Best CBD Gummies For Athletes: What To Look For

People from all walks of life — even competitive athletes — have started using CBD products now that they’re legal in almost all Western nations.

Non-intoxicating CBD (short for cannabidiol) hasn’t been approved by regulatory authorities as a prescription treatment, except for a few rare types of childhood epilepsy. However, preliminary research shows that CBD appears to ease many issues common to athletes including pain and inflammation, stress, and poor sleep quality.

Cannabidiol can be consumed in several forms. CBD oil is the most popular, but CBD edibles are chosen almost as often because they come in specific doses and are easier to use (and more discreet).

The most popular edible product is CBD gummies, which are created in a familiar form that can be popped into the mouth in just a second or two and are available in many delicious flavours.

The candies are particularly attractive to athletes. Not only can they use CBD gummies before activity or during their cooldown and recovery, but they can chew on a gummy between reps or even during a game or race.

Not all governing bodies permit the use of CBD by athletes, though. For example, the World Anti-Doping Agency allows professional competitors to take cannabidiol, and the NCAA has decided to permit CBD use during championships and post-seasons — but many colleges, leagues, and organizations still consider cannabidiol a banned substance.

What should athletes who are allowed to use CBD look for in gummies?

• The best CBD gummies for most athletes contain broad-spectrum CBD; they provide the greatest effectiveness, without the THC that’s contained in full-spectrum products and may trigger a positive cannabis test.
• The dosage should match the apparent benefits athletes hope to receive. While there are no medically-recommended dose levels, many experts suggest using less than 25 milligrams during the day, and 25-50 milligrams at night for recovery and sleep.
• Finally, gummies should be produced by a reputable manufacturer and purchased from a trustworthy vendor. Many cheap CBD gummies don’t contain the promised amount of cannabidiol or contain more THC than they should.

If you need a deeper dive into the subject, we’ve got it.

CBD and Its Apparent Benefits

What is CBD, and why would it be of interest to athletes? Let’s take those questions one at a time.

Hemp and CBD

CBD (cannabidiol) is a plant compound belonging to a class known as cannabinoids. The other major cannabinoid is psychoactive THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), the substance that makes marijuana users high.

The cannabidiol used to make CBD gummies is sourced from hemp plants, which contain bountiful amounts of the substance. Cannabidiol is also found in cannabis plants, but at such low levels that it would make no sense to extract CBD from them.

Hemp also contains THC, but in very small amounts that can’t make people high. Cannabidiol sourced from hemp contains low levels of THC, too, because other plant compounds come along with the CBD when it’s extracted. So CBD products like gummies usually have a little THC in them.

That’s both good and bad news.

It’s good news for most users because researchers have discovered the existence of a so-called “entourage effect.” All of the other plant compounds extracted along with CBD, including THC, work together to maximize the performance of cannabidiol in the body. If CBD gummies didn’t contain THC, they wouldn’t be as effective.

It’s bad news, though, for people who are allergic to THC. It’s also bad news for those who are afraid of being drug tested for cannabis — including many athletes — because they can’t afford to have any THC in their bodies. Most sports governing bodies now allow the use of CBD, but cannabis use can be disqualifying, and drug tests look for signs of THC.

Thankfully, there’s a way around that potential problem: CBD producers create three versions of their products.

“Full-spectrum CBD” is cannabidiol containing the full spectrum of plant compounds extracted from hemp along with the CBD. “Broad-spectrum CBD” is similar, but the cannabidiol has been further processed to remove THC; at most, only a trace of the psychoactive cannabinoid remains. “CBD isolate” is pure CBD, with all other plant compounds removed.

Broad-spectrum products have less of an entourage effect since there’s no THC in them, so they’re less effective. CBD isolate products have no entourage effect because the compounds that provide it have been removed. However, the two alternative types of CBD products allow athletes and other users to be sure they’re ingesting almost no THC or none at all.

Apparent Benefits of CBD

As mentioned at the start of this article, CBD is not an accepted medical treatment (except for rare types of epilepsy). That’s because government regulatory authorities haven’t been fully convinced by preliminary research results that cannabidiol provides definitive medical benefits.

The preliminary results have certainly convinced millions of consumers to try CBD products, though.

Studies have indicated that cannabidiol may help ease stress, depression, anxiety, and more serious mental health disorders; relieve chronic pain caused by inflammatory and anti-immune diseases; slow the progression of neurodegenerative diseases; battle insomnia; reduce some heart health risks; calm or prevent acne; and help fight some types of cancer.

