Cannabis workouts continue to gain in popularity, and it’s all about the ability to focus. Proponents of working out while high, including podcast host Joe Rogan, claim that they can improve focus, feel more balanced and better see how the workout engages specific muscle groups.

Those are all big advantages for cannabis workouts. Others say they get through workouts easier and recover faster. These ideas have helped fuel the movement of an underground community of cannabis workouts fans into the mainstream.

One of the most popular cannabis workout programs is offered through online courses from the popular “Stoned and Toned” website. The company’s “fun and energetic” online workouts are “built by cannabis users, for cannabis users.”

The company’s About Us page – which features images of smiling, happy people engaged in workouts – states: “We’re the new kid in town and we love it; nothing is more exciting than being at the forefront of a movement of fitness enthusiasts using cannabis openly to not only help them get through their workout but to help recover afterward!”

Working With “The Jane Fonda” of Weed Workouts

In a recent article for the Hollywood Reporter, Joel Stein writes about contacting Stoned and Toned founder Morgan English about the benefits of cannabis workouts. He refers to English as the “Jane Fonda of weed workouts.” While the company typically offers 30-minute online workouts, English and her husband agreed to train Stein at his house.

Although suspicious of the benefits of a cannabis workout, Stein went into the experience with an open mind. He did not get high until his 30s and had only done so a dozen times since. However, he found benefits in the cannabis workout.

For one, he lost track of time, which he noted made working out “less unpleasant.” He also felt like he could focus on the muscles getting engaged in the workout. Perhaps most importantly, English told him that the cannabis workouts from Stoned and Toned are about creating a judgement-free atmosphere.

“I want someone to feel safe. In so many fitness studios and gyms, there’s so much judgment and anxieties,” she said. Stein, who wrote he “really can’t handle weed,” started obsessing about whether he had been one of those judgmental people. But he also seemed to enjoy the workout.

Research Highlights Benefits of Mixing Cannabis, Exercise

The University of Colorado – Boulder has conducted research into the advantages of using cannabis during workouts and exercise. A 2019 study found that 80 percent of cannabis users mix cannabis and working out. Of those, 70 percent said it increases enjoyment, while 78 percent said it boosts recovery and 52 percent said they felt more motivation.

The university more recently launched a study called SPACE (Study on Physical Activity and Cannabis Effects). The study involves 50 volunteers who already mix cannabis and exercise. It will focus on the physical and mental impacts of cannabis workouts.

Ultra-runner Heather Mashhoodi, who sometimes uses cannabis gummies on long runs, provides some insight to researchers. She summed up the reasons she uses cannabis during her runs this way: “When I run for a really long time, this thing naturally kicks in and it makes the colors brighter and makes my thoughts clearer and makes me more emotionally in tune. When I use cannabis and run, I get to feel that at a little less intense mileage.”