headaches after riding

willo1962

I tend to get headaches after a ride of about 30 to 40 miles, i use a hydration bp with a strong orange juice and about 1/2 tsp salt, also i have a bottle with water, so i will usually drink between 2 and 3 ltr, i dont think therefore it is de-hydration, i ride about 80/120 miles a week, anyone have any ideas?, i only eat a couple of bananas if i an out for 2 to 3 hrs

blorg

I have got headaches at times but have put it down to dehydration. Sounds like you are drinking plenty all right so that is unlikely. 2-3 hours a couple of bananas would probably be fine, I don't like the things much myself but would do a couple of cereal bars for that sort of ride. Of course it depends how fast you are pushing.

Others may have better advice- we were talking about this at the end of a ride on Sunday and apparently the location and type of the headache is important (not that I would know.)

AndyP

Its dangerous advice to be giving out when it comes to things like headaches (I'm not saying you are Blorg). If its a regular thing then get off to the doc and get checked out.

DirkVoodoo

Go see your G.P.

It does sound like you are dehydrated despite the amount you are drinking. Is your urine a very dark colour when you pass fluids later in the day?

Chips Lovell

If it persists, then you'd be best seeing a doctor.

One other thing to consider. Are you short or long sighted? Any chance you might be straining your eyes while riding? The reason I ask is that I wear contacts and for a while had a prescription that was too strong for me. Used to get headaches if I wore my lenses for long periods from constantly straining my eyes to get a better focus.

RobAMerc

I get them on long rides too - but I have come to the conclusion mine are a muscular problem, in that I get stiff in the shoulders and neck leading to my headache.

My headaches generaly disappear soon as I get off.

I have found that taking the time to regularly stretch your shoulders during a ride helps alot.

A doc visit will rest your mind if nothing else though.

arybvtcw0eolkf

Wow, this is weird.

I was just going to put together a similar thread!.

I'm just back in the saddle (four weeks now) after a few years off.

As I come from a sports background I'm aware of staying hydrated & diet, but this week I've got blinding headaches. I've also been steadily increasing my milage too.

Last night was the worse.

Cycled to and from work and nothing else as I had Judo training in the evening. My commute is (depending on the route I take) between 25-35km per day (total). I tried to stay hydrated and had kept my carb intake mderately high too.

Finished Judo, went home and felt the headache come on. But it got so bad that I woke during the night ad horrific pain (my OH wanted to call for a Doc).

But it subsided today, but now (I'm covering a night shift) and have only cycled 16kms on the way in (although at a fair pace since I'm using a heart rate monitor now) and in the last two hours the headache is coming on strong again.

I've had no colds recently, don't suffer hey fever and despite the Judo haven't received any bangs in the head.

So in my case I think its a matter of upping my fluid intake and dropping my caffeine intake (OP caffeine is a duretic so it might be worth looking at your consumption too).

stopped_clock

Hi, I'm new

Mairt wrote: »

So in my case I think its a matter of upping my fluid intake and dropping my caffeine intake (OP caffeine is a duretic so it might be worth looking at your consumption too).

Since you mention caffeine... I sometimes get headaches on the occasions when I give up coffee. Withdrawal, I think.

OP - could your headaches be caused by headgear? Hat or helmet too tight?

You could try rehydrating with something like nuun either during or after a spin. Might not help, since you're already adding salt to your drinks.

(Not that I'm a doc or necessarily know what I'm talking about - AndyP makes a fair point.)

blorg

stopped_clock wrote: »

I sometimes get headaches on the occasions when I give up coffee. Withdrawal, I think.

There is your problem. Why you would ever do this escapes me

Lilphich

GP's the way to go.

Just one thing though, It couldn't be muscular strain could it? Neck strain ect can cause headaches, essentially what a tension headache is.

If you are back in the saddle after a long lay off, it could be that.

I still recommend the GP though!

tunney

OP caffeine is a duretic so it might be worth looking at your consumption too).

Not a strong diuretic, only marginally stronger than water.

blorg

tunney wrote: »

Not a strong diuretic, only marginally stronger than water.

This is true- the amount of water in a cup of coffee means drinking one has a net hydrating effect.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/04/health/nutrition/04real.html

arybvtcw0eolkf

blorg wrote: »

This is true- the amount of water in a cup of coffee means drinking one has a net hydrating effect.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/04/health/nutrition/04real.html

Qouting from the same articule;

"THE BOTTOM LINE

Caffeine may not be as powerful a diuretic as it’s often said to be".

No definites there.

