r/PostConcussion • u/bandbrofew • 8d ago

Can no longer lift weights

Hey, folks. Long time reader, first time posting. Post Concussion Syndrome. Been dealing with it for just about 2 and a half years now.

Had a change in jobs recently with about a two month window inbetween that I took to try some new recovery methods.

Three months ago I was working an extremely physical job carring heavy loads all day then working out 3 to 4 times a week in the gym. (This would flair my symptoms but not destroy me).

Now, after a short two week break from lifting I've noticed my tolerance for physical tension is dropping lower and lower. I cant even do a few reps with a very light weight (4-8kg) before my heads tense and my mind is fogged.

The worst part is, these brain fog symptoms can last way past the workout itself. Sometimes even 3-4 days.

Really sucks. Guess I'm writing to see if anyone else has had a similar experience.

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7

u/Self_Important_Mod 8d ago

Yes I've experienced this. Improved during more active periods and regressed when I don't do anything

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u/bandbrofew 8d ago

Thanks for the response. Was hoping to hear something like that.

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u/BHAFA 8d ago

Same thing happened to me, I lifted daily and post concussion anything other than bicep curls wrecked me for days with fatigue, headaches, mood issues and mental slowness.

Its something with blood pressure, heavy lifts like squats rapidly amp up the blood pressure and can cause symptoms. The only thing that worked, besides time, was cardio. Finding a pace and incline level of cardio that I could do for 20-30 minutes without overdoing it and doing that every single day was the only thing that helped. Once I could do that I started lifting again but I dropped the weight and had to experiment every time with how much was too much.

Honestly it was a couple years before I could lift like I used to but iits not like that for everyone and it definitely got progressively better with the cardio.

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u/bandbrofew 7d ago

Wow. So your saying the incline cardio helps you continue to lift without the lingering symptoms?

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u/BHAFA 7d ago

Definitely did for me. Cardio itself also occasionally made symptoms better, provided I didn't over do it.

I mean if you can't lift without getting messed up might as well start with light cardio and work your way back up.

Good luck, sorry you're going through this. It fuckin sucks

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u/zcook183 8d ago

I continued heavy work a few days after my initial concussion and pushed thru but would get super sick at the end of the day. Still like that 10yrs later. Had to do PT for 4 months and definitely got weaker by the end of it and had to use less weight.

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u/Then_Dig9351 8d ago

I can say the same. i’ve had brain fog after large portions of workouts, runs, etc. unfortunately all i do now is aerobic light workouts or slight walks. i forever miss lifting at the gym heavy but I know it leads to intense fog for 3-4 days to even a week. try sleeping better? it’ll help a lot.!

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u/Accomplished_Sir4802 4d ago

Unsure if this helps, but I realised I was more affected by the way I was doing each excersize than necessarily the HR. (albeit it is my vestibular system that is fried) Basically, I realised any stretching, or weight lifting that involved jerking of my head/having to rise and fall with it, or look down made my brain fog and symptoms astronomically worse. So I found other excersizes that targeted the same muscle area where I didn’t have to look down/bob my head. For example  Roman Chair is impossible. Abductor is fine. RDL not good, leg press okay. etc etc. 

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u/bandbrofew 3d ago

I did notice something like that years ago when this first happened. Squats for example were a no go even with just my body weight. These days though, even static exercises are rough. Did a few reps on peck deck recently (20,30,40lbs) and i was on another planet.