Heart Racing More Than Normal

ok so i know its been a while since i have posted on T-Nation, but there are some concerns i have that i need your thoughts on. my last set of deads that i did was around 205, which is close to my best right now. i took about 6 weeks off from deads due to a strained inner thigh muscle.

after i pulled the 205 for about 3 reps (this was my second set of 205 and 5th overall set) i set the weight down. i felt extremely lightheaded, worse than ever before.

started seeing black, heart almost jumping out of my chest, things getting blurry, and the room spinning. now i know alot of you say its normal and i believe that for the most part. it just really worries me sometimes because im not used to feeling that way.

the last few days i have had lightheaded spells during the day for no apparent reason and when i do basic excercises, squats or bench for example, with about 70% of my 1RM i get lightheaded then too. i never used to.

i checked my blood pressure yesterday and it was 123 over 68 and 74 pulse. the pressure is about the same it was last year but my pulse last year was closer to 54 then 74. i dont know what to attribute the jump in pulse to.

i was training more consistently last year and i was training more frequently, i.e. 5 times a week 4-5 sets a excercise then vs. 3 times a week now and 3 sets per excercise. any thoughts? i guess the next step if i cant figure it out is to see the doc, which id rather avoid if possible since i do not have health insurance at this point.

i should point out that i had quit smoking around 2 years ago and picked it back up around 6 months ago. i just quit it again, for good this time, so that may be having an impact on my respiratory system. i am not currently taking any vitamins and the only supplements im using are prosource nitrowhey and prosource nitrogainer.

A one-time pulse measurement of 74 is nothing to be concerned about. Normal adult pulse is about 72.

Check your pulse and BP more than once a year!

Edited: If you are getting light-headed for no apparent reason it could be a blood sugar problem. Maybe you should get that checked out…or eat clean/eat often.

oh ok, i thought 74 was high. my BP stays around 130/70 and pulse between 70-85 most of the time. how often should i check my BP?

do you think that my lighthead feeling during medium-high intensity exercises is due to my belief that my resting pulse was to high? sometimes i think about stuff to much and it affects me negatively.

If you are healthy normal human I would say every couple months is good to check BP.

I go to the Red Cross and give blood and they call me every eight weeks to give again. They do my BP, pulse, iron…and they screen my blood for HIV…lol. They write your BP on your card so you have a log of what your readings are. I have given 7 gallons…which I am certain has done a lot of good.

Also, I believe studies that suggest that men should give blood to reduce the amount of crud in our systems. Pre-menopause…women bleed monthly and have much less chance of heart disease. But when they reach menopause and stop bleeding their risk goes up and equals that of men.

that makes sense. maybe ill start giving blood. itll do some good, ill get screened for STDs lol, and i will have a record of my BP. good idea CR!

i know i worry to much sometimes but some people i used to lift with a few weeks back really got me worried when they started telling me about guys my age that have heart attacks and stuff doing heavy deads. now everytime i dead or squat im worrying about dying from it lol. i know its stupid but its the way it is right now. im trying to get informed so i can correct my thoughts on the issue which is why im posting on here. no better place to get good accurate info IMO than the Nation.

Listen to your body, if your heart’s about to explode doing deads, decrease your volume until it’s a manageable level.

volume is number of sets x number of reps? im new to weight lifting and especially new to the vocab so i want to be sure. maybe i could do 2-3 sets of a 50-60% 1RM at like 3-6 reps. i should still see some gains and i wouldnt be pushing too hard. i could stick with that until my endurance and strength were up to par. what do you think?

Yeah, just remove or add sets or increase the rest period in between sets, make it to where you’re more comfortable within your limits, yet still pushing yourself.

Hey congrats on staying smoke free for two years by the way! You basically sound like you were really out of breath and just having problems getting oxygen to your brain. It’s cool and it happens a lot. At 38, and a person who suffers from terrible alergies, I often get winded in the gym.

You might want to start having a bananna or an apple prior to working out. I think because they are complex carbs, the natrual sugars in the fruit get to your muscles faster and may give you a little more energy. Thanks for sharing your story, because I’ve sort of been in your shoes.
Frank :slight_smile:

thanks frank! its not been easy staying smoke free and as i said, i did start up again for a few months. im done with it now because my training in the gym is far more important to me than smoking and smoking hurts my results. its a no brainer really lol.

i agree with you that i was most likely just winded. probably a combination of my recent smoking and pushing to hard at the time.

i will ease up a little and stay away from smokes and let you all know how i improve. thanks for the support!