conquer the

MUNCHIES
 when it comes to the munchies, there are two things
you need to know:

1. They’re real
2. They can be defeated

When I say they’re real, I mean... there’s a real chemical and biological reason for the
munchies.

We’ll dive into this deeper in a second, but basically a hormone called Ghrelin, (a.k.a.
The Ghremlin) which is released in high quantities when you consume cannabis. It
makes you feel hungry, no matter what you’ve just eaten.

That’s right. Smoke a joint after Thanksgiving dinner and... SURPRISE... you really can
eat more pie.

This is AMAZING, especially if you’re dealing with something like depression or the side
effects of cancer treatment. It can help you feel hungry, even if you’re nauseous or
disinterested in food.

But for some of us... this effect is the opposite of amazing.

Which brings us to number 2... they CAN be defeated. If increasing your appetite is not
your goal and you’re trying to lose weight while medicating with cannabis... I’ve got
your back.

I hear from a lot of people these days and I know a lot of you are dealing with multiple
health issues. Many of those issues are serious and some of them are compounding. So
let’s get this out of the way first... what you eat is SUPER influential on how you feel,
how effective your body is at healing itself and how quickly your disorders, diseases
and issues progress.

No matter what you’re working with, if you’re looking to use cannabis in a way both
holistic and effective, the munchies may derail your progress and make cannabis seem
like an ineffective treatment for you.

I want to put this negative side effect in its place so more people have access to the
benefits of this incredible plant medicine without finding themselves face first in foods
which are carcinogenic, increase inflammation and rob you of precious energy.
The munchies are why I didn’t like smoking cannabis at first when I was still 60
lbs overweight. I already had shitty eating habits, but waking up to pizza boxes,
empty ice cream buckets and bags of Doritos, was annoyingly stoner stereotypical
and felt terrible.

Every time, my pain issues would be worse after succumbing to the munchies. Any
anti-inflammatory effect the cannabis had was canceled out by a boat load of
processed food.

Plus, the guilt. Oooooh. the guilt.

It took me a long time to figure out how to work with cannabis in a way which
actually helped me lose the weight (and boy it did!), and during all of those years, I
hated the munchies.

And it turns out, I’m not the only one...

the munchies: a short scientific review

One of the most common complaints I hear from readers and clients about using
cannabis is “it causes the munchies” (the other issues I commonly hear can be
found here: common negative cannabis side effects).

Studies show the most prevalent issues users have with cannabis are increased
appetite (32%) and sedation (25%). And as a health coach who also counsels
around cannabis, this is a topic I’m really into.

While some of the benefits of cannabis are appetite stimulation and nausea
reduction when people are ill, it’s not necessarily what everyone is shooting for.
Many of us are hanging out above our “goal” or “perfect” weight, so finding
yourself elbow deep in the fast food bag can be a huge drawback to using
cannabis.

Even though studies have shown regular cannabis users typically consume about
600 more calories a day, studies also show cannabis users are about 1/3 less likely
to be obese, have fasting insulin levels about 16% lower than non-cannabis users,
and have higher levels of good cholesterol and lower levels of bad cholesterol.

So if this is all true, how is it true? What are the munchies and why do we get them?
And how do cannabis users manage to stay more sexy than everyone else (IMHO)?
 microdosing + balanced cannabinoids + tolerance
breaks: the essentials

One of the best things you can do to avoid the munchies is to avoid an influx of large
amounts of THC into your bloodstream. You can read more about microdosing in my blog
post here, but I wanted to make sure to mention it here as well.

My rule of thumb for beginning microdosing is 2mg of THC combined with 2mg of CBD
every couple of hours. Setting a phone timer is a great idea (hint: it’s the best idea... hint
hint: do it!)! If using cannabis for disordered sleep, a good starting point is 5mg of THC with
5mg of CBD one hour before bed.

I work with clients during cannabis coaching sessions to help them find their perfect
cannabinoid ratio, dose and timing, but this is a good baseline for almost everyone (except
for people using cannabis for cancer or for things like seizure disorders... these generally
require higher doses off the bat).

If you looked at those numbers and thought, “that would never do it for me. I dab everyday
and have a high tolerance,” it may be a good idea to take a break from cannabis.

If you use cannabis regularly in the form of smoking or vaping flower or taking large
amounts of tincture, give it at least 3 days. If you’ve been using concentrates, take a break
for about 2 weeks before resuming. If you’ve been smoking cannabis for years without a
break, studies have shown that it takes about 28 days for your receptors to completely
bounce back. So an even longer break could be beneficial.

It’s important to take breaks to keep your tolerance low, your cannabinoid receptors
functioning and your endocannabinoid system healthy.

Keeping your tolerance low and taking regularly timed microdoses is essential for using
cannabis medicinally and avoiding negative side effects like the munchies, paranoia and
anxiety, sleepiness and brain fog.
 different ingestion methods and the power of
the munchies

I’m going to get really into this in a blog post here soon, but I wanted to mention it in this
ebook because I’ve been doing a ton of experiments with different ingestion methods and I
think it’s worthwhile to bring awareness to this subject.

Unfortunately, like a lot of the things I want to share, there isn’t any data to back this up.
Damned prohibition....

So with this in mind, I’d like to explore a couple of ingestion methods which I consider low-
munchie-risk.

