Exercising til you puke: Okay or not so okay?

JNick77

If you workout so hard that you puke, it's time to stop.

And puke.

Then start back up and finish your workout.

Mouthwash is optional.

I've never worked out so hard that I've puked, but I've come really really close sometimes. I've also worked out so hard I lost the ability to sweat. Those are fun days... Different people do different workouts. Some people push themselves in ways that test their body's limits. In some weird way, they find that acceptable, if not enjoyable. And as long as they're not injuring themselves, I'm never going to tell them no. Others refuse to reach anywhere near that point, and keep their workouts way lower on the difficulty scale. And that's fine too, if that's what they enjoy. Injuries happen throughout all levels of exercise, so I'm not buying into the idea that working out that hard is a recipe for injury. Hogwash if you ask me.

Enjoy!

i ALMOST said some very harsh things about the posts on this subject. But then i read this and it made me stop.. one person out of all of these said something smart.. and actually correct.

Puking due to intense workout happens very often. is this bad for you.. hmm nah.. are you going to injure yourself.. nope.. If you actually sit back and think about what you are doing when you workout you are actually doing more damage to your body then if you puke.. A muscle tear.. sounds horrible.. oh wait thats what we do every time we work out. interesting.. so if you happen to puke oh well.. keep going.. but i will say this. if you are just doing simple workouts to lose moderate weight or try to get in shape you should probably not puke.. if you are training for a marathon, or are an athlete, or something of this nature where you want to be the best you can be at all times.. so you are going to push past your limits because you have to break that mental barrier..puke away..

And then you go and post something stupid. Just as Niner said, it is rough on your nervous system and you do it too much and you're going to have issues. Puking absolutely happens sometimes but it's not something you should strive for or a goal and if you're puking on a regular basis from your training then you need to re-evaluate what the hell you're doing. You do not want to train yourself to puking, it's not good. Comparing a muscle tear to the trauma that occurs from lifting weights is a ridiculous analogy.

brandon0523

what do you when you lift weights.. you tear and break down your muscles.. how is that a horrible analogy.. hmmm.. in a 12 week camp i can almost promise i will throw up about hmm 10 times.. because i will push myself harder than ever before.. is it worth it.. **** yes. i have never once gassed during a fight. i have never once had to slow my pace. i have always pushed the pace and made the other person tired as hell.. and at 270lbs i have better cardio than most little folks.. IS it worth it.. **** yes. look at my pictures.. see me in the cage.. see what the ring announcer is holding in his hand.,.. It is my BELT..

Elizabeth_C34

Definitely not okay.

I would suggest doing a legitimate workout program (something like couch to 5k if you like running) and easing into it instead of pushing that hard. Be patient, and you'll get to your goals.

hesn92

I'm gonna go with a no on that one.

atsteele

I don't think vomiting should be a goal of exercise. Can it happen sometimes. Yes. But it should be avoided if possible. Vomiting can damage the teeth and esophogus.

Personally, if my kid had a coach that tried to make them vomit, I would remove them from whatever sport he/she was coaching. That's ridiculous.

nwhitley

Yep. The coach just wanted you to put your ALL into it. All my coaches were like this and my son's coach is like this. It's not necessarily that they want you to puke but you whatever sport you are doing- you should lay it all out there and not to hold anything back. If you finish running and feel like you could run more, than you didn't run hard enough.


Puking= not good.

Your coach in highschool did that (so did mine) to teach you discipline more than get you in shape. It's a mental thing (I CAN MAKE YOU PUKE, SO YOU BETTER MAKE YOUR FREE THROWS AND LISTEN TO ME TALKING IN THE LOCKER ROOM!!). And a stupid one, honestly.

I hear guys brag about "lifting until they want to pass out." This type of behavior is inane. If you are putting so much stress on your body that it reacts in such a bad way (puking, passing out) is NOT good for it. It doesn't mean you are a hardcore badass, it means you are pushing yourself harder than your body is physcially ready for. Which means you are stressing your body in a bad way (not to mention setting yourself up for injury).

Not cool. Not impressive. Not good.

I push myself, sure. But to the point where your body violently reacts is idiotic. As far as I am concerned, working out until you HATE your life means you are going to start HATING working out. Which means you are going to give it up.

Work as hard as you can work and still enjoy exercise and be proud of what you accomplished, not DREAD it.:flowerforyou:

trijoe

i ALMOST said some very harsh things about the posts on this subject. But then i read this and it made me stop.. one person out of all of these said something smart.. and actually correct.

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I would like to disagree with this comment. I think people saying "No Way Jose" are both smart, and correct, if that's how they enjoy working out. I think this is an individual decision. I've known people who train this hard, never get injured, and tend to be perfectly happy with their race day results. I also know people who refuse to train to this level, and are perfectly happy with their race day results. For me - and it's okay if I'm the only one who sees Life this way - the smart/correct decision is the one that works best for that person. That was the intent of my smart-alecky post.

In short, puke if you like getting to puke stage, or don't puke if you don't like getting that far.

Oh, and I totally agree with atsteele's comments about kids. As the father of 3 daughters, if I ever saw a coach pushing my children that hard, there'd be some problems. It's one thing when adults are willing do as they see fit. It's another thing when adults do things to kids that they don't want, don't need, and don't understand. Kids should have the right to decide what "trying your hardest" means to them, and not be subjected to somebody else's definition.

JNick77

Just catching up on some posts. What I was stating was not just my opinion but also the opinions of other professionals that train professional athletes for a living. Joe DeFranco specializes in getting potential NFL players ready for the combine and trains them once they start their career and that's just a portion of his client base. Here's a direct quote from Mr. DeFranco:

"Myth #3: The best indicators of a good workout are how tired you are after the workout and how sore you are the next day.

This is a myth my most dedicated athletes still have a tough time dismissing. Most hard-working individuals equate a good workout with being exhausted and sore. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had athletes say, "You didn’t even make me puke" after a workout. My response is usually, "I didn’t make you puke because I didn’t want to make you puke. Making you puke would be easy. Getting you stronger, faster and more flexible actually takes some work."

Puking is one of the most catabolic things you can do to your body. If your goals are increased muscular strength and/or muscular hypertrophy, you should do everything possible not to puke during your training!

Fatigue is another popular indicator people use to rate the productivity of their workouts. Remember that the goal of your training session should dictate how you feel after your workout. For example, if you’re going to perform a plyometric workout with the goal of improving your vertical jump, you shouldn’t be exhausted after the workout.

Actually, a properly designed plyometric workout should stimulate your neuromuscular system and you should feel better than when you started the workout. On the other hand, it’s good to be exhausted after a tough practice that was designed to get you in "game shape" for your given sport.

Finally, I’ve never read any research that links post-exercise soreness to strength gains, hypertrophy gains or improved athletic performance. Who the hell wants to be sore anyway? Think of DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness) as an unfortunate side effect of training, not a goal of training.

Remember that it’s easy for a coach to make an athlete tired, but it takes a true professional to get an athlete stronger, faster, more flexible and better conditioned."