dizzy when riding

HYDRATE!!

"Dwayne" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I've been cycling for the past 2 years about once or twice a week for
about 2 hours at a time, around 25 miles each trip. For about the
last 4 weeks I get really dizzy and slightly nauseated about 30
minutes into the ride and I have to stop and sit down for a while or I
feel like I'm going to get really sick. After about 15 minutes of
sitting down, standing doesn't help, I get slowly better and then I
seem to do ok no matter how hard or how far I ride after that.
Usually I eat a banana or two for breakfast with water. I've
sometimes had a honey bun with coffee and I've been dizzy with either
type of breakfast. I come home and check my BP and its about 125/75.
I've had some high BP in the past but never to a point the Dr. wanted
to put me on meds. After I began cycling 2 years ago the BP readings
have been consistently low. Could it be that while cycling my BP gets
too low? Or could it be getting too high during the ride, when I
can't check it? I've also been riding in the mornings when its
cooler. I live in Alabama and the summers are awful. 95 degrees with
90 percent humidity. I ride in the mornings when its about 75 degrees
and about 80 percent humidity. Could it be the high humidity? Other
riders wtih me, wife, brother in law, others do not experience the
same thing. I am 41 years old and slightly overweight, 205 lbs. 6 ft
2 inches tall. My ideal weight is about 185 - 190.

Any advice?

I would definitely get a heart rate monitor before your next ride. See
your regular doctor as soon as possible, perhaps call and see if you can
get a recording EKG hooked up and do your riding to record the event.

Dwayne said:

I've been cycling for the past 2 years about once or twice a week for
about 2 hours at a time, around 25 miles each trip. For about the
last 4 weeks I get really dizzy and slightly nauseated about 30
minutes into the ride and I have to stop and sit down for a while or I
feel like I'm going to get really sick. After about 15 minutes of
sitting down, standing doesn't help, I get slowly better and then I
seem to do ok no matter how hard or how far I ride after that.
Usually I eat a banana or two for breakfast with water. I've
sometimes had a honey bun with coffee and I've been dizzy with either
type of breakfast. I come home and check my BP and its about 125/75.
I've had some high BP in the past but never to a point the Dr. wanted
to put me on meds. After I began cycling 2 years ago the BP readings
have been consistently low. Could it be that while cycling my BP gets
too low? Or could it be getting too high during the ride, when I
can't check it? I've also been riding in the mornings when its
cooler. I live in Alabama and the summers are awful. 95 degrees with
90 percent humidity. I ride in the mornings when its about 75 degrees
and about 80 percent humidity. Could it be the high humidity? Other
riders wtih me, wife, brother in law, others do not experience the
same thing. I am 41 years old and slightly overweight, 205 lbs. 6 ft
2 inches tall. My ideal weight is about 185 - 190.

Any advice?

Dwayne said:

I've been cycling for the past 2 years about once or twice a week for
about 2 hours at a time, around 25 miles each trip. For about the
last 4 weeks I get really dizzy and slightly nauseated about 30
minutes into the ride and I have to stop and sit down for a while or I
feel like I'm going to get really sick. After about 15 minutes of
sitting down, standing doesn't help, I get slowly better and then I
seem to do ok no matter how hard or how far I ride after that.

{snip}

I agree with others to check with your doc; but also, are you using a sports
drink of any sort?

I recently discovered that Accelerade makes me nauseous as hell -- and
quickly! -- whereas Gatorade and others don't bother me at all.

Bill "just a thought" S.

If you insist on continuing these rides before seeing a doctor, I suggest
you take along your blood pressure checker, and possibly a thermometer. If
you have access to a blood sugar meter, I would take that as well.
SOMETHING's not right.

