Can anybody please explain what the cause of cramp is?
I've only ever had cramp twice in my life before recently. First was when I fell asleep with my leg hanging out of the bed and upon waking and stretching out, it hit my calf.
The second time was when just after 48hrs without sleep prior to an exam which was followed immediately by some very serious partying...my calf seized up just as I crawled back to my room.
The past few days, I've felt the twinge of cramp coming on in my left hand, each time when going for a piss?! What's going on? It's happened a few times now and I'm a bit concerned and don't know what's happening to my body.
Can any kind soul let me know what cramp is and what causes it?!
Cheers!!!
Depends on the cramp. It could be imbalances of things your body needs from over sweating. Creatine can cause muscle cramps because it draws water to the large muscles. Running can cause cramps due to (I assume) all the movement of the body when food is present in your stomach.
Gas
Cramps are caused by a lack of oxygen inside muscle tissue due to the bodies inability to supply enough oxyegnated blood to the spot. Your hand most likely "cramps" up because of some position your reaching for your zipper or something. Stay hydrated and make sure you become aware of what exactly your left hand is doing haha. I joke.
http://my.webmd.com/content/article/17/1676_50153.htm?lastselectedguid={5FE84E90-BC77-4056-A91C-9531713CA348}
HonkeyStyle,
Thanks for the link. The article you posted pretty much sums up everything I've found during my research on the topic during the last few days.
Great and timely topic, BTW
I've been getting brutal calf and quad cramps for the last 3-4 weeks now. I've actually cut my mileage way down, but have recently added an HIIT (sprint work) component to my workouts. Right now, I haven't done an interval sprint workout in over a week, and my last run was an easy 5 miles two days ago. My calves, feet and tibialis anteriors are still lighting up every 5 minutes. I've been trying to stretch, but the opposing muscle groups usually go crazy when I do (i.e. tib anterior cramping when I try to stretch calves).
I think I may schedule a massage tomorrow.