How to Use CBD Oil for Runners: Pain Relief, Mood, Athletic Performance

A few years ago, I started hearing whispers of ultrarunners crushing their uber long trail workouts thanks to the now legal Colorado trade of marijuana. I was intrigued, but not really sure how getting baked at 5AM to run before a full day of work was supposed to go.

Plus let’s be honest, I’m the girl who won’t even take a pain pill after surgery because I didn’t like feeling out of control. Marijuana was just not going to be part of my sports nutrition plan.

So I set that potential run enhancer aside and went about my training.

Then the knee injury.

Which lead to A LOT of research and testing all kinds of pain relief methods. I was injecting platelets, trying energy medicine and giving my knee pep talks daily.

Eventually that research lead me right back to what those ultrarunners were sort of tapping in to…CBD, the won’t get you high, but gives you the benefits portion of marijuana. Hey, if you already know you want to try it, jump to the end to find out what product I’m loving.

What is CBD oil?

Cannabidiol oil is extracted from the hemp plant

In fact, our bodies produce certain cannabinoids already!

CB1 receptors: deal with mood, hunger, coordination and is affected by marijuana
CB2 receptors: deal with the immune system and pain.

CBD appears not to attach to either, but instead to encourage your body to use more of it’s own cannabinoids.

Hemp Oil vs CBD Oil: They aren’t the same.
Ok this can get confusing, so let’s try to break it down:

• Both come from the hemp plant
• Hemp oil is used in shampoos, lotions, etc for its high vitamin content
• Hemp oil is extracted from large industrial plots cultivated to have low to no traces of CBD or THC
• Hemp seeds contain no THC
• Hemp oil is basically like coconut oil, you can cook with it or eat it
• CBD is extracted from hemp grown specifically to be high in CBD
• Cannabis is the same plant that creates hemp and marijuana, just different species

Will CBD make you high?

Nope, it’s nothing like that. You’re thinking of THC which is the active component of the leaf.

Now as you’ll see below some products do contain a very small trace amount of THC (.3%) in the pain relief cream because there is some research that you need the full source for maximum benefits. Kind of like not taking vitamin C alone, but rather eating the whole orange.

That minuscule dose will not give you the effect often discussed with edibles or smoking, where you will often find up to 30% THC.

Ever wondered about the athletic application of CBD? Answering all your questions in this guide to CBD Oil #runchat #recovery Click To Tweet

Why is CBD suddenly so popular?

I thought this was a fantastic question because it certainly seems like you heard about it a little and now there are tons of companies popping up. I think there are a few things happening:

1. Success always encourages others to jump in to a market and it’s currently projected to be over 1 billion by 2020.
2. Changing regulations are making it easier to sell these products even though CBD isn’t a banned substances.
3. There are more studies now around it’s usage.
4. Those changing laws are also making people more comfortable with these products
5. It’s a non-addictive pain relief option, without some of the issues we know exist with others if taken before workouts

What are the benefits of CBD?

Now let’s dive in to the fun stuff, we know what CBD is and how to use it, but why? Why are so many athletes turning to this new tool and does it really work?

One 2016 study in arthritic rats, found that it significantly reduced joint swelling and pain ratings, without the side effects of other drugs! Nice.

Of course that’s just one study, but there are many more underway like using CBD to reduce anxiety without the high. Which is actually something that many consistent users often report. Knowing that there’s more work being done, I’m listing here the reported benefits from both brands and those who’ve tried it.

CBD Benefits

• natural pain relief
• reduced anxiety
• improved sleep
• potential to reduce inflammation of Type 1 diabetes
• acne reduction
• promotes heart health
• promotes bone growth (healing stress fractures!)

How to use CBD oil?

Honestly, once I decided to dive in I was a little confused by the CBD sublingual drops, the creams, the lotions and the salves. What did I need, how much and when!

Let my confusion, which lead to research save you time!

1. Consistency: This isn’t a use it one day and magically all things are better. You need to use it consistently for you to continue reducing inflammation or improving sleep, which then leads to all kinds of other good benefits.
2. Sublingual drops (under the tongue) are great for helping to reduce total body inflammation, calming, mood, etc. When taking it sublingual, let it basically absorb in your mouth, don’t just swallow it.
3. Creams are ideal for localized areas of pain.
4. Lotions are an alternative to the sublingual drops as you can absorb the CBD through the skin.

Take it Nightly
Most people will take the sublingual drops a night to help them wind down and have a good night of sleep. We know that quality sleep is one of the key components to good health and workout recovery, so this can help with that while also working on inflammation.

