Ok, hope I don’t get flamed TOO bad for this one. What effects if any can smoking marijuana have on training(besides lack of motivation). I eat a very good diet and train hard 3 days a week, but once in a while I like to smoke a joint. Im sure there has to be some others that share my situation. Any ideas?
I see you getting hit hard for this.
The bad effects are lowerd T, just like drinking.
I’m sure the munchy problem wont help your diet either.
However, if you can avoid stuffing your face, you may actually see yourself getting leaner.
I dont’ know if there’s any studies done on this but I’d venture a guess and say reduced lung capacity (much like cigarette smoke does), and lengthened recovery time (as I’d figure your metabolism will change to compensate for the contaminants and reduced lung capacity means less oxygen with which to assist in the recovery process). If marijuana smoke mimics cigarette smoke and hardens blood vessels you’ll really have a recovery problem (and ultamitely reduced rate of hypertrophy) in the long run.
I’ll admit I’m just hazarding a guess, but I dont’ think their unreasonable or improbable.
I read in article in MM on such a study( I think august 2002) that syays it has no harmfull effects.
Don’t worry about it. If it’s occasional, no harm. No harm, no foul.
DI
It’s true cigs decrease lung capacity. But from what I’ve read marijuana smoke actually expands the blood vessels in the lung, allowing for a greater lung capacity. Of course this may not be true and maybe I was being misinformed. Also please look past my lack of scientific jargon about blood vessels, that’s what I’ve read.
Personally I don’t smoke marijuana anymore (stopped when became serious about health) because of some bad experiences while high (and the above reason), but I beleive it to be counter productive on recovery, and the negative effects on sex drive (some people report no lowering of drive).
All being said, a joint every now and then is not going to break you and turn you into a fat slob, but it certainly wont help you become a ripped freak.
Allow me to quote Charles Staley, who’s currently running the guest forum, on exactly the question of pot and alcohol:
I have always thought it sort of hypocritical to talk about the dangers or pot and booze, and then take “drugs/supliments” into our bodies legal and illegal that help us put on muscle and lose fat.
I have always felt that everything in moderation, nothing in excess. I feel that a few beers every other week or pot every once in a while will do nothing of harm in the long run.
The problem is many people are followers and not in control of there lives. Once in a while turns into a weekly or daily habit.
I’m confused where you see the hypocrisy: putting substances into your body that impair its function isn’t a good idea, but putting substances into your body that enhance its function (assuming you’ve got the disposable income and your diet and training are straight) is a good idea.
Garbage in, garbage out.
I don’t think it’s hipocritical to take supplements and then be against doping or drinking.
I bust my ass at the gym (like all of us here) and taking supplements helps us reach our goal. Reaching our goals in the gym spills over into our daily lives. Greater focus in work/school, more discipline in everything we do, and NO EXCUSES! (If I can’t think of a reason not to squat with all the 45’s in the room, why would I find a reason not to do anything else?).
Does smoking weed, dropping acid, or doing E do any of this? I’ve never done it myself as I have always been a competitive athlete, but from what I’ve seen around me it takes away from goals, focus becomes shit, and their are boatloads full of excuses for everything in one’s life. I have to agree with Dr. Staley…It says a lot about one’s character.
VolYanks, I’m not trying to come across as self-righteous. I just never saw the reason for taking weed or anything else of the sort.
“I have always thought it sort of hypocritical to talk about the dangers or pot and booze, and then take “drugs/supliments” into our bodies legal and illegal that help us put on muscle and lose fat.”
We know theres dangers in drugs/supps. Theres also benefits that you said yourself “help us put on muscle and lose fat.” If pot or booze helped us put on muscle, I think none of us would have a problem with people doing it along with training because it has its benefits.
Everything has its risks, driving your car, going to the store, going to the airport. The fact of the matter is that they all have benefits, just like steroids and supplements.
BurnDaddy…
I don’t think that there is anything hypocritical about not recommending recreational drugs/alcohol and supporting the use of healthy supplements. BIG difference between Buds and MAG 10, one helps you achieve your goals one does not. If you have the mentality that food is fuel, then you question everything that gets put into your body and tend to classify it as “good for me and my goals” or “bad for me and my goals”
Just as Cheesecake anytime is not a “good idea” neither is reefer or beer although once in a while (depending on your goals) it ain’t gonna ruin your efforts but to say “it don’t hurt” would belie a tragic misunderstanding of nutritional science.
I guess what you have to ask yourself is “how committed am I?” some of us sacrifice Beer, Cheesecake and McDonalds French fries and some of us don’t.
Personal preference, Yes, Hypocritical, No.
“Man is the only animal that learns by being hypocritical. He pretends to be polite and then, eventually, he becomes polite”
~ Jean Kerr
I see serious dieters here talking about their cheat days, which certainly aren’t the healthiest thing in the world, and I would compare this to that so long as every day is not a cheat day.
By the way, several months ago I picked up a sports illustrated and the first article I saw was on how weed was replacing alcohol as the enjoyment agent of choice due to its milder side effects.
I may be off the mark a little, but I believe it will also slow down the uptake of protien into the muscles, much like carbonation from drinking sodas and beer.
I don’t smoke myself so I really can’t tell if the effects are there, but I do know that when I lay off the beer and sodas I put on lean muscle faster.
I hope this helps.
You are correct burndaddy…people are weak and therefore moderation isn’t possible.Back in the day my friends used to smoke pot before weight traing and they said it helped them to relax and concentrate.I think it helped because they were on some much Anadrol and ‘test’ that it leveled them out.
My response to you is “burn” away. I personally have smoked for 4 years on a consistent basis. I have managed to go from a skinny fat at 5’8" 160 lbs. to 180 with 8% body fat. I play division one college baseball, and I am on the deans list. I dont drink because it stunts my progress, but marijuana has not hindered me in such a way. I eat right and train hard. I respect Charles Staley very much. However, for him to say that you are a follower because you smoke is a crock of shit, I can speak for myself when I say I am no follower. This witch hunt of smoking weed must stop. It might not fit into some people’s lifestyle’s, but for others it could. If smoking pot is affecting your ability to achieve personal goals then stop, but if it isn’t then why not?
“people are weak and therefore moderation isn’t possible”
With all due respect, that’s a crock. If it’s true, then I ask why isn’t everyone who has an occasional beer a raging alcoholic? Weed is not very addictive nor is it substantially harmful with reasonable use. That said, I’m not a smoker, but I will occasionally (~once a month) get a inebriated. That’s moderation in action. The laws in the US do not accurately reflect the hierarchy of danger from drugs. Alcohol and tobaco are more dangerous than weed in my humble oppinion (and I believe the statistics bear this out).
I’d have to say the biggest, strongest and most athletic people I know, drink and do drugs more then others.