cramps

[jimmyj]

I have had either heatstroke or sunstroke 2x (don't know if they are the same thing or not) and both were from doing roof shingles. Now I make sure to drink a lot of water and a supplement with salt and stuff in it like gatorade or v8 or something. When I was making an ATV through the bush last year it was not uncommon for me to drink over a gallon per day just while I was working. Maybe it is because I sweat more now that I'm older or something but if I don't drink my heart pounds so hard I can hear it in my ears and I get headaches and so on. Never cramps though oddly enough.

I do drink beer too I must admit but never hard liquor. Mmmm, Beer...

 

[Redneck in training]

aside from dehydration, the most common cause of cramping is low electrolytes. specifically potassium and magnesium. these two minerals are usually deficient in most american diets and are often removed in the water purification process when making bottled water.

eat bananas for potassium and use magnesium chloride lotion to replenish mag. or take a decent multi mineral supplement. you'll probably see improvements in other areas, too, and fewer muscle cramps.

glad you weren't hurt when the leg cramps hit!

amp

I agree 100%. We ride bicycles a lot. We do 7 days trip across Iowa from Missouri to Mississippi river every year. One hot day I just cramped for hours. I wanted to prevent dehydration and drank a lot of purified water previous day. Apparently I was loosing all minerals. When we reached our overnight place I was just craving pickle juice. Some time after I drank about a pint of it the cramps stopped. For next few days I ate bananas, drank V8, Propel and Gatorade together with water and had no cramps for rest of the trip.

 

[tommu56]

I get leg cramps on a regular basis if I don't hydrate, I also take potassium but be careful with it.

When I was hiking alot we would cammel up were you had water drink a liter and fill water bottle back up.

I also prefer a hydration pack once you get in the habit to sip it regularly it is almost second nature to take a sip if you get it set right you dont need any hands.

tom

 

[dex3361]

When I work outside in the heat and sweat a lot I will tend to cramp up that night. My father in law told me how he has dealt with it for years. He takes a healthy pinch of salt and chases it with water. When I am cramping the salt doesnt tast as salty (if that makes any sense) I guess because I am craving it. May not be the healthiest solution but it sure works for me.

 

[mrutkaus]

hmmm...just a note of warning, check out: Deep Vein Thrombosis | Vascular Disease Foundation

blod clots which can be deadly do form in the legs and can cause great pain.

mike

 

[AchingBack]

Toss the Gatorade. An EMT told me to simply add honey and lemon juice to my drinking water, and that those two ingredients contained all of the necessary electrolytes. Also, before going out to work in hot weather, drink water ahead of time.

Finally, if you are getting muscle cramps from lack of magnesium, remember, you heart is a muscle, and the older we are, the more critical our need for magnesium.

 

[Wis Bang]

My friends father was sheet metal guy involved in roofing. He drank water & lemon juce by the galions. Said it was the only thing they drank up on the roofs.

He had 6 kids and supplemented by making sheet metal ductwork in his basement, had an 8' brake and all! Next to his 'hot' work area [sodering iron furnace] was a fridge kept full of Ballentines Ale for 'nights'...

 

[Richard]

The wife of a guy I work with has multiple health issues... I can't even begin to remember them all. Addiysons is the root of them I think...regardless...she also has a problem with cramps and was told in addition to bananas, she could eat apricots and they too, were a great source of potassium.

 

[deereman64]

The strange thing is that cramps will often bring amusement to the onlooker. Several years ago I was involved in a race that meant running up Mount Snowdon in Wales. The start was from the sea and so to the top it was about 10 miles and 2500 ft and so you can imagine by the time I reached the top I was in a state of complete seizure. Now, the Victorians in their infinite wisdom had built a railway to the top of the mountain and as the passengers alighted from the train this spinning and dying cock roach was met with much derision