Leg Cramps
I think there was a forum on this before but I couldn't find it. I received a sharp and extremely painful reminder of the issue a couple of weeks ago that left me hobbling around for a couple of days. I hadn't had any problems for a couple of years so it was out if the blue. Anyway, I have done my crash course on cramp avoidance and thought I might share it (again). Number one: stay warm. Get out of the water at the first shiver, muscle performance and coordination decline rapidly when shivering starts so you might as well go in. Assess your wetsuit. Is it really doing its job. Stepping up a grade (3/2 to 4/3) can double your time in the water before shivering starts. Number two: arch support. Ditch the thongs and the Converse. It makes a difference. Number three: warm up. No, not those pathetic static stretches on the high tide line that do the job (sorta) in summer. Think exercise bike, light weights and dynamic stretching. Number four: the evidence is weak for Magnesium supplements but what that means is that while they don't work for most people, you might just be one of the lucky ones.
Magnesium made all the difference for me - I put that down to boozing regularly.
yeah i used to get really bad cramps in toes and hammys etc and trial and error, start with magnesium chelate cause its the best .Potassium also,just got to see what your body needs.
Nothing worse than being in Bali say and as you take off you get a cramp in your leg and pearl and are now under water trying to swim up with a severe cramp can be real scary.I found you can drink too much water which washes the salts out of your body so be careful cause you can die from drinking too much water of all things.
Arch support, BB? Lately I've pretty much given up wearing shoes. Largely it was driven by laziness - I dont have to wear shoes to work so I dont - but then I was down the IGA the other day and a person I know commented that I'm always 'earthing' which makes the whole process of eschewing footwear sound quite spiritual. Gives it a nobility I hadn't considered, so I went Googling to find out what other facts could bolster my earthing argument and I read that it's actually quite good for your feet and posture.
Yet when I 'earth' there's no arch whatsoever, and hence no support.
Mind the toes, but I got this shot a while ago. A friend pointed out I was earthing and also googled it.
Must be good for ya :)
I get calf cramps too, when it's cold and I'm tired. Especially on roll-in type takeoffs where I arch my back and hence tense my calfs.
Re arch support, here's my $0.05: They just make your feet weak and flat, as they keep your arch muscles from doing what they're supposed to.
I started running steep Wellington hills in reasonably flat shoes (Inov-8), and I went from flat feet 284mm long, to strong arches and 277mm feet (I'm a skier, and boots are a science - that's how I know).
A colleague had plantar fasciitis and used orthotics. I gave him the same advice, and he's now pain free and running much better.
David Avocado Wolfe is into earthing??
Tomorow the brogues come out.
This is a good read ...Born to run..
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Born_to_Run:_A_Hidden_Tribe,_Superathlete…
Interesting simba but I would be a bit careful getting started on barefoot running! Maybe leave the 100km for week 3. More importantly I think runners' cramps are a different problem as they are linked to muscle fatigue. This is not an issue for surfers.
BB na my knees are too rooted these days but like Stu above i didnt wear shoes for years ...earthing.....until your knees start fukin up.Went off track there about the cramps.
Anyway i haven't had a cramp for a long time where as before it was every surf or even lying in bed ,so stretching,build up magnesium levels and for me potassium.......and as Freeride said above mag cream is good just rub it in or a bath .If you still get cramps take more mag ,you will end up with the runs if you take to much so just just bring the dose back.
Barefoot is good. It is thongs and flat soles that are the problem. If you can go barefoot so much the better but if you are on your feet or walking in shoes, arch support is the go.
once your cold the blood flow to areas like you feet and calves slows down and thus less oxygen to those muscles. oxygen deficit is a well known cause of muscle spasm.
A banana & water pre surf seems to work
The cold catches up eventually though
Yeah I eat a banana every day and drink lots of water. Hardly suffer from cramps unless a huge weekend of surfing and usually because of dehydration.
