Athletes

CBD For Athletes & Active Lifestyle Individuals

By Nicolas Rivera

January 27, 2020

CBD is transforming and revolutionizing how the world tackles pain and aches. It’s evident that CBD will be the new age approach to relieving chronic pain that many people experience in their day-to-day activities. Most of the studies about CBD are relatively new but are showing promising results, helping with inflammation, pain and other issues. CBD is the “it product” that’s getting the attention of society. So much that even organized sports, which has some of strictest restrictions on drug use, are rethinking how they look at CBD. News of this is sure to have athletes around the world jumping for joy with this natural solution.

CBD short for Cannabidiol is a chemical compound derived from the Hemp plant. This chemical compound is taking the world by storm and all for good reason.  Due to its medicinal benefits, CBD is on track to becoming the next household name as a pain reliever. CBD is the cousin to the infamous THC.  Although their cousins and come from the same plant family, THC is known for its ability to produce a psychoactive “high” feeling as opposed to CBD which does not. CBD has a variety of ways in which to consume from edibles to cbd oil tinctures. For athletes, a topical would be most suitable as athletes look for rapid pain relief after a tough workout or competition.

It seems as if Hemp plants was specially made for the human body as it produces the same cannabinoids that our body produces naturally.  When ingested, CBD binds on to receptors called CB1 and CB2 receptors.  CB1 receptors are found all throughout the brain, spinal cord and small tissues whereas the CB2 receptors are located primarily in the immune system. Without our natural receptors, CBD would prove to be useless. Simply put, it’s like buying a car and never changing the oil with the expectation of the vehicle performing at its highest level. CBD is a must when it comes to healing and self maintenance.

For most athletes, working out requires a lot of mental and physical strength. Athletic individuals put their bodies through a lot of stress, both negative and positive. As an athlete trains, the goal is to become a better, stronger version of themselves but that often comes with a price on their bodies that most athletes pay for. Physical trauma and prolonged wear and tear on an athlete body also leads to various injuries and pain throughout the body. Old methods of pain relief may have been effective, but it also caused negative side effects associated with painkillers and opioids. Many athletes resort to natural remedies for healing, but a lot of natural remedies on the marketplace don’t have the same kick. That’s where CBD comes into play. With the recent rise in awareness about CBD and its medicinal benefits, this couldn’t be the best time to look toward CBD as a pain reliever for athletes.

If you know anything about organized sports both professional and recreational, you know they have some of the strictest policies when it comes to drug use.  For a long time, CBD was banned as it was associated closely to its cousin, THC. With the stigma applied, many developed an assumption it causes harm to the body. As more and more studies continue to come out, the organization is starting to rethink its stance on CBD.  With many addicted to over the counter pain relievers and being amid the opioid epidemic, CBD just may be the solution to a lot of athlete’s health problems.  As early as the beginning of 2018, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) decided to remove CBD from the list of prohibited substances- in or out of competition. CBD was the only compound removed as it’s cousin THC is still prohibited because of its ability to cause a psychoactive effect.  This is huge for the organized sports world as many athletes have already begun using CBD as oppose to old age medicine. This is a major step forward, especially for athletes participating in the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.

The one thing that’s great about CBD is the variety in which you can administer the natural cannabinoid to experience the benefits.  For most, that’s what makes it the “go to” product in 2020 as a natural alternative to fighting pain. Some of the most effective ways in which you can take CBD is CBD gummies, CBD softgels, and CBD topical products.  Athletes who put their body through extreme workouts experience a lot of chronic joint pain. Amongst the variety of ways to consume CBD, ideally CBD topical products would be the product for athletes to achieve rapid targeted relief.

There are many forms of Topical CBD products from creams to roll on.  CBD Topical products would serve athletes greatly as it targets specific areas affected with inflammation and work to relieve the area of pain. Athletes are now understanding that old methods of pain relief such as taking Ibuprofen or Advil does more harm to the body and simply hides pain, instead of healing it.  Therefore, CBD is the next best thing to an alternative way to achieving pain relief without the fear of negative side effects.

Athletes as well as many others have the confidence that better days are here and mild to almost pain free days aren’t just a thought but rapidly becoming reality. Now that athletes have permission to use CBD as an alternative for pain relief, it’s important to know that not all CBD are created equal. As a beginner to the industry, we know athletes may need a little help in their search for the right CBD brand, so we’ve compiled a list to make it a little easier.

How is the reputation of the company (When was the company established?)

-Although the explosion in the marketplace is new, some companies have been in business many years prior. Look to businesses that have been operating for years.  With age comes wisdom.

What’s the origin of their hemp (where is it from?) and how is it extracted/

-We strongly recommend buyers to purchase from companies that purchased domesticated hemp (grown in the USA) as growing standards are significantly stricter. There’re two common extractions: C02 and Ethanol.  We urge customers to go with a company using Co2 as their extraction.

Does the brand have THC in their CBD?

-Although the WADA removed CBD from the list of prohibited substances- in or out of competition. Athletes must be careful and select products that has no traces of THC which is called BROAD SPECTRUM. This terminology reflects that there’s no THC within the CBD brand.

Transparency of the company/ Test Results

-You want to make sure third-party lab results are always available and publicly displayed on their website. Always look for ingredients and full panel testing to ensure you’re receiving products which are pesticide, heavy metal and microbial free. In addition, we recommend to ONLY buy from companies with up-to-date results (6-8 months after testing).

Can you easily reach a customer service representative?

-As it is important to have quality products. It’s as equally important to have quality customer service. Is it easy to reach someone to handle any issues?  Can you call and get a live person to answer any questions?

Truth is, it will be hard selecting a brand if you don’t know where to begin.  Within any market, you can’t expect everyone to be forth coming and truthful about their brand. We’ve done the homework for you and found a company that’s been in operation since 2016. Having one of the most diverse products lines and uses a clean Co2 extraction process with third-party lab testing with batch numbers to ensure quality. If you’re looking for a BROAD SPECTURM with clean THC free products, then look no further than GoGreenHemp CBD