Dear Alice,
It's been about three months since I worked out
regularly. I find that lifting for strength (i.e. 80%
of max for 5-8 reps) causes me to feel nauseated about
3/4 through the workout sometimes, so that I can't
bring myself to finish. I took a weight training
course last semester and was affected the same way
every once in a while. I warm up, stretch before and
after, breath when I lift, drink plenty of water, take
care not to eat 1 hour before working out, skip a day
between workouts, don't lift more than I can handle (I
reduced the weight from what I ended on in the
class to a seemingly suitable weight. I got a 98 in
the class incidentally). What's going on?
Virtually,
Pre Van Damm
Dear Pre Van Damm,
It sounds like you know the basics about weight training, although
you didn't mention how many sets you are doing. Alice will assume
three, although probably that really has little to do with your
problem. Are you giving yourself sufficient time between sets? Are
you circuit training? These may be important factors. Alice
checked with an exercise physiologist friend of hers (he taught Alice
as an undergraduate), and he said that one possibility could be
hypoglycemia. Working muscles need fuel and exercising leads to
increased levels of insulin that transport blood glucose to the
muscles, possibly creating a hypoglycemic condition that could make
you, in particular, feel nausea.
Alice would recommend that you take plenty of time between
sets...there is nothing wrong with three or more minutes; reduce the
amount of weight you are lifting; and make sure that your normal
diet is high in complex carbohydrates and minimal in any refined
simple sugars. Complex carbohydrates, as they are stored in the
body and then used as fuel, enter the blood stream at a more
constant rate and will help alleviate the quick insulin response
followed by the low that often comes with eating simple sugars.
Also consider eating a small complex carbohydrate snack (like a
bagel) the hour preceding your workouts. If hypoglycemia is the
cause, this may be very helpful.
If it doesn't get better, you may want to check
with a physician or a personal trainer with a good background in
exercise physiology for a personal consultation.
- Alice
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Nausea from weightlifting
