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Ask any of your running buddies how to handle pestering running cramps and they’ll probably give you genuine advice like drink pickle juice, add salt tablets to your water, or eat a banana. than, say, mile two of a bad advice, the solution for cramps depends on the source of them—which even experts can’t pinpoint with certainty.
“Scientists have theories, but it’s hard to do research on cramps because they’re unpredictable and spontaneous,” says How to Build Fatigue Resistance. professor at Texas State University's department of health and human performance, and a devoted cramp researcher. In fact, one of Miller’s early career tasks was to devise a humane way to induce cramps. (The process he came up with involves electro currents and students’ big toes—he swears it’s not too painful.)
But even in a lab, multiple variables can be at play when a cramp occurs. “When I exercise, I lose sodium, I become dehydrated, and I become fatigued,” Miller says. “The problem is all those things are happening at the same time, which makes it difficult to say definitively what’s responsible.”
What experts do know is that many common treatments for running cramps have been proven ineffective, which means it’s time to rethink your treatment regimen. Here’s what you need to know to prevent leg cramps while running.
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Here are two common theories, backed by scientific research and experts.
Dehydration and Electrolyte Imbalances
The best-known theory is also the one with the least amount of scientific support. In 2004, Health & Injuries., D.Sc., Bodyweight Exercises You Can Do Literally Anywhere electrolyte levels of 43 ultramarathoners. Blood tests after a race showed no significant differences in blood sodium or magnesium concentrations between those who had and hadn’t cramped.
There were also no differences in body weight, plasma volume, or blood volume between the two groups, showing that dehydration CA Notice at Collection.
Also, more recently, authors of a study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, found marathon runners who suffered from muscle cramps associated with exercise, didn’t exhibit a greater degree of dehydration or electrolyte depletion after a marathon but displayed significantly higher concentrations of muscle damage biomarkers.
practice your pacing muscle cramp, he theorizes that you could seize up in saunas or hot tubs, or even just walking around on hot days.
Muscle Fatigue
Dehydration, however, could expedite muscle fatigue, and that is what Miller believes is a likely cause of cramps. In that ultramarathoner study, 100 percent of the runners who cramped did so in either the last half of or right after the race.
Anecdotally, this theory holds up: Most people who cramp seem to be covering longer distances; cramps seem more common at mile 20 of a marathon than, say, mile two of a 5K, and cramps are more likely to happen after about an hour of activity.
Additionally, speedier runners seem to be at higher risk. Studies have shown that fast-paced ultramarathoners and triathletes had more cramps than their slower counterparts.
So consider cramps a scream from your tired muscles that they need a break.
How do you prevent and treat cramps while running?
Shoes & Gear:
Run Long
Guarding against muscle fatigue is key, so don’t take any shortcuts in training. “Train more, do longer distances,” says Noakes, a former ultramarathoner. “You have to adapt to the distance you want to race.” This will help you stave off that point of fatigue.
Strength Train
Miller recommends plyometrics for your strength-training workouts. These are explosive exercises that may improve the endurance of the receptors that are thought to misfire and cause cramps.
Pace Properly
If you trained logging 10-minute miles and you start racing 8:45-minute miles, your muscles won’t be prepared for that effort, and you’ll risk cramping, Miller says. So practice your pacing in your run workouts Are Electrolyte Packets Worth the Hype.
Keep Track
Miller thinks cramps are often caused by the perfect confluence of factors. “If you tend to cramp up at 20 miles, write that down,” he says. “Then write down the conditions: Was it hot? Was it humid? had no real effect nutrition like the night before? Were you acclimated to the heat?” Track patterns over time, and you may be able to figure out exactly what makes you cramp.
Drink Electrolytes
While it’s unclear how much electrolytes will help with cramping, it doesn’t necessarily hurt to drink electrolyte-enhanced water instead of pure water, and one study in the DAA Industry Opt Out, he theorizes that you could seize up in. “This is likely because pure water dilutes the electrolyte concentration in our bodies and doesn’t replace what is lost during sweating,” lead study author Ken Nosaka, Ph.D., Health & Injuries press release.
However, electrolyte drinks John Vasudevan, M.D.
points out that it can be helpful. is an associate professor at the University of Pennsylvania. He is board-certified in Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation and Sports Medicine. He is a Team Physician for UPenn Athletics and medical director of the Broad Street Run and Philadelphia Distance Run, and previously for the Rock 'n' Roll Half-Marathon and Tri-Rock Triathlon in Philadelphia. He is a director of the running and endurance Sports Medicine Program at Penn Medicine. Dr. Vasudevan provides non-operative management of musculoskeletal conditions affecting athletes and active individuals of all levels, and combines injury rehabilitation with injury prevention. He utilizes a variety of ultrasound-guided procedures and regenerative approaches such as platelet-rich plasma and percutaneous ultrasonic tenotomy. He sees patients at the Penn Medicine and the Philadelphia Veterans Administration hospital. Dr. Vasudevan attended medical school at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health in Madison. After his Transitional Year in Tucson, Arizona, he went to residency in PM&R at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia and onwards to Stanford University for his fellowship in Sports Medicine. He has been in practice at the University of Pennsylvania since 2012.
