“We get pleasure from exercise, and that’s because of an endogenous cannabinoid called amandemine, which comes from the Sanskrit word for 'bliss,'” Hesse explains. “It reduces pain and uplifts joy, and so there's a natural runner's high that people have been talking about for a long time. But since it is a cannabinoid, it can also be induced by a phytocannabinoid like THC.
For her, popping an edible in the middle of a long run can go a long way. In April 2021, edibles helped Mashhoodi clock an FKT for the San Francisco Bay Circumnav via the Bay Area Ridge Trail: 12 days, 6 hours and 54 minutes. During and after this strenuous event, cannabis served as an effective substitute for Ibuprofen to relieve pain.
“One of the questions in the study is about if you’re internalizing right now or externalizing, and where the majority of your thought patterns reside,” she says. “Like, am I thinking about how bad my knees hurt, or am I thinking about how pretty this tree is?” Because of COVID, Bend & Blaze is only occasionally hosting in-person classes these days, but it has daily Zoom sessions with instructors and participants from across the country."We still set time aside before class to 'sesh' together and enjoy the community and conversations," she notes,"but from the comfort of our own Zoom box."