Cannabis and yoga flexibility: relaxation, spasticity and range of motion

Muscle symptoms and joint movement

Nabiximols, a medicine containing THC and CBD, has been studied for abnormal muscle tone in multiple sclerosis. Yoga flexibility concerns the range and control of joint movement. THC also changes attention, which contributes to following instructions and adjusting posture during movement.

The relevant medical evidence concerns spasticity

Cannabinoid research is sometimes invoked because nabiximols, a medicine containing THC and CBD, has been studied for multiple-sclerosis spasticity. Spasticity is a neurological problem involving abnormal muscle tone; it is different from ordinary stiffness during a yoga class.

In a 2011 trial, 572 people with treatment-resistant MS spasticity entered an initial treatment phase. Of these, 272 achieved at least a twenty-percent improvement after four weeks, and 241 entered the randomised comparison. This enriched design deliberately selected initial responders before comparing continued medicine with placebo. It is evidence about a defined patient group and a specific medicine, not a test of recreational cannabis in healthy yoga practitioners.

Perception and movement can change independently

THC affects attention as well as bodily experience. A controlled crossover study of twenty-four people found slower and less accurate performance on attention tasks after THC. That matters to yoga because following an instruction, maintaining orientation and adjusting a movement all involve attention, even when a practice feels calm.

A deeper-looking pose is also not necessarily a better functional result. Useful mobility involves control throughout the movement, not just reaching a position. Feeling less resistance should not be treated as proof that the joint or surrounding tissues can accommodate more force.

The clinical finding concerns neurological spasticity

The nabiximols trial selected people whose MS spasticity initially improved, then compared continued treatment with placebo. The attention experiment measured slower and less accurate responses after THC. Neither trial measured lasting gains in yoga flexibility, joint range or movement control.