Marijuana: A Substitute for a Protein Shake?

Marijuana: A Substitute for a Protein Shake?

On 02.09.10, In drugs, health, by GT

Recently, I gave a talk to some secondary students on optimizing performance through nutrition. One of the key points was the importance of nutrient timing. I spent a considerable portion of the lecture pointing out how ingesting certain nutrients in-and-around a workout can dramatically improve training outcomes, as well as optimize recovery. After the lecture was over, many of the students had questions about the optimal ratio of carbohydrates to protein, as well asked my thoughts on various commercial products. All pretty standard stuff.

Then out of left field, one young lady asks, “Now I may be totally offside with this question, but would using marijuana after a workout help with recovery? I mean, it makes your muscles less sore.”

After a brief stunned silence, I decided to provide an answer based on physiology, instead of just dismissing the question outright. Although I've never used marijuana, I find the issue of marijuana and its effects on athletic performance to be worthy of discussion. In fact, I’ve actually had an opportunity to “debate” the inclusion of marijuana on the banned substances list for sport with Dick Pound, the former World Anti-Drug Association czar; although perhaps debate is too strong a word. Our discussion ended when he said, “Take this message back to the students, ‘Don’t do dope’. End of story”. Thanks for being so understanding, Dick.

Anyway, instead of throwing out the old “marijuana is illegal, you must avoid it all costs” (which I’m sure the teacher would have preferred), I gave my honest option based on fact. Here is how I broke it down:

Immediately post-exercise, the prime recovery consideration is ensuring adequate delivery of carbohydrate (for glycogen resynthesis), as well as amino acids (to allow for optimal protein synthesis). Although taking a psychoactive substance might “seemingly” decrease muscle soreness, it would do little to actually promote the recovery of muscle function.
Marijuana can increase heart rate, which may or may not be beneficial for athletic performance. Typically, during high-intensity activity heart rate will be near maximal anyway, so using a drug provides little further benefit. Additionally, in the minutes and hours post-exercise, your system is designed to reduce heart rate, so artificially increasing heart rate runs counter to the optimal physiological response. Therefore in terms of heart rate, marijuana is once again unlikely to provide a performance benefit.
Marijuana smoke, like all smoking, is a lung irritant. Some of the problems marijuana smokers may experience are chronic cough, increased phlegm production and heightened risk of infection. None of these outcomes are likely to benefit performance or recovery.
Marijuana can lead to distorted perceptions and impaired coordination. Obviously impaired coordination would negatively impact performance. Equally tough to argue impaired coordination speeds recovery, unless it involves you tripping and falling into an ice bath.
At least in terms of distorted perceptions, one could raise an argument that this could be beneficial. Marijuana does decrease perceptions of pain, which is why it is used medicinally. Clearly, reducing perceptions of pain could improve performance (particularly in a sport like football, where repeatedly hurling your body into someone running full speed is quite the feat). However, given the numerous drawbacks already outlined, coupled with the many other legal pain relieving drugs/compounds, particularly caffeine and over-the-counter pain relievers like Advil, marijuana can't really be recommended.

In light of these factors, marijuana must get a thumbs down as a performance aid. In actual fact, from a purely physiological perspective, marijuana provides next to nothing in the way of enhancement. Which makes you wonder why marijuana is included on the banned substances list for sport, given that alcohol, caffeine and nicotine are all considered A-OK. But that's a rant for another day.

Basically, I summed up my answer for the students as such: the decision whether or not to use marijuana is a personal choice. For what little psychological benefit you might derive from relaxation, you will suffer negatively on a number of physiological variables. Keep in mind that there are other ways you can relax that may also improve performance (i.e. sleep, massage, meditation, etc). Therefore, in the interests of fostering optimal performance, I must recommend against marijuana, as it has no place in the athlete's arsenal.

So like Dick Pound, I too endorse the mantra "Don't do dope". However, I attach a caveat to that. The caveat being "If you are interested in optimizing performance". If optimal performance isn't a concern, then the decision to toke up is yours.

Remember, I work as a nutritionist and performance coach, not as the morality police.

Graeme is a high-performance nutrition consultant and university lecturer based out of London, Ontario. Graeme offers both in-person and distance coaching for physique competitors, elite athletes and those individuals looking for aggressive, yet sustainable fat loss. To learn more about his services, use the "Contact Me" tab in the main menu bar.