Perhaps a friend’s been eagerly telling you about it, or it’s something that comes up again and again in the gym. Maybe you’ve read about it on a sports website or in a fitness magazine.
It’s CBD – and how useful it can be for muscle recovery.
More and more athletes and fitness enthusiasts are taking CBD supplements to help them recover faster after a workout. So is it the right option for you? And how should you go about it? Here’s what you need to know:
CBD is derived from the cannabis plant. Many people, hearing that, think that CBD must get you high and be illegal. Neither of those is true!
CBD won’t give you a high, as it doesn’t have psychoactive properties. (The psychoactive compound in marijuana is THC.) And, in many places around the world, including the USA, CBD is legal … at least in some forms.
While studies are still ongoing into the effectiveness of CBD, studies suggest that it likely does have a positive effect. This is because CBD acts as an anti-inflammatory.
CBD is unlikely to have any negative side effects, so even if you’re not sure you believe all the hype surrounding it, you may still want to give it a try.
So where can you get hold of CBD and how do you take it?
The easiest way to buy CBD is online. But there’s a catch, as you can’t buy CBD oil on Amazon. (You might well find products like “hemp oil” on there, but you can’t be sure that you’re actually getting quality CBD.)
Instead, it’s best to find a specialist retailer and buy directly from them. You’ll want to do some due diligence and look at online reviews: make sure you’re buying from a reputable company.
If you prefer to shop in person, there may well be stores local to you that sell CBD. Stores that sell herbal remedies or natural remedies are a good place to look.
Again, it’s important to make sure you’re buying from somewhere reputable. You can look up reviews for almost any local business on Google.
The most common ways to take CBD are in capsule form and as an oil or tincture, applied under the tongue.
If you don’t like the taste of CBD or don’t want to swallow capsules, then there are plenty of other ways to take CBD. You can get water-soluble CBD that you can add to a drink or smoothie, or you could even opt for CBD gummies that you can chew.
If you want CBD to have an effect during your workout, then you need to take it about 2 hours before you begin exercising. However, if you’re mainly using it to reduce muscle recovery time, then you might find it’s most effective when taken after your workout.
While CBD isn’t going to make you super-human, it’s likely to reduce aches and pains, and help you to avoid feeling stiff. It might even help to increase your endurance (particularly as it can help you sleep better).
If you’ve never tried CBD before, why not give it a go? You might find it eases muscle soreness and helps you get the most from your workouts every time.