Marijuana
A marijuana plant is seen at Tweed Marijuana Inc in Smith's Falls, Ontario, Canada, March 19, 2014. Reuters/Blair Gable

Founders of world’s first marijuana-inspired gym in San Francisco, Power Plant Fitness, believe that cannabis is good for focus and recovery. San Franciscans will be able to get high consuming marijuana and at the same time carry out their daily fitness regime. However, they also said that the gym won’t be a place for those who simply want to get high and fool around. The gym will focus more on the athletic side than the cannabis side.

Founder of cannabis event series 420 Games and cofounder of Power Plant Fitness, Jim McAlpine, explained to Tech Insider that the gym considers cannabis as a tool for focus and recovery. Members will have to take a “cannabis performance assessment” under the guidance of trained staff. The test will determine a member’s most optimal ways to consume marijuana. Some may find a bite of a pot brownie give them the boost to complete a circuit training workout, while some may simply get knocked out by the bite.

The trainers will figure out how a member must ingest the cannabis for the desired performance boost. As San Francisco city and county laws forbids smoking of weed in most public places, the gym will start with cannabis edibles and vaping. In future they will also add a smoking room where members want to smoke up weed. The company is also planning to come up with a line of edibles for pre-workout focus and post-workout recovery.

In order to sell their products onsite, the company may have to register as a dispensary lounge under California law. These collectives and cooperatives allow medicinal cannabis caregivers, patients and suppliers the right to exchange goods in public. However, they can’t keep profits. Earnings should be used for the welfare of patients. It is still unclear how membership will work at Power Plant Fitness.

The gym will be a safe retreat for marijuana users who want to loosen up with some cannabis before going into their hectic fitness schedule. However, potential health risks need to be assessed to cut down any risk of accidents. Marijuana can be dehydrating and some report panic and dizziness after consumption. McAlpine believes that the cannabis performance assessment is the solution to potential health-related accidents and it will also help foster good habits on the gym floor.

“I think sports will become one of the bigger pieces of the marijuana industry. It’s very much in line with the idea that people and society are starting to understand that marijuana is medicine. Marijuana, if you use it in a responsible way, accentuates the parts of sports that you love and helps you to do them better,” said McAlpine in 420 games blog.

420 games, McAlpine’s other venture, is like the Olympics for cannabis users. Pot enthusiasts and their families compete in various games such as obstacles courses, triathlons, golf tournaments, mountain bike races and its signature 4.20-mile run. 420 games launched in 2014 in San Francisco.