Hi all,

Lately it's become clear to me that something ain't right with my sleep/eat/drink/workout routine: I simply can't seem to handle the summer heat, I don't know why, and I don't know what to do. I'm not sure if it's the heat, so I'm hoping to get some answers as to the what, why, how.

Here's what's up:

Ever since it started getting warmer in June I sometimes developed a fierce headache while doing the first exercise of my routine. It's the kind of thumping headache which forces you to stop training because you don't want your head to explode. This happened like once or twice.

In the last 4-5 weeks, though, we hit record temperatures in Holland and guess what? I have a headache almost every time I try to train. Even small headaches on non-workout days. What's weird: my family has a history of heat rashes in the summer and, while I did have them this summer and last summer... I didn't have ANY headaches last summer. Not even tiny ones! Meanwhile, I trained just as hard last summer.

So, this makes me think: something changed, but what? Here are some changes of the last 12 months:

- I stopped drinking soda, coffee with sugar, etc. So, my sugars/carbs are either in my food or in my shakes. Is it lack of carbs?

- I grew a lot (+7-8kgs) and calculated my macros right before the summer. Could it be that I simply need to consume more calories?
- The company office is poorly ventilated. Started working there August last year. This is my first summer there or so to speak.

- I know you need to hydrate more/better in the summer, but I honestly don't know how to drink even more than I do now (already drink a lot).

- For some reason whenever my girlfriend sleeps over I sweat way more than usual in my sleep. Why?

- My home is also poorly ventilated and hot (5th floor, sun is on it 3/4th of the day). I try to open all the bedroom windows but it doesn't help enough. I turn on the fan to cool the room, but for some reason I catch a cold and/or sore throat and/or stiff neck from aircondition quite easily.
- Could it be lack of salt or something? Because you sweat all day and bla bla bla.

In other words: I have no idea what to do and honestly can't wait for the winter to come haha. All I know is I haven't trained for 2 weeks and when I tried training today I got a headache again.

This sucks man!

Hey man, sounds like you need more calories and water.

A few things.

1. Anytime you gain more muscle, you need to increase your calories, especially protein.
2. How is your sodium intake?
3. I sweat more when I sleep with Erica. Whenever she travels for work I notice I am not as hot. It's just that age old thing called bodyheat! haha

If you really feel like sodium.. that could be it. It's super important man.

Taking any supplements?

i'll go over the questions by quoting and answering them with all ideas i can come up with:

First maybe the easiest lol:

quote: " For some reason whenever my girlfriend sleeps over I sweat way more than usual in my sleep. Why?"

answer: it is warm, and there is a second person in your bed emitting bodyheat.. this is why it gets really warm and sweatty. And a reason why many people can't stand having someone sleep close to them when it's already seriously hot :)

quote: "I know you need to hydrate more/better in the summer, but I honestly don't know how to drink even more than I do now (already drink a lot)."

answer / question: How much is a "lot" for you? Many people already think 2 liter is a "lot" but might not be enough when it comes to your weight / age / level of activity. (here is a good link to calculate the amount you might really need per day: LINK) Too little water could be one cause for a stinging head. Another reason see next note:

important note: Maybe you even drink too much? Many people don't know: too much water can cause waterpoisoning. Your body can't handle more than the intake of ca. 3/4 liter per hour. If you flush down 2 liters or more within half an hour you actually might be getting brain stinging and other issues. (see Wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_intoxication)

quote: "I grew a lot (+7-8kgs) and calculated my macros right before the summer. Could it be that I simply need to consume more calories?"

answer: as @Scott_Herman already said, you might need to eat more. I re-calculate my macros every time my weight changes for at least 1 pound (0,5 kilo). But i somehow doubt that the lack of calories can create a stinging headache as soon as you start moving weights - it rather makes you dizzy / energy depleted. But more on that later.*

quote: "I stopped drinking soda, coffee with sugar, etc. So, my sugars/carbs are either in my food or in my shakes. Is it lack of carbs?"

answer: as said above i don't think lack of carbs can cause a strong sting in your head it would rather lead to general loss of energy, and dizzyness. And refined sugar withdrawal leads to a so called "carbflue" which also mostly makes you feel depleted of energy, dizzy in the head, and a bit like a flue is coming in, but should normally vanish after 7-14 days of lowered sugar intake.

quote: "Could it be lack of salt or something? Because you sweat all day and bla bla bla."

answer: Lack of Salt, if non existant / too little in your nutrition, can defenitally cause issues, as your whole electrolyte household in the body will be disturbed. This effects all organs including brain and bowels. We don't need all the 'additional' salt that is in our today's nutrition, but we surely need some base levels, which normally meat and other foods should give. But if you feel your sodium levels could be too low try adding a bit salt to your salads / meals, and see if you feel better. (not too much though 2300 mg is the absolute max for an adult per day, i personally recommended sticking to less than that )

*my thoughts on stinging pain in the head under load / activity:

a sting in the head often occurs due to too much blood pressure. This can be caused, by high blood pressure, or clocked up veins. Especially under load / activity as now more blood is forced to roam around. Both things are not a good, and need to be checked by a doctor.

You said you gained almost 8 kilo.. this is another indicator for maybe higher blood pressure and also cardiovascular issues. I don't know how much cardio you do, but 8 kilos more require your heart to work a lot more (the more we weight the more it has to do to move and fuel all this mass).. even more so when it's hot, which then would come on top of it. One of the reasons why making sure you have good cardio vascular circumstances (endurance /cardio workouts to help with that) is so important.

Another issue is breathing, some people don't breathe right when moving weights, and cause their bloodvessels to be overloaded with pressure. Which can even lead to faints while lifting. Same goes for squatting really heavy weights, when too much blood runs towards your legs to allow the muscles to function and move that weight. Make sure you breathe correctly.

And it could be of course also a nerv. Pay attention if it only happens on certain movements. If so, maybe visit a physician.

In any case such a "strong sting" in the head, that even requires you to quit your current action, might be related to cardio vascular issues, so if this doesn't go away, please have it checked.

Hi everyone, hi Scott!

First off: I'm so sorry for replying as late as I am. I needed some time to figure out what was up.

As it turns out, it was none of the above! I tried everything: drink more water, less water, sleep separately, etc. I went to the doctor, she did some tests and then told me my blood pressure was really good, no cardio vascular issues either. She told me I was super healthy.

Nothing worked and then I realized: what changed since the massive headaches started in August? I got new, softer pillows so I went back to the store, bought the hardest pillows I could find, and the first time I went training after that... no more headaches! It made me feel real stupid lol.

At that point, I hadn't trained for 4 weeks so that first week I was back in the gym was tough: out of shape (compared to before), disappointing weights & reps, etc. I kept going at it, though, and now I'm happy to say I'm at 75% of my PR's with most exercises. Give me another week or two and I'll be breaking my PR's again!