[stōnər-sīzər]
NOUN
informal
- An individual who integrate marijuana into their fitness regimens
Exercising is one of those healthy habits that doctors, nutritionists and fitness professionals shove down our throats as a remedy for disease and aging. Not surprisingly, average Americans don’t meet even the minimum exercise recommendations for healthy living. Why? Studies suggest that the most common reasons Americans don’t exercise are simple and very on brand. It hurts and we don’t like it. So how do we fix that in an era where we can use the search bar on our phone to find a solution to practically anything? What if you could take a pill, or even better, eat a cookie that made exercise fun and hurt less?
That’s what stoner-cisers are claiming. The secret to not just getting through their workouts, but the magic ingredient to enjoying them is weed! With more states legalizing marijuana, the athletes and those within the fitness community are becoming more vocal about including it in their workouts. It’s such a movement that the nickname “stoner-ciser” began popping up in fitness circles. We love a good nickname.
The “stoner-ciser” attitude is spreading wider and faster than one might think. While it may have been common to find a cannabis user s in the stereotypical hip-hop club or the behind the local record store (don’t ask, they don’t exist anymore), these days stoner-cisers are in your Saturday morning bootcamps, your local runners club, and even Jiu jitsu tournaments. I know, I know. It sounds counterintuitive to get “stoned” and then try to do any kind of activity, let alone something that requires coordination. As it turns out, the scientists are the loudest supporters in the room.
An unpublished survey conducted on social media by Homboldt State University in California targeted people who used marijuana before exercising. The survey found that not only did users run the gambit of physical activities like snowboarding, archery, cycling, running, weightlifting, etc., but they also just enjoyed the activity more when combined with marijuana. What physical therapist and researcher Whitney Ogle, who conducted the study, found more interesting was that these users reported increased focus and mind-body awareness, and more time spent engaged in the activity. That survey seemed to go against widely-accepted stereotypes that stoners are fat lazy couch surfers.
Social Psychologist, Angela Bryan from the University of Colorado Boulder, co-published similar findings in her survey on Sports Medicine in 2015. Intrigued by the former survey results, Dr. Bryan asked, “Could the stereotype of the lazy stoner actually be wrong?” Her study suggests, yes! The majority of participants who used cannabis shortly before or after working out reported enhanced enjoyment of and recovery from their workouts. About half reported that marijuana use increased their motivation to exercise. Dr. Bryan’s study also indicated that users performed well over the recommended 150 minutes a week of exercise.
“It’s possible that [cannabis users] were just having more fun”’ says Dr. Angela Bryan.
Artemus D., a self-described “hustler,” reported that he smokes as many as 4 joints a day. “Muscle building is about the mind-body connection, which doesn’t come right away. Weed really enhances that.”
One trainer and licensed nutritionist, Pauline N., swears by her shortbread edibles. “I eat two each night before bed. My lifestyle is a Ferrari and my body is a well-tuned machine. I would never do something destructive [to it].”
Marathoners reported to Insider magazine that marijuana helped them get through long races. Runners explained that the cannabis quieted the negative thoughts about the physical discomfort and being tired.
While there aren’t any published medical studies proving the direct relationship between cannabis use and enhanced athletic performance, “Cannabis can quiet parts of our brain that feed ego,” offers Dr. Jordan Tishler, internal medicine physician and president of the Association of Cannabis Specialists, “resulting in a go-with-the-flow mentality that makes working out less stressful.”
That scientists and doctors are asking these questions is marks a real shift in attitudes toward marijuana use in the all over the world. In 2019, the World Anti-Doping Agency entertained a petition by Mike Tyson and cyclist Floyd Landis to remove marijuana from its list of banned substances. While they agency hasn’t eased its ban on marijuana, the agency seemed to also support the premise that cannabis use can enhance athletic performance. From its website, “Cannabis can cause muscle relaxation and reduce pain during post-workout recovery. It can also decrease anxiety and tension, resulting in better sport performance under pressure.” That statement alone is a long way from the “lazy stoner” myth perpetuated in American media.
So, could the mythical “lazy, munchies-inducing” hallucinogen be the key to getting active and getting fine?
“Stoner-cisers” say exercising while high has helped them lose weight, be mindful, and maintain energy. Insider, 21 April 2021 https://www.insider.com/cannabis-could-make-exercise-enjoyable-help-weight-loss-fans-say-2021-4
Front. Public Health, 30 April 2019 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2019.00099
Working out with Weed, Nature. Outlook, 28 August 2019 | https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-019-02529-0#ref-CR1
Cannabis and Exercise Science: A Commentary on Existing Studies and Suggestions for Future Directions, Sports Medicine. Springer, 16 July 2015 https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs40279-015-0362-3
