Question of the day: why do my legs cramp up during a workout?

Cramping is a very common phenomenon for professional athletes. Many have experienced this problem while working out in the gym or on the treadmill. But what if one day the cramp reminds you of itself while swimming in open water or in the middle of a marathon distance? Together with TV doctor, expert Alexei Bezymyanny, we managed to understand the causes and consequences of this phenomenon.

Why does the legs cramp up?

“There can be several reasons here. Poor stretching or, on the contrary, overtraining. If a person overtrains, muscle fatigue is formed and muscle spasm occurs, which is accompanied by a painful symptom. Usually, the lower leg cramps. Another reason is a lack of potassium and magnesium. Also, cramps during running can occur due to improperly selected shoes. You should choose shoes according to your running style and your own sense of comfort”.

If during training you feel that your leg muscles harden and there is a sharp pain in the same place, it means that you have a cramp.

Emergency treatment for cramps

– As soon as you feel pain, immediately stop the load. Exercise through force in this case will not bring relief.
– Pull on your big toe, the muscles will thus stretch, and the cramp will stop.
– If the cramps during training affect the abs, lie down on a flat surface and pull back behind the straightened arms.
– If the cramp is in the thigh muscles, stretch while bending the leg at the knee and pulling the leg back toward the buttocks.

What should I do after the pain syndrome has passed?

– Do not continue your workout immediately after the spasm has passed. The relaxed muscle should be allowed to rest for 15-20 minutes, otherwise the cramp may recur.
– Drink enough water (sometimes dehydration can be the cause of a cramp).
– If the pain syndrome is gone, but the muscle remains tense (“rocky”), it is better to stop training and give a light massage to the muscle.

How to avoid cramps?

– Before each workout, do a warm-up (5-10 minutes), end the workout with stretching (10-15 minutes).
– Include in your diet foods rich in calcium, sodium, potassium and magnesium. You can take a course of vinamines: “Rehydron”, “Hydrofit”, “Asparkam”, “Diacarb” – all of them replenish potassium levels.

“See if your shoes rub off while running. On the side on which it rubs off, there is a twisting of the pelvis or improper connection of the hip joint. If this is the case, you should see a chiropractor. If you continue to run with the defect and in the wrong style, you can’t avoid cramping and leg separation.”

Revolutionary tips

Nobel Prize-winning chemist Rod McKinnon suggests that to get rid of cramps, you should drink a special spicy drink before training. He justified it by the fact that cramps often occur due to nervous overstrain.

To regulate excessive neuron movements in the body, he suggests drinking a mixture of cayenne pepper (1/2 teaspoon), lemon juice (1 teaspoon) and a glass of cold water before or during a workout. You can also prepare different drinks containing other spicy foods: ginger, cinnamon, pepper blends.