Headache

Lately after i get done with a heavy set, i get a throbing headache at the base of my skull. I dont remember if i got them when i lifted over 5 years ago, but i get them now. They only last for a few moments then go away. Im doing my best to remember to breathe during these sets instead of holding it. but im not conscious on anything else that could be going on. Any thoughts?

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Any heavy set or a heavy set of a specific exercise?

Marc C. David - NGA CPT
Author of NoBull Bodybuilding
www.nobullbodybuilding.com

Im not entirely sure, since i started to monitor it today. I did chest today, so i could be doing something with my positioning. I remember getting them last friday, which was a back day. I might have to see my chiropractor, i could be mis-aligned in my shoulder area.

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I used to get them really bad from barbell shrugs. Then I went and got a massage.. gone. It used to be a dull ache pretty much every day. Right at the base of my skull. It was the neck muscles from all the shrugging and back work got so tight I was getting a dull skull ache.

Get a massage. It's cheaper. It works. And I do it about every 4-6 months and it totally helps with workouts.

Marc C. David - NGA CPT
Author of NoBull Bodybuilding
www.nobullbodybuilding.com

Hello,
I had a similar experience last summer suffering from headaches during my workouts. Squats and bench presses would generate the worst headaches. I actually ended up in emergency after one workout as it felt like my head was going to blow up. To make a long story short it turned out to be a common condition called weightlifters headache. It is a type of migraine resulting from the increase in higher blood pressures within your head while lifting heavy weights (caused by: stress, overtraining, severe dieting or a combination there of). If this is what you are experiencing then try taking some Advil or Ibuprofine before you work out or take a few weeks off and take a break from the heavy weights. There is also a low possibility that you have an AVM (arterial venous malformation) at the base of your skull, or at the back of your head, this is when a mass, or a clump, of veins grows within themselves, creating a tangle of low pressure veins being fed by high pressure arteries. When the blood pressure increases in this area it can cause the veins to press against each other (or even rupture) and the result is a intense headache until the pressure subsides. These types of headaches are very localized, meaning that you know exactly where the headache is located if you were asked to point to it. It is usually felt at the base of the neck or the back of the lower head, but can occur anywhere in the body. Problems occurring from arterial venous malformations usually are not noticed by the individual until their 30's and can prove lethal (stroke or hemorrhage). How do I know this? Well, turns out that when I went to emergency I was given a CAT scan and they found a malformation at the back of my head. I went off to a neurologist and after a series of tests it was found that my malformation was common, non lethal, and normal, it was just the way my brain developed and grew. AVM's are considered to be genetic. It was not the root cause of my headache. I was very lucky. I took a month off from the gym and changed my training(I use HST principles now). The headaches have never returned...knock on wood. My advice to you, if your headaches persist, is to go to your doctor and get it checked out. My neurologist told me that he had seen another bodybuilder the night before with the exact same symptoms and he had died later that night from a hemorrhage in his brain. I don't mean to scare you......but headaches are not to be taken lightly when you experience them while working out. Hope you resolve this issue soon. Take care friend.