Ganja Yoga: How to Pair Weed With Your Yoga Practice

Ganja yoga means using a small dose of cannabis before or during your practice to deepen relaxation, body awareness and focus. The usual advice: pick a balanced hybrid, take less than you normally would, and time it so the effect lands when you hit the mat. Yoga comes in many forms, but at its core it's a practice of union that brings you back to a natural state of balance, a space where mind, body and breath are fully integrated. Your perception shifts from the lens of the ego to the lens of your higher self, and in that state of oneness the idea that we're all separate starts to look like an illusion.

Cannabis, like many other sacred plants, is a tool that can open the door to that same state of being. As research has shown, cannabis activates our endocannabinoid system, the network in the body that helps maintain homeostasis, or internal balance. It also heightens the senses, giving you a sharper sense of self-awareness, which is exactly what yoga practice cultivates.

Since most strains are labeled indica, sativa or hybrid, those labels can point you in the right direction. Still, effects vary from person to person, so it's worth experimenting to find what you like best.

Like we said, yoga is about uniting mind and body, so it helps to work with a hybrid strain instead of launching your attention entirely into your head with a sativa or sinking it entirely into your body with an indica.

A sativa-dominant hybrid like Jack Herer or White Widow can be a great partner for Vinyasa and Power yoga classes. An indica-dominant hybrid like OG Kush or White Diesel can be ideal for restorative, Yin and meditation practices. If you really want to find your perfect strain, learn about terpenes and look for strains that carry the ones you want to work with.

Edibles with an equal ratio of THC and CBD also make great yoga companions, since the CBD helps balance out an overly racy high. If you don't want any psychoactive effect during your practice, stick with CBD, which many people find eases anxiety and tension, making it easier to stay present.

If you plan to consume right before class, your options are smoking or vaping. Smoking produces potentially harmful carcinogens, so if you'd rather avoid that, vape flower or concentrates. Concentrates are way more potent than flower, so keep that in mind when you dose.

If you have some time before your practice, an edible is your best bet: a capsule, a gummy or a sublingual tincture, to name a few. If you don't have time to wait for it to kick in, you can go for a fast-acting edible, but keep in mind it'll probably start hitting at some point mid-practice.

DO: Take less than your usual dose. Why? Yogic breathing creates a state of awareness that mimics the presence and heightened senses cannabis gives you, so if you take too much, it can be overload. When you practice alone, that can take you to new frontiers of the mind-body connection that you might enjoy exploring. In a class full of people, though, it could tip you into anxiety.

DON'T: Consume and practice on a full stomach. Try to have little or no food in your stomach. If you do eat before practice, a soup or a fruit smoothie is your best option. Digesting food is a distraction during yoga, and being high only makes it more noticeable.

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