Again, keep in mind, I have no idea why one ingestion method may be better at reducing
the effects of the munchies on humans (although I do have my theories), but I’ve been
tracking this for several years and I know, when I want to avoid the munchies, I go for one of
the following low-risk methods.
 tinctures

Microdosing with tinctures is my go

to method of ingestion because I like
combining cannabis with other herbs
for synergistic effects. Learn more
about tinctures here.

oil pulling

If I only have infused oil on hand, I

usually skip the edibles and use it for oil
pulling. This has been pretty effective at
giving pain relief without the munchies. It
works the same way a sublingual tincture
would since you don’t swallow the oil

I avoid, smoking, dabbing and most fat

based or sugar filled edibles.

topicals

Topical cannabis (like this Quick and

Easy Cannabis Salve) won’t ever give
you the munchies and is great for
relieving muscle pain and achy joints.
 vaping

Vaping is my favorite way to ingest

cannabis which also reduces the risk
of getting the munchies. You get the
quick relief you get from smoking, but
fewer negative side effects. I use the
Firefly 2 for vaping, which is my favorite
on the go cannabis device. You can
read more about the Firefly 2 here.

suppositories

Applying cannabis rectally is

nothing short of incredible. I’ll
share more in an upcoming blog
post so you can learn all about it
and be less grossed out, but in the
meantime you can find a recipe for
suppositories in Dazed + Infused.

strain selection + THCV

This is going to be short and sweet, because while finding the right strain for you is great, I
don’t believe it’s the most important part of the equation.

I know sometimes getting access to a specific strain can be difficult, but in case you’re in a
state where many strains are widely available, I wanted to share some info about a specific
cannabinoid and the strains known for its high-content so you can keep an eye out for it.

THCV is a powerful appetite suppressing cannabinoid which you can read a lot more
about in our blog post here. Choosing strains high in THCV is your best bet for avoiding the
munchies, especially if you have to take higher doses. Try Durbin Poison, Jack the Ripper or
Pineapple Purps. There are also THCV dominant strains coming onto the market like Doug’s
Verin. If you’re lucky enough to find one, shoot us a message and let us know how it went.
making the 01 plan your munchies
best of the
Before taking an infusion or smoking cannabis, check in with your
munchies internal hunger scale. If you’re even a little hungry, make yourself
(when the a healthy meal or a bunch of healthy snacks (depending on your
conqueror mood and plans for your day). Think: crunchy, hydrating, salty and
becomes the sweet. Think: fulfilling and nourishing.
conquered )
This means something different to everyone and there’s no perfect
meal to satisfy everyone’s munchies, but you know what foods
Shit happens. If make you feel good, so whip up some of that. Make sure to make
you use cannabis, enough food on hand so you don’t finish your healthy meal and
you’re probably snacks and then go looking for the Cheetos.
going to get the
munchies every 02 plan to be active or engaged
now and then.
Don’t panic. Don’t Binge watching leads to binge eating. It’s a fact. So plan for a fun
stress. Don’t fear. If indoor activity (video and board games keep your hands and mind
busy), an outdoor adventure (frolf!) or a long rambling walk. Of
you can’t beat em, all of the things I did to get healthy, this was my key to cannabis-
join em. Let’s just based weight loss: the long and aimless stoner walk.
make a pact, right
here and now, to My expert tip for you is to get completely ready to go (plan,
do it in a way which directions, shoes, keys, water, wallet etc.) and then toke up,
tincture up or eat up. I can’t tell you how many times I got bogged
leaves you feeling
down and lured back to the sofa and a bag of chips when I
energized and couldn’t find my keys or didn’t really have a destination in mind.
uplifted instead
of defeated and
guilty. 03 hydrate !
Anytime you’re feeling hungry, check in to see if that’s true or not.
Everyone can use If you’re not actually hungry, give the Ghremlin some fruit infused
the following tips water, a warm mug of matcha or some iced herbal tea. You’ll
from my book satisfy the munchies (if only for a moment) and this habit will help
Dazed + Infused to keep you hydrated which is the key to a high energy and
healthy life.
keep that monkey
on a string and
let you use the let the ghremlin have his way every
munchies as an 04 once in awhile .
opportunity instead
of seeing them as a As a health coach, I’m a big believer in binge days. Dedicate one
defeat. day a week (or a weekend a month) to let the munchies run wild
and be a huge couch potato. Commit to the other six days to cage
the Ghremlin and make healthy choices.

05 when in doubt , clean your mouth .

A fresh mouth is a fresh start. When I catch myself starting to

give into the munchies when I really don’t want to, I just grab my
toothbrush or do a session of oil pulling. I’ve found this simple
practice is surprisingly effective for disrupting the munchies and
getting me in a better headspace to do healthier activities.
Ultimately, I lost over 60 lbs after I started using cannabis and can’t tell you how many times I caved
to the munchies throughout the process. I still cave to the munchies. The difference between now and
then is that I consciously enjoy my munchies and my pantry looks completely different.

When I want a candy bar, gummy bears or cookies, I have to make those from scratch, which is an
excellent deterrent. When I got the munchies last night, all I could find quickly were 5 old dates and a
couple of handfuls of cashews.

Would I have rather found cookies? You bet. But I only had the ingredients to make cookies. So did
I end up eating cookies? No way. I let lazy win, cuddled up with the dates and cashews and let the
munchies do their thing.

thank you

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this ebook! I hope you loved it! It’s my mission
in life to change the way the world uses cannabis and I created this book with this in mind. I
hope it makes your journey with cannabis more vibrant and filled with hope.

If you have questions or would like more information about cannabis coaching or becoming
a certified Functional Cannabis Coach, shoot us an email at
support@wakeandbakecookbook.com

if you’d like more information or for great healthy recipes, check out my new ebook
Dazed + Infused. If you’d like to work with me 1:1, you can schedule a cannabis
coaching session here (availability limited)