Try it Pre-Workout
I started to wonder about pre-workout usage based on the original stories of ultra runners and their edibles. A little self testing and research lead me to find it can be a great option for prior to long runs as a way of getting in to a flow and

Now others might find it makes them too sleepy for a great workout and I wouldn’t use it before a speed session, but worth knowing so you can decide what’s best for you.

What do I recommend?

First a few things you need to know if you’re going to ignore my recommendation!

Buyer Beware
A 2017 study showed over 70% of CBD products are over or more commonly underlabled, meaning they don’t contain what you’re paying for! Again that’s why I’m excited to share Resilience CBD with you because they do a lot of testing to ensure product quality.

Additionally, it’s really important to all my fellow Amazon lovers to know what you see on Amazon isn’t CBD. It’s not allowed to be  sold there, which means you’re buying hemp oil.

Look for Studies
The brand I recommend below is very open about all the studies they’ve done and you want this in any brand you choose. Of course I’m trying to save you that hassle by just sharing a great option!

Resilience CBD

Now, having tested out three different varieties of drops, a few different creams and salves over the last year, my ultimate choice is Resilience CBD. And if you’re ready to test it out use code AMANDA20 to get a 20% discount on your first order.

Let me tell you why it’s my personal choice.

Resilience CBD Oil Drops
For all over inflammation fighting, relaxation, taking sublingual drops is ideal. The way to get the most from them is to hold it in your mouth for 60 seconds where it essentially absorbs under your tongue. In the previous brands I tried, I needed to put it in and take a flavored drink to get past the taste, gag.

Not so with Resilience!

Also compared to the others, I noticed an actual difference when taking it. So much so that during a few days of super high stress, I took an extra dose during the day, which I never even pondered with the others.

If you want to ensure you are getting 0 THC (for a work drug test or anything else), opt for the Resilience Isolate, instead of the full spectrum drops.

**Update: I’ve had a number of private messages asking about the 300mg vs the 600mg. That’s just telling you the size of the bottle, it doesn’t change the potency. I’d say the 600mg lasts just over a month if you use 1 dropper full daily

Resilience CBD Sports Cream
Smelling like my 90 year-old grandmothers old nursing home isn’t high on my list of to do’s. BUT most pain relief creams have that odor due to menthol and the first CBD one I tried was intense. Like so intense I wouldn’t use it if I was leaving the house that day and needed to wash any clothing that touched my skin where I’d put it on my knee!

With Resilience Sport Cream, you notice the smell for about 2-3 minutes a max. Meaning it genuinely vanishes unlike some of the others that claim to. Maybe that doesn’t matter to you, but matters to me!!

Again, I also appreciate that they do test to prove exactly how much CBD is in their product. And this cream will last a very long time because you aren’t gooping it on.

As a reminder creams aren’t a cure all, but used in conjunction with all our other injury prevention techniques it helps.

Ordering Tips
Two tips for ordering! One is to use my code AMANDA20 for 20% off and the second is if you’re unsure, pair up with a friend. Here’s what I mean!

Resilience Give and Rise Project is all about reminding us all to come together to push each other to our best. After you’ve used the product for 30 days, they’ll give you the opportunity to give a friend a FREE product! What?!

Yup so why not buddy up, one of you try it first then the other…I mean you’ll both be convinced you need it forever after 30 days, but this feels like an easy way to start!

My Experience with CBD

All right, I’ve told you the basics of why I like these specific products, but I also want to talk about what I noticed from using them consistently. The products arrived during a particularly stressful period for me and I found after using it for a few nights, I also opted to take a half dose of the drops early in the day and used the cream consistently on my knee.

1. I had my longest run by 2 miles since my knee injury started in 2016 (I took .5 CBD before the run)
2. I finished that 15 miles without knee pain
3. I proceed the rest of that week to continue having not just good runs, but faster and better feeling
4. We went through the time change and I found myself adjusting more easily
5. I’d been having some knee pain post shorter runs and that is continuing to diminish again
6. The skin issues that had suddenly started in my late 30’s are absolutely better

This is just what I found within the first month of using the product, so I’m quite excited to make Resilience CBD a standard part of my training leading up to my next race!!

My only complaint is that now I want travel sizes from them because I know these are must have’s around race day and when traveling! And auto-refill seems like a must!

Have you tried CBD?

Any questions left unanswered?

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This post is sponsored by Resilience CBD, but all opinions and testing results are my own.