(Dwayne) said:

I've been cycling for the past 2 years about once or twice a week for
about 2 hours at a time, around 25 miles each trip. For about the
last 4 weeks I get really dizzy and slightly nauseated about 30
minutes into the ride and I have to stop and sit down for a while or I
feel like I'm going to get really sick. After about 15 minutes of
sitting down, standing doesn't help, I get slowly better and then I
seem to do ok no matter how hard or how far I ride after that.
Usually I eat a banana or two for breakfast with water. I've
sometimes had a honey bun with coffee and I've been dizzy with either
type of breakfast. I come home and check my BP and its about 125/75.
I've had some high BP in the past but never to a point the Dr. wanted
to put me on meds. After I began cycling 2 years ago the BP readings
have been consistently low. Could it be that while cycling my BP gets
too low? Or could it be getting too high during the ride, when I
can't check it? I've also been riding in the mornings when its
cooler. I live in Alabama and the summers are awful. 95 degrees with
90 percent humidity. I ride in the mornings when its about 75 degrees
and about 80 percent humidity. Could it be the high humidity? Other
riders wtih me, wife, brother in law, others do not experience the
same thing. I am 41 years old and slightly overweight, 205 lbs. 6 ft
2 inches tall. My ideal weight is about 185 - 190.

Any advice?

Terry Morse reported on this on 6/7/04 to a similar post concerning dizzy
feeling after biking. Not sure if it's the same thing, but FWIW:
http://groups.google.com/groups?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&selm=tmorse-F32CE2.15153607062004%40news.covad.net

<snip>
You're describing post-exercise hypotension, a well known (but not
well studied) symptom. When you stop exercising, the heart rate
quickly slows down. This reduces the blood flow, and the blood
pressure drops. Putting your head between your knees should prevent
fainting. There's an article here that briefly explains what's going
on:

http://www.afpafitness.com/articles/Pressurelink.htm

(scroll down to "Cardiovascular response following exercise"😉

I supposed a "warm down" period would reduce the plummet in blood
pressure, but sometimes that's not possible. On a group ride last
year, one of the riders got to the top of a long climb and began a
gentle descent. He passed out, fell and broke his femur. Not good.
--
terry morse Palo Alto, CA http://bike.terrymorse.com/
<snip>

-B

"S o r n i" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Dwayne said:

I've been cycling for the past 2 years about once or twice a week for
about 2 hours at a time, around 25 miles each trip. For about the
last 4 weeks I get really dizzy and slightly nauseated about 30
minutes into the ride and I have to stop and sit down for a while or I
feel like I'm going to get really sick. After about 15 minutes of
sitting down, standing doesn't help, I get slowly better and then I
seem to do ok no matter how hard or how far I ride after that.

{snip}

I agree with others to check with your doc; but also, are you using a sports
drink of any sort?

I recently discovered that Accelerade makes me nauseous as hell -- and
quickly! -- whereas Gatorade and others don't bother me at all.

Bill "just a thought" S.

Yes, I have used a Powerade mix a couple of times, but got dizzy with
and without it. What's interesting is, in the afternoons, if I go on
a ride, I don't get dizzy.

Thanks

I agree with what the others have posted, so please listen to them first.
However, something else to consider, should it not be blood pressure,
hydration, your heart, etc. is if you have any kind of anxiety/stress. I
know that may sound stupid, but I was experiencing something similar,
which I asked about on this board A LOT, and couldn't figure out what was
going on. It wasn't until I spent a 5 night insomnia bender that I figured
out that I had severe anxiety and needed treatment for that. Once I got
treatment for that the panic attacks (which is what I was having on the
bike, because I'd bike really hard then subconciously panic because I'd be
worried I pushed myself, and thus my heart, too hard) things got much
better. I can now do just about anything on the bike without having a
panic attack. Recently on the board I posted about seeing your heart rate
high. But the key thing is that I just posted about it. I didn't dwell on
it or anything, I was just curious. And that day I did have a minor panic
attack, but with therapy and medicine I've learned to ride through those
without getting light-headed and almost passing out like I used to.

Anyway, something to consider if you run out of things to check.

Preston

Quoted message said:

If you insist on continuing these rides before seeing a doctor, I suggest
you take along your blood pressure checker, and possibly a thermometer. If
you have access to a blood sugar meter, I would take that as well.
SOMETHING's not right.

