Causes of leg cramps
1. Cold stimulation. For example, exercising in a cold environment in winter. Insufficient preparation activities; swimming in low temperature in summer can easily cause leg cramps. If you don’t cover the quilt at night, the calf muscles will be stimulated by the cold. The cramps will make you wake up with pain.
2. The muscle contracts too fast continuously. During strenuous exercise, the whole body is in a tense state, and the leg muscles contract too quickly. The relaxation time is too short, the local metabolite lactic acid increases, and it is difficult to coordinate the contraction and relaxation of the muscles, thereby causing calf muscle spasms.
3. Excessive sweating. Exercising for a long time, exercising a lot, sweating a lot, and not replenishing salt in time. Losing a lot of fluids and electrolytes in the body. Accumulation of metabolic wastes. The blood circulation in the muscles is not good, and spasms are prone to occur.
4. Excessive fatigue. The calf muscles are most prone to fatigue when traveling long distances, mountains, and high altitudes. Because every time you ascend, one foot supports the whole body weight, and the muscles of this leg will require six times the force of the human body weight to lift the foot. When it is fatigued to a certain extent, spasm will occur.
5. Calcium deficiency. In the process of muscle contraction. Calcium ions play an important role. When the calcium ion concentration in the blood is too low, the muscles are easily excited and spasm. Adolescents grow rapidly and are prone to calcium deficiency, so leg cramps often occur.
6. Poor sleeping posture. For example, if you lie on your back for a long time, press the quilt on your feet, or lie on your stomach for a long time, so that your feet touch the bed, forcing certain muscles of the calf to be in a state of absolute relaxation for a long time, causing muscle “passive contracture”.
7. Frequent and frequent occurrence may be related to vascular disease.
What about leg cramps?
What should I do when I have a calf cramp? Depending on the cause, take the following different countermeasures, which can quickly relieve the cramp and relieve the pain. When a cramp occurs, as long as you “do the opposite”, that is, pull your toes in the opposite direction of the force and hold it for more than 1 to 2 minutes, you can achieve results. Specifically, if the muscles in the back of the calf are cramping, on the one hand, you can pull the foot to lift the foot, and on the other hand, try to straighten the knee joint; when the muscle in the front of the calf cramps, you can press the foot and bend the toes.
The best immediate response to a leg cramp is to gently stretch the tight muscle.
The first method is: once a leg cramp occurs, you can immediately grab the big toe on the side of the cramp with your hand, and then slowly pull the sole of the foot toward you, which can stretch the gastrocnemius muscle. Then slowly straighten your feet, and then stretch your legs hard, the calf muscles will not cramp; or massage your calf with both hands, it can also be effective.
The second method is: lean in front of the wall with your heels on the ground. It also helps if you just stand and then focus your weight on the cramping leg, but you should be careful about falling: it’s better if you have someone nearby who can help. Warming (using an electric blanket or lukewarm water but not boiling water) or massaging the legs and feet can also help with muscle relaxation, but it’s best to try stretching them first.
Emergency solutions for leg cramps
1. You should take measures as soon as possible after a leg cramp occurs, otherwise it will cause further damage to the muscles, and The severe pain that accompanies the cramps can also be unbearable for you. The emergency measures for leg cramps are relatively simple, which can be divided into emergency measures under the assistance of others and self-help emergency measures by one person:
2. Alone: only you are present when the cramp occurs. At this time, you need to quickly contract the soles of your feet, bend the toes toward the soles of the feet, make the soles of the feet arc, and then straighten the legs with your hands. If you are sitting, you can press the knees with your hands to straighten them. . Hold for 5 seconds. After the pain is gone, keep pressing the knee, then slowly relax the thigh, and straighten the leg if you feel the pain again.
3. Assist others: When someone has leg cramps and doesn’t know what to do, you should quickly instruct him to straighten his legs and lift his feet to his head ,as the picture shows. Hold for a few seconds to touch the pain.
Pregnant women with leg cramps?
If your calf cramps, stretch your calf muscles right away: Straighten your leg, starting at the heel, and slowly hook your toes toward your shinbone (the long bone on the inside of your calf). Although it may be painful at first, doing so will reduce the spasms and the pain will gradually go away.
You can try massaging your muscles or applying a bottle of hot water to relax your cramping muscles. Walking back and forth for a few minutes may also help relieve calf cramps.
