Feeling faint, sick and light-headed during class

[NocturnalRapport]

I have a karate class 3 times a week. Once in a church hall, once in a school hall and once in a proper fitness studio in a gym.

For some reason, I have become ill the past few times I have trained in the fitness studio. About 10/15 minutes into the class I start feeling clammy, sick and light headed and have to sit out before I literally collapse.

I have no idea why because at the other two places (church and school) I'm fine. Only difference between the places is that the gym has air conditioning and the other places don't.

What could be causing this? Everyone else in the class is fine, its just me. I don't want my sensei to think I'm doing it on purpose to skip line-work as it always seems to happen at the same time, then 10 minutes later after sitting down I feel fine again for the rest of the class.

I have a grading in two weeks and this is really bothering me. Thanks in advance.

[JohnC]

Your post implies all other things are equal. You might want to make sure that's true. That is, do you get the same amount of sleep the night before, do you eat the same kind of stuff the same amount of time before class, etc? Also, you might check if there's some sort of stress / anxiety that's only happening before / in that particular class. For example, your post implies that the fitness studio class is the last of the three classes you take per week. It's possible that you're overtraining and you're simply worn out by the end of the week, especially if you're not getting enough sleep and/or aren't eating properly.

If all that comes up OK, then I'd counsel that you probably should see a qualified doctor, as there are all sorts of things that could cause the symptoms you describe and long distance diagnosis probably isn't the best approach.

Hope this helps.

[NocturnalRapport]

Thanks for your reply.

The thing is, lately I havn't been able to keep to the 3 classes per week so really I'm only training twice a week.

This week for instance I trained on Monday (where I felt fine for the entire 2 hours). But couldn't make wednesday's class.

The only other difference is that the other two classes start at 6pm, the fitness studio class starts at 7pm but I couldn't see that making much of a difference?

I am anaemic and asthmatic however so perhaps this is contributing. Could the air conditioning be triggering my asthma? I just find it odd that it doesn't happen at the other classes, only the Friday at the fitness studio, despite being purposely built for exercise!

[JusticeZero]

How is your hydration? I've felt like that before if I don't get enough fluids.

[FitOrDie]

Being "purposely built for exercise" should hardly make a difference in a karate class. Unless there are mats on the floor, and weren't elsewhere, who would even know the difference?

Dude, you just said you are anaemic and asthmatic. Start there!!!

[joesteph]

We have a dan member who's asthmatic, and two lower belts (one an adult, the other still in school) who are the same. Firm rule by our teacher: have the inhaler where she can get it, such as right on her desk.

I take medications that rob me of my aerobic ability. I also have positional vertigo (so I'm more conservative with the spinning kicks). So long as my teacher knows, there's nothing held against me. Other students sometimes see me take a breather to continue, or not do as many reps of an exercise, and think nothing of it.

Today I had self-defense JuJitsu. Sensei mixes cardio and other exercises in with the techniques. I was up front with him and he just told me it was no problem, just do what I can. Just today, I excused myself to the rest room and sat for a bit to catch my breath. Sensei called to me if I were all right, I answered that I was, and a moment later was back on the floor. I even joked about it after class with a couple of fellow students, that so long as I was able to answer, they knew I wasn't dead.

I think your question about the air conditioning is a good one to double-check with your doctor, Nocturnal Rapport. If you take medication for these conditions, make sure your instructor knows. He has the right to know because, as your teacher, he's responsible for you as his student.

Just think to yourself that everybody has something that's an issue. Some are more apparent than others, but it may be due to the environment that they are made apparent.

[Traymond]

I have asthma, and an attack should not make you clammy or light headed. If anything, it will make your chest hurt and your lungs feel about to explode, but it sounds like you have vertigo or perhaps the AC is your problem. Is your Karate class aerobic or anaerobic?

[Vladko]

-Bad air circulation in the studio

-Dehidration

-Did not eat for too long or started working out too soon after meal

Just the possible causes.

[Shizentai]

I am anaemic and asthmatic however so perhaps this is contributing. Could the air conditioning be triggering my asthma? I just find it odd that it doesn't happen at the other classes, only the Friday at the fitness studio, despite being purposely built for exercise!

I know exactly how you feel. I'm anemic & asthmatic myself. I've passed out doing almost anything you can think of from karate to stepping off of a bus as a bus stop (which was kind of painful actually).

1. Is your anemia an iron deficiency or a different type of anemia? I ask because the situation you're describing with the clammy hands and lightheaded feeling sounds like me when I forget to take my iron supplement. Maybe you should tell your doctor about these symptoms and ask him/her about the quantity of iron you are taking (if any) to treat your anemia. When I had those symptoms I upped my iron intake and I felt much better.

2. As for the air conditioning, those do bother my allergies which can lead to my asthma flaring up, but if you're having an asthma attack you should feel a little bit of airway constriction right? Do you find you're short of breath? If so, it could be either your anemia or asthma, or even both working together maniacally against you. This is a big problem for me sometimes.

3. Another possible reason you only have problems at that facility might be because they may train you harder when you're there. I know it sounds silly, but when I'm training on a real wood floor classes are usually MUCH faster paced and difficult, even when the instructor goes over the same techniques. I think a nice clean floor makes people more confident with their footing so instructors don't feel bad about tearing them to shreds with moving more across the dojo.

4. Also, last but not least, we anemics need to eat regularly, especially when we exercise (though I'm sure you're aware of this). I like to eat a medium-sized meal about 2 hours before class so that I'm full of energy by the time I train. Drink a lot of water throughout the day too, not just before and after class.

I have passed out due to many different combinations of the above factors. Though your situation I'm sure is very unique I hope this may be of some use to you.

[Inya shaolin]

I don't know if I'm anemic or not, but I've gotten the same kind of sickness every time I went to lessons for the last few months. I've recently become a vegetarian, so my protein intake is a bit less, and I get dehydrated easily. I would say that if you're feeling faint frequently in lessons, bring a type of sugary energy drink, that'll help with anemia. Otherwise, make sure your diet includes a lot of iron and protein, and get lots of sleep. If you feel dizzy during a lesson, make sure not to lock your knees while standing. You can bend over to get more oxygen in your head, or try sitting/lying down and elevating your feet for extreme faintness. Another thing: if your vision starts to blacken or get overly sparkly, sit down fast. That is a sign of oxygen deprivation to the brain, it means you'll be falling over soon.