I would agree with this one. I have some cycling friends who are diabetics and
I thought maybe undiagnosed diabetes when I read the post. But I don't know if
dizziness is a symptom. Dehydration sounds like a possibility but I never had
dizziness with that one. Another thing could be just flat over exertion, but
one would think the guy would mention that it only happened when he was
redlining.

Here is something, it could be a sinus problem or even an ear infection. The
sense of balance is mediated in the inner ear and the inner ear connects with
the sinuses. If something blocks the connection, it can produce severe
dizziness and on a sort of weird intermittant basis too. I have a friend whose
daughter had that and he took her to all sorts of places like the Mayo Clinic
and they checked for all kinds of stuff like brain tumors and so on and finally
she went to a local physician and he said "Oh, I know what that is". She had a
little obstruction in her sinus that was messing up her inner ear causing
headaches, dizziness to the point of keeling over and so on. All it took was a
very simple operation to snip out the blockage and she was back to normal
immediately.

I am not saying this is what the guy has, I am merely pointing out that
sometimes these things are really hard to figure out.

Dwayne said:

"S o r n i" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Dwayne said:

I've been cycling for the past 2 years about once or twice a week
for about 2 hours at a time, around 25 miles each trip. For about
the last 4 weeks I get really dizzy and slightly nauseated about 30
minutes into the ride and I have to stop and sit down for a while
or I feel like I'm going to get really sick. After about 15
minutes of sitting down, standing doesn't help, I get slowly better
and then I seem to do ok no matter how hard or how far I ride after
that.

{snip}

I agree with others to check with your doc; but also, are you using
a sports drink of any sort?

I recently discovered that Accelerade makes me nauseous as hell --
and quickly! -- whereas Gatorade and others don't bother me at all.

Bill "just a thought" S.

Yes, I have used a Powerade mix a couple of times, but got dizzy with
and without it. What's interesting is, in the afternoons, if I go on
a ride, I don't get dizzy.

Then it definitely sounds like a blood-sugar issue to this English major
doc. Do you eat before these dizzy rides?

Bill "get thee to a physician, just for peace of mind if nothing else" S.

S o r n i said:

Dwayne said:

Yes, I have used a Powerade mix a couple of times, but got dizzy with
and without it. What's interesting is, in the afternoons, if I go on
a ride, I don't get dizzy.

Then it definitely sounds like a blood-sugar issue

OR blood pressure, I should have added. Usually lower in the AM (one would
think?), so that another likely suspect.

Bill "give me 5 more minutes, and you'll be dead" S.

"S o r n i" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

S o r n i said:

Dwayne said:

Yes, I have used a Powerade mix a couple of times, but got dizzy with
and without it. What's interesting is, in the afternoons, if I go on
a ride, I don't get dizzy.

Then it definitely sounds like a blood-sugar issue

OR blood pressure, I should have added. Usually lower in the AM (one

would

Quoted message said:

think?), so that another likely suspect.

Bill "give me 5 more minutes, and you'll be dead" S.

Well it sounds to me like a de-hydration issue. Weakness, headaches,
dizziness,
neasea are all symptoms of it. Are you driking a lot while riding? I am
not too
familiar with the imperial system for temperature but 95 sounds high. If
you are
riding when it is really hot, you can be loosing 2-3 liters of water per
hour (3-4
pintes)... if you are not replacing that you can become de-hydrated.

It happened to me once, I got a heat stoke while riding, almost fell off my
bike.

Could of course be something else but you should really try drinking more
and
see if the problem still happens.

In article <[email hidden]>,
[email hidden] says...

....

Quoted message said:

Well it sounds to me like a de-hydration issue. Weakness, headaches,
dizziness,
neasea are all symptoms of it. Are you driking a lot while riding? I am
not too
familiar with the imperial system for temperature but 95 sounds high. If

It is: about 35 Celsius. To me, though, it doesn't sound like
dehydration, because if he stops to rest he feels better for the rest of
the ride.

....

--
Remove the ns_ from if replying by e-mail (but keep posts in the
newsgroups if possible).