What should pregnant women eat for leg cramps
1. Calcium supplementation: As we know, the calcium required for fetal bone growth all depends on the pregnant mother to provide, Therefore, pregnant mothers must ensure a calcium intake of about 1200 mg to 1500 mg per day. If the maternal calcium intake is insufficient, it will cause hypocalcemia. Calcium is an important factor in regulating muscle contraction, cell division, and glandular secretion. Low calcium will increase neuromuscular excitability, leading to muscle contraction and subsequent cramping. Because the blood calcium level at night is often lower than that in the day, the cramps mostly occur at night. Calcium should be appropriately selected as an auxiliary supplement. At present, pregnant women eat more calcium? Zhiyuan tablets. Generally, it is recommended to take one calcium tablet a day. If calcium deficiency is obvious, two tablets a day. While supplementing calcium, pregnant women should bask in the sun more to promote the absorption and utilization of calcium. In addition, it is recommended to drink several glasses of fresh orange juice every day to supplement minerals.
2. Scientific diet: Pregnant mothers should pay attention to eating more calcium-rich foods, such as sesame, milk, pork ribs, dried shrimp and so on. Seaweed is rich in iodine and calcium (stewed shrimp and rice with seaweed are good choices), calcium in dairy products, green leafy vegetables, sunflower seeds, salmon, and dried beans; dates, figs, sweet corn, green vegetables, and apples Contains magnesium; foods rich in vitamin C include citrus fruits (such as oranges, tangerines, and grapefruit), leafy greens, potatoes, and tomatoes. Pregnant women eat, it is conducive to fetal growth, and can prevent muscle spasms.
3. Couplings for leg cramps
Dish name: Beef shredded with celery
Ingredients: 300 grams of tender beef, 200 grams of celery
Ingredients: cooking wine, soy sauce, starch, sugar, salt, diced green onion, shredded ginger, vegetable oil, monosodium glutamate.
Preparation: Wash the beef and cut it into small cubes. Add cooking wine, soy sauce, starch, monosodium glutamate and marinate for about 1 hour; choose celery leaves, remove roots, wash and cut into sections.
Method: Stir fry ginger slices in a hot pan, then add the marinated beef. Add the chopped celery, stir fry; add a little water as appropriate, season it out of the pot.
Efficacy: Beef is rich in protein, fat, vitamin A, carotene, calcium, phosphorus, potassium and other nutrients, and it is combined with celery containing protein, multivitamins, calcium, phosphorus, iron and other nutrients to make a dish , can strengthen tendons and bones, improve the phenomenon of easy cramps in pregnancy.
4. Soup Name: Whitebait Green Leaf Eucommia Shredded Pork Soup
Ingredients: 1g Eucommia, 250g amaranth, 100g whitebait, 25g pork shreds
Seasoning: ? MSG, salt, cornstarch, water and broth in appropriate amount
Preparation: first pick the amaranth, wash it, and cut it into small pieces for later use.
Practice: Bring the stock to a boil in the pot, add Eucommia, amaranth, whitebait, and pork shreds and bring to a boil; add salt to taste, and thicken with cornstarch water.
Efficacy: Eucommia can invigorate the liver and kidneys, strengthen bones and muscles; whitebait and amaranth are rich in calcium, which can strengthen bones and muscles. This soup is rich in calcium, which can improve the phenomenon of leg cramps during pregnancy.
What to do with leg cramps while sleeping?
Leg cramps during sleep may also be caused by electrolyte imbalance, calcium deficiency, and excessive water loss in the body, and may also be related to some medical diseases (such as hypothyroidism) or drug side effects (taking certain hypothyroidism) pressure drugs and hypolipidemic drugs) and neurological lesions. Therefore, drink a diluted sports drink or light salt water before going to bed, and pay attention to keeping warm while sleeping.
If the cramps are caused by electrolyte imbalance, calcium deficiency, nerve stimulation, etc., they often do not only occur on the legs and feet, but may also occur in other parts of the body, and they will recur repeatedly.
How to prevent foot cramps
1. Do not do prolonged or strenuous exercise in poorly ventilated or confined spaces.
2. Sufficient water and electrolytes must be replenished before, during and after long-term exercise.
3. Get enough minerals (such as calcium, magnesium) and electrolytes (such as potassium, sodium) in your daily diet, and you can also choose some calcium supplements, such as calcium edge tablets. Mineral intake can be obtained from milk, yogurt, green leafy vegetables and other foods, and electrolytes can be obtained from bananas, oranges, celery, natural foods, etc. or some low-sugar beverages.
4. Do not wear clothes that are too tight or heavy for sports or work.
5. Check protective tapes, boots, and socks for tightness before exercising.
6. Do sufficient preparatory exercises and stretching exercises before exercising.
7. Proper insulation should be done after exercising in cold weather. For example, change your swimsuit immediately after swimming and put on warm clothes.
8. Play sports or work in a relaxed mood.
9. People who are prone to cramps at night should do some stretching exercises before going to bed, especially stretching the parts prone to cramps.
10. Don’t overdo it.
11. Massage the muscles that are prone to cramping properly before exercising.