And those are just some of the potential benefits of CBD discovered so far.

Importantly, no serious side effects are associated with the use of cannabidiol. A small number of people may notice dry mouth or fatigue, especially if they’re new to CBD use. An even smaller number may experience stomach distress, nausea, loss of appetite, or drowsiness, usually if they regularly take extremely high doses.

However, none of those effects are dangerous or life-threatening, and they’re far less troubling than those that can be triggered by many of the prescription medications used to treat the conditions that CBD appears to help. Additionally, there’s no risk of becoming dependent on CBD (unlike some prescription drugs), according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

Those are even more reasons why CBD products like gummies have attracted so many users in the few years they’ve been legal for sale.

Possible Benefits of CBD for Athletes

Athletes who’ve read this far may have noticed some interesting possibilities in the last section: “ease stress,” “relieve chronic pain,” and “battle insomnia.”Those are three very common health and wellness issues that even many casual athletes are familiar with.

• The American College of Sports Medicine reports that as many as 35% of elite athletes deal with mental health issues like stress, anxiety, and depression, possibly because of the intensity of competition. Stress and similar problems can not only hurt athletic performance but are likely to spill over into other aspects of life as well.
• Most athletes are intimately familiar with pain. The repetitive strain and impact inherent in almost all sports inevitably lead to soreness and tenderness, strained and sprained muscles, and muscle and joint pain in the shoulders, wrists, knees, ankles, and feet. Pain management and rehab are constant concerns of anyone who participates seriously in athletics.
• Numerous studies have shown that sleep is a common problem for athletes. Some simply don’t get enough rest due to burdensome training schedules, travel, stress, or performance anxiety. Sleep quality is almost as big a problem for athletes, with some even developing serious issues like sleep apnea. And evidence shows that poor sleep in athletes is correlated with the likelihood of suffering injuries.

The apparent ability of CBD products like gummies to ease those problems has made it a popular supplement in the sports world — but many athletes say they also use CBD to promote their overall wellness or their body’s optimal homeostasis, while others report that products like CBD gummies help ease their post-workout or post-competition recovery period.

These apparent benefits are all anecdotal, of course, but the number of athletes using CBD is enormous — and growing.

And many of those athletes choose CBD gummies.

Why Gummies?

There are many ways to use CBD. CBD oil can be dropped under the tongue or added to food or beverages, CBD capsules are an easier and more convenient way to consume CBD oil, and CBD vapes are popular among those who already vape other substances. The two options many athletes prefer, though, are CBD topicals and CBD edibles — usually CBD gummies.

Topical products containing cannabidiol are a natural choice for those who regularly deal with sore muscles and joints. The products are said to take effect quickly, and most also contain other pain relief products. CBD topicals aren’t intended to be a full-body solution, however; cannabidiol can’t make it all the way through the skin to reach the bloodstream.

A huge assortment of CBD edibles and beverages have hit the market in the last few years, but for athletes who are usually on the go, CBD gummies make the most sense. They’re small and portable, they’re discreet to take and convenient to use, and they’re sold in pre-measured dosages so it’s easy to determine how many gummies to use.

Speaking of which…

What Dosage of CBD Gummies Is Appropriate for Athletes?

Unfortunately, there’s no good answer to that question. Since CBD isn’t an accepted medical treatment for any of the health and wellness issues athletes face, there are no prescription guidelines available from any reputable authority.

The best approach is to speak with your doctor or another healthcare professional before trying or using CBD gummies. They can evaluate your medical condition and prescription regimen to tell you whether CBD is a good choice for you, and if so, suggest a dosage.

If that’s not a possibility, here’s some information that might help.

Industry sources and other “experts” suggest starting with a low dose of 5 or 10 milligrams, and then slowly increasing the dose to 20-30 milligrams if necessary. Meanwhile, the amounts of CBD that have appeared to be effective in clinical studies vary widely depending on the condition being targeted, ranging from 25mg for insomnia up to 300-600mg for anxiety.

Perhaps most helpful are the guidelines that some athletic trainers use: doses of no more than 25mg during the day, and up to 50mg at night for those who suffer from sleep quality issues. The common advice to “start low and increase slow” is always smart for those starting with any medication or substance.

Once you have a target dosage in mind, the rest is easy. CBD gummies are sold in pre-measured doses, so it’s easy to find 5mg, 10mg, or 25mg gummies online or at many local shops.

Do some research first, though, to be sure that you’re dealing with trustworthy producers and vendors, and remember to look for broad-spectrum or isolate CBD gummies if you’re at risk of being tested for THC.

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