Lifting weights is a dynamic and important form of exercise. Techniques can be utilized to increase the efficiency of your resistance training sessions. Though these techniques may improve your body's ability to move large weight loads, they occasionally include unwanted side effects such as headaches. If you experience headaches while lifting weights regularly, examine your lifting habits. There may be a simple explanation.
Head Positioning
Head positioning is an important aspect of weight training. The positioning of your head has an effect on the efficiency of your lifting. It also plays an important role in your posturing, which prevents injury and improves core strength. It's possible to increase the tension in your neck muscles while you move your head into a proper position, particularly if you tense the muscles in the back of your neck. These muscles attach to your skull at the sides of your forehead. They may pull at those attachment points as you lift, which causes a lasting headache.
Holding Your Breath
Holding your breath while lifting is called the valsalva maneuver. This is meant to increase the pressure in your abdominal bubble, which surrounds your spine and supports your back, similar to a weightlifting belt. Although it's helpful in supporting your spine--in particular, squatting--the valsalva maneuver temporarily raises the pressure inside your cranium. As explained by chiropractor Thomas Souza, this increased intracranial pressure causes a decrease in intracranial blood flow and can result in a headache.
Hyperventilation
It's common for heavy weightlifters to hyperventilate slightly between repetitions. Dr. Souza suggests that this hyperventilation can result in a decrease in the level of CO2 present in your blood. This results in widespread vasoconstriction, or closing of your veins. Not long after this vasodilation, you experience widespread vasodilation as an overcompensation, which results in an influx of blood. This huge swing in blood flow to your head causes a rather uncomfortable headache.
Dehydration
Although not a primary cause for exertion headaches, dehydration may exacerbate headaches brought on by exercise. A lack of water in your system can cause a reduction in the amount of blood volume circulating throughout your body. This reduced blood volume can increase the chances of headache, causing vasodilation following vasoconstriction. Chiropractor James J. Lehman notes that dehydration can also cause tenderness and cramping in skeletal muscles. Combining this already present muscular tension with an increased strain on your neck muscles can result in a workout-ruining headache.
Muscle Spasms
Heavy weightlifting can cause spasms in the muscles of your upper body, according to Barbara J. Mitchell, an author for Headaches. Not unlike the muscular tension headaches that can be brought on by improper head positioning, the constant tensing and relaxing of a muscle in spasm can result in a sharp headache that dulls into a low-grade ache after a short time. If you experience this type of headache, try to pinpoint the muscles that are spasming and work on relaxing the muscles that are not necessary in the lift you're performing.
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