Dwayne,

What you've described is almost certainly due to lowering blood
pressure as you ride. The setting that you have described and the
symptoms that you are experiencing make it sound like you are
experiencing vasodilation. That is, when your body temperature reaches a
certain point, your blood vessels dilate. When this happens your blood
pressure drops, you can begin to feel dizzy, heart rate increases and
nausea is almost certain. You may also feel that you are going pass out.
Of course you know that one of your body's ways of cooling is to sweat.
When humidity is high, however, your sweat cannot evaporate and the
moisture will either stay on the surface of your skin or not come out at
all. This moisture acts like a skin tight coat that only makes your body
temperature rise more. Again, this causes your blood vessels to dilate.
The best thing you can do is to make sure that you can keep the sweat
off of you. Unfortunately it is difficult to carry a towel while riding,
so you might have to be creative, but you do need to keep the sweat off
of you. Most of the time, if you can simply help your body to get rid of
the sweat, you will not vasodilate. Also, try to keep your core
temperature down, so make sure that you are not just hydrating, but
hydrating with something that is cool.
The other thing to keep in mind is that when you sweat, you shed
sodium, which converts into valuable electrolytes. Without these
electrolytes you will get cramps eventually. So it is best to hydrate
with sips of cool (not really cold) Gatorade or Powerade or something
that contains sodium.
You will know for certain if it is vasodilation if start to experience
the symptoms and quickly jump in a cold shower. Within 2 or 3 seconds
you will be over every symptom, except the nausea which may take a
minute to wear off, taking in a small amount of cool drink to lower your
core temperature.
I hope that this helps.

- Muskie

Dwayne said:

I've been cycling for the past 2 years about once or twice a week for
about 2 hours at a time, around 25 miles each trip. For about the
last 4 weeks I get really dizzy and slightly nauseated about 30
minutes into the ride and I have to stop and sit down for a while or I
feel like I'm going to get really sick. After about 15 minutes of
sitting down, standing doesn't help, I get slowly better and then I
seem to do ok no matter how hard or how far I ride after that.
Usually I eat a banana or two for breakfast with water. I've
sometimes had a honey bun with coffee and I've been dizzy with either
type of breakfast. I come home and check my BP and its about 125/75.
I've had some high BP in the past but never to a point the Dr. wanted
to put me on meds. After I began cycling 2 years ago the BP readings
have been consistently low. Could it be that while cycling my BP gets
too low? Or could it be getting too high during the ride, when I
can't check it? I've also been riding in the mornings when its
cooler. I live in Alabama and the summers are awful. 95 degrees with
90 percent humidity. I ride in the mornings when its about 75 degrees
and about 80 percent humidity. Could it be the high humidity? Other
riders wtih me, wife, brother in law, others do not experience the
same thing. I am 41 years old and slightly overweight, 205 lbs. 6 ft
2 inches tall. My ideal weight is about 185 - 190.

Any advice?

I would really go and see my doctor and learn what the real cause is rather
than guessing the most likely cause(s). It is a lot better to be a
medication taking bicyclist than an expired one.

I went and saw my doctor and found there were multiple things going on. My
doctor estimates for every Man he see in his office there are at least 15
time bombs walking around getting ready to explode.

Ben A Gozar <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

I would really go and see my doctor and learn what the real cause is rather
than guessing the most likely cause(s). It is a lot better to be a
medication taking bicyclist than an expired one.

I went and saw my doctor and found there were multiple things going on. My
doctor estimates for every Man he see in his office there are at least 15
time bombs walking around getting ready to explode.

Wow, excellent advice from everyone. I really appreciate all the
tips. Only with a lot of options are you likely to find the right
one. It is true that when I ride, afterwards my BP is very low. That
could be the vasodilation thing. That sounds very likely. Stress is
also a big factor right now. Also, not drinking something cool. My
water is always hot. Everyone I ride with down here in Alabama drinks
frozen water bottles and I don't. I will try the cooler water, some
Gatorade, and take it a little easier. When I make my appoint with
the doctor I will tell him my BP is dropping very much after a ride
and maybe even during and its making me dizzy and see what he says.
The only problem is, a lot of doctors don't like the idea of riding a
bike 30 miles at a time. They think you should just walk regularly or
something. That is not enough. Thanks for all the good advice and if
anyone has more ideas, keep em coming.

