as an integral part of an athlete's recovery process, psychological well-being, and possibly even as a means of performance enhancement.
Risks and Considerations
While it is clear that benefits exist for smoking weed, professional athletes who do indulge in its use need to take into consideration how it will affect their bodies and performance. Cannabis smoking, for instance, has been shown to have negative effects on lung function and endurance, hence the reason why some athletes use vaporizers or even consumables.
High levels of cannabinoids such as THC are also very likely to create effects that can interfere with performance, such as poor coordination, delayed reaction times, and impaired judgment, which may bring forth serious consequences if they occur during workouts or competitions.
Cannabis use may possibly be prohibited in some competitions. Some leagues have embraced cannabis and alleviated restrictions pertaining to its use, while some, such as the World Anti doping Agency (WADA), have still not removed THC in its list of banned substances during the duration of a competition.
Conclusion
With regard to the ongoing debate on the legalization of cannabis, there has also been an increasing number of athletes who are turning to cannabinoid substances like THC and CBD for their potential benefits in the management of pain, recovery process, anxiety stimulation, and even sleep enhancement. Conclusively, studies on athletic productivity and cannabis are still in progress. However, it was observed by researchers that a lot of athletes consider the use of marijuana as part of their preventive health strategies.
Not only is cannabis used for recreational or social consumption, but an increasing number of sports enthusiasts are looking at cannabis for its healing abilities. With further research and vocalization from the athletes, cannabinoids will be noticeable in the performance and recuperation of sports in the near future.