So I have started to lift weights and sometimes I almost pass out.

Do you have low blood pressure as well?

Been going salt-free and fat-free?

 

Breathe. slow, not hyper ventilating breaths. If you hold your breath and don't get enough oxygen to your brain boom you get light headed and pass out.

The only other thing I can think of is if this is happening while you are standing. If it only is happening while you are standing make sure you do not have your knees locked. Keep them slightly bent. Have you ever seen those funniest home videos where someone in the wedding party passes out and falls over? The reason for it is that you have to have muscle contraction in the legs to return blood from the legs to the heart. If you lock your knees you are balancing on the bones ( femur, tibia ) and there is very little muscle contraction taking place. Blood pools in the legs instead of getting back to the heart to pick up oxygen and deliver it to the brain. Boom you fall down.

Blood pressure is at its highest when lying down flat, it drops slightly when you go to a sitting position, and drops the most when standing. An abnormal large drop in blood pressure when going from a sitting to standing is called orthostatic hypotension. If this is only happening when working out it is more likely one of the two aforementioned scenarios. If you change your breathing pattern and stop locking your knees and it continues I would suggest stopping your workouts and contact your PCP to make sure there is not an underlying cardiac condition.

 

What is your weight lifting routine? And what time do you work out/how long do you work out? Do you eat lots of foods high in sugar? Lots of salt may cause some issues, but if you're blood pressure is normal than it sounds like you're not over consuming sodium.

Eating one hour prior to working out is great. That way you shouldn't feel an urge to throw up if you over exert yourself.

What are you eating prior? I try to go to the gym with something in my stomach, but I have gone right when I've woken up and had nothing but caffeine. Never felt like passing out. I work out after work, so one hour before I have a chicken breast and a veggie. Technically you can eat anything you'd like. I'd recommend lean meats (fish, chicken, red meat) though.

It sounds like you should really see a doctor about this though. Maybe you could be developing a form of diabeties. What do you notice happening before you feel like passing out?

And there's really no need to work out longer than one hour. Especially weight lifting.

 

Eat a banana, a 1/2 hour before the workout.

 

I would get checked out by a MD.

It is not normal to almost pass out from weightlifting especially if you are eating properly......JMHO.

 

I second this. Several thoughts. First, if you are trying to cut calories, not eat, etc. your issues could be from not having enough food around--almost everyone can get light-headed from cutting calories if not done right. Also, are you staying hydrated? Although not a perfect indicator, if you are peeing frequently and it is relatively clear you are probably well hydrated.

You can have weird vascular flow issue with heavy weightlifting. Several years ago I was doing assisted pull-ups, working really hard, and started to get a headache. After the next set I went temporarily blind. Doing some web searching (and asking some doc friends) I found that this can be a non-serious vascular spasm issue (kind of similar to a migraine). Of course, these same symptoms could be a brain aneurysm starting to rupture as well.

What concerns me is that this has happened more than once. The smart thing is to have it checked out. Certainly, eating a banana (or an energy bar, or a protein smoothy, etc.) before working out isn't a bad idea, and if that fixes the problem you may be OK. But I can come up with a number of possible causes that are serious (and I'm just a Dermatologist, so way out of my field). If you haven't had a general physical in a while, this should serve as an excellent motivator to do so.

I could relate stories of people I know, in their 30's and 40's, who have died from heart defects, cardiovascular disease, assorted aneuryms, etc.

 

I cant say it any better.

When you lower the weight, breath in through your diaphram, when pushing up exhale easy as in most sports breathing makes a world of difference.

I also have at times low pressure but I eat alot of garlic baked.lol

 

Good to hear. Sounds as though you just need to eat.

 

I lift heavy weight with my trainer, and sometimes I get dizzy. I think it's just from the strain and needing oxygen. He'll tell me "breathe! breathe!" I think I have a tendency to hold my breath. So make sure you are breathing!

I have also noticed that on the days when I go to the gym and havne't had enough rest or haven't had a good bit to eat I don't do as well as far as amount of time and weight I can lift.

 

+1

Hated bananas, my whole life until just recently. I found out they are super energy food. It's incredible, i lcan't get enough of them now. Top it off with a small can of RB and your set.

 

One thing to always remember when working out with a trainer: some are great, but you can get certified to become a trainer in a weekend. I will say this, LISTEN TO YOUR BODY. If you feel week, cut down your intensity or volume that workout. If you feel strong and vibrant, push yourself. Your body is your best teacher in the diet and exercise realm. After about a year, you should have a good idea about which exercises work for you and those that don't. You will know what pre-workout meal or snack makes you feel great and what bloats you or drags you down. Understand that your trainer only understands what you tell them and sometimes mistake the fact that you don't feel good for you being lazy. This is what you pay them for... make you do what you don't want to. Good luck.

Matt

 

if you get light headed its due to lack of protein

I eat some veggie burgers just before I hit the gym

if you are not worried about weight you can eat some carbs too which will gives you energy for endurance

 

most of the time, it's a case of ur body adapting to ur workout regime.

but sometimes, it's just that ur breathing wrongly. when u push the weight, say squats or bench press, u have to breath out. breath in when ur lowering the bar to ur chest, and breathe out with ur mouth when u push the bar. don't rush it, and always perform the reps at a medium pace. in between sets, take big breaths in and flex. could be also low blood pressure..

 

It could be a number of things such as lack of breathing, lack of food etc. Did you go for a check up before starting? Just like some of the members have already indicated, go see doc.

 

I would definitely make sure I had a spot!

 

+1 to that. Also, a few hours before, get some carbs.

When I used to swim, I would sometimes pass out just outside the pool (now I think I really should have cared about it then) but diet seemed to have solved it for me.

 

Cardio is a much different demand on the body then weight-training. While cardio is mostly aerobic and utilizes glycogen and fat for fuels, weight-lifting is more anaerobic and uses Creatine-Phosphate/ATP along with glycogen to fuel your explosive & intense muscular exertion. So while you can run/bike for hours, this is new exercise and demand for your body. also, the muscle fibers are different, slow-twtich vs. fast-twitch....I think your body is still adapting and that's part of it.

Eating before a workout is good, but whole food generally digest at a slow rate and actually puts a bit of a toll on your body. After eating, the heart-rate can increase and this is due to the energy required by the digestive process.

What I have found that really helps is to drink something that is quickly & very easily assimilated into your body. You've already hit on this, but let me suggest something else as well.

Get one of those protein shake "shakers" at the health store. Use 1/3 water, 1/3 lite soy milk and 1/3 Green Machine or any fruit smoothie...and a scoop or two of protein powder. The protein will help prevent catabolism and aid in giving muscles what they need (many body-builders drink their protein shake as they workout or immediately after). More importantly, the fruit smoothie is a nice source fo natural sugars that'll easily and quickly be assimilated into your system with little digestive drama and keep you fueled.

If you're really pushing hard, it's not uncommon to experience a head-rush, light-headedness or other symptoms where you feel you may pass-out. After doing squats, many people sit down...some by choice, others by consequence.

It's good that you're working-out....keep up the good work!