CBD has a lot of potential benefits for us, and many people use it as part of a wellness routine for its potential to help with things like achieving better sleep, focusing on important tasks, and managing discomfort or pain. Deciding the best time to take CBD is very personal to what each person experiences when they use it, which is why we’ve written this blog. Keep reading to learn more about taking CBD at different times of day, possible benefits and applications for CBD, and how to choose the best time to take CBD for you.
When should I take CBD?
Deciding when to use CBD depends on what you’re looking for from it and how it affects you. Because everyone is different, CBD can be used in many different ways.
We recommend using CBD as part of a routine, but using it as needed can be beneficial as well. When you consistently use CBD in a way that’s comfortable for you, you keep your endocannabinoid system active and can help your body maintain balance and homeostasis. This can help improve many elements of overall wellness, such as alertness, restful sleeping, and calmness.
CBD can work best with regular, consistent use. When you incorporate it into your daily routine, CBD encourages your endocannabinoid system (ECS) to produce more endocannabinoids, or cannabinoids that are already present in the body. This can improve the overall function of your ECS, benefitting a variety of systems in your body that the ECS is tied to such as sleep, mood, immune response, appetite, and memory.
Below are a few different times of day you can use CBD and some ways it may benefit you.
Taking CBD in the Morning
Contrary to what you may see online, CBD isn’t just a way to help yourself get better sleep. While some people report feeling drowsy after taking CBD, it can also be a great way to start the day. Remember, the ECS interacts with many of our bodies’ functions, which means CBD can affect us in different ways. A few things you might experience when taking CBD in the morning are:
- Easier coping with stress: Waking up and getting ready for the day can bring on some stressful feelings from work, errands, and more. CBD interacts with our nervous system through cannabinoid receptors in our brains and can help promote relaxation. When you take CBD in the morning, you may experience a more refreshed, less stressful start to the day and feel more level-headed.
- An improved morning workout: CBD topicals like lotions and balms can be a great way to help warm up your muscles before or after a workout. You can use topicals to spot-target sore areas and aches, which may help ease that discomfort. CBD has been said to speed up your recovery time after a workout and can elevate your workout overall with its potential to improve your mindset. CBD also promotes the release of the cannabinoid Anandamide in the brain, a neurotransmitter commonly credited with producing the “runner’s high” feeling many fitness enthusiasts rave about.
- Better focus and productivity: No, CBD is not like a cup of coffee or an energy drink. But, it can help you start your mornings more clear-headed and ready to take on the day. If you struggle with groggy mornings, CBD can help you feel more alert and ready to go. If you find CBD makes you feel sleepy when you use it, you can try using a smaller dose in the morning to experience different effects.
- Balance in the body and mind: CBD is known for being relaxing and stress relieving both physically and mentally. CBD can help relieve morning aches and stiffness, as well as help regulate your mood and bring a bit more balance to your day. Instead of waking up feeling frazzled, uncomfortable, or a little all over the place, CBD may help regulate those feelings.
Taking CBD Mid-Day
Taking CBD around lunchtime or in the afternoon is not commonly talked about, but it can be a great way to give yourself a little boost of balance when you’re in the middle of your day. A few things you might experience taking CBD mid-day are:
- Afternoon slump recovery: After lunch, once your morning coffee has worn off or you’ve had a heavy lunch, it’s common to feel a little drowsy or less productive than usual. Just like taking CBD in the morning, taking it when you feel a little drowsy or unmotivated in the afternoon can help improve your focus and mood. An afternoon dose of CBD can be beneficial for staying productive and level-headed when you feel drowsy or off and need to power through the rest of your day.
- Anxiety and stress relief: After a busy morning of work, coming up on work deadlines, or feeling like there’s just too much to get done with the rest of your day, you can use CBD to potentially ease that stress and tackle what’s on your to-do list. If you’re feeling a little high-strung in the afternoon and need some help leveling out, CBD can calm that hyperactivity and help you dial in.
- Better appetite: CBD can help regulate your appetite if you experience issues with over or under-eating during the day. Because CBD promotes balance rather than one benefit or effect over another, this can swing both ways for increasing or decreasing your appetite depending on your needs. CBD has adaptogenic properties, meaning it can help optimize your body’s functions rather than encouraging them to do a certain thing like prescription medicine or some supplements.
Taking CBD in the Evening
Most commonly, CBD is used by many to aid with sleeping. And this is for good reason. As we mentioned, CBD encourages our bodies to produce more endocannabinoids, which can benefit a variety of functions in our bodies. As it stands now, most research revolves around CBD’s role in promoting better, more restful sleep, which is why it is known for being a potential sleep aid. In studies like this one, 79.2 percent of participants reported reduced anxiety, and 66.7 percent reported experiencing better sleep on a daily dose of CBD. Some benefits you may find from taking CBD at night are:
- Falling asleep easier: CBD can help you relax and unwind at night, which can make it easier to fall asleep. If you feel stressed or wide awake right before bedtime, taking CBD in the evening before bed can help reduce cortisol levels in your body, which can help you wind down before bed and keep your mind from racing.
- Improved sleep quality: Because of CBD’s potential to lower stress and cortisol levels, it can help you not only fall asleep but stay asleep through the night. Instead of finding yourself waking up at odd hours of the night, you can try taking CBD to potentially help your body stay asleep longer by regulating your sleep cycle and cycle durations.
- Better sleep-wake cycles: CBD can work best when taken consistently, and taking CBD at the same time before bed can help you maintain a balanced sleep schedule by helping you fall asleep around the same time every evening. With sleep, consistency is key to getting the best rest possible, and CBD can help you maintain that consistency. Combined with a CBD dose in the morning, you may experience a better sleep-wake cycle and more balanced energy levels throughout the day.
What Time of Day Should I Take CBD?
The short answer is that it depends! Everyone is different, which means while someone may experience benefits from CBD by using it one way, that may not work for someone else. Finding your perfect CBD routine is a process of experimenting with different products, uses, and times to find what works best for you.
If you’re looking for localized relief, using topical products like CBD lotions and salves may work best for you. Topicals also do not have the same effects as other products because they usually do not enter the bloodstream, so you don’t have to worry about mood or mental effects if that’s not what you’re looking for. Topicals are great for as-needed use, but they can also be incorporated into a fitness routine.
Edible products like gummies or chocolates are a favorite for as-needed use before bed or a stressful day. They take longer to take effect, so we recommend taking them an hour or two before bed to potentially benefit your sleeping habits.
CBD tinctures are raved about by those with CBD wellness routines, and for good reason. Between their easy-to-manage dosing and ease of use, they are perfect for maintaining your ECS throughout the day. If you are looking to use CBD consistently to maintain balance and homeostasis, tinctures are a great fit.
Choosing when to take CBD depends on your needs and experience with the products. The first step is to identify what you want to gain from using CBD and how you find it affects you at different doses. Start small and experiment with taking different doses at different times of the day. From there, you can get a feel for what works best for you.
Conclusion
While many describe CBD as a tool for better sleep, it can be used in many different ways in different doses to change your experience with it. There really is no best time to take CBD, and finding your ideal CBD routine depends on you and your preferences.
If you’d like to learn more about CBD and our products at CBD Pros, you can read our education page and browse some of our products to explore our options. Visit one of our locations for one-on-one help and information about CBD, and we can walk you through your options and help you find the best products for you.
We hope this blog helped you learn more about the best time to take CBD. Questions about taking CBD at different times throughout the day? Reach out to us on our contact page or visit one of our locations!
