Smoking THC before exercise raised post-workout pulse pressure but did not affect performance during exercise | Research

The takeaway

In a within-subject study, smoking THC-dominant cannabis elevated post-exercise pulse pressure and altered cardiac function during recovery, but blood pressure and heart function during exercise were unaffected.

Sports medicine physicians, cardiovascular researchers, athletes who use cannabis

Post-exercise pulse pressure rose to 50 mmHg after smoked THC vs 41 mmHg in control

What the researchers found

Smoking THC increased post-exercise pulse pressure (50 vs 41 mmHg) and reduced isovolumic contraction time; vaping THC or CBD had lesser or no effects; blood pressure and cardiac function during exercise were unaffected by any cannabis condition.

Why it matters

Athletes and exercisers increasingly combine cannabis with physical activity, and this study suggests the cardiovascular risk window may be during recovery rather than during exercise.

The numbers in context

n=14 main protocol, n=22 stress echo; post-exercise pulse pressure: control 41+/-7, S-THC 50+/-9 mmHg; IVCT reduced in S-THC vs control (p=0.048); no differences during exercise.

How the study worked

Within-subject design; participants inhaled cannabis via smoking (high THC), vaporizing (high THC), or vaporizing (high CBD); cardiovascular measures at rest and after 20-min maximal cycling (n=14); stress echocardiography separately (n=22).

What this study cannot tell us

Small sample sizes; within-subject but not blinded to route; acute single-session design; healthy participants may not reflect those with cardiovascular risk factors.

How to read the evidence

Within-subject design with multiple cannabis conditions, but small sample and single-session design limit conclusions.

When this study was published

Published 2025

The bigger picture

Cannabis and exercise both independently affect cardiovascular physiology, and understanding their interaction is important as co-use becomes more common in recreational sports.

Questions still open

Does the post-exercise pulse pressure increase translate to cardiovascular events? Is the recovery period a higher-risk window? Does chronic use alter these responses?

Common questions

Is it dangerous to exercise after using cannabis?

Blood pressure during exercise was not affected, but post-exercise recovery showed elevated pulse pressure after smoking THC, suggesting the recovery period may carry more cardiovascular risk.

Did CBD have similar effects?

No. Vaporized CBD-dominant cannabis did not produce the post-exercise cardiovascular changes seen with smoked THC.

Read the original research

The acute cardiovascular response to dynamic exercise and recovery following cannabis use.

American journal of physiology. Heart and circulatory physiology, 329(6), H1655-H1665

View on PubMed ↗Publisher’s paper ↗

Citation

Cheung, Christian P; Baker, Ryleigh E; Coates, Alexandra M; Burr, Jamie F. (2025). The acute cardiovascular response to dynamic exercise and recovery following cannabis use.. American journal of physiology. Heart and circulatory physiology, 329(6), H1655-H1665. https://doi.org/10.1152/ajpheart.00608.2025