How To Get Rid Of Leg Cramps Fast – Cramps happen to athletes, but why? Learn all about preventing muscle cramps in teen athletes from Offseason Athlete, a trusted site built just for teen athletes.

It’s the State Weightlifting Championships and the athletes are ready to leave it all on the platform. Many months are spent training the body and mind to perform at the highest level. Some competitors are just happy to be there, but Jason was a district and regional champion. He’s not there just to compete, instead, to perform and make his family proud.

How To Get Rid Of Leg Cramps Fast

Seconds before his first lift, Jason’s calf begins to tense, which quickly turns into excruciating pain that causes him to kneel and fall to the ground. The stalemate lasts for a few seconds, and he misses his first two lifts which ends up placing him in second place in the United States. Did the stalemate keep Jason from becoming a State Champion? It very well could have and could have been prevented.

Foot And Leg Cramps At Night (nocturnal Cramps)

Situations like Jason’s often leave parents and their athletes filled with questions about cramps – Why do athletes get them? Is it dehydration? Lack of electrolytes? Lack of alignment? As a parent, is constipation something out of your control or is it preventable? These are the questions that will be discussed below in preventing muscle cramps in adolescent athletes.

Some forms of cramps include exercise-related cramps, leg cramps at night, and writer’s cramps that occur in the hands, however, the most common form of muscle cramps are exercise-related.

Cramps may simply feel like painful contractions of muscle fibers, but it should be noted that the brain plays a major role in muscle activity. This is due to the muscle nerves sending electrical signals to the muscle fibers, which allows the thought of movement to become a reality. However, that doesn’t mean we’re actively thinking about cramps, which is why we get them. Rather, it leads us to believe that there is a disconnect or malfunction in the electrical signaling from the brain to the muscle when the onset of seizures occurs. This electrical signaling is facilitated by the electrolytes sodium, potassium, and calcium, while calcium and potassium play important roles in the actual muscle contraction.

When a teenage athlete experiences a concussion, as in the story above, it can be frustrating at best and devastatingly painful at worst. While the exact reason for each muscle cramp is not always clear, there are many widely accepted explanations to explore.

Leg Cramps At Night: Causes & How To Stop

A major reason why cramps occur that is often overlooked is muscle fatigue. ( source ) When the body is fatigued, unconditioned, undergoing an increase in exercise intensity or volume, or training in hot environments, muscles can fatigue faster than an athlete realizes. This is important for athletes to be aware of when starting this type of training, especially if they have a history of muscle cramps.

Other major scientific theories as to why muscle cramps occur in athletes are related to dehydration, electrolyte imbalance, and neuromuscular strain. A multicenter American study found that 74% of cramps occur in athletes in hot environmental conditions, leading us to believe that there is a strong connection.

Another important consideration with sports-related cramping is whether an athlete has chronic, recurring problems with cramping or a seemingly random experience with cramping. Chronic cramps, according to Seth Magnani, PT, DPT, ATC, are often related to tight or strained muscles and/or connective tissue that result in poor mobility. Stretching, mobility work, and myofascial releases from professionally trained providers can be helpful in reducing frequent cramping.

The million dollar question here is whether or not muscle cramps can be prevented in teenage athletes. Unfortunately, there is no consistent answer to this question because every cramping situation is unique and many body processes are taking place. But there are certainly a number of nutritional recommendations you can implement to help prevent muscle cramps in athletes.

What Causes Leg Cramps And What To Do About Them

While dehydration is thought to be an obvious cause of cramps, it has actually been found that in

While research has not perfectly captured this connection, it is widely accepted that hydration plays a role in proper muscle function, and certainly overall performance, during athletics. Even a small level of dehydration can adversely affect the strain on the muscular system including the heart, alter the functioning of the nervous system and increase the internal temperature. (source,

All athletes (mostly) sweat and therefore experience fluid and electrolyte loss. It is prudent to have a solid hydration plan for practices and competition that includes adequate amounts of fluids and electrolytes when appropriate. Athletes who have experienced muscle cramps should absolutely pay attention to how well they hydrate before, during and after training sessions and competitions.

It is important to note that some adolescent athletes do not voluntarily drink water as a means of hydration, but it is the coach or parent who can remind them to do so. This may be why teenage athletes are at risk for hydration-related issues. As parents, you can help play a role in ensuring adequate hydration for your young athletes, especially when the stakes are high.

Leg Cramps: Causes, Treatments & When To Worry

Adding flavor to water is one way to encourage drinking throughout the day. There are many ways to add flavor to water along with electrolytes for additional benefits. Products like Nuun Tablets, NOW Effer Tablets, zero calorie sports drinks are widely available and help make water more appealing. For many teens, any steps that can be taken to increase voluntary fluid intake will help reduce the risk of health problems related to dehydration, heat stress, and may even prevent cramps.

Electrolytes are a big buzzword in the world of sports drinks, but what exactly are they? Electrolytes are minerals in your body that contain an electrical charge. Examples are: magnesium, potassium, chloride, sodium, calcium and phosphate.

Electrolytes serve important roles in your body such as maintaining proper cell function, muscle contractions, nervous system functions and even balancing your body’s pH levels.

Sodium and chloride are the two electrolytes that are lost in the largest amounts in sweat. Sodium and chloride together make sodium chloride, otherwise known as table salt. They play an important role in nerve and muscle function, as well as fluid balance.

Muscle Cramping & Spasms

Loss of sodium and chloride through sweat has been linked to many heat-related problems, such as cramps in athletes, and can significantly hinder performance.

A 2005 study found that college players who experienced muscle cramps had twice as high levels of sodium in their sweat as those players who did not. lower blood sodium levels during and after practices. ( source ) This strongly suggests that ensuring adequate sodium intake during athletic performance is important when large sweat sodium losses occur

While the average teenager likely consumes more sodium than the recommended amount, athletes excrete sodium chloride through sweat, especially when they have multiple practices in a day, multiple races in a day, or are in hot conditions.

This means their basic sodium needs can be met just fine, but if they are heavy sweaters or will sweat a lot in a day, adding sodium chloride to their drinks is probably a good idea.

Foot Cramps: Common Causes And Treatment

If you have concerns that your teen is consuming too much sodium through their diet, working with a sports nutritionist can help you choose the best approach for them.

In some cases (usually rare) your teen may not be eating enough whole foods or salty foods to support their sodium needs. Simply encouraging them to consume salty foods such as whole-grain crackers, pretzels, salted nuts, dry, electrolyte-rich drinks is a quick and convenient way to get enough sodium.

Potassium is an electrolyte that has many important roles such as helping muscles and nerves in their functions. Potassium specifically plays an important role in signaling muscle contraction, making it natural to hypothesize that it is involved in the cause of sports-related cramps. However, unlike sodium, potassium is not an electrolyte that is significantly lost in sweat. Only a small amount is lost in sweat where 90% is lost in the urine and approximately 10% is excreted in the feces.

Although not significantly lost through sweat, athletes may need more potassium than the Adequate Intake (AI) of 3,000 mg for men and 2,300 mg for women between the ages of 14-18.

Muscle Cramps: Causes, Symptoms, Prevention, And Treatment

Beyond just muscle cramps, potassium plays an important role in overall health, especially when consumed through whole food sources. The whole food sources with the highest amount of potassium are:

It is prudent for teenage athletes to first increase their intake of potassium-rich whole foods before considering whether they need it in their sports drinks.

You may have noticed that bananas were not at the top of the list of food sources. Bananas are one of the OG whole food options for athletes. One of the reasons is because they are thought to be a source of potassium, which they absolutely are. A medium banana provides 422 mg of potassium which is not as high as

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