problem...

xgriffin

woke up in the middle of a night with what can be described as a very nasty cramp in my left calf.

In the morning this is still VERY sore and it is going to be hard to ride. however i have no choice and will have to push through the pain, 2 ibuprofens and abit of ice..

Anyone know why this happened and how i could stop it?

Thanks

prj45

I get night "terror" cramps occasionally, they are quite horrifically painful and if I don't wake up soon enough to deal with it I'm sure I can hear my muscles ripping as me and my missus frantically massage it to stop me screaming the street down.

Still, get out on the bike, if you have ripped any holes then working on them can only make then grow back bigger and stronger!

ris

i used to get nigth cramps after playing rugby when i was (much) younger. old wives tales or not i did find that eating a banana after excercise / going to bed helped a lot.

hope it isn't too sore today!

sc999cs

Glad I'm not the only one. In my case it also seems to be seasonal and only in my right calf and occurs even if I've been off the bike for a while. No idea what causes them although this site has lots of information about cramps. Only effective cure I've found is stretching the muscles again, perversely cycling reduces the pain for me.

Steve C

girv73

I get those night cramps too, usually in my calves but also in my feet sometimes. Sometimes I wake up in agony, sometimes I get out of bed the next day and fall down when my leg gives way. I can't determine any pattern to it !

Next day I'm stiff and sore, no surprise. I find a bit of gentle stretching helps and I usually don't cycle.

lost_in_thought

I would recommend the banana, potassium deficiency can cause cramps, and make sure you're well hydrated and you've got your salts in order. Maybe have a swig of an isotonic drink or similar - don't go overboard though or it'll keep you up!

Interestingly, when I used to get night cramps when swimming a lot (about 20hrs a week), they gave me quinine tablets, so perhaps a G&T!

Also, stretch out your calves. Ibuprofen won't help, but paracetamol or a similar blocker might.

Littigator

lost_in_thought wrote:

I would recommend the banana, potassium deficiency can cause cramps, and make sure you're well hydrated and you've got your salts in order. Maybe have a swig of an isotonic drink or similar - don't go overboard though or it'll keep you up!

Interestingly, when I used to get night cramps when swimming a lot (about 20hrs a week), they gave me quinine tablets, so perhaps a G&T!

Also, stretch out your calves. Ibuprofen won't help, but paracetamol or a similar blocker might.

Potassium levels make a difference so as LiT suggests a banana can sort this. Also I always have a tonic water before racing which helps massively as I realyl suffer with cramps in both calfs when I'm pushing quite hard.

biondino

Do you drink a lot of booze? I find I am much more likely to get night cramps if I've been drinking.

lost_in_thought

Littigator wrote:

Also I always have a tonic water before racing which helps massively as I realyl suffer with cramps in both calfs when I'm pushing quite hard.

But the gin is what makes it FUN!

Fun aside, the quinine is indeed in the tonic, so the gin could be dropped...

Surf-Matt

Tonic keeps mozzies at bay too

Nick6891

a ice cold bath is always recommended for preventing cramp