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Post by bikerXJ on May 10, 2007 1:07:08 GMT -5
I occasionally get cramps in my calf while I am sleeping (once every couple of weeks). I'll wake up cringing in the middle of the night because the pain is so great. This seems to occur as I ride more and as intensity increases.
Is there anything I can do to prevent this from happening? I eat fairly healthy and usually eat a banana everyday. Maybe I am just unlucky?
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Post by YellowLemondTed on May 10, 2007 6:50:06 GMT -5
The good old charley horse. I've had a few. Try and make sure you're plenty hydrated. Cramping can be affected by poor hydration. Try stretching your calves regularly by standing with just your toes and ball of your foot on a ledge and lifting yourself all the way up, then slowly lower yourself all the way down. Here's a little link to give you some information on them. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charley_horse
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Post by Wrenchmeister on May 10, 2007 7:19:38 GMT -5
I have this problem regularly too. It hurts. The things that have helped me are:
1) proper hydration 2) potassium supplements 3) stretching 4) when you're actually having a leg cramp, instead of trying to relax or massage the muscle, try the thing on the page Ted referenced which says "Cramps in the calf muscle can be defused by outstretching the leg, pushing the heel downward, and pointing your toes toward your head." I've had good luck doing this, although the sensation is hard to describe. For me it involves simultaneously lifting the toe, and intentionally tensing the calf muscle. As you relax the muscle, the cramp often goes away with it. Don't do it with your toe pointed down. It makes it worse.
More info from elsewhere in Wikipedia on muscle cramping:
Nocturnal leg cramps are involuntary muscle contractions that occur in the calves, soles of the feet or other muscles in the body during the night or (less commonly) while resting. The duration of nocturnal leg cramps is highly variable with cramps sometimes only lasting a few seconds and other times several minutes. Soreness in the muscles may remain for some time after the cramp ends. These cramps are more common in older populations but may happen to anyone. They can happen quite frequently in teenagers and in some cases while exercising at night. Nocturnal leg cramps can be very painful especially if dehydrated.
The precise cause of these cramps is unclear. Potential contributing factors are believed to include low levels of certain minerals (magnesium, potassium, calcium and sodium), dehydration and prolonged sitting. Less common causes include more serious conditions or use of drugs.
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Post by cujo on May 10, 2007 8:22:38 GMT -5
Night leg cramps have also been linked to emotional stress. Which is also linked to Calcium and Magnesium depletion.
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Post by Vespa on May 10, 2007 8:41:59 GMT -5
Hydration/flexibility -- all that stuff helps. I find that I get calf cramps on the bike when my training intensity and duration exceeds my fitness level -- meaning it's a sure sign I need to ride more often and ride longer to finish the kind of ride I'm doing without my calves cramping at the end. Say -- it doesn't help with the cramps -- but if you shave your legs, it's cool to watch the calf muscles seize up when they cramp. They must be very close to the surface, as far as muscle tissue goes... Doesn't take much to fascinate me... ps -- if you notice your post was modified by me, it was an accident. I thought I was proofreading my own post and quick-fixed an insignificant typo/misspelling, and then realized it was yours, not mine. Sorry!
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Post by BetaRider on May 10, 2007 8:58:20 GMT -5
Leg cramps are a problem I have dealt with daily, in the past mostly at night. As a cross trainer in weight training/road biking, these activities do not always complement each other. In fact, conditioning my leg musles into arobic workouts after years of anarobic training, has been quiet a challenge often resulting in severe cramps.
My chiropractor recomended calcium/magnesium supplements which have worked noticeably. He also stated that a diet high in meat robs the body of calcium.
In addition to the supplements, I now stretch after each weight training session (after years of neglect). I still experience leg cramps but not as frequently at night, which I contribute to stretching. As an added bonus, my bike, which I seemed to be a little stretched out on initially, now is fitting better all the time.
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Post by bikerXJ on May 10, 2007 10:56:29 GMT -5
Night leg cramps have also been linked to emotional stress. Which is also linked to Calcium and Magnesium depletion. Hmm, I might have more problems that I initially thought! Thanks for the info everybody! I'll have to try drink more during the day and maybe try some of those supplements.
