leg and toe cramps

"susan" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

now that the water is a bit colder in the lakes i am getting toe cramps

and

Quoted message said:

leg cramps--I eat lots of fruit and drink plenty of water--any solutions? thanx - Susan and the
Wolves [email hidden]

Stretch and make sure you're getting enough electrolytes and potassium. Stretch stretch stretch.
Before, during and after swimming.

Oh, at home in the evening, lay on the floor, on your back, put your feet up on the couch and hang
out there 10-15 minutes. My doc explained the benefits of that... I forgot the details, but it helps
a little bit. He also told me to do that within half an hour or so after swimming too. (it's not
always convenient to do that ...)

susan said:

now that the water is a bit colder in the lakes i am getting toe cramps and leg cramps--I eat lots
of fruit and drink plenty of water--any solutions? thanx Susan and the Wolves
[email hidden]

Here's a link to recent threads about this topic on this newsgroup: google.comgroupsOpen ↗
_q=&num=10&as_scoring=r&hl=en&ie=ISO-8859-1&btnG=Google+Search&as_epq=cramp&as_oq=&as_eq=&as_ugroup-
=rec.sport.swimming&as_usubject=&as_uauthors=&as_umsgid=&lr=&as_drrb=q&as_qdr=&as_mind=12&as_minm=5-
&as_miny=1981&as_maxd=8&as_maxm=9&as_maxy=2003&safe=images

My experiences: After years of calf cramping during intense swimming, I started taking a magnesium
supplement and the cramps ceased. I had previously taken calcium and potassium and eaten the right
foods, but that wasn't enough: I needed a big slug of magnesium, too.

When I vigorously exercise on a stairmaster or recumbent bicycle my hamstrings may begin to cramp
later in the evening, especially when I first lie down. Taking ~1/4 teaspoon of potassium chloride
("NuSalt" or "salt substitute": look for "potassium chloride" in the ingredients) and ~266 mg of
magnesium stops those cramps very quickly.

Good Luck, Michael D. Kersey

In article <qtw6b.29646$S_.16654@fed1read01>,

DaKitty said:

"susan" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

now that the water is a bit colder in the lakes i am getting toe cramps

and

Quoted message said:

leg cramps--I eat lots of fruit and drink plenty of water--any solutions? thanx - Susan and the
Wolves [email hidden]

Stretch and make sure you're getting enough electrolytes and potassium. Stretch stretch stretch.
Before, during and after swimming.

Oh, at home in the evening, lay on the floor, on your back, put your feet up on the couch and hang
out there 10-15 minutes. My doc explained the benefits of that... I forgot the details, but it
helps a little bit. He also told me to do that within half an hour or so after swimming too. (it's
not always convenient to do that ...)

since i began swimming a lot a couple of years ago, i've had my share of calf cramps. they happen
rarely now, but i do get a cramping of the foot, right in the arch area, periodically.

before the swim, i stretch the foot - sort of. i lift the leg, then i point my toes and try to curl
my foot downward... as though it were to fit neatly over a ball. hard to describe; hope that makes
sense. i hold that for a count of 5-10 seconds, then stretch the foot the other way... imagining you
want to touch your toes to your shins. this also stretches the calf muscle a bit. a few of those and
i can get through an hour workout with no probs.

i do not attempt much direct calf stretching as those muscles are usually tight already due to the
running that i do. further stretching would do more harm than good, so what i do is ROLL the calves
- rubbing them against the edge of a chair or table or railing or something that you can press the
calf against to work out muscle tightness and knots. it can hurt sometimes (when there's a nasty
knot) but it works like a dream. or just massage the calves with a rolling pin, or hands. whatever.

Cam

--
Not every race can be a perfect experience, but every race can be a learning experience.

x-no-archive:yes

Quoted message said:

since i began swimming a lot a couple of years ago, i've had my share of calf cramps. they happen
rarely now, but i do get a cramping of the foot, right in the arch area, periodically.

before the swim, i stretch the foot - sort of. i lift the leg, then i point my toes and try to
curl my foot downward... as though it were to fit neatly over a ball. hard to describe; hope that
makes sense. i hold that for a count of 5-10 seconds, then stretch the foot the other way...
imagining you want to touch your toes to your shins. this also stretches the calf muscle a bit. a
few of those and i can get through an hour workout with no probs.

i do not attempt much direct calf stretching as those muscles are usually tight already due to the
running that i do. further stretching would do more harm than good, so what i do is ROLL the
calves - rubbing them against the edge of a chair or table or railing or something that you can
press the calf against to work out muscle tightness and knots. it can hurt sometimes (when there's
a nasty knot) but it works like a dream. or just massage the calves with a rolling pin, or hands.
whatever.

Cam

Sometimes I get cramps in the arch areas when I push off at the end of the pool. They usually stop
after awhile, but sometimes it takes another strong push off to get rid of the cramp! Does this ever
happen to you?

Pat in TX

Quoted message said:

--
Not every race can be a perfect experience, but every race can be a learning experience.

In article said:

Sometimes I get cramps in the arch areas when I push off at the end of the pool. They usually stop
after awhile, but sometimes it takes another strong push off to get rid of the cramp! Does this
ever happen to you?

Pat in TX

sure, almost any little thing like that can trigger my arch cramps. i have learned that i am not
relaxing the foot or even the whole lower leg enough while swimming and am working those areas more
than i should. when i feel a foot starting to have that sensation of an oncoming cramp, i'll loosen
up the feet and let them flop around, and focus on kicking from the hips/thighs. that does the
trick, usually. and that's really where the kick power should come from anyway - right? (anyone?)

so.... don't push off the wall if that's what causes cramps.

Cam

--
Not every race can be a perfect experience, but every race can be a learning experience.