Quoted message said:

The only problem is, a lot of doctors don't like the idea of riding a
bike 30 miles at a time. They think you should just walk regularly or
something. That is not enough.

Around here, MD's are one of the prime groups doing the 400+ miles of Ride the
Rockies and other similar rides/activities.

You need to find another doctor, if they think 30 miles is too much! That is
incredible.

Are you sure about that?

http://members.aol.com/foxcondorsrvtns
(Colorado rental condo)

http://members.aol.com/dnvrfox
(Family Web Page)

Ben A Gozar said:

I would really go and see my doctor and learn what the real cause is rather
than guessing the most likely cause(s). It is a lot better to be a
medication taking bicyclist than an expired one.

I went and saw my doctor and found there were multiple things going on. My
doctor estimates for every Man he see in his office there are at least 15
time bombs walking around getting ready to explode.

Let me get this straight. Are you saying (duh) that _in_ every Man he sees
there are about 15 health problems the could go 'off' at anytime, or of
every 15 men he sees, there is one who has an obvious health risk, like
maybe severe undetected hypertension?

OK, re-reading, it must be the latter.

The question that I have to ask now, is -how- the hell he can make this
estimate? It sounds like someone using a 'Scare Tactic'.

There's no freakin' way this is a responsible statement for the MD to be
making, for one thing, and yeah, the average american male with their
propensity to smoke and drink and never get a check up is pretty obvious,
but to put it in those terms is just ridiculous.

I've been in the medical profession for 35 years and I'm telling you he
pulled this statement out of the wrong end of his stethoscope, and it is so
totally amorphous and broad, as to make no sense at all.

-B

(Dwayne) said:

Ben A Gozar <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

I would really go and see my doctor and learn what the real cause is rather
than guessing the most likely cause(s). It is a lot better to be a
medication taking bicyclist than an expired one.

I went and saw my doctor and found there were multiple things going on. My
doctor estimates for every Man he see in his office there are at least 15
time bombs walking around getting ready to explode.

Wow, excellent advice from everyone. I really appreciate all the
tips. Only with a lot of options are you likely to find the right
one. It is true that when I ride, afterwards my BP is very low. That
could be the vasodilation thing. That sounds very likely. Stress is
also a big factor right now. Also, not drinking something cool. My
water is always hot. Everyone I ride with down here in Alabama drinks
frozen water bottles and I don't. I will try the cooler water, some
Gatorade, and take it a little easier. When I make my appoint with
the doctor I will tell him my BP is dropping very much after a ride
and maybe even during and its making me dizzy and see what he says.
The only problem is, a lot of doctors don't like the idea of riding a
bike 30 miles at a time. They think you should just walk regularly or
something. That is not enough. Thanks for all the good advice and if
anyone has more ideas, keep em coming.

Dude, go to a sports medicine doc, and in addition, make sure that he's
treating the same kinds of clients, i.e. athletes, bike riders, joggers and
soforth and perhaps one that is an athlete himself. If you walk in his
office, despite what his specialty is and there's an overweight cigar
smoking guy, walk back out the door.

The best way is to get a refereral from someone at the local running shop,
which is often a nexus for this kind of information, or talk to some of the
other runners or bikers and find one with a successful experience.

Do NOT go to a GP, (although you might have to insist through your PCP that
you get a referral) and when you walk in have a name and phone number of
the guy you want to be referred to. Don't take no for an answer, b/c the
PCP loses a fee everytime he does a referral.

Good luck!
-B

"Badger_South" wrote:
(clip) Let me get this straight. Are you saying (duh) that _in_ every Man
he sees there are about 15 health problems the could go 'off' at anytime, or
of every 15 men he sees, there is one who has an obvious health risk, like
maybe severe undetected hypertension?
^^^^^^^^^^^^^
When I read it, I gave it a totally different interpretation than either of
the above: For every man that he sees in the office, he estimates there are
15 others with serious health problems who are not coming in, and could be
at serious risk.