Dizziness after cardio?

[castufari]

I started TT on Wednesday, wow, it kicked my butt! Did some cardio but the machine area was really crowded and it was too cold outside for me to run.

I did 15 minutes on the treadmill today. After doing TT workout B I warmed up on the treadmill for 2 min at 4mph, 3 minutes at 7pm, 2 at 4mph, 3 at 7, 2 at 4mph, 3 at 7mph followed by a 3 minute cool down. I was ok after the cooldown but when I stepped off the treadmill I immediately got really dizzy and almost fell. I made it over to the water fountain then drank a bit, that seemed to help.

-=-
This post injury workout/recovery has been amazing...I was doing 10 pullups in a row before I got hurt, last week I was able to do 2 at a time, today I did 12 in a row.

[Brian A.]

The dizziness could be a few different things.
Dehydration for one. Do you sweat a lot? What's your daily water intake like?

Could also be low blood sugar. It doesn't sound like you were on long enough to really deplete your blood sugar, but if you didn't eat for several hours prior to working out it could explain the problem.

You may also want to have your blood pressure checked prior to your workout. What is your age, and do you have any risk factors or family history of high bp? Your blood pressure is naturally ellivated when you workout, especially high intensity. If your resting bp is high than the workout bp will be even higher possibly into a bad range.

[castufari]

I normally don't sweat too much though when running I do. I don't drink a lot, I need to work on that one. I'm going to start packing a water bottle with me.

I nibbled on a few almonds before gym, I wasn't hungry enough to eat a real breakfast. Hard to eat before I go to the gym, if I eat then rest a bit the place is really packed. I've been toying with the idea of eating normally, going to work, then hitting the gym around 9:30, bypassing the crowds and allowing me time to eat something that will stick with me.

I'm 42, my last BP was fairly low, 72/104 or something.

I think it's probably a water/food issue.

[Jimbo]

I always get dizzy if I don't eat breakfast.

Always...but always...eat breakfast. AT least eat a banana or something with some carbs...oatmeal is excellent.

It only takes a few minutes to whip up a bowl of oats and your good to go.

I've learned to not even try approaching the gymn without eating.

Listen to you body. If you are going to the gymn...eat breakfast even if you don't feel like it. Eating is as much a part of you fitness as is the gymn work. You have to approach it the same way. I go to the gymn even when I don't feel like it and I eat even when I don't feel like it. Sorry if it sounds preachy. It's just that I went through the same struggle. My body can't cut it without the fuel.

[Kaiser]

Have you, by chance, added fish oil into your diet lately? If so, how much?

[Jimbo]

Fish oil? Are you serious Kaiser? I haven't heard of this...share please

[Kaiser]

FIsh oil (well, specifically the Omega-3s in it) is a natural blood thinner. That is why it is not recommended for people on prescription blood thinners like Coumadin.

From my own personal experience, when I took 6 caps at day (3 at a time, morning and evening), I felt tired, and would get lightheaded often. I read about the thinning effect, and cut dosage back to 3 caps, and haven't had a problem since. I've read similar accounts as well. I think it tends to affect people more who have lower blood pressure (mine is in the low healthy range).

Given that some people here take 6-9 caps a day, I thought it might be worth checking with castufari.

[Brian A.]

Good to know, I hadn't heard about that whole fish oil thing.

I definetly have to agree with Jimbo about the eating breakfast. You should have something to eat especially if you are working out in the morning. Think about it, if the last thing you ate before your workout was dinner the night before then you're really running on an empty tank. Secondly, if your goal for the cardio is cutting some fat then you're shooting yourself in the foot. Optimal fat burning requires carbohydrates. I always remember the old saying that fat is burned in the fire of carbs. So if your are super low blood sugar then your not metabolizing fat as effeciently as you could be. To make it even worse, your body is most likely working in starvation mode in which your body is acutally conserving fat stores and breaking down muscle tissue to get the glucose molecules from it.

Long story short ALWAYS EAT BREAKFAST!! It doesn't have to be a big meal, but something to get some blood sugar in your body. Going without is nothing but counterproductive.

[castufari]

No fish oil, I've never been able to stomach that stuff.

I'm going to rethink my breakfast, maybe opting for oatmeal and working out a little later in the morning. I was eating breakfast constantly before gym but lately, bleh, I can barely get water down in the morning.

[RacerBill]

You don't mention if you've used the treadmill much. I'll admit I don't have a good sense of balance and I'm not exactly well coordinated, either. I hate using the treadmill because I find it very disorienting when I stop the machine and get off. It feels like the floor is moving and it takes about 5 minutes before I can walk and it feels normal. Maybe I'm just odd, but I can easily imagine that these effects could make slight dehydration seem far worse.

[Jimbo]

Thanks Kiser. I had no idea. You are a font of knowledge. [img]smile.gif[/img]

I hit the treadmill every morning before the weights...well...I have been since I ditched S2b to recover a back injury.

Starting Phase IV S2B next week..it will be HARD for me to leave the treadmill alone. And I probably won't.

Want some REAL cardio? Today I ran the stairs from JP's fitness (29th floor) down to the basement and back up. My legs still feel wobbly.

Oh...I'm not in my logs..opps