Muscle Cramps
Muscle Cramps
Anyone who has experienced a muscle cramp can attest to the fact that it can be quite painful. Muscle cramps occur when muscles involuntarily contract and cannot relax. The skeletal muscles (those over which we have voluntary control) are most prone to cramping. Unfortunately, they are extremely common. Almost everyone (one estimate is about 95%) experiences a cramp at some time in their life. Cramps are common in adults and become increasingly frequent with aging. However, children also experience cramps.
Causes
The exact cause of muscle cramps is unknown, but many experts believe it is related to poor flexibility, doing a new activity, or muscle fatigue. Other factors associated with muscles cramping are exercising in the heat, dehydration, and electrolyte depletion. Cramps are more common during exercise in the heat because sweat contains fluids as well as electrolytes. Athletes are more likely to get cramps in the preseason because the body is not in shape so it is easier for it to become tired. Cramps often develop near the end of intense or prolonged exercise, or the night after.
Prevention
There are two main ways to prevent muscle cramps: avoiding dehydration and stretching. You want to drink plenty of liquids everyday. Six glasses of water or other liquid is the recommended amount. Fluids help your muscles contract, relax, and keep muscle cells hydrated and less irritable. You want to drink fluids regularly before exercise and you want to replenish lost fluid during exercise at regular intervals. You want to stretch before and after you use any muscle for an extended period of time. If you tend to have leg cramps at night, you will want to start stretching right before you go to bed.
This is an example of a calf stretch. It helps prevent your calf muscles from cramping if done correctly.
Treatment
Cramps usually go away on their own after anywhere from 30 seconds to 15 minutes or longer. There are a few tips to speed up the “healing” process though. You want to stop the activity that caused your muscles to cramp, stretch and rub it out as soon as you can, and to apply a cold or a heat patch to the affected area. There is also one unscientific way that many people swear by. It is to pinch the tissue just above your upper lip, just under your nose, until the cramp goes away. Again, there is no scientific explanation why this works, I just thought it was interesting.
Dr. T.w. Motchel said,
June 16, 2008 at 5:09 am
One of the leading causes of muscle craps is a magnesium deficiency. I just got done reading a great article on the topic called “Calf Injuries and Magnesium Deficiency,” that I would suggest