One of my jobs in the cannabis industry is a product tester. I recently had the chance to try out some of the Northern Lights flower from Leafs By Snoop, and its potency test came back with 1.2% CBG. I know a lot about the benefits of THC and CBD, but not so much about CBG. This made me do a little research to find out how I could benefit from CBG as an athlete. What I found out was great to know, and I wanted to pass along some bullet points.

So, what is CBG, and how can it help you with your fitness goals? CBG stands for cannabigerol and is one of the lesser talked about cannabinoids in the cannabis plant. It has several specific benefits that athletes and fitness enthusiasts can take advantage of. Today we’re going to look at the top five benefits of CBG for fitness.

1. Pain Relief

THC and CBD are both talked about for their powerful effect as a pain reliever, but CBG might be even more powerful. “As a painkiller, studies have shown that it has even greater therapeutic potential than THC”. Since cannabis is a safer substitute for common opiate based painkillers, CBG could have the potential to be even more effective than THC alone. This is great news for athletes in high contact sports like football, hockey, and MMA. CBG also could be used to aid in relieving pain from an injury, or during recovery from training.

2. Appetite Stimulant

THC is often attributed with increasing the appetite, but new studies are showing that CBG encourages hyperphagia, which is a medical term meaning excessive hunger. Increasing your appetite can be great for athletic gains. This means CBG can be great for endurance athletes who need to consume a lot of fuel for their training and competitions. CBG can also be a great appetite stimulant for those wanting to put on extra muscle mass, including bodybuilders. Just about any athlete that has a need for a high caloric intake can benefit from CBG’s effect of increasing hunger.

3. Promotes Bone Growth

Strong bones are important for everyone, and even more important for athletes who put continuous pressure or strain on their skeletal system. Runners for example, especially long-distance runners, absorb a ton of impact in the bones of their feet, up the leg and through the spinal column. Because of this, stress fractures are a common injury for many runners. Since CBG promotes bone growth, it’s a perfect addition to an athlete’s supplements. The promotion of bone growth by CBG can also be good for helping heal bone injuries.

4. Induces Sleep

Rest is the cornerstone for effective recovery. Sometimes effective recovery through rest can make a break an athlete’s performance. CBG has been shown to help with insomnia. This can benefit athletes by possibly allowing them to fall sleep sooner, stay asleep longer, or get a deeper night’s sleep. All of these factors can make a significant impact on recovery from exercise.

5. Antibacterial

CBG is also been proven to be a powerful antibacterial agent. It even “Showed potent activity against a variety of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) strains,” This can be good for anyone who spends time inside a gym, where Staph infections can spread quickly if areas are not cleaned properly. This also means that CBG helps in fighting off other bacterial infections, boosting the body’s immune system and allowing it to function more efficiently.

Antonio DeRose

Antonio is the Co-Founder and COO of Green House Healthy, a health and wellness company promoting cannabis as part of a healthy and active lifestyle. He is a NASM Certified Personal Trainer, competitive trail runner, freelance writer and speaker. His company creates healthy experiences through educational and athletic events, teaching cannabis positive fitness and nutrition classes, and providing promotion and media services. Antonio has several years of experience with cannabis, including having worked on an all organic outdoor farm with 6000 plants, from seed to sale. In 2017, he became the first male to complete an entire 420 Games National Tour, a traveling athletic event series focused on de-stigmatizing the lazy stoner stereotype. He is also an official NORML Athlete, representing NORML Athletics.