PeadarofAodh

Headaches are something I struggled through for a while with rowing. Going on the rowing machine and especially weights would really kill me. I tried a number of things - drinking more, getting more sleep, stretching etc. The thing that helped me most though was just relaxing the muscles around my upper back/shoulders/neck. I found that when straining I would tense up my jaw and these other areas. After making a conscious effort to relax these muscles I found the headaches eventually disappeared.

Try out a number of the suggestions here and give it a couple of weeks but if the headaches don't stop by then I'd definitely go see a doctor. Best of luck!

blorg

Mairt- there is plenty of other stuff out there dispelling the myth. It's a mild diuretic and does not cause dehydration. Just do a search. I drink coffee like there is no tomorrow (8-10 espressos before the W200, it was early in the morning for me) and have no problems with dehydration. I drink plenty of water too BTW, not just on the bike.

stopped_clock

Originally Posted by stopped_clock
I sometimes get headaches on the occasions when I give up coffee. Withdrawal, I think.

There is your problem. Why you would ever do this escapes me

I maybe should have used the past tense! The lesson's been learnt alright. The bean and I have reconciled our differences.

PeadarofAodh

blorg wrote: »

Mairt- there is plenty of other stuff out there dispelling the myth. It's a mild diuretic and does not cause dehydration. Just do a search. I drink coffee like there is no tomorrow (8-10 espressos before the W200, it was early in the morning for me) and have no problems with dehydration. I drink plenty of water too BTW, not just on the bike.

Being into nutrition I read a lot into this as well and multiple sources have proven that the dehydration caused by caffeine is completely cancelled out by the water you add to the coffee. So yes, the caffeine will cause you to lose a certain small amount of water, but at the same time you're adding say 150ml of liquid so it's more than made up for.

kenmc

Yes, coffee is definitely one of the most important meals of the day.
Beer is the other.

hunnymonster

I don't find dehydration a problem with coffee, but I do find the stimulation a pain as it affects the quality of my sleep. I've reduced dramatically my caffeine intake in the last 10 days and I've had all the headaches and tremors that you might expect but already I'm sleeping better and skin looks better already.

As for cycling headaches the 3 possibilities that come to mind for me are
1. hydration/electrolyte balance
2. helmet too tight &/or strain in neck/back etc
3. fear. If your route has a lot of descenting or traffic on it you might be concentrating so hard on not getting killed that you develop a headache.

But as has been said before, your brain is not something to mess about with, got to a doctor if you are concerned.

arybvtcw0eolkf

blorg wrote: »

Mairt- there is plenty of other stuff out there dispelling the myth. It's a mild diuretic and does not cause dehydration. Just do a search. I drink coffee like there is no tomorrow (8-10 espressos before the W200, it was early in the morning for me) and have no problems with dehydration. I drink plenty of water too BTW, not just on the bike.

Blorg, your putting in a lot of effort for a very small point. Without wishing to sound like a smart arse - I don't really care, 'me head is bloody killing me again.

OP, at this early stage and because I don't suffer headaches and I'm new to cycling I'm content to put it down to neck/shoulder strain. However if it continues into next week I'm off to my GP.

In the meantime I'll continue to cycle and drink buckets of coffee

blorg

Mairt, sorry to hear you have a headache. When I personally have had headaches on the bike it has been on very long cycles and almost certainly been dehydration due to my running out of water. Had neck pain a few years ago before I was used to the position. But this coffee will dehydrate you idea is floated about regularly and it is a myth, just trying to dispel that.

I believe headaches are also a symptom of caffeine withdrawal- so better keep on that coffee! Although I drink a lot of coffee I sometimes go without for several days (have run out at the moment) and I don't get any symptoms myself.

lukester

I got a bad headache after my first 70k + cycle a few weeks back, had it all the next day. I drank a good bit of water on the ride, but after that I started making a homegrown sports drink with some salts to bring with me, drank extra water before the cycle, topped up along the way, and tried to relax my neck and shoulders. Also did a bit of stretching of my neck on the bike; nothing radical, just adjusting position of my head, moving it down instead of holding it up all the time. Since then, I haven't had the headache re-occur. Did a bit of Googling and found a lot of stuff on 'exertion headaches'.
So for me, the answer was hydration, relaxing shoulders and neck, and some stretching. On a side note, I'm a coffee addict too, and all the advice I could find was also that the water added offsets the diuretic effect. As I drink espresso a lot I drink extra water to compensate.

dr.bollocko

THIS THREAD TITLE PROMISED MUCH MORE THAN IT DELIVERED!
Please change it to HEADACHE AFTER RIDING BICYCLE.

And good luck with the headache cures.