During a period of sustained lockdown and social restrictions, more and more people have enjoyed running as an accessible means of exercise. It’s a sport that requires limited equipment and training, and its benefits are as well-documented as can be. Running’s positive effects on the body are well-recognised: it improves your cardiovascular system and lowers blood pressure; it strengthens muscles and bones, and it also is incredibly therapeutic in assisting the relief of anxiety.
Yet, all this running can also place your body under a significant amount of stress and discomfort. Long-distance runs can cause muscle inflammation as well as inducing serious joint pain. When the body becomes so depleted of resources, it is imperative that both physical and mental wellness is reinforced during a heavy training schedule.
Pure Sport has a range of products that not only assist recovery and recuperation from runs, but also prime the body to be in optimum condition before exercising. It is this mixing of both physical and mental preparation that can lead to higher performance during runs. There has been some significant research conducted to suggest that CBD can act as an integral addition to runners’ nutrition and wellbeing regimes. It can aid recovery and reportedly soothe inflammation, whilst also being a useful combatant against anxiety and depression.
Can CBD Help Improve Running Performance?
There are myriad effects of CBD that will aid runners in reaching their potential, and will help accessing a more relaxed and focussed mindset as well as assisting runners in their recovery so that they can quickly face new challenges.
Muscle Repair And Recovery
For example, our Destress Oil offers a synergistic mixing of our CBD oil and various natural ingredients that have been suggested to incur major benefits for its users. It contains ashwagandha which has been suggested to support muscle growth and recovery following periods of intense training. It has the capacity to lower cortisol levels which in turn are responsible for diminishing one’s anabolic state needed for effective muscle growth.
Reducing Anxiety And Fighting Depression
There have also been some studies completed that suggest that ashwagandha can help fight depression. Our UNWIND OIL, another member of our popular nootropic range, contains adaptogens such as L-Theanine and lavender, compounds which can assist the body in lowering stress levels and having a positive effect on its user’s mood. By taking our UNWIND OIL around 30-60 minutes before going to sleep, these active ingredients can calm the mind from overthinking and help ensure a solid night’s sleep before a run.
Read our article on CBD for anxiety and depression
CBD For Arthritic Pain
Arthritis can affect people of any age, including children. A common condition, arthritis causes stiffness, swelling and pain in one or more joints of the body; it is a condition that can develop quickly in the joints of serious runners with severely debilitating effects. Research suggests that CBD could interact with the body’s immune system, as it may have anti-inflammatory properties and natural pain relief. CBD oil may help to manage the chronic pain associated with certain types of inflammatory arthritis, such as rheumatoid arthritis. Puresport’s CBD capsules contain turmeric, ginger and black pepper. The combination of these natural ingredients may ease the pain associated with arthritis, especially for those runners who are constantly pushing their bodies to the limits.
What Is CBD Oil?
Your body contains an endocannabinoid system (ECS) which is a nerve signalling nexus that helps control many processes within the body. The ECS affects the body’s responses to chronic pain, inflammation, mood, sleep, stress and metabolism: it is essentially a system which manages your body’s homeostasis. CBD (cannabidiol) is a cannabinoid that interacts with the CB1 and CB2 receptors within the ECS and can assist in relieving various symptoms associated with fatigue, stress, and anxiety. Therefore, some research suggests that CBD crucially supports your body in maintaining a healthy, balanced state key to successful recovery.
CBD For Pain Relief
As a natural pain reliever, CBD may target specific problem areas to help to speed up recovery. Users have found that it can soothe aching muscles after a tough session in the gym and help the return to full fitness. Pure Sport’s Muscle and Joint Balm targets tired muscles and joints to treat your aches and pains. Natural ingredients, such as lavender and peppermint, are combined to create a balm that may help with pain relief and relaxation. Both members and coaches of our Pure Sport Run Club have found both the muscle balm and freeze roll on to help with their post-5k niggles and aches. Coach Lloyd Kempson states that Pure Sport’s CBD has elevated his ability to train harder for longer, whilst also helping to manage those unseen mental stresses that come with sustained competition at the highest level.
Using CBD For Different Types Of Runs
Those who are participating more frequently in longer distance runs will most likely have different approaches to CBD usage compared to those who do shorter sessions. However, there are some universal advantages of using CBD that can apply for whatever form of run you are undertaking.
CBD For Long Distance Runs
For longer distance runs such as ultra-marathons, marathons, and half-marathons, endurance is the key to success. Therefore, our original CBD oils could be extremely useful in maintaining healthy sleep cycles and circadian rhythms needed for maximum recovery between runs. Ben Parker, another member of our Run Club, has really gained from using our 3000mg CBD oil; he believes the product has expedited his recovery process and also supported his training during incredibly intense periods and an overloaded race schedule.
CBD For Short Distance Runs
For more casual runners who regularly enjoy a social 5 kilometre run, CBD can still be as equally beneficial in helping you reach your potential during exercise. For those runner who come from the office and join our Run Club at Battersea Park on Wednesday evenings, using our BOOST Oil, which contains Lion’s Mane, Ginseng, Vitamin C, and our 1500mg CBD, could help improve your daily alertness. Particularly, Lion’s Mane is said to have strong anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, cognitive, and immune boosting qualities, meaning that you can get through your workday and still be raring to go for a 5k PB.
Potential Health Benefits Of CBD For Runners
We have had many of our runners from our Pure Sport Run Club try our 500mg CBD Muscle and Joint Balm following our community 5 kilometre run and immediately feel the effects of it. By applying CBD muscle balm to areas where there is inflammation and soreness, the CBD can directly target the pain and begin to soothe. As a result, the CBD aids in the repairing of torn and overworked muscle fibres by providing a localized, deep soothing function on the area of discomfort.
CBD Running Supplements
For those who are not ready yet to take the plunge into taking CBD Oil on its own, our 1500mg CBD, Tumeric & Ginger capsules are a great introductory product to experience the effects of our gold-standard CBD. There is also black pepper in this product, which contains the active compound piperine which has been shown to reduce nausea and also assist the activation of turmeric. All in all, these capsules increase the bioavailability of the CBD and help it become more readily accepted by your body’s neurosystem, allowing its effects to be felt.
Since CBD oil and the corollary natural ingredients of our nootropics range interact with the neurosystem of its users, the response to our products is highly unique and individualised.
Recommended CBD Dosage For Runners
For example, if you were taking our 1000mg CBD Oil and wanted to try a stronger dose, you could double the recommended dose to get a similar strength to the 2000mg CBD Oil.
CBD topicals can act to relax and soothe headaches at a more gradual pace, and also calm your mind for a deep sleep pre-run. The required dosage for the effective use of the CBD nootropics, such as the Unwind Oil, is around 0.2-0.4ml of the pipette to start. A few drops should be taken between 30-60 minutes before bedtime.
As time goes by, and the body becomes used to the introduction of CBD, we suggest that the dosage could again be adjusted in accordance to your needs. The time it takes for CBD to become effective is again dependent on the individual: a rough estimate however is that it takes between 30 (oil) and 120 (capsules) minutes for any effects to be experienced.