REALLY bad instant headache during a heavy lift..

[LakeMountD]

Okay this has only happened to me in the last two weeks out of the 3 years I have been lifting but I was doing leg press with a good amount of weight (bout 650) and on the last rep of me pressing pretty hard I suddenly got an EXTREMELY bad headache that seemed to be focused more on one certain spot on my head the most and it throbbed really bad. Last week when it happened it scared the **** out of me because I could just see myself having an anyeurism right there lol. But it happened again this week and it happened a lot easier (I was doing less weight this week and wasn't pushing nearly as hard as the week before). Anyone ever had this happen? Both times I quit my workout early.

[Dwight Schrute]

I've had this happen when I was taking too much caffeine but other than that, its never happened just because of heavy lifts.

[LakeMountD]

interesting because both times i did drink a large cup of coffee about 30 minutes before I went and it was French Roast. I will try next time to go without it.

[mass_builder]

sam happens to me sometime, i think its high blood pressure.

[diminuendo]

I had this problem during squats and climax during sex (don't laugh) for about a month, and the first time it happened I thought I was having an aneurism. My girlfriend (she is finishing up medical school this semester) said it was a blood vessel in the sub-arachnoid layer of my brain dialating. Apparently the squats raise intercranial pressure (duuh) and oxytocin causes cranial blood vessel dialation (this was a year or so ago so don't quote me). They went away on their own. I don't have a remedy, but they are not dangerous if they are the same as mine; sudden onset, severe localized pain, fairly rapid passing...Dim

[Lean One]

Not saying this is your problem, but I had a similar problem and it turned out I had a mild disc heriation in the upper cervical vertibra. It can happen when you are straining really hard and the muscles in your neck contract hard under the stress.

Edit... It has happened right before blowing a load too.

Either way,hope you can find the cause and get a handle on it.

[stryder]

I had the exact thing happen to me doing heavy leg presses. On the last rep I cocked my head forward and held my breath and pushed with everything I had. All of a sudden I had an intense headache and felt dizzy as hell...thought I was going to pass out.

After that anytime I held my head a certain way or did dips it would shoot an intense (I mean an ice pick rammed into my head) pain. Scared me bad. After talking to a physical therapist, she told me she thought I had strained a muscle that ran from the top of my back up my neck.

After a couple weeks the pain went away and no problems since. Had to lay off the workouts though because the pain was so bad it would literally lay me on my back.

Now when I do leg presses I always keep my head back resting on the pad and keep my neck relaxed.

[EEmain]

This has happened to me also.. lifting and during sex .. headache Doctor called them exertion headaches
but couldn`t find any phyical cause. Gave me some pills that made me feel like **** all day long. So I stopped taking them... They went away in a few weeks.. Really scared me at first

[goldylight]

i have had it happen with heavy leg presses - last rep straining real hard and prob not breathing correctly. looks like this is pretty common. Try to find something on the wall and dont move your head. works for me.

[bioman]

I had this happen in the middle of a heavy squat. Scared me badly. Blinding pain in the head running down the neck. Hurt so bad I was kinda dizzy. Had to stop the WO. I think it was a strained neck muscle or cervical vertebrate misalignment. Has not happened again.

[cable626]

wow, I've had this a few times during climax, its very localized, top right of the head i believe. It went away tho.

[Hellhound]

I was bustin my ass on squats, then BAM, I thought I was going to go down with the bar on my back. I just got it racked, then had to hold my head for ten minutes or so and still couldn't resume squatting. First and only time it had ever happened (so far).

[cable626]

hmmm so it seems like a lot of people are experiencing this. I guess it is more common than we all had thought.

[Jeff]

I have been getting that also. Whats weird is that when I really concentrate on exhaling on the way up, I get it much worse!?! Feels like my brain is gonna start leaking out of my ears.

[bioman]

"I hope I didn't brain my damage!"

-Homer Simpson

[LakeMountD]

Yeah this is strange. It is only when i do really heavy weight and really put my all into it. But it wasn't like I was going to failure. I still had a few reps left. I am hoping it isn't some sort of artery hemorhage or some scary **** like that. That is just what I need lol.

[dg806]

Lake, check your BP just to be on the safe side.

[littlemark]

Same sort of thing happened to me while doing incline presses. Turns out in my case I actually tore some of the muscle in the side of me head between the ear and the temple. Thought I had a stroke or something, as the pain, and weird neurological stuff went on for something like a week. If it goes away, not likely that this is what happened to you though.

Good luck finding the answer, I hope it gets better quickly for you.

[LakeMountD]

BP is pretty good. I did realize that large amounts of caffeine prior to workout made it worse so i have been drinking less. I am also breathing different on my heavy leg presses and although I can feel it coming on it never hits me like usual. I will just have to keep an eye out.

[ryansm]

Most ppl experience heart attacks while sitting on the toilet straining out a bowel movement. Not pretty, but same principles apply to lifting heavy weights I suppose.