I've suffered from severe leg muscle cramps since I was a kid. Last October (2011) while on a mountain biking trip to Moab, UT with my youngest son I stopped in at a well-stocked bike shop and noted they had a large display of vitamins, supplements, energy drinks, etc. I asked what they would recommend, if anything, for muscle cramps.
Three guys working there all came to where I was standing and recommended Sportslegs. Long story-short, I bought a bottle and now before I work out I take the recommended dosage. The impossible to believe news is that I have had only one minor leg cramp since October 4, 2011!!
This fall, if you suffer from leg or other muscle cramps after exerting a lot of energy, do yourselves a favor and order this product (I am NOT a company representative - I'm just a guy who found something that has changed my life and I want to share this with you). My workouts are harder, I can do more longer and I don't have excessive soreness the next morning...plus - NO CRAMPS!
http://www.sportlegs.com/about/welcome.asp
Thanks for the info....going to REI to buy some right now!
You might want to check for a potassium shortage. I was having calf and foot cramps every night. Started stocking up on bananas and no more cramps.
From my experience the biggest cause of cramps is dehydration. You absolutely MUST drink water. I see so many guys going up the mountain for the day with just a 16 oz bottle of water and then at night they wonder why they are all cramped up. I have a MINIMUM of 64 oz of water with me and sometimes more. Dehydration is one the biggest causes of fatigue as well. Your body needs alot of water. All the vitamins or supplements in the world won't help if you are dehydrated. This isn't to say that the supplements aren't required at times but make sure you are plenty hydrated before taking them.
I have developed some muscle cramp problems (much more severe than I've ever had in my life) since becoming an insulin-dependent diabetic, and found that they are inversely related to my intake of water and gatorade-type drinks. As my intake goes up, the cramping goes down.
QuoteOriginally posted by Pete McMiller:
From my experience the biggest cause of cramps is dehydration. You absolutely MUST drink water. I see so many guys going up the mountain for the day with just a 16 oz bottle of water and then at night they wonder why they are all cramped up. I have a MINIMUM of 64 oz of water with me and sometimes more. Dehydration is one the biggest causes of fatigue as well. Your body needs alot of water. All the vitamins or supplements in the world won't help if you are dehydrated. This isn't to say that the supplements aren't required at times but make sure you are plenty hydrated before taking them.
X2
Yep, dehydration is the main cause. Poor circulation will cause it also.
Drink more (water) and take Potassium like others have said. Unfortunately Coffee and alcohol deplete your body's
Potassium and Vitamin C BOth will help
lots of fluids and bananas are what I take when hunting or hiking....also if have to be still for extended periods on stand I do isometric exercises where you just flex muscles and use against themselves...minimizes movement but helps keep them from stiffening up.
from SERE school many years ago...learned that if you feel thirsty or start feeling effects...that you are already dehydrated....muscle cramps, vision impairment, elevated heart rate as body tries to cool down and if you stop sweating you are in serious trouble. If sweating you need to be drinking almost continuously to keep up with it....if you dont have to pee after drinking 16oz or more...then you are behind the curve already.
You can go weeks without food but only days without water...I think they told us 3 days without water and 3 weeks without food before your life is threatened....add extreme heat and sweating and it could be advanced.
Hydrate the night before and take a bottle to drink while on stand....save an empty to empty into if you are hydrated and the rest is waste. Just dont drink the yellow bottle later... LOL
Thanks for the tips gentlemen, but I've tried a lot of those with no success. Potassium, bananas, lots of energy drinks but nothing worked until I found Sportslegs. BTW, the only place I've found them is at bike shops or the internet. I'm not sure that REI has it...good if they do. I also bought a Camelback which I carry with me at all times.
Thanks for the tip, but I too suffered from cramps while mountain biking and after going to a Camelbak with more fluids available along the ride I rarely have them.
Hydration is key.
Supplements help. Bananas are my go-to supplement.
This summer I got dehydrated at a two day shoot. That night I cramped bad and it was suggested that I drink some pickle juice and let me tell you all, it worked great!!!
I have the same problem after a day of long walking, especially in the Winter when we tend to not drink enough water. I make it a habit of having a few quarts of sports drink (Gatorade)in camp if camping and if a day hunt I always stop at the first convenient store to get some Gatorade. No problems then. As an aside my doctor turned me on to a trick. Keep a bottle of Tonic water in the fridge and if you feel some tightening in your leg muscles take a good swig of the tonic water. Kills it almost instantly . Something to do with the Quinine in it. A caveat though. The FDA has come out against quinine drugs for leg cramps. I'm talking over the counter drugs. The amount of quinine in tonic water is small but it does the trick. It is still used in mixed drinks at bars.
