CBD and cannabis have been around for centuries … However, at that time, yogi masters did not consume CBD but chose real hemp flowers, which were often rich in THC. As a result, the effects they achieved were different from what we might experience from consuming medical cannabis today. For example, CBD is non-psychoactive and has no sedative or euphoric effects. Instead, it provides calming and relaxing properties, enhancing the effects of a yoga session.

Let’s take a look at how CBD can be combined with yoga. And if you want to learn about CBD regulations in Europe, click here. Recently, CBD-based products have been popping up all over the world, through aperitif cookies and herbal teas, but also through the consumption of flowers to smoke or infuse, which sometimes creates confusion.

But then, what is CBD? 

CBD, contraction of Cannabidiol, is one of the molecules in the hemp plant (Cannabis Sativa in Latin). These molecules are called cannabinoids, more precisely phytocannabinoids. In France, only the THC molecule (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol) is prohibited because it is psychotropic. In a cannabis plant, there are a hundred cannabinoids, each with their properties, whether they work in synergy or not!  

Freed from THC, the cannabis plant has more than one trick up its sleeve. By acting mainly on homeostasis, CBD has many virtues. But unfortunately, although sleep, anxiety, stress, and muscle and joint pain are some of the problems for which CBD is used, this promising molecule, let us emphasize once again, remains inactive on the psyche.

CBD, a mystical plant? Maybe

Anandamide – in Sanskrit Ananda, means happiness, bliss, pleasure – is one of the first endocannabinoid neurotransmitters discovered in 1992. Anandamide is synthesized in some regions of our brain involved in motor skills, stress management, memory and mood, but also in pain! You understood correctly that our body produces cannabinoids, including the famous anandamide! 

As a Yogi, CBD can be of great use for several reasons, if not the first and most fundamental: homeostasis. As we know, our fabulous body constantly tries to keep our different functions in balance. This need for internal balance that we all seek can be tested, and sometimes it doesn’t take much to have a muscle contracture, or even sleep disorders, to name a few. 

Phytocannabinoids (cannabis molecules from plants) will connect with the endocannabinoid system (ECS) and act at different levels. CBD interacts with the entire endocannabinoid system helping the body regulate itself. What has to be adjusted adjusts itself, thus, the body is helped in its natural function of permanent balance. It is by acting on homeostasis that the consumption of CBD is used for muscle pain and stress or sleep. A true plant ally. 

The regulation of the internal balance will also make it possible to have an analgesic effect, prepare the muscular system for physical effort, to help eliminate lactic acid… CBD has not finished amazing us in a sports setting, and many athletes use it as a muscle relaxant.

What will change the game is in terms of recovery after physical exertion. Indeed, CBD will reduce “late-onset muscle pain”, i.e. aches, mainly by limiting the activity of inflammatory processes and inhibiting the transmission of pain in the spinal cord and the brain.

When it comes to taking CBD, you have several options

In herbal teas, for example – always adding fat during the infusion time because CBD is a fat-soluble molecule – certain brands of herbal teas use concrete mixtures of plants to have a beautiful vegetable synergy which will act as an entourage effectHowever, the best bioavailability of CBD is to take it sublingually. This is because the sublingual glands under the tongue absorb the product, which will then be directed into the general blood circulation. 

Depending on the metabolism and the dose consumed, the effect is felt quickly, between 5 to 30 minutes. A few drops of oil under the tongue for 3 to 5 minutes minimum and the relaxation spreads subtly, allowing a release of tensions at all discretion.

How to integrate CBD into yoga practice?

CBD can be used before your yoga session to benefit from the effects in the moment or after to extend the relaxing benefits of the practice. And this, at any time of the day, whether in the morning, in the middle of the afternoon or the evening. 

Cannabidiol comes in many products. Some are more favourable for use with yoga. Although a popular mode of consumption, smoking CBD flowers is not recommended, as it is irritating to your airways.

• CBD oil for fast action
• CBD hemp flower infusions for a zen moment

CDB dosage

Regarding the dosage, this is an important point that deserves clarification. We can’t talk about “dosage” without being a doctor and that’s good because there isn’t a single, universal dosage for CBD, such as the one you can get online at Justbob.shop. Indeed, everyone will react differently according to their metabolism, their needs, their problems…

In the end, it’s a bit like yoga. It’s up to everyone to experiment, to try and find what resonates in themselves, what makes good. It is then up to you to trust yourself by listening to your body’s signals to adjust your being in this beautiful universe best.