I used to get this as a grommet, probably due to a combination of dehydration associated with overfrothing. Hasn't happened for quite a while now though.
stretch the soleus(sp) muscle. stand near wall. foot back and bend knee to touch the wall. have hands flat against wall while having knee bent/foot flat. aim is to get toes up to 14 cms away from wall while bent knee still touches wall. very hard- i can get about 8-10 cms. obviously do each leg. This exercise enabled me to stay bodysurfing as it releases tension in calves and all the way up through the back. Hope it works for you, lifesaver for me. happy surfing.
Dave this stretch was recommended to me for treating plantar fasciitis. Works well
Gary, who loves to feel the burn, would consider that comment a sick burn to the earthers.
(Edit: This was supposed to be a reply to Udo's post about David 'Avocado' Wolfe)
I find that a regular stretch of the corpora cavernosa greatly reduces bodily tension and increases overall well-being.
Blowin, I should say we had guessed as much.....but that might be taken as an insult.
Dave. That stretch is now part of my warm up. Thanks
I always have a Pocari Sweat before a surf in Bali, works for me.
Apparently Pocari is Japanese for ball..........
No insult, mate.
The millions of soldiers , sailors , fifo workers and other individuals that don’t suicide annually will attest to it’s efficacy.
Had a major calf muscle cramp in the water today. Wave count was about average, surf session wasn't overly long, I didn't feel dehydrated, and water temps were around 25 degrees.
Only thing I seemed to have missed was eating a banana.
Agree with Magnesium and some Himalayan Salt in your water bottle or a few crystals under your Tongue.
Banana and salt was what i always used but yeah what simba n udo already said,add magnesium to the mix and you'll notice the difference
Ben could be electrolytes / hydration or a few other things but unless its a regular occurrence I wouldn't get to worried.
Thanks everyone, looks like I'll have to head down to Magnesium R Us sometime today.
Still a little tight this morning, it's amazing how it just suddenly hits out of nowhere, turning a pleasant surf session into an excruciating mission to get back in.
Weirdest thing of all - once I got to shore and stood on the sand, the muscle immediately contracted, like a button had been pressed.
Hydration probably..get a quality ORS, not a sports drink marketed as a rehydration drink. Also use iodised salt, most people are iodine deficient.
Also look to increase zinc intake. Some ORS will also have zinc as an ingredient. Coconut water for potassium, coconut also has electrolytes but other than potassium they are pretty low numbers.
At the risk of being lazy (who, me?), can you recommend a particular product?
Skratchlabs, or Pure sports nutrition you should able to get from a good bike shop. Drip Drops..(best imo).
Don’t get a sugar free one..sugar is needed to aid the muscle to take up the electrolytes.
A little bit of magnesium supplements can’t hurt. Notice BB saying the evidence is weak, but your body needs it for lots of things so taking a bit ain’t bad. Hydration certainly good, but no need to overdo it. Those 8 big glasses or bottles a day is not science.
Had to Google David Avocado Wolfe, never heard of him. First page has ‘activated charcoal’ as one of its main hits - that’ll tell me all I need to know about him.
Tend to get my cramps body surfing with flippers on. Apart from Dave’s recommended stretch, just standing with your toes on stairs and allowing your heels to drop stretches those calf muscles out as far as they will go. Probably need to hold on to a wall or rail while doing it, but it’s an easy one to do and you can take it as far as you like.
Shivering, in the surf! Don’t do that anymore, have learned how to turn that response off after reading up on Wim Hof. Mind you, Sydney winter water temps aren’t that bad.
I'd try and strengthen your calves rather than stretching batfink.
Cheers flow. Easy to strengthen and stretch. Stand on the stairs with toes on the end and heels out - pump up and down.
My calves are like granite. More likely a stretching issue for me, nearly always happens in my right calf, not left.
I get calf cramps too, when it's cold and I'm tired. Especially on roll-in type takeoffs where I arch my back and hence tense my calfs.
Re arch support, here's my $0.05: They just make your feet weak and flat, as they keep your arch muscles from doing what they're supposed to. https://www.surveyzop.com/wendys-lunch-hours/ https://www.surveyzop.com/
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