CU study pushes back on the stereotype of stoners

BOULDER» Long has the image of the weed smoker — one glued to the couch, Doritos bag in hand — sustained in popular culture. Rarely, if ever, does the stereotype include a pair of dumbbells.

A new study published Tuesday by the University of Colorado in Frontiers in Public Health pushes back on that notion, signaling that 80 percent of weed smokers mix the drug with their workouts.

The same study goes as far as suggesting the mixture may be beneficial for some. “There is a stereotype that cannabis use leads people to be lazy and couch-locked and not physically active, but these data suggest that this is not the case,” said Angela Bryan, the study’s senior author and a professor in the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience and the Institute for Cognitive Science.

Of marijuana users surveyed in states where cannabis is legal, eight in 10 say they partake in the drug shortly before or after exercising, with most reporting that it either motivates them to work out or helps them enjoy it more, according to the study, titled “The New Runner’s High? Examining Relationships Between Cannabis Use and Exercise Behavior in States with Legalized Cannabis.”

Among the 600 adult marijuana users across California, Colorado, Nevada, Oregon and Washington Bryan and her colleagues surveyed, 82 percent said they had used cannabis within an hour before or four hours after exercising.

Among those who use cannabis with exercise, 70 percent said it increased their enjoyment, 78 percent said it boosted recovery and 52 percent said it gave them more motivation to work out in the first place. The study also notes that those who combine the two activities got about 43 more minutes of exercise per week than those who didn’t.

However, according to the same study, only 38 percent of those who use the drug with exercise say it boosts performance, and some previous studies have suggested it may harm it.