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Post by Nikki Alexander on May 10, 2007 19:36:57 GMT -5
It's really not a big problem, they're all linked to one another. A lot of ATCs give their athletes potassium supplements if they have consistent cramping. Stretching (ah, this again) lightly after a moderate warm up will help, as will a nice stretch after all physical activity. Cramping also happens when [that stuff that builds up in your muscles, i've drawn a blank, school is over] is left there. It goes away when you exercise again. If you have constant exercise you shouldnt get them as frequently, however there are those people that get these cramps no matter what. It's just your muscle contracting hardcore, it hurts, I wake up with it a lot when I am not exercising consistently.
Sorry it's happening, try what has been posted above, I am sure I've just reiterated it. Hope it gets better. It's not a big deal, just more... annoying than anything.
And Vepsa- it is quite fascinating to watch muscles tense up. I watch it a lot [in class] in my left arm, as I had a bad injury a long long time ago and I still have muscle problems sometimes. It's pretty cool. If you every get muscle cramps, see if you can find it!
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Post by Nikki Alexander on May 10, 2007 19:44:30 GMT -5
Oh PS my worry about stretching you calves on a ledge is that since you are holding up your body weight, you are actually contracting the muscle, so you are pulling at a contracted muscle. If you want to stretch your calves always sit down, then you are getting the elasticity in your muscle. Otherwise, you're just going to hurt yourself, or get hurt exercising. Also, the ledge stretching puts a lot of strain on your achilles tendon. With every wrong stretch you put on this tendon, it slowly weakens, very slowly. But one day, the right strain on it will make it snap, and from a friend who's had this problem, it is a kick in the butt to rehab. I guess Athletic Training did me some good... If I remember correctly.
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Post by bikerXJ on May 12, 2007 13:44:22 GMT -5
Thanks Wrenchmeister! I got a cramp in the car and I did that thing where I pointed my toes upward. I slowly eased my toes down and the cramp went away without the pain. Genius!
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Post by Vespa on Jun 19, 2007 9:36:15 GMT -5
From velonews.com/train/articles/12369.0.html:Salt tablets Dear Monique, I use electrolyte tablets pretty liberally to prevent cramping. In your column on muscle cramps you seem to suggest that their use should be a last resort, and then only in a limited dose. What's the downside of taking electrolyte tablets? Thanks, Bart Dear Bart, Electrolyte tablets can definitely be used during training and racing if you struggle with muscle cramping that responds to electrolyte supplementation. However, I would suggest that you definitely use a higher sodium sports drink when training and racing and try working with that first as an effective and convenience method of higher electrolyte replacement during training. Because adequate fluid intake is also closely tied to preventing muscle cramping, drinking adequate amounts of a higher sodium sports drink can also go a long way to curb the cramping. These sports drinks often provide higher amounts of potassium, calcium, and magnesium as well. Once you have reached a plateau in how much fluid you can comfortably consume to minimize the sweat loss deficit, you can determine what your sodium intake may be per hour. It is possible that you can consume anywhere from 600 to 1200 milligrams per hour. Unlike your fluid losses, it is really not possible to determine what your sodium losses are per hour other than in the laboratory setting. Of course salt marking on your training clothing can indicate that you are a salty sweater. So if these higher sodium sports drinks are not adequate to replace your sodium losses, you can add electrolyte tablets/supplements to the mix. Many tablets/supplements contain not only sodium, but the other electrolytes as well. Since the amount that you should consume to replace electrolyte losses is still not clear, you can add in electrolyte tablets/ supplements as needed to prevent a decline in performance, low levels of blood sodium, or in your case, muscle cramping. The amount of sodium in one tablet of products can vary widely, ranging from 100 mg to 500 mg. Sweat sodium losses can range greatly from 400 to over 1000 milligrams per liter of sweat. You can determine your sweat rate and then try to replace sodium at a reasonable level between the high sodium sports drink and salt/electrolyte tablet. Generally for a very salty sweater, consumption of over 1000 mg per hour can be met with a carbohydrate electrolyte beverage and a salt tablet. Are there any dangers to over-supplementing- yes, possibly. If you over consume sodium and don't take these products with adequate fluid, you could possibly risk some gastric irritation and upset. Sodium tablets should always be consumed with fluid, and "buffered" products are also available. Over-supplementing also provides no performance benefits. But you do need to consume enough sodium during exercise to prevent an excess of sodium loss through sweating which can lead to low blood sodium levels and in some susceptible cyclists, muscle cramping. Monique
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Post by 1yellowtire on Jun 19, 2007 12:01:43 GMT -5
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