Videos of lifters passing out/blacking out/fainting during heavy intense lifts like deadlifts and squats, are quite common on the social media. This phenomenon is usually seen when an individual is attempting to push him/herself to a brand new limit, a brand new 1RM. This can also be called “weightlifter’s blackout”.
For some people it’s unhealthy and dangerous, yet for others, it’s quite concerning and worrisome, and will instill a fear of their minds, specially kids, who then abstain from pushing themselves within the gym, and play extra secure, which greatly hampers their progress.
Syncope (pronounced “sin ko pea”) is the medical term used for fainting or passing out. It is the sudden lack of consciousness, related to inability to take care of postural tone, characterised by rapid onset, short duration and followed by a spontaneous and complete recovery.
It is caused resulting from a brief drop in the quantity of blood flow to the brain, or the center is unable to pump enough oxygen to the brain. And the lifter experiences this very condition, under heavy loads.
Syncope can occur if you’ve got a sudden drop in blood pressure, a drop in heart rate, or changes in the quantity of blood in areas of your body. If you pass out, you’ll probably grow to be conscious and alert straight away, but chances are you’ll be feel confused for a bit.
- Acc. to a studyunlike the moderate blood pressure increase that happens during aerobic exercise, arterial blood pressure is profoundly elevated during resistance exercise. Arterial blood pressure has been reported to achieve 320/250 mmHg during maximal double-leg press, although the rise in pressure during submaximal resistance exercise doesn’t approach these levels.
In the face of increased pressure, the blood pressure within the brain is unchanged or barely elevated during moderate intensity resistance exercise, but is reduced during high intensity resistance perhaps as protection against hypertension.
Subsequent to the marked elevation in blood pressure during resistance exercise, pressure falls rapidly to below pre-exercise levels upon the completion of the lift. As a result, cerebral pressure falls below pre-exercise levels immediately following exercise.
The sudden fall in arterial blood pressure immediately following resistance exercise could also be a sufficient challenge to the brain’s regulatory mechanisms to provide syncope (i.e., the big and rapid “swing” in pressure could also be beyond the upper and lower limits of brain’s autoregulation).
2. Valsalva – one other way through which the syncope can occur during lifting, is due to Valsalva manoeuvre. During heavy lifting, most lifters hold their breath of their belly, especially throughout the eccentric movement, after which exhale throughout the concentric.
During resistance exercisea transient Valsalva manoeuvre is unavoidable when lifting heavy loads (>80% of maximal voluntary contraction) or when lifting lighter loads to failure. Performance of the Valsalva manoeuvre during resistance exercise increases the steadiness of the spine resulting from augmented intra-abdominal pressure. The Valsalva manoeuvre was related to a rise in blood pressure during resistance exercise.
Valsalva straining during lifting may produce sudden blood pressure transitions each during and immediately after straining. The primary side effect of the Valsalva manoeuvre is hypotension, which is a sudden, persistent decrease in blood pressure. People performing the manoeuvre may additionally feel lightheaded or experience syncope, which is a transient lack of consciousness.
3. Hypoglycaemia – glucose is the body’s primary source of energy. During exercise, the demand for glucose increases.
In hypoglycaemia, there shouldn’t be enough glucose within the blood to fulfil body’s energy needs. It’s the carbohydrates which breaks down into glucose within the body, which enters the blood stream, after which taken up by the cells. To do that, the pancreas secretes insulin, which helps the glucose enter the cells for use as fuel.
As exercise volume/intensity increases, so does the body’s demand for glucose. Also, exercise makes body more sensitive to insulin, which can make insulin work higher and thus reduce blood sugar even faster.
Hypoglycaemia may cause various issues like weakness, dizziness, anxiety, confusion, fainting, and in extreme cases even seizures, coma and death.
Hypoglycaemia during workout is kind of a possibility, when the intensity of workout is high, and the person is training fasted. Make sure you might be well fed, and carry a carbohydrate wealthy beverage during workouts.
There will be other minor reasons for black-out, which include underlying medical conditions, but our focus is black-out in healthy lifters.
In case you experience a black-out, it will be for a short while. Halt your workout, and as you regain your consciousness, have some water preferably with electrolytes and glucose. Do not immediately return to lifting. Give some gap, lift some warm up weights again, after which try the maximal lift.
Also, while lifting heavy be sure you’ve got spotters around you, as generally syncope during lifting can result in sudden and dangerous falls, and chances are you’ll hit a pointy fringe of a gym equipment nearby.
