Leg cramps are common. The atheletes have it; the sports persons have it; and you can have it. It is a sudden, involuntary contraction of one or few of your leg muscles. It may happen while walking, running, working or even sleeping. Whatever be the position you are in leg cramps can result in severe pain and make you stop on your track or wake up at night. You can not walk an inch without reducing the severity of pain to some extent. Your attention will focus on immediate resolution of the pain.
However, it must be said that leg cramps are harmless. There may be several reasons behind such muscle cramps. If you had been exercising or engaged in physical exertion for a long time; training in the filed; if the weather is too hot and you had been sweating heavily; or suffering from some mineral deficiency. Some medicines may also cause muscular cramps.
Whatever be the reason, leg cramps are curable. There are a lot of self care measures that you can adopt at home. These are home remedies. Let us look at some of the home remedies for leg cramps.
Home Remedies For Leg Cramps
Stretch
For immediate pain relief you can stretch that part of your body. Stretchthe cramped muscle along with some Stretchon it with your hands will help the muscle to relax. This will give you some relief. If it is one of the calves of your legs that has cramped, then you should try putting the weight of the body on the affected leg. This will help in relieving the pain to some extent.
If the cramp is in the thigh and you are not able to stand then you should sit on the floor with the affected leg extended and stretched. Now try to stretch the toe towards you. This will give you relief from a back thigh cramp. If the cramp has hit the front thigh then you should sit on a chair, extend the affected leg to the fullest and then pull the toe towards your buttock. This may be able to resolve a front thigh muscular cramp.
Ice
Ice is always used as an emergency aid to resolve pain. It is more so for athletes and sportspersons. Ice has the capacity to constrict blood vessels. This leads to reduced flow of blood which in turn leads to reduced pain sensation. Thus you can get some immediate pain relief if you apply an ice pack on the cramped area.
Heating Pad
After application of ice for some time the muscle can get sore and stiff. The blood flow is reduced. This needs to be increased to heal the muscle. For this you can use heating pad or moist heat. If you have got a heating pad set the pad to low heat and apply it for at least 15-20 minutes.
If not, heat a bowl of water, soak a cloth in it and apply it on the sore area. You will get over cramp soon. You can add some epsom salt to it as it helps muscles to relax.
Press On The Cramp
It has been seen that pressing on the cramp can bring about some much sough after relief from the pain. For this seek out the center of the affected area and press hard on it with your thumb or fist for about 10 to 15 seconds and release. Repeat this process three to four times. Initially you will feel some discomfort, but the pain will be gone with a few attempts.
Salt Solution And Electrolyte
If the muscle cramp is due to lack of salt, electrolyte and minerals then you can have some electrolytic solution. This will compensate for the loss of minerals such as potassium, calcium and magnesium from the muscle tissues. These minerals are responsible for regulating your muscles and nerves.
For restoring the balance of these minerals you can have banana, chocolates, apricots, sea food etc.
Water
If you are in the habit of getting muscular cramps during workout or exertion you should get some water or fluid before starting workout. Take at least two glasses of water. You can also have fruit juice or soups. If it is very hot you can have some glucose water too. Chicken soup will provide nutrition as well as water.
Take Some Seeds And Nuts
It is found that adequate stock of vitamin E in the body can prevent muscular cramps at night. It also improves blood flow in the arteries. You will get lot of vitamin E in sunflower seeds, almonds, peanuts, spinach etc. So incorporate these foods in your daily food list to prevent nocturnal muscular cramps.
Caution: Please use Remedies after Proper Research and Guidance. You accept that you are following any advice at your own risk and will properly research or consult healthcare professional.
