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Leg cramps after cold day in bush, anyone?

deep tissue massage to your hamstrings quads and adductor muscles. do u know where on your leg your knotting? is the skin there resistant to being moved? if so you have chemicals in your muscle(buildup) causing a trigger point and not a cramp. cramps and trigger points are resolved through massage. also drink tons of water
 
also if you do stretch your leg w a trigger point active it can and will exacerbate it causing you to cramp, so please get a 2 hour massage w a deep tissue therapist- this will open you back up so you can safely stretch the rest out.
 
Now I'm sorry I spoiled the fun by fixing the title! :)

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I wake up with leg cramps, rarely now, but it happens. Dehydration is a big cause, and electrolytes are important if you have to rehydrate a lot.

Stretching is always a good idea, before cramps set in. If you're out walking in the cold, you may be moving around flatfooted. Stretching by rising up on your toes and then pulling the toes upward will prevent problems later.

(Same thing on long airline flights -- stretch the legs periodically.)

Massage is a great idea except that bundled up against the cold makes it harder to do and almost impossible for cramped feet with boots on.
 
I would wake up with those leg cramps and just want to scream. One day my brother told me about the bar of soap thing. I just laughed it off but a couple nights later, I thought what do I have to loose by trying it. I did, never have had a leg cramp again. If I do, I check and sure enough the soap has fallen out from under the sheet.:confused:
 
Despite proper hydration and abundant electrolyte suplementation, I get cramps often following strenuous exercise. A "Tums" tablet or two provides prompt relief. Must be a calcium issue in my case at least. BTW, the maximum amount of potassium permitted by the FDA in a single dose of a supplement is 3% of the RDA (High potassium intake can precipitate cardiac arrythmias). I doubt you can endanger yourself by eating too many bananas though.
 
Neanderthal said:
I doubt you can endanger yourself by eating too many bananas though.
Click to expand...

My doctor told me to lay off them because of the calorie content. I'm diabetic. But if you're on a long hike on a cold day, that caloric bonus plus the potassium is ideal.
 
My father gets bad leg cramps as well. His "cure" for it is very effective. He mixes up a concoction of: 1 cup Apple Juice, 1 cup Grape juice, 1 cup water and 1 cup Apple cider Vinegar in a jar and keeps it in the fridge. It doesn't taste all that great but it really does work. Of course the apple and grape juice and water is just to cut down on the taste of the vinegar but you usually only need one shot of the stuff to cause the cramp to let up.

I had a bad cramp one time that I tried to massage out for 7 or 8 minutes aand he gave me a shot of this stuff and it was gone in less than 30 seconds
 
Although the typical cramps are in the calf muscles, Cramps are discussed in sports forums
occasionally. I have not seen the ultimate scientific-research-based answers. If any of you
have found the research, link here.

As here, answers center around hydration, salt (sodium chloride), potassium, calcium,
and lactic acid buildup.

Pure table salt has worked for me. But I also have added potassium after the Gatorade
revolution. Gatorade itself is way too strong for me.

Milk in evening, seems to help me, which seems contrary to lactic acid theory.

Your body may not be able to take-in the supplements that you need. Your stomach
may rebel, so take them as you can tolerate them.

The above mentioned, all juice solution, sounds wrong because there is too much
potassium and not enough sodium, but I will try it sometime.
There's so much we think we know.

Cut back on your work-out and keep in shape year-around. Take easier routes.
 
I'm no expert, but I've been active for years, since middle/high school football, heavy labor jobs after that, now a lot of "mountain" biking (or as close to mountain biking as it gets around here). Based on my experience, appropriate water intake is key- and not necessarily DURING excersize, but the day (or days) before to ensure adequate fluid levels in the body. During two-a-day practices in high school, the rule of thumb was that if your urine wasn't clear you should be drinking more water. While that was a little excessive, it definately prevented a lot of people from having heat issues.

Of course, more than just hydration is important (after all, water toxicity does exist!). One must also maintain adequate electrolyte levels, as mentioned above. While this is not exactly a simple balancing act, a proper diet with adequate fluid intake will go a long way, as will trail snacks like fresh fruits or those fancy energy bars (or the even fancier gels and such).

Myself, I don't get much fancier than eating a good meal, making sure to drink plenty of water and carrying a cliff bar or two.
 
Heat therapy for immediate relief. I had the same thing happen before, it was a pretty strenuous hike up fairly steep terrain up to a lake, then after walking around the lake for a while and letting my muscles cool down, on the way back down my quads began cramping badly.

What I did was take two(one for each leg) of those disposable handwarmers, place them right where the cramps were, then wrap them onto my legs with kerlix and tape. After a couple of minutes, the heat kicked in, and relieved the cramping, much better than I expected it to. I was able to walk out with pretty much no discomfort or cramping, except when the warmers slipped and I had to re-tape them. If you spent a little bit more time taping them in place than I did it wouldn't be an issue.
 
Thank you for the posts. I would usually get the cramps after deer hunting and sitting in the cold. Your recommendations will be tried.
 
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