Nauseated
During Workouts
www.stewsmith.com
Often, I
receive an email concerning that nauseated feeling you can get when exercising.
There are a few issues that can cause this uncomfortable feeling as well
as many ways to prevent it. Here is
the email to give you a better idea of the issues involved with this topic:
I
noticed that no matter how light or heavy my workout is for the day I always
experience some nausea. Even on the days I do very light cardio and just
weightlift...... could there be something causing this? I have the understanding
that when you push your body to a certain point vomiting will happen, but I
experience this on the lightest of days. If you have any advice, please
share!
In my experience, that nauseated feeling has nothing to do
with how good of shape you are in. I
have seen many people (including myself) who are above average athletes toss
their cookies during workouts. We
used to joke in my younger days in the SEAL Teams that if you are not puking
- you are not trying. However,
there are ways to help you avoid this feeling altogether.
Here are some of the things that can cause and prevent this unpleasant
feeling:
1)
Early Morning Workouts Pre-breakfast workouts start
your body exercising with minimal fuel in the tank.
In other words, since you have not eaten in probably 10-12 hours, your
blood sugars levels are lower than normal.
After any anaerobic activity like faster running, swimming, high
repetition calisthenics or weight lifting, you will hit a wall and feel
completely drained. Dizziness soon
follows and next thing you know you are nauseated.
This can also occur in evening workouts if you skip lunch or after noon
pre-workout meals. If you sip Gatorade or another electrolyte /sugar replacement
drink during your workout, this will help you as well.
I usually eat a piece of fruit or oatmeal prior to any workout and
working out in the morning.
2)
Motion Sickness This is probably what caused your
nausea. Many people who like to
begin their workouts with crunches or other abdominal exercises can actually get
motion sick while performing abdominal exercises. This occurs when your eyes are either closed while exercising
or your eyes scan the ceiling freely. The
answer to this is to simply do the old Navy trick I learned when first on a ship
in the North Atlantic - look at the horizon to prevent motion sickness. So, when
doing situps, lock your eyes on a fixed point on the ceiling of your workout
area. You will no longer feel sick
by doing this as long as you are properly fueled.
A majority of the time, the causes for exercise induced
nausea are motion sickness or lower blood sugar levels. If there are
particular areas you would like for me to discuss in the next month of
articles, please email me at stew@stewsmith.com.
Whether you are an advanced athlete or getting started again - please
feel free to contact me or visit my website at
www.stewsmith.com
