Why muscle cramps?

by Amber Belt, ND

We  are in full swing summer, which generally means full swing muscle cramp  season! I get a number of questions in my practice and on social media  about muscle cramps. Today, I’d like to help you prevent and get rid of  muscle cramps so that you and your muscles can have a more enjoyable  summer.

What causes muscle cramps?

There  can be many reasons that cramps happen, but I’m going to go over two of  the most common causes of cramps. My hope is that teaching you why you  cramp will help you avoid future cramping episodes as best as you  possibly can.

Electrolytes/hydration

It’s  hot outside and in Northern Arizona, it’s easy to sweat a lot and not  realize it because our sweat evaporates so quickly. Most of us who live  in the high desert understand the importance of water, but the  importance of electrolytes can be overlooked.

When  we sweat, especially when we sweat profusely and for a long period of  time, we create a deficit of electrolytes. The most notable electrolyte  losses when it comes to muscle cramping are sodium and chloride. Sound  familiar? It should! Sodium chloride is what we all know as salt. We  also lose other electrolytes such as potassium, magnesium, and calcium  when we sweat.

With these  electrolyte losses and dehydration, our body compensates by moving fluid  from muscle tissue into our blood vessels in order to protect the  vascular system and heart. This leaves our muscles with less fluid  within the muscle cells themselves. The remaining fluid doesn’t have the  proper proportion of electrolytes or fluid to maintain normal muscle  function.

This  concentrated and depleted fluid that remains in the muscle cells  disrupts the normal electrical input to our muscle cells. This abnormal  fluid can cause the nerve that controls muscle contractions to  erratically fire. If enough of these nerves begin to fire many muscle  cells will contract, which results in cramping.

Cramping  from electrolyte depletion will often start with small twitches in  muscles (usually leg muscles) and progress to full on muscle cramps.  These types of cramps can even persist after we’re done sweating if the  fluid imbalance isn’t corrected. And, with this type of cramping, it’s  not limited to the muscles that are being used. Any muscle can cramp  when electrolytes are imbalanced.

If  you start to notice the little muscle twitches that come before the big  cramp it’s smart to drink a rapidly absorbed, highly concentrated  electrolyte beverage. Getting electrolytes on board will often provide  relief rather quickly. The concentrated electrolytes can be followed  with a more diluted electrolyte drink. Additionally, gentle massage may  help the twitching or cramping muscles to relax while the electrolytes  are doing their thing on a cellular level.

Fatigue

Yeah,  it’s hot in the summer and we like to blame all of cramps on heat. But a  lot of cramps happen due to muscle fatigue. I see a lot of muscle  cramping in people who are doing the Weekend Warrior thing and overusing  muscles that have not seen a lot of use on a daily basis. However,  cramps can happen even in fit athletes if they are overexerting  themselves.

On  a cellular level, these types of cramps happen when the neuromuscular  balance of the muscle fibers becomes imbalanced. The excitatory input to  the muscle that causes the muscle to contract overwhelms the inhibitory  input to the muscle. Without the proper balance to inhibit the muscle’s  contraction, contracting (aka cramping) is all the muscle can do. Ouch!

When  cramping happens due to fatigue, the cramp will be limited to the  muscle or muscles that have been overused and are now overly fatigued.  The best remedy for these cramps when they do happen is stretching and  gentle massage to the muscle that has been affected.

If  you are deconditioned (out of shape), if you don’t stretch and lack  mobility, and/or if you overexercise…watch out! You are more likely to  get muscle cramps due to fatigue.

Other conditions

There  are many other conditions that can lead to muscle cramping. If your  cramping isn’t due to electrolyte imbalance or fatigue you need to see a  medical professional to dig deeper and get to the cause of your cramps.  

Muscle cramps may indicate a more serious problem and be caused by lack  of blood flow to a muscle or compression of the nerves that feed a  muscle. It’s also not uncommon for cramping to be a side effect of a  medication, so scrutinizing prescription and over the counter  medications may be needed if cramping is happening.