You need Potassium in fairly large doses. I always carry a couple bananas with me when hunting all day we're climbing and moving.
Might not hurt to carry a few salt tablets and some Gatorade. Cramping will definitely put a "cramp" in your hunting.... :saywhat: :rolleyes:
A lot of this advice is very helpful. As already mentioned, if you are diabetic be even more careful as many of the drinks that give energy also can seriously spike your blood sugar. Then all the cramping, vision issues, and dehydration problems are greatly compounded. I can't think of anything that has affected my hunting more adversely than problems caused or aggravated by diabetes.
You got that right, Sam. I don't touch energy drinks unless they are carb-free. But those electrolytes are great for relieving normal cramps due to dehydration.
I am not diabetic, though it does run in the family. This has been an on-going issue since I was a teen (I'm 56 now). I've eaten up to 1/2 dozen bananas before activities, have taken just about every potassium supplement I can find, drank different drinks, carried 3-4 bottles of water at a time. Sometimes it helps, other times not so much. These cramps are pretty debilitating; I can recall standing along the highway for an hour until both my hammies and calf muscles relaxed. Hurts like h#ll!! Like I said, Sportslegs have been a life changer.
Yes water+++++Geezer check that drink to see if it has magnesium in it, I take a magnesium supplement to ward off leg cramps and plain water with NO sweetner or sugar.
For those that don't want to carry around bananas(Like me cause they would be a big destroyed MESS)....stay hydrated and take a half dozen of these two at a time through out the day.
(http://www.tradgang.com/upload/terry/potassium.jpg)
Luckily I found a drug store one afternoon and they saved me another sleepless night!!!
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QuoteOriginally posted by Geezer:
Thanks for the tips gentlemen, but I've tried a lot of those with no success. Potassium, bananas, lots of energy drinks but nothing worked until I found Sportslegs.
Just read this...
If that is the case.....and you are not talking about all these new 'energy drinks' and are talking about gator aid and you have this problem....I would go talk to my doctor....you may have other issues.
I put shoes on my horses yesterday drank lots of water. Fell a sleep in the chair woke up and started to get up and bad cramps both legs. I have been working with a personal trainer for about 2 months. I cramped while doing leg exercises. He gave me two packs of mustard from fast food place. He said eat this I did and the cramps quickly subsided. Had the wife grab the mustard last night and the cramps were bad. It took a minute or so but gone and never came back. He said they used the mustard trick in college football. He said cramps could put a guy out for the game. He said the mustard would get rid of the cramp and they did nt return. He saqid he thinks its the viniger in the mustard. Now I am not saying if you need to see a doctor dont and take mustard. But sometimes when doing extreme exurtion and doing the right things like drinking water and taking potasium and you get a cramp try the mustard it works!
Same problem here. Confirm the hydrate/hydrate/hydrate + potassium + magnesium.
The active ingredients in Sportslegs are a) Vitamin D, b) Calcium (from Lactate pentahydrate), c) Magnesium (from Lacate dihydrate) and, c) Lactate.
It's my understanding the lactate shuts off your bodies receptors to create additional lactose, which is the chemical that causes a lot of muscle stiffness. The calcium and magnesium are in forms that the body can metabolize easily. My doctor and I have spoken and he's run blood work on me and hasn't been able to pinpoint a problem. He did ask me to do several hard workouts without it to see if my body begins cramping again. I told him he was nuts.
Last post got it right your just inhibiting them production of lactic acid pretty much in the simplest form I can put it. Stay hydrated and taking enough vitamins is good but some people just over produce.
A good option is L Glutamine that can be found at any health shop comes in powder form and does wonders. I mix it in a Gatorade and I'm good to go.
Also the tonic is a great tip.
Don't forget getting sore is good and cramps mean you have pushed yourself too hard. If properly hydrated and supplemented and you still cramp it's a big sign of over training so be prepared for an injury.
Lactic acid is a by product of muscle contractions and in excess can cause soreness. Muscle cramps are from involuntary muscle contractions. I asked earlier if magnesium was in your sport drink because magnesium is a muscle relaxer and calcium is a muscle contractor. Sweating and excessive urinating can deplete your magnesium and you store very little, unlike calcium which you have great stores in bone. Magnesium can also be leached from your body by coffee, caffeine, sugar, alcohol. The best way to absorb it is with a 2:1 ratio of calcium to magnesium, that why they added the calcium to the sport drink. Sources of magnesium are raw almonds and green leafy veggies to name a few. Take a magnesium supplement in the form that is chelated to amino acids so it can ride piggyback on the amino acid and get across the cell membrane efficiently. It works great for cramps and relaxes your body for better sleep too.
Good advice, Gordy...I'll remember that and pick some up.